My midwife told me when I was birthing my second baby girl that if I held my breath the contractions would hurt even more. My natural reaction in pain is to tense my muscles and hold my breath to avoid the pain. In childbirth, I needed deep, long, measured breaths to carry me through the pain. Somehow breathing through the pain helped release the [...] Keep Reading
struggle
The power of sharing your story: Three women in the Bible who changed history
Our family started a new journey this Fall. We are walking through a curriculum called Foundations written by our pastor, Brad Bell. This experience brings us deeper into understanding of key principles in the Bible, but also invites us to be open to the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. My favorite part is that we are discussing what we learn [...] Keep Reading
When your answer just might be a question
One of my daughters was struggling earlier this year to understand a decision her teacher made at school. All the feelings of confusion, frustration, and misunderstanding came tumbling out as she unpacked the details for me. This decision came at a cost to my daughter and to other students. My instinct was to call that teacher and give her a [...] Keep Reading
Life’s storms reveal our roots
On Thursday, I went for a run with my friend Marcy on the Clovis Trail in my neighborhood. I have been spending lots of hours in front of the computer trying to finish writing my new Bible study on Ruth. The manuscript is due to my publisher at the end of this month. (I welcome all your prayers for getting to the finish line!) Getting outside [...] Keep Reading
Mind the Gap: How God meets us when we are not enough
This is a week that could have gone a very different way. For Spring Break, my daughter and I had the privilege of traveling to England and France with a group of 43 students, parents and staff from her school. The students were part of her AP History and French classes. This was a whirlwind trip with a packed itinerary. We were up early to [...] Keep Reading
How to talk to your kids about COVID-19
My 8-year-old arrived home last week in tears. Lip quivering, she came to me with a heap of questions about the coronavirus. “Is my daddy going to get coronavirus because he’s Chinese?” I looked at her dumbfounded – my heart walking a thread-bare tightrope between sadness and anger. “Who told you that, Baby?” “Oh, kids at school are [...] Keep Reading
