I wake early again and toss and turn in my bed for a while. I can tell it’s early morning because no sunlight is streaming in through our bedroom windows—and I am groggy. I try to fall back asleep, staying still in my warm bed with my husband lying quietly next to me, but it’s…
Sometimes I feel like I’m a bad pray-er, usually because I’m not eloquent in my prayers or they turn into more of a wish list. But sometimes my mind wanders when I am praying, and sometimes I’m just not sure what to say. Maybe I’m being too hard on myself by focusing on the wrong…
“First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people.” (1 Timothy 2:1 ESV) It’s been a rough year for so many of my friends. When I look back over my list of prayer requests, I’m reminded how difficult and painful life can be. A spouse’s lost job,…
“Your own ears will hear him. Right behind you a voice will say, ‘This is the way you should go,’ whether to the right or to the left.” (Isaiah 30:21 NLT) It was the perfect house. My husband and I always dreamed of living in a historic home in Old Town, close to restaurants, shops,…
My daughter, Elliana, has this amusing habit when she wants something from me. Not just any old something, mind you, but something she thinks I won’t give her. She’ll say with a big heavy sigh, “I wish I could have candy.” Or she’ll drop her head and shoulders and mumble, “I bet you won’t let…
Prayer is the most commonly practiced spiritual discipline. Whether with a nighttime one-liner or an extended period of prayer and fasting, almost 80 percent of Americans pray. With all these prayers going up, how can we tell when God answers our prayers? I recently completed a time of corporate prayer and fasting with my church….