I was two years old when E.T. the Extraterrestrial was released in theaters. This sweet (if also sad and scary) story about a wayward alien and his friendship with a boy named Elliot was my first movie. As my Mom tells it, I reacted very little during the film. Because I was so little, she…
“So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong.” (1 Kings 3:9 NIV) A girl in the high school class I taught showed up one morning in a T-shirt that had Mickey Mouse emblazoned on the front. I paid it little attention. It never occurred to me that Mickey…
Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and…
“Faithful are the wounds of a friend, but deceitful are the kisses of an enemy.” (Prov. 27:6 NASB) If you’ve lived long enough, you’ve more than likely been betrayed by someone close to you. Nothing hurts more than a hurt that you never see coming. Many people refer to this kind of betrayal as being…
“May the favor of the Lord our God rest on us; establish the work of our hands for us—yes, establish the work of our hands.” (Ps. 90:17 NIV) There are seasons when we feel like we’re soaring gracefully through our days. We’re able to accomplish everything that’s needed. We have strong connections with family and…
In her book, Reclaiming Your Heart, Denise Hildreth Jones chronicles the ways her own heart shut down and how she reclaimed it. It has become one of my favorite books. What is extraordinary to me is the way God got this book into my hands before I knew I needed it. The year was 2014,…