Inspiration comes from all kinds of places. Each Christmas, I ask God to help me see the nativity with fresh eyes. I read the traditional passages from Matthew and Luke, I soak in the prophecies of Jesus’ birth from the Old Testament and look up testimonies from historians like Josephus. I’ve explored the stories of the shepherds, the Magi, Mary, Joseph, Simeon, Anna, and have even pondered the wonder from the angels who announced His birth. But this year, God used an artist to help me see the birth of Christ from a new angle. I have long been a…

Mother's Day is a day I both cherish and dread. Cherish, because of the sweet bond my three living children and I share. We giggle and play, worship and love. Yet, I also dread this holiday too. Why? Because I have two babies in heaven. I wouldn't wish them back for anything. (I often tell my audiences that I have five children. Two are with Jesus and the other three are stuck with me.)  But Mother's Day is a sharp reminder of their absence in my arms. It fuels my longing for little Taylor and Morgan and resurrects memories of…

For the past several weeks, I've sensed God pressing the word 'chosen' into my heart. After taking some time to mull it over, I finally looked up the chosen in the Greek. I zeroed in on the descriptor 'select'. I've heard about sanctification all my life, being chosen and set aside for a specific purpose, but when I saw 'favorite', I stumbled a bit. Favorite? Isn't it a bit sanctimonious to yourself God's favorite? Shouldn't I be thinking about a word like 'holy'? Something that's meant to transform my behavior into the image of Jesus? After meditating on this thought,…

No matter how many Christmases I’ve lived through, I always feel unprepared when the calendar rolls around to December again. It doesn’t matter how early I start shopping, how many rolls of wrapping paper I buy, or how much food I freeze ahead. When the calendar hits December 25th, I’m scrambling like dog chasing after a bone. Some days, celebrating Christmas feels more like celebrating chaos. And then, at some point during the season, we’ll sing the beautiful carol “Joy to the World”. Joy to the world! The Lord has come. Let earth receive her King. Let ev’ry heart prepare…

Each Christmas I find particular joy in digging anew into the accounts of Jesus' birth. I've studied Simeon, Anna, the outposts around Bethlehem, the innkeeper, Mary...the possibilities are endless. But this year, I was giddy to discover a letter held in the Constantinople archives. This missive was a report written by a priest named Jonathan to the Bethlehem Sanhedrim, after the residents of Bethlehem experienced a particularly 'eventful' night. After investigating and many interviews, this priest found the source of the commotion in the eyewitness testimony of two humble shepherds. A LETTER OF MELKER, A PRIEST OF THE SYNAGOGUE AT…

Welcome to a moving, powerful conversation with my friend Tina Akridge! Tina has journeyed through impossible circumstances (a health crisis, the loss of her husband, children who have battled addiction and wandering) to discover that God remained and sustained her through it all. Tina and I chat about what it's like to be painfully shy, the perpetual new girl, and what she thought the first time she met her husband (not exactly love at first sight lol). Our conversation shifted to Tina's journey through Mark's cancer diagnosis and all the angst and mercy that chased her afterward--from watching her children…