My feet felt heavy, like someone had filled my trail shoes with rocks. I followed the path before me. Each step brought me closer. I stumbled, but eventually regained my footing. I could make out a fork in the road just ahead. The cadence of my heartbeat increased. My feet slowed. I found myself at the intersection of fear and faith. Which [...] Keep Reading
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Running After His Glory in the Darkness
“Three, two, one, go!” the race director bellowed, his voice echoing through the forest. And we were off. My lungs burned as we headed straight uphill through the grove of sequoia trees at 5,000-feet elevation. Inhale. Lift. Exhale. Lift. Inhale. Lift. I tried to find the rhythm of my breath and feet to make it up that first long hill. I had [...] Keep Reading
Facing transitions: How to grow resilient kids in a changing world
One summer I planted a backyard garden with tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini and eggplant. A friend helped me construct a raised wooden box for our plants. The kids and I watched the baby plants push through the soil and stretch toward the sky. We enlisted my dad to help us water the garden while we were gone on a trip. After two weeks away, we [...] Keep Reading
Book Review: Grace Like Scarlett: Grieving with Hope After Miscarriage and Loss
The texts were pecked out late into the night. I could read the desperation and grief between the short lines she wrote. My dear friend had endured another miscarriage. Her body had betrayed her again. I cried out to God on her behalf. Honestly, I didn’t know exactly how or what to pray, but I wanted to support. I learned to listen and groan [...] Keep Reading
10 meaningful sympathy gift ideas for widows and families
I am a gift giver. The challenge of finding just the right gift for someone brings me great delight. In the past few years, I’ve had many people ask me what kinds of gifts to give to a widow or family who has experienced loss. This is often the hardest kind of gift to find. After my husband died, we received many practical and personal gifts [...] Keep Reading
Book review: Rooted
A few months ago, I took my kids on a day trip to Sequoia National Park with friends. The park is full of sequoia redwood trees, which are some of the largest trees in the world. With their ruddy, giant trunks and branches extending toward Heaven, these trees are truly majestic. I learned the General Sherman tree is the largest known single stem [...] Keep Reading
