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God of All Comfort
Who do you trust to keep your precious child? That was my dilemma upon finding out I was pregnant with our first baby after six years of marriage to my high school sweetheart. Everyone in the tiny, one-street-light town of Corrigan, Texas had one and only one suggestion: Shirley C. Talk around town was she and her husband had lost a daughter, Cindy, in a tragic accident, but they had forgiven the driver and decided to have another child, a girl they named Hope. Well-known for her calm and peaceful spirit, Shirley baby-sat one little girl, Lindsay, in her home, while Hope and her older brother, Paul, were at school…
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Worry Like A Raven
I get asked all the time about my tattoos. People want to know why I chose them or what the significance is to me. I wish I could say that every single line of ink on my body had some deep meaning…but they don’t! Sometimes flowers are just pretty and make me happy! However, there are certainly quite a few that do hold meaning. One of my most recent additions is a raven on my wrist. It rests between two pre-existing tattoos. Above is the first tattoo I ever got – the one that started it all – a very small, simple “J14:27” for one of my favorite verses; “Peace…
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Sinful Opportunities
I realized something today. I need to accept my biggest weakness. Accept that the sin that I keep turning to time and time again is something I will continue to struggle with. It’s a cycle really: I repent sincerely and am forgiven, then end up committing the same sin. I tear myself apart. I think this is partially because when I sincerely repent, I have every intention of leaving that struggle behind – cold turkey. The next time I give into that same temptation I feel like a quitter, a failure, or even a traitor. I need to accept – just as we all do – my struggle. If I…
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You Do You, (Christian) Boo
Whether we like it or not – titles usually come with preconceived notions. Lawyer? Argumentative. Homeless? Lazy. Rich? Selfish. Christian? Judgmental. Whether these assumptions are true or not – they do exist. Oftentimes as a Christian we may feel the need to explain ourselves as to not be clumped into the “self-righteous” category. How do you find that happy medium of being successfully in but not of the world? The answer is crystal clear in scripture: “I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. My prayer is not that you take…
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Breadcrumbs From a Hair Dryer
I was sitting on the floor drying my hair yesterday and trying to figure out why I’m here (in Nashville). I felt called here without knowing exactly why or what my next step was going to be. Now here I am, almost three weeks later, still searching for an answer or even a hint. Usually I feel ungrateful or selfish if I ask God for things – especially because I am sad to admit the last year or so I feel as though when I need help I only pray as a last resort instead of an initial instinct. But as I was drying my hair I realized how crazy…