“But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weakness, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.” (2 Cor. 12:9 NIV) I’ve struggled for a long time with perfectionism. I’ve tried to avoid failure…
Years ago, my mother-in-law remarked to my grandmother that I “expect everyone to be perfect.” I disliked her comment at the time, but later realized she was right. I do have a tendency to focus more on my own and others’ past mistakes than on my own and others’ present and future successes. Because I…
“Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord” (Luke 2:11 NIV). Decades ago, when I first became a Christ-follower, my church created a video of several people answering a question. The question was a simple one: “What do you see when you look in…
When I’m reading the Bible, sometimes I slosh. Do you know the sensation? I liken it to trudging through half-melted snow. Or drinking lukewarm coffee. I’m reading the words, but my mind is far from fully engaged in the experience. This is especially true when I’m reading biblical genealogy. I try to keep in mind…
“Am I being led by love or pushed by fear?” Emily P. Freeman asks in one episode of her podcast. One of my children instantly comes to mind. He has a tendency to forcefully nudge people out of the way when he wants to get to where everyone else is going. Though this is slightly…
I’m not sure how the tradition started. When my children were young, we did not co-sleep. I am not against co-sleeping; it just wasn’t something that happened in our family. My son was a super noisy baby (read: laughed out loud in his sleep) and my daughter was particularly independent. I didn’t want to sleep…