I Want to Hold Your Hand

by Gwen Smith | | 4 comments

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When our kids were little my husband Brad and I used to hold their hands a lot. Sometimes it was to protect them from danger, like if we were crossing a street. Sometimes it was to calm fears or to help them to feel secure. Sometimes it was because we were on a mission to get through or to a place quickly. Other times it was for the simple pleasure of strolling, skipping, and smiling together.

Now that they’re teens, my kids aren’t so keen on holding hands with mom and dad anymore. Sigh. There is still the occasional watching-a-movie-on-the-couch-at-home handhold, but it’s a rarity. And I miss it.

I love locking fingers with my people. There’s a beauty and

In 2 Words: Move from Fearful to Faithful

by Kelly Balarie | | 18 comments

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Just yesterday, my son validated the heart of my issue. He drew a picture of Mommy. I was curious, so I asked him, “What is Mommy doing in that picture?”

He said, “She is thinking.”

He then drew the brain bubble that floats up in the sky like a hovering cloud of declaration. I said, “What is Mommy thinking about? What goes in that little bubble?” I was pretty certain I was just about to finally be crowned Super Mommy—the queen of peanut butter and jelly!

His answer? “She is thinking about herself.”

Boom! And there you have it. With the force of a busted salt shaker hitting an open wound, I was stung with truth: Mommy is thinking about herself

Why Your Redemption Story Isn’t Yours

by Gwen Smith | | 10 comments

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There is a feature on my cell phone that allows me to decline an incoming call. There are a thousand reasons why I might choose to hit the “decline” button when my phone rings. Sometimes I’m writing and have a deadline to make. Decline. Sometimes a call comes in when I’m mid-conversation with a friend or when I’m connecting with my family. Decline. At times, true confessions here, I decline a call simply because I don’t have the energy or desire to talk to the person who’s calling me at that moment. (Don’t even judge me. You do it too.)

Similarly, there are times in my life when I try to ignore the promptings of the Holy Spirit as

No Goals – No Gold Part 1

by Mary Southerland | | 4 comments

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I am always amazed by how much training Olympic athletes are willing to invest in order to win a medal. If Christians were willing to make the same kind of investment in running the race of life, I believe the world would be a vastly different place. How important you consider a race to be influences how hard you will run it, and determines the goals you set in order to win that race.

I believe every follower of Christ should have clear life goals based on clear spiritual truths. Many Christians are floundering because they have no spiritual goals. If you want your relationship with God to be motivating, it has to be making progress, accomplishing something, and

No Goals – No Gold Part 2

by Mary Southerland | | 6 comments

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Watching our daughter introduce solid foods to our six-month-old grandson was an intriguing process to witness. I’m not sure if it was the texture or taste that surprised Justus, but the faces he made when that new food was first placed in his little mouth were hilarious. When he liked the new food, his eyes got big; he grinned and made a big smacking sound as if to say, “Where have you been keeping this stuff?” However, a few foods elicited a very different reaction. He scrunched up his face, turned his head and promptly spat out the offending food. Danna quickly learned the art of mixing foods in a single bite and also learned the same food

Creating a Calm Home

by Arlene Pellicane | | 12 comments

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If you were to observe my home, you won’t catch me doing linens on Mondays, mopping on Wednesdays, and doing my once-a-month cooking on the first Friday. One fine day, I was actually dusting the blinds. My husband James yelled, “What’s that noise?” alarmed the kids might be messing with something.

“It’s me, cleaning the blinds!” I shot back proudly.

He was quiet for a moment and then yelled in amazement, “I haven’t heard that sound in 10 years!”

Each home will have its own level of neatness to aspire to, but there is something that everyone can agree upon as ideal: living in a calm, peaceful home. What is the atmosphere of your home on most days? Could you

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

by Sharon Jaynes | | 6 comments

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I’ve been shut up, shut down, shot down, ridiculed, disregarded, overlooked, over- booked, and overwhelmed…I know I was made for a reason. I know that, in God’s eyes, I count. So, I simply want to find someone who believes in me.

No, these are not the lyrics from the latest country song. They are the lament from one of the men who answered my survey of what they were looking for in the woman of their dreams. It seems Aretha Franklin isn’t the only one who wants a little r-e-s-p-e-c-t these days. One area that rated very high when I surveyed hundreds of men was their longing for RESPECT. Webster’s dictionary defines respect as the special esteem or consideration

The Bam-Bam Game

by Mary Southerland | | 5 comments

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Dan and I have one favorite restaurant where we like to eat on our weekly date night. The food is delicious, the atmosphere is quiet, and the waitress makes us feel like we are the most important people on the planet. It is a great place to relax, catch up and make plans for the future. We go to this restaurant for us. It’s our spot.

Our grandchildren have a different spot where they love to go. It is definitely not quiet; the food is geared more to the taste of children, and finding someone who works there is often what I consider a modern day miracle. Yep … you are way ahead of me. It is Chuck E.

Hungry into Satisfied

by Gwen Smith | | 7 comments

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One night as Brad and I prepared to put our kids to bed, our middle child, Hunter, had an emotional meltdown. Our little gumdrop went from sweet to sour in two seconds flat. The day had been packed full with school and other activities, and it was late. He should have turned into a pumpkin a smidgen before his meltdown took place. You know how those days are.

In an eight-year-old kind of way, Hunter was completely irrational. Tears flowed freely as he floated down his raging river of drama. He said that nobody loved him and that he felt mistreated. I had to just shake my head and wonder, “How in the world could one of my children

Looking for Love in All the Wrong Places

by Mary Southerland | | 3 comments

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In the early days of the automobile, a man’s Model – T Ford stalled in the middle of the road. No matter what he tried, he couldn’t get it started. A chauffeured limousine pulled up behind the stalled car and a wiry, energetic man stepped from the back seat to offer his assistance.

After tinkering with the engine for a few moments, the stranger said, “Now try it!” Immediately, the engine leaped to life. The well-dressed man then identified himself as Henry Ford. “I designed and built these cars,” he said, “So I know what to do when something goes wrong.”

When our lives are broken, when the plan falls apart and everything goes wrong, we need to wait on