Category: General

When I was a little girl, I always wondered how the stars stayed in the sky. I would look up at the moon and wonder how it could just hang in space without anything holding it up.I have always been fascinated with astronomy! I love looking at the stars, trying to pick out the planets, watching comets run across the sky, and waiting to see a falling star.

There are times when I love to just go outside and watch the hawks flying over our pasture. Have you ever noticed that the trees all point upward with their branches? Do you ever sit and listen to the birds sing? Isaiah 55:12, Psalm 96:12, and 1 Chronicles 16:33 describe the trees of the fields clapping their hands and the birds singing for joy. Isaiah 44:23; 49:13, and Job 38:7 all teach us that the heavens and the Earth sing praises to their Creator. All of creation worships God!

Did you know the stars actually sing? After you finish this, please take a couple of minutes to go to YouTube and search for “Mashup of Stars and Whales by Louie Giglio”. I’ve always been fascinated with the stars, planets, animals, and nature! I love hearing the sounds that the stars make and listening to the whales sing. I promise you that once you hear them you won’t ever be able to sing “How Great is Our God” the same way again. (Psalm 148:1-10, Psalm 48:1)

Our God is Lord and Savior! He is King of Kings and our Redeemer. He is powerful and sovereign, yet gentle, merciful, and loving. He loves us and cares deeply for us. (Psalm 139:1-18, John 3:16)

He is everywhere and part of everything. He created all we see and hear. John 1:1-5 says “in the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. All things came into being through Him.”

He makes Himself known prior to salvation through creation. He wants us to find Him. This is how He woos us to a relationship. (Hosea 2:14, John 12:32, Luke 15:20, John 3:16-17, John 6:44, Revelation 3:20, 2 Chronicles 16:9)

Once we surrender our hearts to Him, our relationship grows deeper and we continually learn as He reveals Himself more and more. This comes from spending time with Him. Discovering who God is will be a journey that continues right on into eternity.

So, the first step to discovering who God is, is surrendering to the wooing of the Holy Spirit and giving your heart to Him. Then, the rest is the adventure of a lifetime.

“You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29:13

We want to thank Janie Keller for sharing this post.

I was recently talking to a friend about my daughter going on a date with her Dad. We talked about how when she was growing up, that wasn’t really a thing. For me, it wasn’t in my routine; I grew up with a single mom and had visits to my dad’s house. My grandparents were very involved, but my granddad wasn’t taking me on a date every month. I am not saying this to bash Granddad (or my dad), just that times are different now. But here is what my daughter and I will both take away from our experiences: her dad and my granddad are good fathers.

I am not sure if you have gone to the Freedom In Christ class here at Harvest, but you are asked to go sit alone and picture sitting down with Jesus. This could have been happenstance due to my granddad passing before the class, but the man that sat with me representing Jesus was similar to my granddad, an older man moseying to his chair, with a pleasant smile and loving eyes. I know my granddad was good and a great example of faith, but this sealed it for me. I have followed Jesus for most of my life, since I was eight, but seeing him as father was not my experience. My biological dad had left our family, not wanting children, and I’m supposed to see Jesus as my father? It made no sense to me. And then Anthony started talking about our roles as Christians and being a son or daughter first. We are children of God, adopted into His family (Romans 8:14). Of course, I’ve heard this before, but more recently it has brought me around to reflecting on how my granddad was an example of Jesus as a father: loving, loyal, disciplining in love, faithful, and steady.

It has taken me several years and lots of loss to see God as a father, and a good one at that. I first had to learn, or really realize, the role of a father (what the role of a father is). As described earlier, it took the loss of my granddad to see those characteristics and how he was a reflection of Jesus. It took another loss for me to see God as good. When we are hurting and, in the weeds, it can be hard to see God is good, even when we are reminded daily by friends and scripture. One way this finally “clicked” for me was hearing how Annie F. Downs talks about December 21st. December 21st is the winter solstice and the darkest day of the year, but she reminds us that light is coming, the good is coming. We may feel like we are in the darkest hours with no hope in sight, but the light and good are coming. (1 Peter 2:9).

