Protecting your emotional purity can be a touchy subject. We approach this subject having been influenced by our upbringing, our own experiences, and by observing what did and didn’t work for those around us. The other difficult part of this conversation is that people tend to make blanket statements implying there’s a “one size fits all” way to be emotionally pure. And let’s be honest, some people don’t even know what we mean when we talk about emotional purity. While there are biblical truths that can be applied to emotional purity, it is also true that emotional purity looks different for different people and in different stages of life. This is a…

Have you ever heard someone say they were spiritually abused and didn’t know what to think about it? Do you consider yourself to be spiritually abused but don’t know how to move forward in healing? My goal here is not to give you all the answers, but rather encourage you to dig in to this sensitive topic and grapple with the questions that come with it. While the topic of spiritual abuse can be confusing, what’s clear is that there is hope, and healing can happen! I pray this helps you take first steps in that direction. Like all forms of abuse, the effects can be life-altering and long-lasting. Trust…

If you live on this earth you can be sure of one thing: you will witness evil. We should expect it and be prepared to react. How then, should we respond to evil? Hate Evil. Romans 12:9 tells us “Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good.”This may seem obvious, but our culture has turned evil into entertainment. We pay money to see evil unfold on the big screen. We etch out time to sit in our own homes and watch evil prevail on television. Because of this, we often find ourselves numb to the actual presence of evil when we see it on the news or…

Can parents do things to hurt their children’s faith? That’s a question that has been asked and a topic that has been written on countless times! As a mother, when I’m faced with this question, my answer usually centers around two words: our response. How parents respond to the world speaks volumes to our children about our faith, our understanding of the gospel, and our acceptance of God’s sovereignty. Good or bad, the home is a child’s first school, and the parents the first teachers. Our children are watching, listening and learning from our every move. Matthew 15:18 tells us that what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart.…

As conversations about racial tension surface I find myself, as a middle-aged white woman, increasingly discouraged. Not because of the topic at hand, but by the way my brothers and sisters in Christ are using their words to tear down instead of build up. This is a time when we should be reflecting the love of our Lord Jesus Christ. But instead, I’m reminded of how deep our sin runs and how easily we’re distracted from what should be our main focus: the gospel. Don’t get me wrong–there has been an outpouring of love, confession, and repentance from many people, and I pray that continues. My focus today, however, is…

You don’t have to spend much time on social media to know that people have a wide range of emotions, opinions, and ideas about COVID-19. There are those who aren’t feeling any strain at all and have enjoyed a stay-at-home order, while others have had their entire lives turned upside-down with devastating long-term effects. The wide variety of experiences reminds me of a post I recently saw that said, “We may all be in the same storm, but we’re not all in the same boat.” Because we’re not all “in the same boat,” it’s easy to see why there are so many varied emotions surrounding this pandemic. One common emotion…

COVID-19 is doing more than threatening our physical health, for many, it’s affecting their mental and emotional health as well. The coming months will likely be full of disappointment, sacrifice, and mourning. But, as followers of our Lord Jesus Christ, we can also look to the months ahead and anticipate joy, personal growth, and new opportunities to live out our faith. With that being said, the best thing we can do right now is pray.  Below are 10 prayers for those affected by COVID-19 (which is all of us!). Use these prayers as a guide to pray for yourself, but don’t forget that being others-focused is a constant theme throughout…

COVID-19 has created a lot of problems for a lot of people. The past weeks have been full of disappointment, frustration, and for many, great heartache. However, when states started issuing stay-at-home orders, I’m ashamed to say my immediate thoughts went to myself and how unaffected I would be by this. I’m an introvert; a homebody. I love being “stuck” at home and am always happy to be stuck at home with my family. But I confess, I wasn’t thinking about how many people can’t say that.  We all know families who are struggling during this time because they aren’t used to being under one roof 24/7. And by struggling,…

There’s a lot of grieving going on right now. The number of people around the world losing loved ones to COVID-19 is increasing every day as is the number of people who are sick and fighting for their lives. These people, and their families, are suffering in a way I can only imagine. These people are looking darkness in the face. They are grieving.  Business owners are stressed over the lack of sales and having to lay off their workers. Many are left to wonder how long this will go on and how they will provide for their families. We were created for work, and sitting idle can lead to…

It’s often hard to pray when you’re consumed with hopelessness or even suicidal thoughts. In fact, while praying is the most important thing you can do, it’s often the very last thing you want to do. It will require self-discipline and self-control. It will require a strength that can only come from God. For this reason, it’s a good idea to plan ahead. Write a prayer when you’re able to express your pain and thought process, then you’ll have it ready to read the next time the hopeless thoughts come. Perhaps the following prayer can be of some help. Father God, the darkness has taken hold of me and I can’t find…