Love and encouragement from an imperfect mom and her fun teen daughters. We welcome you to live life with us.
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Long ago, I pretended to understand people who reassuringly said, “Keep your eyes on God (or on Jesus or on The Father).” But when I struggled with problems, I had no idea how I could keep my eyes on Jesus. Yes, I knew he was required to love me (I did not even understand that … Read more When Christian Phrases Seem Meaningless
Sometimes we perceive people are complaining, and we want to solve their problems or scold them. What if they actually want us to hear their pain and offer them glimpses of comfort? We need to discern whether people are mindlessly grumbling or if they are truly hurting. Even when we cannot solve their problems, if … Read more Hear Their Pain
I have yearned to pray boldly and then go witness boldly like Elijah in Scripture. But sometimes I hit resistance to this goal. During times of joy and peace, I felt powerful in the spirit and prayed for the ability to share the Gospel fearlessly, and then I actually did so! But soon after this … Read more Praying Boldly not Always Speaking Boldly
For a season, consider meditating on Scriptures based upon your pain or trouble, if you are hurting. While we need to read all Scriptures, sometimes we need Scriptures specifically tailored to our spiritual and emotional wounds (Psalm 147:3, “He heals the broken hearted and binds up their wounds.”) Specific Scriptures can remind us of God’s … Read more Pursuing Scripture Based upon Your Pain
Too many of us have been hurt (abused) in the church, but Jesus did not do it. Many people turn from God and blame him for what unjust, ungodly humans did. I know, because I was harmed in the church and in a Christian mission. I do not blame Jesus, because he did not condone … Read more Hurt by the Church, Not by Jesus
While last week’s post “Same Problem, Different People,” briefly explained why we repeat the same mistakes with different, difficult people, this week we can dig deeper. If we were mistreated in our youth, we may believe lies, based upon that treatment. Then we might attract, even pursue, unkind people who mistreat us, especially if we … Read more Same Problem, Different People, part 2
Patterns We Didn’t Learn From… When we find ourselves having the same problems with different people (or with God), we might be living out lies we learned in our youth. We needed love from our family of origin, and if we didn’t get it, we will struggle in our relationships with others and with God. … Read more Same Problem, Different People?
Some people demand answers for why they have been offended by Christians who mistreated them. Sometimes a Christian did not harm the offended person but wisely stood up to that person’s unreasonable demands. At other times, the victim mistook a fake Christian for a true believer. And sometimes a true believer did hurt the offended … Read more People Offended by Christians
Some people pretend to be true Christians, but they are not. Some know they are faking, while others mistakenly think their un-surrendered life fits on an alleged (false) spectrum of Christian faith. They claim going to church on occasion and having a general belief in God counts as Christian faith on the low end of … Read more Who are Fake Christians, and how do they fool us?
More about being an Ezer We need to recognize how well equipped we are for the spiritual battle, because the Lord is our strength and joy. In last week’s post, “Joy in spiritual Warfare,” I encouraged believers to find joy in the Lord, because this is part of our spiritual warfare. Although Spiritual warfare can … Read more Joy in Spiritual Warfare, part 2