life. faithful.

I want you to know, my parenting this last week or so has been the best it's been probably since my sweet baby girl was born 7.5 years ago. I haven't yelled at either kid, lost my temper over the little stuff, been impatient, zoned out when they told another long story, or pretended to listen. Maybe that has something to do with the fact that my kids aren't here right now. They're spending this part of the summer in Arkansas, going back and forth between grandparents' houses and having a blast spending a month on the farms. I miss them and I can't wait for them to get back--my house is entirely too quiet--but I know one thing for sure: it won't take long for me to lose my temper, no matter how hard I try not to. This parenting thing is hard. Why isn't that something they talk about in those "what to expect" books? It's filled with stress and anxiety and messes and endless loads of laundry and sinks full of dirty dishes and te...

So I have to admit, I'm at a bit of a loss right now. Believe it or not, I have no idea what to write. Usually, words come pretty easily to me when I'm writing (speaking is a completely different story...). I start writing and the words just seem to flow. I've spent the last few days trying to come up with something to write on here, though, and I just haven't found any words. Not all words are hard for me to find right now, though. I've started writing a new story and so far to words for that have been coming out pretty well. To tell you the truth, though, I'm a bit terrified about this one. It's fiction and in some ways pretty similar to the fantasy type stuff I've put out there . The thing is, though, I'm trying something different. I'm attempting to connect both sides of my writing by doing something crazy (for me, anyways). I'm trying my hand at a Christian supernatural thriller. I know, right? Craziness, and I'm not real ...

I don't usually post anything on Sunday, but this is a last minute reminder I should have posted much sooner. I let it slip my mind, though, so I wanted to make sure I invited you all t to join me this summer. No, I'm not taking us all to a beach house somewhere (I wish I could!) or suggesting we get together around a campfire in my parents' field (although that would be fun, too). This is actually much easier to arrange :) A friend of mine was thinking about how easy it is to get busy in the summer and let things slide, sometimes without even realizing it's happening. One of those things is devotionals, so Jill decided to do something about it. She invited some of us to join with her in providing daily Bible reading and devotionals, delivered straight to your inbox. Looking at what all is on the lineup, I'm pretty sure you won't get bored. There's going to be a little bit of everything, really, with everything from a study of Mark to the life of...

"Writers are not just people who sit down and write. They hazard themselves. Every time you compose a book your composition of yourself is at stake." ~E.L. Doctorow "What we are is God's gift to us. What we become is our gift to God." ~Elanor Powell "This writing that you do, that so thrills you, that so rocks and exhilarates you, as if you were dancing next to the band, is barely audible to anyone else." ~Annie Dillard, THE WRITING LIFE A student was sent to talk to my dad a while back. She had said she wanted to be a writer, so the high school counselor told her to talk to Pop. After all, since I had written a book surely he could tell her all she needed to know about how I had done it. She asked him how I became a writer, in answer to which I'm pretty sure he laughed. He told her that I had been writing and telling stories since I was little (I can still remember taking from the time I came home until dinner was finished one ...

Life is busy--sometimes, there's no way around it. We all have responsibilities and obligations that keep us moving full steam ahead. Other times, though, we choose to be busy because we know that if we slow down we'll have too much time to think; we keep moving forward because we just don't want to look back. I've never been fond of falling apart. For those who know me, that's probably putting it a bit mildly, huh? I pride myself on being independent, able to handle things on my own. "I can do it myself!" was probably the first full sentence in my vocabulary. I guess it's a control thing. The problem is, in Christ we are called to brokenness. "I want to know Christ and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death , and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead." Philippians 3:10 & 11 "But He said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for ...

I have a confession to make: when it comes to my kids, I'm a hypocrite. That may sound a bit harsh, but it's true. Like parents from all over the world, I strive to raise my kids to follow God. I want them to know Him deeply, to realize just how amazing it is that the Creator of the Universe chose them --that He loves them. I want them to walk closely to Him and to have the peace that passes all understanding, to realize that their joy is not defined by their circumstances. The thing is, lately I've let my circumstances steal my joy. It didn't happen all at once, but there's no denying that my once ever-present optimism and joie de vivre have faded these last few years. Yes, the circumstances in my life have been hard. If you read through some old posts you can see that it's been a hard decade, one I never could have imagined. I can't change what all has happened, even if I wanted to--life's funny that way. The thing is, I can change how...

Blessed. It means made holy in one context. Another definition is happy. It brings up thoughts of safety, security, peace, and prosperity. After all, it's easy to be happy when life is wonderful. What about when things are all going wrong, when t feels like the whole world has turned against you? Are you blessed then, when everything is crumbling against you?  As Jesus was traveling throughout Galilee, those were the people being brought to Him: people racked with pain, the sick, the demon-possessed, the paralyzed, those suffering from seizures. They weren't people living the easy life. Looking out over all the people gathered below Him, Jesus listed those He called blessed: ~the poor in spirit ~those who mourn ~the meek ~those who hunger & thirst for righteousness ~the merciful ~the pure in heart ~the peacemakers ~those who are persecuted because of righteousness ~the people who are insulted, persecuted, and have evil things said against them because of...