Building Christian Character
A Reminder to Pray
On a recent mission trip that my family attended, I found myself sidelined with an injury. As I sat down, annoyed at my misfortune, I was reminded that I had also been sidelined with an injury, on my very first day, on my very first trip, three years before. I had been picking up shingles … Continue reading
Seeing Beyond the Surface
On my family’s recent mission trip to South Carolina, my hubby and son were assigned to Site 2 to work on. The home had been recommended to our team and required a massive amount of work. It needed a roof. The bathroom floor had soft spots and holes in it. You could literally see the … Continue reading
Embracing Mary
I was reluctant to sit down and write this post. I have so many things going on at the moment. My family is heading to South Carolina tomorrow for our Salkehatchie mission trip. There’s laundry to be done. There are suitcases to pack and where did I put my work gloves? But, even as I … Continue reading
Building Strong Faith
Last Sunday, our pastor spoke of the trials that had befallen a woman who was seeking to answer her calling to the ministry. The more she pursued her calling, the rougher her life had become. I have also heard him speak of his own early beginnings in the ministry where he loaded up a U-haul … Continue reading
Hearing and Acting
I recently came across a passage in Matthew 7:24-27. It’s often called, “The Wise and Foolish Builders.” It’s a familiar story for me, one I learned in Sunday school as a child. I think there may even have been visual aids. Jesus tells the story of a wise man and a foolish man. He says … Continue reading
Choosing to Trust
One morning last week I was struggling. I was running late for work. I had a million things on my mind. My to-do list seemed impossibly endless, and I was having some serious doubts about my decision to return to work full-time after being at home with my kids for so many years. The list … Continue reading
The Best is Yet to Come
Last week was a blur of activity for me. I work in an office of an elementary school, and it was the last week of school. The activity was nearly constant. We had visitors and speakers. We had a flood of parents coming for lunch just one more time. We had a step up day … Continue reading
The Blessings in Adversity
A few nights ago, my hubby and I were cleaning up the dinner dishes. I opened the cabinet door underneath the kitchen sink to get out the dishwashing detergent and I found everything in that cabinet wet. There was standing water inside the cabinet. My heart sank. This was not good. We had a leak … Continue reading
What We Plant
Last weekend my hubby and I attended a celebration service in honor of the passing of one of our church members. He was an older gentleman who was a retired horticulturist. He loved to plant things and had been in charge of planning and planting all of the landscaping at our church. He was also … Continue reading
When the Church Gets it Right
Yesterday in church, our pastor presented my daughter Caroline, who is about to graduate from high school, a gift from the Ladies’ Group. As he called her up, he said he had music to play for her and the song, “Sweet Caroline,” began to play. The gesture was so thoughtful as was the gift. This … Continue reading