What a Jerusalem trip taught me about loving others in my ordinary life
“That hill is Mount Moriah,” explained Boaz, my tour guide. “It’s where Abraham went to sacrifice Isaac.” Standing across the valley on Mount Scopus in September, I did a mental calculation. According to Scripture, 6,000 years ago a man named Abraham
Uncomfortable Conversations: Explaining Death and God’s Eternal Presence to Children
Children are notorious for asking questions, all kinds of questions. Questions about where babies come from, questions about why things are the way they are, and questions about what happens when you die. None of these questions are easy, and
You have to feel it to heal it
An excerpt from “There's Beauty in Your Brokenness: 90 Devotions to Surrender Striving, Live Unburdened, and Find Your Worth in Christ” I’ve recently been walking through a long season of heartache. I lost two loved ones suddenly, within months of each
How will you arrive home?
An excerpt from “Pilgrim: 25 Ways God's Character Leads Us Onward” “God is going to do big things with your life,” we often hear. No doubt well meaning, but is it true? Is it big when God allows a believer to
To suffer differently
Max’s interminable ruminations, always worrying about never getting it right, never being good enough in his career, had the effect of both sweeping him into the fast track of advancement—because of how hard he worked in response to his worry—and
How to use your body language and micro expressions to show positivity
An excerpt from “Language That Leads: Communication Strategies that Inspire and Engage” Positivity is about being able to see the world as a place of expansion. When we are afraid or experiencing stress or anxiety, we see the world as contracting,
How control issues invite a closer connection to God
Maybe you deal with anxiety by going into control mode. If I asked you to tell me specifically what causes you anxiety, what isn’t working in your life, what would you say? Chances are many of you wouldn’t point to
Joy Happens
A Scripture study from Caring. Have you ever had a moment when you thought you understood something well and then God challenged your knowledge? I thought I understood God’s joy and then God instilled a calling for my husband and I to
“This Train Is Bound for Glory”: Q&A with the author
All aboard! Rooted in the tradition of an African American spiritual, “This Train Is Bound for Glory” by Alice Faye Duncan and illustrated by Paul Kellam, is a mesmerizing picture book that takes readers on a cosmic journey to heaven,
Bearing joy for a world full of frantic anxiety
An excerpt of From Pandemic to Renewal: Practices for a World Shaken by Crisis Airplanes are a barometer of the national mood. My daughter is a flight attendant, and over the course of 2020, as Covid-19 battles, racial tensions, and election
3 friendship philosophies that are saving my life right now
An excerpt from The Life Council: 10 Friends Every Woman Needs We learned most of our friendship habits and ideas early in life, when caregivers plopped us on the floor and we were forced to get along with whatever sibling or
Nothing is wasted
An excerpt from Create Anyway: The Joy of Pursuing Creativity in the Margins of Motherhood In the Gospel of John, there’s a story about a large crowd following Jesus that becomes hungry (hey moms, sound familiar?). A boy appears with two