Faith

Lord, I prayed for this child, and You have granted me what I asked of You (1 Samuel 1:27). We are told that of the millennials—young people ages 10-29 years old—only 15 percent are Christian. The assignment to pray for our children is essential to raising up a generation that will live for God and withstand the enemy’s attack upon them (Genesis …

When my marriage ended, I didn’t doubt God’s love for me, but I believed my life was ruined beyond hope of repair. Any future I could have would be a “making do”—a consolation prize. But one of the peculiar things about Christians is that we believe in resurrection. In fact, resurrection is the hope of the Christian life. Without it …

  The past couple of weeks (okay, years), I’ve heard two words that I thought would never define me come out of my mouth consistently. I’ve let my guard down, allowing these life-state descriptors to define me. I hate it! They’ve become my scarlet letters. They isolate me. They make me someone I’m not. And what makes it worse is …

There is not one human being on the earth who has not felt rejected at one time or another. It’s the nature of the fallen world in which we live. At the end of the day, most people will default to doing what is best for them at the expense of another. When it comes to dating, rejection can sting! …

I list laughter as a skill on most applications I fill out. I make sure to include it in any bio required of me for any forum. People think it’s cute, and they might possibly snicker as they read it in the list of my other skills: piano, guitar, singing, Microsoft Office, etc., but I am extremely proud of the …

Life as a single is, well, busy. It seems to be a never-ending flow of work, study, friends, trying to stay active in some form or fashion, church, God’s good gift of sleep and the occasional blessing of a nap. In all honesty, I love this part of it. Being able to get up and go whenever I want or …

Have you ever had a promise from God? Something that He spoke to you that you’ve believed, but still haven’t seen? Maybe you are waiting on a healing to manifest, or a loved one to be saved, or a mate to materialize. Whatever it is, Jesus spoke to it in Luke 18:1-8. He begins by saying, “Men always ought to pray …

I’m on the staff of a wonderful church. They often pour into us as leaders and help us grow. A few weeks ago I was sitting in a training class listening to one of our pastors talk about the definition of freedom. We were being trained on how to help people become free. I had some “aha” moments. The first …

Is forgiveness really possible? When you have been really hurt—either by a family member, your church, a boyfriend or girlfriend—is it possible to really forgive and forget? Forgiveness, as it is often taught, seems so nebulous and fleeting. Contrary to the quick “I’m sorry”/”I forgive you” trope, forgiveness can’t be conjured up or ginned up with your willpower. And attempting …

It was a hot summer day 14 years ago. My younger brother was getting married soon. I had been wanting just the two of us to do something special since life as we knew it was about to change. He choose canoeing down the Nantahala. So we packed up supplies and headed out to North Carolina. We had both been …