The Cadence of Grace

by Gwen Smith | | 3 comments

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“In you, Lord my God, I put my trust. I trust in you; do not let me be put to shame, nor let my enemies triumph over me. No one who hopes in you will ever be put to shame, but shame will come on those who are treacherous without cause. Show me your ways, Lord, teach me your paths. Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long.” (Psalm 25:1-5)

Psalm 25 is simply amazing. David professes his desire and need for God with an authentic voice. I read this and am challenged. I wonder if my desire for God will ever be this strong. I want it to

Thank God for My Dirty Floor

by Sharon Jaynes | | no comments

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A friend told me of sitting with his father discussing the distribution of his “worldly goods,” when the time came to do so. “My dad had very little joy in his life,” Mike explained. “As we sat there discussing who was going to get what when he died, I saw a pride in him I had never noticed before. ‘I did all this,’ he said as he waved his hand around the room like Vanna White. ‘I worked hard and earned it all.’”

“In his mind, he had earned it; he had done it all. Never once did he give thanks to God for all his blessings or acknowledge God’s goodness. There was no gratitude, no thanksgiving, and certainly

Jesus Knows You

by Mary Southerland | | 5 comments

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Have you ever wondered if God even knows your name? Have you doubted His awareness or even His concern about what you are going through? Have there been times when you felt totally alone and worthless? I have. I can relate to the woman described in Luke 13. Oh, our problems may not be exactly the same, but the feelings and emotions are – and so is the answer.

Jesus knew this woman. He knew she had been sick for 18 long years and that she had tried everything to be healed. He knew – but He looked past her pain and saw who she really was, and all she was created to be. He could have called her

Turning Worries into Prayers

by Arlene Pellicane | | 6 comments

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It was just a small errand that turned into a worry fest.

I wanted to send a friend a gift just because, so I packaged it up and placed some stamps on the envelope. I headed for a new “village post office” I had seen in my neighborhood. I figured they could weigh my package and make sure I had put enough stamps on it.

When I arrived at the post office counter which was housed in a gas station, the man at the counter smiled. “You’re in luck,” he said. “The mailman is just about to leave with today’s packages.” I asked if he could weigh my package to double check if the postage was correct. “I’m sorry,”

Patience – Trust Waiting

by Mary Southerland | | 8 comments

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All relationships require patience. But the more difficult the relationship, the more patience is needed. As a result, we often find ourselves seated in one of God’s waiting rooms, waiting for that exasperating person to become encouraging, hoping that the difficult relationship with which we struggle will become easier. I hate to wait, for anything or anyone, which is the very reason I am in the waiting room to start with and the purpose behind the presence of sandpaper people in my life. They teach us to wait.

It is in those waiting rooms that the condition of the heart is exposed. Who and what we really are emerge from the unique pressure only a difficult relationship can bring.

When

When You Feel Discouraged

by Sharon Jaynes | | 6 comments

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Have you ever gone through a period of discouragement? Perhaps you’re in one right now. Believe me, I’ve been right there with you. I’ve hidden in the cave with Elijah, under the gourd plant with Jonah, and in the dessert with Moses.

Discouragement comes when there is a gap between what you expect and what you experience—when there is a gap between what you hoped would happen and what actually does happen.

Discouragement can destroy your passion and undermine your purpose. It can take root because of what others say or didn’t say—a mom who said too much or a dad who said too little. Unmet expectations can become the breeding ground for discouragement to multiply and take root.

We certainly

The Secret to Having a Deeply Rooted Faith

by Gwen Smith | | 5 comments

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A nasty storm had blown through. Lots of thunder and lightening. Buckets of wetness. The Twitter feed from our local fire department alerted us to the dangers of high winds and encouraged the community to hunker down at home until the storm passed.

The next morning the grass was vibrant green from the watering, but the yard was a disaster. Leaves and sticks were a blanket. I grabbed coffee and caught up on a few tweets that the fire department had sent out following the storm.

One of the tweeted photo-updates gave me chills. In the middle of a neighborhood just a few miles away, a tree had been uprooted by the strong winds and it annihilated a car. Crushed

Pruning – Part of God’s Plan

by Mary Southerland | | 1 comment

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I try to avoid pain whenever possible.

Pruning sounds painful to me … cutting and tearing away and leaving behind. But I have come to realize that pruning is an important part of the growth process.

Lincoln Love was a member of the first church where my husband was the lead teaching pastor. Before he retired, Lincoln worked for the Department of Defense … or they worked for him … I’m not really sure which was the true chain of command.

Lincoln was short … but only in height. He was a brilliant man with a big heart. Sparkling blue eyes gave away the boyish charm and energizing perspective with which he lived life.

Lincoln and his wife Marion adopted Dan and

Have You Learned This Lesson Yet?

by Gwen Smith | | 1 comment

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“I’m a terrible mom!” Do you ever say these words?

I do.

And I did that day… the day years ago when I was working in my office, minding my own business, when out of now where my son threw a paper airplane at the back of my head… on purpose.

Not one to normally welcome an air attack, I gritted my teeth, gave him the stern “mom voice,” and asked him to stop messing around. I told him I needed some private time so I could get some work done.

He agreed, and turned to leave.

Then he jumped around and threw the paper airplane at me again!

Let me tell you, my grace-o-meter was reading pretty low at this point. I barked

Showing Up Ready

by Elisa Pulliam | | 5 comments

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Did you know that when you make a commitment to work at a boarding school, you’re inherently saying yes to wearing many hats? You might be hired to teach science, but before the ink is dried on the contract, you’ll discover you’re also doing things like coaching the hurdlers on girl’s varsity track. Yes, it was quite a feat my husband took it on without a complaint, even though he never ran track a day in his life.

I’m pretty sure Stephen didn’t let on to his athletes that they knew more than he did. Instead, he focused on putting in time behind the scenes, studying the sport of hurdling using the stack books and videos he checked