Being adopted into the family of God may not seem like a milestone to some, but if you’ve grown up without that family bond, it means the world. While it may have taken me years to see how I was adopted by a good Father, I am so glad to finally see the light. I am glad to know and have such a good, good Father.

Romans 8:14-17

For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. ¹⁵ The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” ¹⁶ The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. ¹⁷ Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.

1 Peter 2:9

But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.

We want to thank Ashley Criswell for sharing this post.

I really don’t want to write this post. I would much rather sit across from you on my couch with my cup of coffee and instead hear your story and share mine. A year and a half ago, my very young marriage ended in heartbreak as my husband walked away. I was left a single mom to a sweet little girl trying to pick up the pieces and asking so many of the questions that you have probably asked yourself. How do you trust God who would allow such tragedy to happen, after you trusted Him? How on earth can the God who says He “works all things together for my good” think this is good? Why would He allow those things to happen? If I am being honest, it is hard to trust again after all of your dreams, plans, and hopes have been shattered and the fears you have spent so long running from become reality.

I don’t know if I have the perfect answer for you, the one that will make everything that happened to you be alright and make you go “back to normal.” The reality is sometimes God allows tragedy to expose what our trust is really in, or He uses it to invite us to trust Him in deeper ways. When I started to sit with this blog post, I asked God how do *I* trust again. He clearly said, “Trust begins with fear.” Now, I don’t want you to be confused. He did not mean being afraid. Many times, when our trust is shattered, we allow fear to be the thing we cling to. We build walls around our heart and declare, “I have trust issues,” or “I don’t trust anyone.” I get the sentiment, I really do. Why would I let someone back in that has hurt me? However, the only one who is hurt by this is us.

Instead, the word for fear He was pointing me to is Yirah in Hebrew. This word does not only mean being afraid, but it also means respect, reverence, and worship. It is a type of awe that is closely tied to trembling. When we look at scripture, we see in Psalms 33:18, “Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him, on those who hope in His steadfast love, that He may deliver their soul from death and keep them alive in famine.” The fear of the Lord causes us to place our hope in Him and keep us from death, because fear sees God rightly. He is the one who can sustain and can give us life. He is someone worthy of being trusted, because He is the only one capable of fulfilling His promises.

A few verses down from the one I just referenced, it says, “Our soul waits for the Lord; He is our help and our shield. For our heart is glad in Him because we trust in His holy name. Let your steadfast love, O Lord, be upon us even as we hope in you.” Psalm 33:21-22. Trust is calm assurance that the one who is bearing the weight of what has been given can and will hold it well. Trust requires faith in the one that it is put in. When it is put in anything or anyone other than God himself, it is folly, because it cannot bear the weight. Fear allows our hearts to trust God again because we see Him for who He is: Sustainer, Creator, Promise-Keeper, Healer, Redeemer, the list could go on and on. But it starts with a humble admission that we are not the center of His world, but that He entered ours to save us. He is the greatest good that we could have.

Trusting Him won’t disappoint you, but if you feel disappointed, don’t rush past that feeling. Instead, sit with it and submit it to Him. Tell Him that you feel like He abandoned you and didn’t do what you thought He would. Then, after you are done, sit and listen. The verse I just quoted says, “Our soul waits for the Lord; He is our help and our shield. For our heart is glad in Him because we trust in His holy name.” Psalms 33:20-21. We need to wait for the Lord to speak, and He will, sweet sister. If we sit waiting, He will answer us, and rest assured that what He says will draw us ever closer to His heart. Remember, we do not need to be afraid of what comes next or afraid to allow God back in after rejecting Him. Instead, repent of this fear, and take up a holy fear that worships and kneels in awe of Him and He will hold you close as you learn to trust Him again.

We want to thank Savanna Rodriguez for sharing this post.

“Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep.” – Psalm 127:1-2

I’ll admit I am not always great at trusting in God. But my husband is very good at that; he never worries about anything! I’ve always found that amazing, because I can manage to worry about anything! But I’ve realized lately that worry is a sin. Worry is me saying, “God I don’t trust that You can handle this; I think I can do it better.” Which, that is, in fact, a lie. Because, as the psalmist says, even the watchman who is doing his job is working in vain, because unless the Lord watches over a city, it will not be protected. I’ve had to learn this hard lesson when it comes to my children. When I became a mom, I wanted desperately to keep them safe and to do everything right. But then I started to realize that even if I did EVERYTHING in my power to keep my kids safe, it doesn’t mean that bad things don’t still happen. And I began to realize that I have to release control of even the things I love the most to my Heavenly Father, who loves them SO much more, and is the only One who can actually bring protection.

This past year has been one of great joy, and with that, great difficulty. We have welcomed another daughter into our family, and she is such a joy! But we’ve also dealt with hardships, such as financial difficulties, mental health battles, parenting hardships, and discouraging health diagnoses in our family. And all these things seemed to happen back, to back, to back. I remember asking Daniel one night, “when is the hard stuff going to end?” And the more we talked about it, the more we realized that we are all promised “hard”. And as much as we might want an answer of when it all ends, we don’t usually get that. But we are also promised that Jesus will never leave us or forsake us. And what He constantly reminded me of during those hard times, is that He had brought me through every single day up to that point. I had made it; I had survived. And while that maybe didn’t feel like much of an accomplishment, to only be able to say, “I made it through,” it should be enough for me to be confident that He would continue to help me through. And then, as this time of “survival mode” continued, God slowly began to change my mindset where I could begin to enjoy the days and the time and see all the joy and good in everything again! He had promised to get me through, and He was, and is faithful.

Hebrews 12:26-28 “At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” This phrase, ‘yet once more,’ indicated the removal of things that are shaken – that is, things that have been made – in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore, let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe.”

This scripture has been comforting to me in knowing that when I feel like things around me are shaking, it will only reveal the solidness of Gods support and presence in my life. The things that are shaken in my life are things that I might feel attachment to, like my comforts or circumstances, but in the midst of the shaking, they are proven to only be temporary. God may be stripping away things that are NOT eternal, in order for my focus to be placed on things that ARE eternal. I have begun to learn through this season of life, to trust God with our provisions and when things feel hard ,to lean into the constant presence that I know He provides in my life.

I am not always good at trusting God and releasing control, but sometimes I have been forced to trust because there was no other option! And maybe that is the best place to be, because He always comes through.

We want to thank Joanna Capps for sharing this post.

I used to be suspicious of God. My default view of him was that he was holding out on me. Often, I felt he was mad or disappointed in me. And these feelings led to a general doubt whether he really was good.

Of course, I didn’t know I felt this way. I wouldn’t have consciously been able to articulate it. But it showed up in my life as a lack of trust. And the evidence for distrust is directedly related to our level of control.

When we want to control God, when we want to control our circumstances, or when we want to control others—the general root is a lack of trust in God.

Trust is not the same as belief, though they are sometimes used interchangeably. We can have a firm belief in God, in Jesus, and in all that he accomplished for us at the cross—and yet not fully trust him.

These three things I’ve learned about trust:

1. Trust comes through relationship.

2. Experience builds trust.

3. Our level of trust directly corresponds to our level of surrender.

At the core of my difficulty trusting God was a wrong view of him, and a wrong view of him will always lead us to suspicion and control. Over the last decade, I’ve discovered more and more who God really is—the perfect, loving Father he’s always been. This changes everything.

My ability to trust him grows as I see his continued faithfulness and goodness and as I learn to surrender every part of me—all that I want to control.

One of my favorite quotes comes from a parenting book I read years before we were parents. It says, “The only person I can control on a good day is myself.”

God gave us a spirit of self-control (2 Tim 1:7). We control our choices, our response to our circumstances, and our response to those we’re in relationship with. That’s it. We can’t control what other people do or every circumstance in our life. And we sure can’t control the Creator of the universe, try as we might.

When I know God is sovereignly in control, that He maintains all things, and by him and through him and for him, they exist; when I know this sovereign God is both holy and good, just and merciful, gracious and loving, present and faithful—then I can trust him fully with my heart, despite my circumstances.

