• God’s Road

    Walking the road of God can help us regain our focus. We can start again at what we thought we would always fail. Who doesn’t need a road to heal on? His is a road and a walk of true healing. Zechariah 10:12 is a very important scripture for me. It says that I’ll be strengthened in the Lord and in His name, I will live securely. It doesn’t say this is going to happen on all my good days only. It’s saying all my life! On my bad days. On my worst days. I can live with God’s strength at the forefront. The road of God is refreshing and…

  • Creating a Vibe

    What are we (me and my spouse) doing when we get in unity about our yard looking nice with some flowers by the door and some worship music playing on the back patio? WE ARE GETTING OUR VIBE GOING! Families can have weak vibes and families can have strong vibes. I hope at our house, when our sons come in the door, that we have a friendly and welcoming and loving vibe. One thing is certain, love vibes permeate. They leave a lasting influence. As our family grows, we want our sons’ wives to feel the same thing we’ve tried to give our own kids. We want them to feel…

  • Power Shortage

    Have you ever experienced a major power outage? Unexpectedly, the electricity service goes out… Personal Story: I was blind and now I see. I turned completely in the direction of Jesus. Became apart of the church. Met a cute guy. Got married… but when we’re looking at the “better” of one another, we’re not yet seeing the “worse”. I found myself crying out for mercy! Often. I would feel like I kept losing the vision God gave us because it was too hard to see. Especially when the power was cut off. I was taking care of three little guys and Derek had a lot he was responsible for too,…

  • Changed and Challenged

    My Pastor husband says: “Many times we leave a focus time with God, unchanged and unchallenged.” We want God to change us. We know that Jesus is a Friend that’s more beautiful than diamonds. We’ve leaned in to learn more about the Holy Spirit. But what are we going to do with the verses that cross our path today, this week, or next Sunday? There’s so much you can do with them: You can turn them into PRAYERS. You can turn them into PRAISE. You can turn them into a PAUSE. You can turn them into a PROMISE to declare. And you can turn them into a PLAN of action…

  • Distractions & Attractions- Part 1

    During this rather long series, we’ve jumped into a tough subject about attention. Though it hasn’t been the easiest to write about, it’s just time to discuss it! Today, we’ll ease into the 2 part topic of distractions and attractions. SOMETIMES STANDING OUT MEANS A CHANCE TO DO SOMETHING VERY POSITIVE IN THE LIVES OF OTHERS. I think most of us inwardly have at-least a tiny or maybe an enormous fear that we could walk this earth and no one remember us or know that we were really even here. It’s just my theory of one reason or cause for us to want some kind of attention. May it be…

  • The Bottomline

    Years ago when we were student ministry pastors, my husband named the youth group “Bottomline” Ministries. We wanted youth to know and to think about the things that are truly important. We wanted to be sure they were taught that they matter to Jesus. We wanted to make it a habit for them to define Christ as the most valued relationship point in their life, to understand why He gives us meaning, and to believe He can bring them to a final fulfilled result one day- A hopeful outcome of living and being. What Jesus said and did is still greatly impactful to the degree that we must focus our…

  • Experiencing God The Satisfier (Part One)

    Does someone you know (Example: your kids) go and stand at the pantry and say: “There is nothing to eat”?! Do they stand in front of the fridge with the door wide open and say: “There isn’t anything here for me“?! Have you known anyone that says those same things when they come stand in church? It’s just hard for them to see what’s there- what could be good for them? They wonder what is in store and where the hidden things of God are located. Sometimes we get focused on what is not there rather than what is. Maybe we don’t see anything for us to experience or eat.…

  • Make it official.

    If you haven’t had a talk with God about current situations, make it official. “The Israelites went up to Bethel and inquired of God.” (Judges 20:18) In the previous chapter, a wicked, outrageous thing had happened that caused someone to die. So the Israelites were speaking out about it, trying to punish those guilty (the Benjamites) of the act, and purge the evil from Israel. The battle began. It wasn’t looking good for the Israelites; they were losing men left and right. A second and third time, the Israelites go and inquire of the Lord. Verse 23 says they went up and wept before the Lord until evening. Then in…

  • Fix my Focus

    When it’s Winter time and the Spring clothing line emails start coming in…fix my focus. When plenty of issues surround my family and then report cards show up in the mail box…fix my focus. When the clutter doesn’t clean up fast enough and unknown boxes just got delivered to my front door…fix my focus! The things right in front of our faces get all the attention! And they pop up out of nowhere. Everywhere. They jump in front of everything and everyone else. They become our focus. Transient things move around. They don’t stay a long time so we think we have to deal with it all at this very…