A feeling of being abandoned can be like a cold chill across the soul. But God is always at work, so we need to remind ourselves of this truth. I was recently at the help desk in a large store returning some items, and I noticed a small boy in […]
anxiety
Does God hate Me or Does God love me? What you think about God will form the patterns of your thinking and life. Oh, that my heart might know a new reassurance. Recently in my conversations with people, I have been giving them three little phrases to meditate on and […]
Does God Hate me? Is God punishing me? Questions like these need gentle and grace-filled responses, so here are twelve questions that I would like to ask and explore. Sometimes, when I listen to people, I hear little comments that bring a sense of sadness to my heart. Some firmly […]
Our self-talk can keep us depressed and anxious, but we can learn new thinking tracks. Your rehearsal can change your mind. I always marvel at how the experts seem to effortlessly do something that I would difficult. My earliest experience of this was watching shearers shear our sheep on the […]
Others’ opinions about us can lead us to feel we are caged. Trapped, we grow in fear and worry, but recognizing them and boldly stepping out of the cage can bring us into new freedom. I could feel myself slipping into the dark place of despair again. As is my […]
You’re tired, drained, but you can’t find a simple way to restore. So maybe it’s time to cease and savor delight in the little moments. It had been a tough week—full-on giving out. People, work, tasks, energy-draining memories all want a piece of the energy pie. What was leftover were […]
The change felt good, but they were also afraid of who they might be becoming. Then they learned that they were not alone and to trust the train they were traveling on. It’s always scary when you don’t know what’s on the other side. Who am I becoming? What will […]
Are you tired of being the Scapegoat but don’t know how to stop it? Six key steps to stop being the dumping ground of other people’s rubbish. She felt like they were making her a scapegoat. They were saying she was responsible for all the terrible things that had happened. […]
Many of us carry secret questions, and we are hungry for answers, but we need someone safe. Someone secure in themselves yet vulnerable to listen well. When the pastor sermonized my personal story, I felt exposed. I was once in a small group in a church, where our Pastor […]
When you’re in a dark hole, it can feel like there is a loss of hope, but you can dig yourself out with some wisdom and encouragement. It was a hole that I had fallen into. I was in a deep dark hole where the sun didn’t seem to reach. […]
Emotional pain can bump our lives into behaviors that can hurt us further. But we can make a change by learning to listen to the pain, where it’s sourced, and what it wants us to do. He was in pain. I could see it, feel it, and totally understand it. […]
We can all carry too many worries, anxieties, and cares, but when we learn how to cast, we can find a new sense of wholeness, peace, and shalom. ‘That is a lot you are carrying,’ I said as they paused and took a breath. So many worries, thoughts, and distractions […]
We often have the same negative thoughts going around and around in our brains, but we can change them when we arise and bind the brain with truth. I always marvel at those men and women who lift heavyweights. It takes time, effort, and wisdom. Many of them you will […]
There was no self-confidence. It was gone like vapor from ash. But something reignited when we looked at the pebbles and not the mountain. It was like I was looking at an empty shell. They were there in the room with me, but there was very little confidence within them […]
We can have an overreaction to life’s events, but when we search out what’s behind the reaction, we often find history-based pain. Let’s help the prickly pear. It was a reaction I wasn’t expecting. I had made a few jokes, and their response wasn’t to have a simple laugh with […]
We are all in a daily grind of struggle, but when you listen for the voices of demand, you can learn to be kind to yourself and others. You can find rest. This person deserves a medal. Sometimes I listen to a person sharing something of their lives, and I […]
In our spiritual life, we want to know if we are making progress, but much of growth and formation is intangible, so we have to look deeper than a mere measurement. It wasn’t the answer I was expecting, but when we dug a little deeper, I could see the wisdom. […]
We can get into thinking ruts, but the right word at the right time can lift us out and move us into new and better thinking. So we need to be searching for the Rhema words. It was only a short sentence that he said, but the words seemed to […]
Do you keep making the same bad choices over and over again? You can change, and it all begins with a decision to change the way you think and act. It was New Zealand’s worst airline disaster. On November 28th, 1979, Air New Zealand Flight 901 flew into Mount Erebus on Ross Island, Antarctica. […]
Stress can add up to be too much, and we can have a mental health breakdown, but when we break it down like in the story of David and Goliath, we can find a way through the chaos. Stressful times can feel like a massive avalanche of overwhelming pressure. The […]