The Key to Fighting Fear

by Kristen Wetherell “When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.” Psalm 56:3 (ESV) I’ll never forget the sight of our first ultrasound images. Tears pooled in my eyes as I considered the delicacy of our baby’s sweet frame, and the precision of how our Creator had knit her together in my womb. …

The Courage to Proceed

"No matter what things look like, you can courageously face stressful situations and life’s alternative traffic patterns knowing that God is right beside you." by Tracie Braylock “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you …

Choosing Calling Over Comfort

by Lysa Terkeurst “ … Jesus said to Simon Peter, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?’” John 21:15a (NIV) Have you ever felt God stirring you to do something that’s terrifyingly outside of your comfort zone? Something completely opposite of what you think you want to do? I confess that …

How to win life’s battles (4)

"You didn't let Me down, because you weren't holding Me up.." 2 Chronicles 20:15 NIV Fourth, learn to relax in faith. Notice how God responded to Jehoshaphat's prayer: "The battle is not yours, but God's." Many of us wear ourselves out trying to fight God's battles in our own strength. In the initial flush of …

Maybe It’s Time to Start Making Excuses

by Meredith Houston Carr “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ — by grace you have been saved — and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the …

Learning to Love the Good But Hard Life

by Katherine Wolf “Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides.” (James 1:2, MSG) No matter what chaos the day holds, my family can count on one constant: our bedtime routine. To clarify, I don’t mean precious hours of bonding over bath time, book reading, teeth brushing …

Sweet Talk

Do the words I speak build up or tear down? by Arlene Pellecane “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.”  (Ephesians 4:29, NIV) My husband James and I would talk for …

You Don’t Get to Choose My Name!

"As children of God, we don’t live by the names we are called; we live as the named and the called." by Alicia Bruxvoort “But you are a chosen people, set aside to be a royal order of priests, a holy nation, God’s own; so that you may proclaim the wondrous acts of the One …

When You Need a Recall Button for Your Mouth

by Karen Ehman A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.” Luke 6:45 (NIV) We can do video calls on our cell …

The Best Battle Plan

by Lysa Terkeurst “Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, ‘Are you for us or for our enemies?’” (Joshua 5:13, NIV) We’ve all been there at one time or another. …