In this world, you’ll have trouble. Jesus said so. But he didn’t say it without hope. He attached it to a promise—”Take heart, I’ve overcome the world” (John 16:33).

It seems like every time I’ve blogged over the last year, I’ve said the same thing: I’m in a hard season. It’s still true, though now it’s a season of grief. My heart hurts, and the pain and sadness overwhelm me some days. I simply and profoundly miss my mom. And yet I understand now why Paul writes that we do not grieve as those without hope (1 Thes 4:13). I understand the comfort God gives us in our grief because I’m experiencing it daily (2 Cor 1:4). His presence never leaves. He’s faithfully carrying me through good days and hard days.

This is no longer a mental assent, a choice to believe the truth of God’s word. It starts there, yes. But what grows is a familiarity and a certainty in the character of God and in the strength of our relationship.

That’s trust.

If we want to trust the Lord, we have to let go of our suspicions, embrace the truth of God’s nature and character, and surrender all to him.

“Our soul waits for the Lord; he is our help and shield.

For our heart is glad in him because we trust in his holy name.

Let your steadfast love, O Lord, be upon us, even as we hope in you.”

—Psalm 33:20-22

We want to thank Laura Brandenburg for sharing this post.

Romans 8:28:  “And we know that in all things, God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”  I know that verse very well and have heard it quoted and have quoted it many times to others. I believe that His word is truth and that He never changes. One of my favorite verses is Jeremiah 29:11: “For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”  It is easy to believe these verses when times are good and we see our plans working out, but when our plans have died, when we’re facing something that is life shattering, and our hearts are broken, it is hard to believe that anything good could come out of it. That is when I must remind myself of my Heavenly Father’s Heart of Love for his children and that God’s not finished with the story yet. Learning to trust takes time. We want the hurting to stop and our questions answered quickly.

Just like the children of Israel in the desert had to learn to trust God through experiencing hardships and God’s deliverance, the same is true for us today. There is not a formula for this journey. And we can’t expect God to do things our way, and in our time. He and He alone knows the future and what is the very best for us. Through every hardship that we go through, there is a learning opportunity to trust God with the outcome. Knowing our Father’s heart for us determines how we perceive all other experiences in this world, and our trust in Him and others. Romans 8 has many verses about God’s Love and they are a great reminder for us to not lose hope.

I’m sitting here looking at a picture of our daughter, Torrie, in front of a house in Germany that my grandparents and Mother lived in until she was 8 yrs old. These were trying times for Germany and its people. Hitler was rising in power, the country was in a depression, and the people were looking for a way out. Grandpa Zschiedrich chose to sell everything, leave his friends and family, and move his wife and children to America. I cannot imagine what trust, faith, and courage he must’ve had.

You might be asking why I’m telling this story of my grandparents. It’s because the story didn’t end there; it didn’t have a happily-ever-after ending. When they reached the United States, they were to have property and home awaiting them. Instead, they were put on a train and sent to the swamps of Arkansas. They and 10 other German families were made slaves to clear the swamps. Some Christians hearing about them came during the night to rescue them. My grandparents never got to see their dreams happen, but their children were freed from living the nightmare of a horrible war, starvation, and living in a country that had no freedom. Their children, grandchildren, and generations to come were given the freedom to live a life of freedom and abundance! Where their dreams ended, ours began!

The dreams we have for our lives don’t always turn out to be what we wanted. The dreams I had for my life look nothing like the life I am living. God’s plan is so much better! I have learned to trust God’s love for me, no matter what is happening in my life. It sometimes takes me a while, and I still ask why. But very quickly, The Holy Spirit reminds me of His love for me. He has the last word, and my story has not ended.

“I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them.” Isaiah 42:16

Dear Heavenly Father, I give you praise and glory! Knowing that when I am in the darkest valley, my heart is breaking and all hope is gone. You are there with me! Your Holy Spirit gives me perfect peace. That when the fear of ‘WHAT IF’S’ try to come, they will not come near me but will flee before me. And instead, I will fix my eyes on you and live a life in anticipation of your love and goodness. To God be the Glory! Amen

A good Bible Study on learning to trust is—- ‘ I Want to Trust You, but I Don’t’ by Lysa Terkeurst

We want to thank Elaine Norrell for sharing this post.

