Mustard Seed Faith (Beautiful Mess pt. 4)

mustard seed faith

Faith. The more I dig into this word, the deeper it seems to go. “Faith is the assurance of things hoped for and the certainty of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1). If you’re anything like me, you tend to see this word as a big deal. All of my belief in God, in what I … Read more

Crazy Dreamer (Beautiful Mess pt. 3)

crazy dreamer

Joseph’s brothers and father stood with wide, angry eyes. Some had their arms crossed. Some turned their backs at the ludicrousness of it all. “Are you indeed to reign over us?” one of his brothers asked furiously. Joseph smiled and shrugged. He wasn’t sure exactly what the dream about the bowing sheaves of wheat had … Read more

God Fights For You (Beautiful Mess pt. 2)

God fights for you

For four hundred years the people of Israel had been enslaved. Year after year, generation after generation cried out for relief, but time passed and Yahweh seemed to have forgotten them. Until a a man named Moses came along. He was a Hebrew who had grown up in Pharaoh’s house then ran away after killing … Read more

God is Weird: Celebrating His Unpredictable Ways

God is weird

I’ve started digging into the book of Joshua in the Old Testament, and what I’m finding is a new understanding of a section of Scripture that I thought I understood well. The book opens with God’s call of Joshua. Moses, the leader of Israel, has died and God is raising up Joshua to lead his … Read more

Engaging in God’s Word: The Bible as Conversation

My original thought had been to go into the Christian bookstore to pick up a couple of the books on my list of things to read this year. But of course I can’t just pick up those books and leave. I have to roam. Literally every aisle of books. Some of them more than once. … Read more

Grasping a Little, Getting Grace Upon Grace

grasping a little getting grace

She had been bleeding for twelve years. No doctors could help her and no amount of money, medicine, or medical attention had been able to fix her disorder. She was at the end of her rope, grasping for anything that had even the slightest chance to heal her. Perhaps it was a normal day when … Read more

Psalm 139: A Reminder that You Are Known

Psalm 139

In many ways this has been a hard week. I’m still struggling to keep my head above water. There’s always so much to do and I’ve been exhausted. But the week has been good too. I’ve seen improvements in myself and my students. I feel like I’m starting to understand the lingo at school and … Read more

Unveiled Faces: Pursuing Intimacy With God

Unveiled Face

 “The Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord are being transformed…” 2 Corinthians 3:17-18a Unveiled faces… When I hear that phrase, one of the first pictures that comes to mind is that of a bride. … Read more

The Spirit of the Lord: Giver of Life, Presence, & Truth

spirit of the lord

“Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.”~2 Corinthians 3:17-18 … Read more

Surrendering Expectations (Expectations pt. 7)

surrendering expectations

And the Lord did exactly what He had said.The year after He had visited Abraham and delivered the news that he and Sarah would have  a son, Sarah conceived and gave birth to a little boy (Genesis 21:2). Abraham circumcised the child as God had instructed, and he named him Isaac, which means laughter. Only … Read more