Less than two months ago, a move ripped me from my comfort zone. Church family, neighbors, and favorite spots disappeared into the horizon as a truck too small to hold our home carried us northward. In just a few hours, the temperature chilled ten degrees. Familiar people and landmarks vanished like…
Did you know pregnancy actually alters a woman’s brain, changing the size and structure of areas involved in emotional attachment to their young? A recent Nature Neuroscience study found that motherly nurturing skills – like perceiving the feelings and perspectives of others – are enhanced in pregnancy and continue for at least two…
"Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. Here a dinner was given in Jesus’ honor. Martha served, while Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with him. Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume;…
Has anything in your life gripped hold of your shoulders and held you down? Pressed its weight on your chest until you're straining for each breath? Darkness attacks when we're most vulnerable. Seizing us in its terrifying hold, the enemy crushes our strength in an effort to cripple us. Shadows zoom…
The measure of a thing's value differs from one person to the next. Though supply and demand set market costs, the significance of an item varies for individuals. Starving children would trade diamonds for bread. Politicians spend thousands on banquets to feed woo diamond-studded supporters. Wealth or need, desire or apathy.…
"'Now announce to the army, Anyone who trembles with fear may turn back and leave Mount Gilead.’ So twenty-two thousand men left, while ten thousand remained" (Judges 7:3). Imagine living in a nation oppressed by enemy forces. An army double the size your your population sweeps through neighborhoods, looting homes and murdering…
"The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing" (Zephaniah 3:17, ESV). Sirens. Ad jingles. Loud cell phone talkers in the store. Noise surrounds us…
"The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing" (Zephaniah 3:17, ESV). Sirens. Ad jingles. Loud cell phone talkers in the store. Noise surrounds us…
I open my messages. Again. The text I sent four hours ago glares back at me. I check my inbox. Four new junk emails since my last examination. Nothing from my sons. Scrutinizing my phone has become a compulsion. In the two weeks, four days, and twenty minutes since…
"Some . . . were merchants . . . They mounted up to the heavens and went down to the depths; in their peril their courage melted away. . . they were at their wits’ end. Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and he brought them out of their…