You know those days when you wake up feeling just okay? Not great. Not terrible. Just okay. When someone asks you how you’re doing, your face cracks into a pleasant smile before responding, “Fine.”
I have a secret. God doesn’t want you to go through the day feeling just okay. He wants to wow you into having an amazing day, so ... Read More
They say there are ties that bind, things that happen in our lives that leave us forever connected and intertwined with others.
But what happens when decades begin to deteriorate our communication with those people?
As Caryl Kiser from southeastern Ohio shares, those ties not only continue to hold, they grow stronger with each knot of kindness.
“Five years ago, after moving back ... Read More
I was standing in the shower sobbing. With the fan on and the water running, it was the only place in the house I could hide until my torrent of pain had been released.
Never before had I needed to expel so many emotional toxins from my system. And never have I needed to again. But back in May of 2015, ... Read More
“It’s not a person, it’s just a dog.” I remember thinking those words when I had to put my beloved Robby Dog to sleep several years ago. It didn’t seem right to have such intense grief, and yet there it was.
Anyone who has lost a pet understands in an instant the immense loneliness that comes when you walk into the ... Read More
When was the last time you sat down and gave your full attention to another human being? Not checking your phone, wondering how long this conversation would last, or figuring out in your brain the next clever thing you’re going to say or advice you’re going to give.
Just sitting. Listening.
It’s a gift of kindness I know I don’t give nearly ... Read More
I love it when I sit down and the words are easy. They just flow, they don’t take too much mental energy and they don’t make me weepy when I re-read them.
These words are not going to be easy. I can tell. Because these are the words that keep coming to my mind: Forgive me.
At the beginning of the school ... Read More
It’s humbling to realize that while I was sitting on the living room floor watching my kids tear into the colorful assortment of presents under the Christmas tree, other lives were unfolding simultaneously in ways much different than mine.
Jayne Holtgrewe of Moorhead spent her day nursing her husband back to health after he experienced a terrible fall.
But instead of grieving ... Read More
There are situations in life that knock our socks off — and not in a good way.
We didn’t see the results of that biopsy coming…
We didn’t understand how far gone our children were until they were too far gone to reach…
We never imagined that a day that started out so normal could take such a tragic turn…
Sure. Some of it’s ... Read More
This week’s Memory Verse is super easy to memorize and super difficult to live. Here it is:
“Always be joyful.” 1 Thessalonians 5:16 (NLT)
Three simple words. Close your eyes and say it to yourself. See? You already have it memorized.
But how do we live it? And what does it really even mean?
When a child dies, are we supposed to be joyful? ... Read More
My dad had a stroke in the summer of 2016. For more than a year, he’s been a resident of an assisted living home. It’s a lovely place, but my heart hurts because I know that isn’t where he wants to be.
I got to return to Wisconsin to visit him a few weeks ago and was delighted to see that ... Read More