**During the month of January, we will be reposting some of the top posts from 2025. We hope these will encourage you and connect to your heart. Stay tuned for all new posts coming in February 2026!

Today I had a conversation with a “friend.” I invited her into my house and started having a very familiar conversation. I told her about a situation that I was dealing with at work. She told me that someone would do a better job at my position than me. Then I started telling her about a new Bible study that I had started, and she reminded me of the many times I had started one only to quit after a few weeks. After talking to her for quite a while, she reminded me that I was just an utter failure…at life, at work, and in my walk with Christ. After all, other women had it all together, not me. I don’t have a perfect house, a perfect family, or a perfect life. Later, I told her about my boys and what they were doing with their lives. She told me that I had made lots of mistakes as a mother and she couldn’t believe that my boys had turned out so great. She also told me that I was fat, wrinkled, and gray headed. How could my husband still be in love with me? I looked her square in the eye and believed every word she was telling me. After all, we have had these conversations many times over the years.

That’s a friend?

You might be asking yourself, “What kind of friend would say that? How dare she say all of that about you? Did you slap her? Why did you stay there and take it?”

The problem is that I invited this friend into my life years ago and continue to invite her over all the time. My friend’s name is ME.

Have you ever had those kinds of conversations with yourself? Has there ever been a time when you look in the mirror and talk down to yourself by saying, “Wow, you’ve added a few pounds lately!” or “Gosh, that meal you cooked for your family could’ve been much better if…” or “Why does ____________ seem to have it all together and I can’t even get to work on time?” I think, as women, we are all guilty of this at one time or another. The words we speak over ourselves matter! We have got to STOP doing this!

Steps to Building Yourself Up:

Instead of talking down to yourself, try these things to build yourself up:

1. Positive self-talk – as a woman, you are always building others up.  Do yourself a favor and build YOU up! You deserve to be loved by yourself! Look in that mirror and say to yourself, “I am enough just the way I am!” or “I am great at what I do”. You might even say, “I believe in myself!” or “I am beautiful!”
2. Be kind to you – tell yourself that you are important, that you matter! You are a beautiful person and work hard at everything you do. Acknowledge that to yourself!
3. List all your strengths – trust me, you have many, many strengths. Be bold and brag a little on yourself!
4. BELIEVE WHAT YOU TOLD YOURSELF in steps 1-3!

What the Bible Says About You:

Maybe there is a reason you continue to talk down to yourself. You might have been criticized by a parent, a spouse or a friend your entire life. Don’t believe those lies anymore. God made you just the way you are for a reason.

The Bible clearly states that…

You are perfect just the way you are:

Psalms 139: 1- “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;

v. 16: Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.”

God put you in the job you are in and has BIG plans for you:

Jeremiah 29:11 – “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

God says you are precious:

The Bible says in Proverbs 31:10-11 “She is worth far more than rubies. Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value.”

Proverbs 31: 28 “Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her.”

Be a Better Friend to Yourself!

We have all heard the saying that a friend loves at all times. Women are the greatest friends. We are there for each other. Our friends listen to us when we are sad and build us up when we need encouragement. Why, then, don’t we do that for ourselves? If words truly matter, we need to speak kindness and goodness into our own lives. God would want us to be proud of His creation!

Next time you catch yourself talking down to yourself, kick “your friend” to the curb, do some positive self-talk, meditate on God’s word, and BELIEVE the TRUTH about who God says you are! You, my dear woman, are a blessing and a gift to those around you!

We’d like to thank Vickie Young for sharing this post.

**During the month of January, we will be reposting some of the top posts from 2025. We hope these will encourage you and connect to your heart. Stay tuned for all new posts coming in February 2026!

“Joy in the journey” sounds like a glorious adventure. The heroes in all the action films make it out okay; even still, they escape with scars, often losing friends along the way. A journey through the mountains displays spectacular views along the way; yet the breathtaking views come at the cost of a pack laden with necessities for survival and often blisters on feet, sunburns on face, perils near the path. A lifestyle in sin seems quite fun in the moment; however, sin goes down smoothly but bites like a poisonous snake (Proverbs 23:31-32).

