Have you ever felt God has forgotten you? Perhaps He showed you something phenomenal He’s about do in and through your life. The arrival of a long awaited child, a gift or talent maybe. Perhaps it was a vocational change or ministry calling of some sort. Perhaps it’s a long-held dream right on the cusp of fruition. God revealed that glimpse to you, confirmed it and reminded you again for good measure. Your excitement mounted and it seemed like a million dreams were about to be fulfilled. You lived each day in breathless anticipation. When would it happen? When would…

I'm preparing to speak at an upcoming women's retreat and the theme is "Start a Fire". No, this isn't a retreat for closet arsonists. It's a time designed to get fired up for our Creator. But in preparing for the retreat, I began meditating on the word 'passion' and started thinking about what most of us are passionate about.  What gets you excited? Hot under the collar? What makes you shout in excitement? In other words, what's your passion? For some people it's their kids and grand kids. For others, it's sports or finding the perfect sale at their favorite…

The past week was a taste of paradise. I was overjoyed to attend a writers retreat for the authors who are signed with the fabulous agents of Books & Such Literary Agency. Boy, did they spoil us! We met in Monterey, California to enjoy a time of learning, fellowship, planning and fun. My brain is overwhelmed with everything they taught us, the creativity and joy were contagious and the view couldn't be beat. But best of all were the friendships forged. As you can see, the love between the authors of Books & Such are a rare gift. With my…

Thees and Thous. Hedge of protection. Traveling mercies. Let go and let God. So many odd phrases pepper our western Christian culture. Some are rooted in Bible and some have been twisted over time. Some were never in scripture to begin with. Over the past two years, I've meditated continually on 1 John 2:6. "...the one who says he abides in Him [Jesus] ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked." Okay. So if I want to be like Christ, I just need to walk like Jesus. I gotta say, that seems like a tall order. It's like being…

Walt Disney messed me up, and it appears I'm not the only one. Not long ago I was perusing the books at our local Christian bookstore, and began to notice a troubling theme in many of the nonfiction works. A large number of them boasted subject matter along these lines: "If you can dream it, you can do it." "If we dream big, God will bless us." "The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing." "God gives you big dreams so He can fill the gap." "All our dreams can come true if we have the…

Imagine a man slowly sailing through the clouds in a bright, striped hot air balloon. The air is cool, save for the spurt of fire keeping the balloon bellowed and full. As the current toys with his hair, he studies the tiny images below...rectangles of green and brown grass, houses and snaking highways. Everything seems so small, and from his vantage point, he feels so very big. His hand cups the canvas edges of the basket wall and he frowns. Everything is perfect except for the stupid walls keeping him in. He wants to feel like a bird, to fly,…