What to do When You Have the Blues
What do you do when you’re weighed down with heaviness and sadness? I asked myself this question last week. Why was I…
Helping Women Move From Fear into Faith
Category: encouragement
How to be an Empathetic Friend
I’m terrible at asking for emotional support. I mostly keep my feelings to myself. How can I expect a friend to understand…
Helping Friends in Grief
My husband Tom and I lost three of our parents in three years. While we grieved our losses, our friends showed kindness…
What are You Magnifying?
Last summer, I arrived at my annual dermatology check-up armed with important information. I’d been enjoying a Wrightsville Beach family staycation at…
A Love Letter
Dear Tom, It’s hard to remember my life before you. Somehow, you were always here; always meant to be. I love you falls…
I Married a Stranger
I feel a little jealous when someone says, “I married my best friend!” or “We were high school sweethearts.” I married a…
Where is Your Focus?
I asked God for a word that would help me accomplish His plans for me in 2020. The word, Focus, came to me, oddly enough, during the Total Strength class at the YMCA.
Prayer for a New Year
I find myself still wandering around in the old year working on the lessons begun there. I’m not as excited about a new year as I usually am. I want to be dazzled by the new number and the new decade but it hasn’t hit me yet.
So I come to you Lord, humbly, again offering myself completely to you. I don’t have it all together, but this is what I do know: You are my everything. I fervently long for your will to be done in my life so that I will bring you glory in this bright and shiny New Year.
Tips For a Perfectly Imperfect Christmas
I would speed through it all and finally sit down to enjoy our decorated fresh fir… after the holidays. I was overwhelmed with sadness when I realized I’d missed some priceless moments that were gone forever.
Somewhat Simple Soup Supper
I don’t want to carry gratitude around in seasons.
I want to carry it in my bones,
I want to rest it in on my tongue
like it is a language
that I never stop speaking.
~Arielle Estoria
How an Open Door of Hospitality Changed My Life, 1st draft
WE are Christ’s Body—His hands and feet. We are the ones with doors and tables and food that encourage other folks around us.
What I’m Learning About Love
Look into her/his face. Smile big. Say good morning in my happiest voice. If she/he starts a conversation, listen intently and make a kind reply. Repeat…