Real life journeys include wounds so deep, you question if they will ever heal enough to form scars much less allow you to function again. A quest for a spouse can involve waiting longer than desired. A hunt for a career may end in lackluster disappointment. A desire for children may tarry or taunt through infertility or miscarriages. A battle with cancer or other terminal illnesses-no words adequately portray this torment unless you’ve witnessed it first-hand.

And yet! And yet even in these daunting journeys, as believers in Christ, we not only obtain, but also exude joy. You see, joy is so much more than a warm, fuzzy feeling. It’s an outcry of hope, a cheerful, calm gladness that wells up from within.

Joy is so much more than circumstantial happiness. Joy breaks forth from a wasteland (Isaiah 52:9). Joy is oil in place of mourning (Isaiah 61:3). The joy of the Lord is our strength (Nehemiah 8:10 , Psalm 21:1). Joy is a guttural victory shout erupting after battle. (2 Chronicles 20:27)

Joy is not conditional upon circumstances. In the midst of trials, joy wells up. (2 Corinthians 8:2). In the midst of trials, we are called to joy (James 1:2).

Every journey has brilliant highlights but also daunting shadows. What makes the difference in our journeys is the faith and hope and joy and love that we have in Christ. The questions are: Where are we going to place our faith and hope? What will be our source of joy and love?

Like an aquifer bursting forth to form a freshwater spring, joy emerges from faith and hope in Christ. Like Old Faithful spouting in time, joy marks a person as full of faith and Christ.

I would like to challenge you to read Hebrews 11 and 12 straight through. As I did this, I was reminded of what joy is, and Who the source of joy is. You see, Jesus became human. He became relatable to us in every way. This includes endurance through persecution and hardship. Jesus chose not to focus on the pain and the rending and the scarring that comes with human life. He chose to focus on the joy set before him – the joy that is our salvation.

Here is my walk-through Hebrews 12:1-3 and an application of a deep, resounding joy that supersedes and supplants trials and grief and the temptation to succumb to despondency:

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses,”
Therefore-as a result of the hall of faith in Hebrews 11. I am also reminded of the testimonies of countless Christian brothers and sisters in Christ who encourage me with their witness, with their testimonies of God’s faithfulness in their lives, of their perseverance in the face of trials. Further still, I recall God’s hand and protection and joy in my own life-His faithfulness to fulfill His promises even when I cannot see a way. As stones of remembrance, His faithful provision fuels my joy and peace and hope.

“Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.”
May I continue to walk in the light as He is in the light. May I shun willful sin and seek to expose any hidden sin. Not only slip off sin casually, but cast it away, so that it wouldn’t become a stumbling block to myself or to others.

“And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us,”
My path is marked – not promised as easy; easy doesn’t take perseverance – marked and beautiful and not to be compared with anyone else’s.

“ fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.”
Locked in! Not to be distracted by sin. So focused on Truth that any counterfeit exposes itself as false. Like Peter when he sees Jesus and not the storm, may my faith, perfected by Him, call me out of the boat of complacency into the journey that God has called me.

“For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” For the joy! Joy kept Jesus on the cross. He rose victorious, persevering, enduring, my salvation, my Lord.

“Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”
Consider Jesus, my relatable savior who endured with joy. When I consider Him, I won’t grow weary. I won’t lose heart.

May you join this joy-filled journey fueled by faith in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. May the Joy of the Lord be your strength no matter what your path looks like. May that strength place your feet running on the path set out for you. Like our Savior, may the joy set before you give you strength to endure, to not grow weary, and to not lose heart. With our eyes fixed on Jesus may our joy be so contagious that others desire salvation as well. There is joy no matter the journey.

We want to thank Mary Coleman for sharing this post.

**During the month of January, we will be reposting some of the top posts from 2025. We hope these will encourage you and connect to your heart. Stay tuned for all new posts coming in February 2026!

