Tribute to Mothers

May 12, 2013

 

Mothers deserve praise! What makes mothers so special? What would you say about mothers? According to our Mother’s Day poetry contest winners, mothers are truly gifts from God. Thanks to all of you who entered! As I promised, here are the three winners of our poetry contest and their tributes to mothers. Read more

10 SIMPLE STRESS BUSTERS FOR WOMEN

May 6, 2013

Women and Stress

Is your life blessed or stressed?

Whether working inside or outside the home, today’s moms, grandmoms, and women of all ages deal with stress. Here are ten simple stress busters women can practice daily: Read more

Where Would We Be Without Mothers? (Book Giveaway and Poetry Contest)

April 29, 2013

In Honor of Mother’s Day

Instead of a devotion today, in honor of Mother’s Day, we’re having a poetry contest. I’d love to feature one of your own poems about mothers. Send me a poem you’ve written about mothers, rhymed or prose, no longer than 100 words. It must be original, and make sure that you own all rights to your poem, even if it was previously published.

How Do I Enter? Read more

A Mother’s Day Tribute: How Can I Thank You, Mom?

May 7, 2012

Years ago, I wrote this poem for my mom on Mother’s Day. I’m sharing it with you today as a tribute to my late mom and to mothers everywhere. By now, you can tell that I enjoy Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s poetry?  Read more

Quiet Time with God: 8 Ways to Keep Your Devotions Vibrant

February 27, 2012

How’s your quiet time with God? I recently read Grace Fox’s book, Peaceful Moments to Begin Your Day: Devotions for Busy Women. This book was formerly titled 10-Minute Time Outs for Busy Women. It’s been reformatted and newly released as a beautiful little gift book.

Rather than write my own review of her book today, I’m using an article Grace wrote as a Guest Post today. Grace has a true heart for God. Her article mirrors so much of my own practice and thoughts. (One major difference: At this stage of my life, my husband is always the first one out of bed!)

Time with God is truly a delight! I think you’ll enjoy her article–and her book. The devotions in her book are simple yet powerful, and busy women can relate to these relevant nuggets of encouragement in all walks of life. Read more

Five Friends You Can’t Live Without

July 1, 2011

“A friend loves at all times” (Proverbs 17:17, NIV). That’s the kind of friend everyone wants, and it’s hard to improve on that definition. But here are five friends–five kinds of friends–you can’t live without. If you know one of them, that’s great. And if you’ve known all five, you are blessed beyond measure. Read more

Preparing Your Kids for Life: Encouragement for Women, Moms, and Grandmoms

April 6, 2011

At one time or another, we moms may think we’re not doing “enough” to prepare our kids for life. Deep down we feel inadequate. We may not feel skilled or talented or creative. Sometimes we even start comparing ourselves to others as parents, which totally makes us feel worse.

Every mom, young or old, is concerned about making wise decisions. Are we giving our children the right training? We fear for our kids. Are they being bullied? Are they safe enough? We all want our kids to “turn out right.”

If you are a mom or grandmom, here are four things to remember that might encourage you as you prepare your kids for life: Read more

Eight Ways to Spring Clean Your Marriage

March 29, 2011

No matter how long we’ve been married, all of us need to spring clean our marriage often. I wrote this several years ago, but the principles still apply to marriage, individual hearts, or any relationship: Read more

How to Accomplish More with Only One Thing

January 8, 2011

We hear it all the time: “Focus on the 6 most important things for today.” “List 3 things you most want to accomplish.” “What are 10 things on your bucket list?” But is it possible to  accomplish more with less? Have you ever tried the pricinple of the One Thing? Read more

Book Giveaway and Carol Kent Interview

October 9, 2010

   

I first met Carol Kent years ago at the Christian Booksellers Association. I consider Carol a mentor as I trained with her to speak professionally.  Even before I watched her walk through her family tragedy, she impressed me as one of the most godly women I had ever known or met.

Carol is generous to a fault, and I am blessed to call her “friend.” Her life–and her books–have touched mine as she has shown me and so many others what it really means to walk by faith “between a rock and a grace place.” Read the entire interview and listen to the video as you hear from her son in prison. Better still, read the book! You’ll be blessed beyond measure, as I was. 

I really wanted to keep this book, but as someone once reminded me, “It’s selfish to keep something that could bring so much blessing to others.” So, reluctantly I will give this book away. At the bottom of this blog you’ll find a place to comment on this interview/blog/video–or on Carol’s life. If you will add your appropriate comments below, I will add your name to a random giveaway for this book. (sorry, I can only send to U.S.)

Questions/Answers from Carol Kent   

Tell us about the Christmas gift you received. How did it help you to find grace in the middle of a seemingly hopeless situation?   

Two weeks before Christmas our doorbell rang at 9:15 p.m. It was dark outside and by the time my husband, Gene, joined me at the front door, we were surprised to find no one there. It was already dark, but my eyes fell on a large, exquisitely wrapped gift. The card on top said, “Mom.” Initially, it felt like a bad joke. Nine years earlier our son, a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy had been arrested for murdering his wife’s first husband and he was in prison serving a life-without-the-possibility-of-parole sentence.    Read more