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Stepping Out On The Field

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She had five years of lacrosse experience with one of the top programs in Georgia. She had competed in many tournaments at a young age when most girls didn't have that opportunity in Idaho. But here she stood looking at a lacrosse field unable to move.  She knew the sport well but didn't know anyone now that she moved back to Idaho. It was a sport she loved and had grown up playing, but this time, for some reason, fear was winning this competition. It paralyzed not just her body, but her motivation to try, her drive to compete, and ability to overcome insecurity even though she had talent, skill, and had every physical and mental capability to do it well. That wasn't enough. It took a crying mother to get her on that field. Rewind...sports have been a big part of my life. I played basketball and volleyball in middle school and high school and continued my love for basketball in college. It wasn't always pleasant. With sports there are wins and losses, highlights and inj...
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Church Hurts - I Give Up!

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"The kind of love that I experienced there cannot be expressed in words." - Suresh ( Imagine Heaven)   Last weekend at our retreat we came to the "Front Porch"...women in ministry. Pastors. Pastors' wives.  All who have experienced the joys of the ministry calling as well as the hurts of ministry. As women formed small groups to share their hearts with other women who share a similar role, I noticed their words brought heartfelt emotion to the surface. The heaviness of life. The pains and wounds of serving in the church.  As I recall my own church hurt, I remember thinking, "This shouldn't be. This isn't right." The very thing God called us to was the very thing that hurt the most in my life at that time. I didn't understand. I held on to that hurt for five years. I honestly tried to let it go. I was doing all the "right" things I was told to do - pray for myself and the unforgiveness in my heart and pray for my "enemies...
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Laughter - A Noble Strength

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  "...she can laugh at the days to come." (Proverbs 31:25b)   Many of us are very familiar with the Proverbs 31 epilogue, the description of a noble wife.  She is a hard worker, vigorously caring for her children, making wise business transactions, helping the needy, and taking care of all the household affairs. She seems to have it all together. Life looks easy for this mom and wife of the year. Every time I read this chapter I’m inspired to be like this woman. However, there is more to this woman than doing all the right things, making all the right choices, and living a perfect life. She can laugh.  In fact she laughs AT the days to come. Not the social laugh that is poised, the one we express in social circles as a way to connect. No…this woman has an internal posture that gives her the ability to find humor and joy in what is to come even though the future is undoubtedly uncertain and holds no guarantees. Her ability to laugh is rightly viewed as strength in thi...
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Beautiful Again

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  "Shared joy is double joy; shared sorrow is half sorrow."  -John B. Hayes It was a normal ordinary day at the local Winco grocery store. As I began putting my items on the checkout counter, I overheard the young grocery clerk ask the man in front of me a question. I did not catch the actual question, but I could see the look on the man's face. He paused as if he was stumped by the question, and said, "I don't really know." This made me more curious and wished I had been physically closer to hear the details of the conversation.  I emptied my cart and watched how friendly this young man was behind the counter. He seemed to like his job and enjoy ringing up customers' groceries. He handed the man in front of me his receipt with a smile and with good wishes for his day. Then he turned to me with that same kind smile. After asking how my day had been going, he asked me what I believe he asked the man in front of me, "If you could change anything about...
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The Front Porch

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"Being present with someone I love is never a waste of time." - Philip Yancy   I have a front porch. Nothing fancy. Basic really. As a girl, I always wanted an old white farm house with a wraparound porch, but instead I have been blessed with a 1951 remodeled green farm house with a small front porch that looks out toward a grassy berm separating me from Park Lane.                                     1951                                                                                                                    2025   ...
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