Jesus is a friend to sinners. And who hasn't sinned? I mean, really, no one has ever gotten it all right. No one, that is, except for Jesus. And that's why He could be the perfect sacrifice. That's why He could bear the thorns and take the nails and bleed out on the cross. Because only His blood was good enough to pay the ransom for my life. To bring me back to God.And this God who made everything--He's not some impersonal deity up by the stars who can't be felt or known. He's a God who is there. A God who makes Himself known. A God who stepped into the world through the Person of His Son, so that He could be seen and touched and heard. And so that He could make things right again. Because sin, it marred this whole place. It broke us and we've all been reeling ever since. So, we all needed[...]

Some days, fear has this grip on me. Anxiety and worry take its toll and I find it hard to breathe. I can feel it in my skin, literally. Every once in a while, I get the shingles. Shingles isn’t just for old folks, apparently. Shingles can happen to worry warts, too. But, I’m a child of God. A little girl who belongs to a Great King. A Great King who never worries about a thing because He’s the biggest and the strongest. And I’ve got these promises. “The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms.” (Deut. 33:27) “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble…The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge.” (Psalm 46:1,7)So, I run to my Refuge and I hide in my Strong Tower and I just sit still and remember what I’ve got in Him. I[...]

I sat in this quiet cafe' over a grilled  ham and cheese while my friend told me her story. How all her growing up years, she knew God was real but she just couldn't get why He was so intangible. Because, she just wanted to feel Him. To reach out and take a hold of Him somehow. But, she never could. And as I looked in her eyes, I could feel her ache. I had wondered it too, remembering how I'd laid in my bed on quiet nights, tears streaming with the deepest pain in my chest. And on those nights, I'd reached up, arms open wide, just wanting God to embrace me. Aching to be held. So many times, I'd wished I could crawl up in His lap, closing that cosmic gap between us. It had sent my heart pounding for heaven, in the wildest way.And as she poured out bits and pieces of her soul, I sat the[...]

Sometimes I get afraid of life. I can't explain all the reasons why, but I just kinda go through these spurts or seasons when I'm more prone to be fearful of things and my heart feels fragile and I have a hard time roping my imagination in.And it's strange because it's something that happens on the inside of me and I'm finding that it has nothing to do with what's going on, on the outside of me. Like, today for instance. Today is the most lovely, breezy, warm, full-of-light kind of day. And there's nothing in my life to be afraid of. At least nothing that I can see. But, for whatever reason, I have a lot of what-ifs running through my head, and before I know it, I'm plumb sceered! Scared of the world. Scared for my kids. Scared of what could happen in my life. Just scared. And I don't like[...]

I know that winter has only just begun, and I really have been enjoying it, really, but it does help me to remember that spring is coming. Warmth is coming.I planted over a hundred daffodil and tulip bulbs in our yard this fall. I put them down in a dark hole. I covered them up with dirt. And now they're resting...and waiting.I planted them because I needed hope. I need to know that the cold, dark months won't last forever. I need to know that something beautiful is just around the corner. I needed something lovely to look forward to when the wintry winds come and the sun hides his face and all is gray and bleak...for a season.And isn't life that way, too?I've been reading in the book of Hebrews and I long to express to you the hope I've found. Life is hard sometimes. Things look bleak now[...]