As children we learn the nursery rhyme, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” That is the biggest lie we tell our kids and ourselves. Let me give you one example. A few years ago, Don and I went to Ruidoso to celebrate our anniversary. We were married in the middle of December, so it was cold. We went to dinner and a show at the Spencer Theater. Did I mention it was cold? Well, it was very cold when everyone started scurrying to their warm cars after the show. There was an older couple walking in front of us. The husband was holding his wife’s hand, and he was walking at a faster pace than she was. They got to a curb and as she stepped up, she caught her toe and stumbled and fell. Luckily, she wasn’t hurt. The husband was exasperated with her clumsiness. While others (Don and I included) stopped to help her up, the husband just stood there. Once we made sure she was ok they continued to their car. Don and I were following because we were parked close by. Not realizing we were in earshot the husband glanced at the wife and said, “You’re an idiot.” The wife turned to her husband said, “You’re an idiot.” And that just proved that words can hurt. I’ve often wondered what else was said between that couple. Not just that night but on other occasions in their lives. 

Proverbs 15:4 says, “The soothing tongue is a tree of life, but a perverse tongue crushes the spirit.”

I understand how words can crush a spirit. All my life, I have been guilty of negative self-talk. I have told myself I’m dumb, worthless, unlovable, hopeless. The words I have spoken to myself about myself have done extreme damage to not only my self-esteem but also to my relationship with others and most of all with my Heavenly Father. The words I said to myself led me to believe the lies of the evil one. 

Proverbs 18:21 says, “The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat it’s fruit.” 

The fruit I was eating was rotten. It caused pain to so many people. And in the process of living with those lies in my head I hit rock bottom. But in reality, that was probably one of the best things that could have happened to me. 

Genesis 50:20 says, “What the enemy meant for harm, God meant it for good.” 

I was blessed to find a wonderful Christian counselor who has helped me to learn the truth of the words that I say to myself. Yes, the evil one still attacks and says painful things to me, but I have also learned to listen to the truth spoken over me by my Heavenly Father. In the process of seeking truth over lies I have become bolder in how I not only talk to myself but also to others. I choose and try to speak life and truth into people’s lives. I want to be known as a Proverbs 31 woman. Especially Proverbs 31:26- “She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue.” Have I got that self-talk completely under control? No. But it’s a work in progress. Our words must bring life and healing to those around us and for the one we see in the mirror because when you speak a word, you can’t take it back. 

So back to my original statement: “Sticks and stones can break my bones, but words can never hurt me.” It has been proven to me that words can be just as damaging and hurtful as a physical weapon.

Matthew 12:36 tells us, “But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgement for every empty word they have spoken.” 

So, my prayer is: “Lord, make my words good!”

We want to thank Hope Warren for sharing this post.

Since we are bound by time here on the earth, it’s hard for our human mind to comprehend the word “eternity.” I feel like it is one of those things we won’t fully understand until we are in the midst of it. Even though we have to wait to fully experience what eternity means, we can have an eternal perspective here on earth. This is a way of thinking that focuses on what is lasting and eternal, rather than on what is temporary and earthly. In Colossians 3:2, Paul states we need to “set our mind on things above, not on earthly things.” Easier said than done, right?

I have to admit, I was having a hard time with this topic. Even after a lot of prayer and asking the Lord to speak to my heart about what it means to have an “eternal perspective,” I felt like I had nothing. No nuggets of wisdom, no scripture references, no life stories to share. What I did have was a lot of self-doubt, worry, and frustration about various things in my life. Romans 8:5-6 says that those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh; but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. The mind of the flesh is death, but the mind of the Spirit is life and peace. The Lord revealed to me through that scripture that my mind had been so focused on worldly things that my worry/self-doubt/frustration was becoming louder than the peace the Spirit (Jesus) brings. My focus had slowly shifted from an eternal perspective to that of a worldly perspective, and that needed to change.

The Lord also revealed to me, through my children, that having an eternal perspective means we shift our focus from “self and the now” to “others and the future”. I was at home with my kids and it was one of those days where time was limited, but I really needed to get some things done. As those days usually go, there were constant interruptions from my kids (asking for snacks, needing school help, fixing arguments, etc.) The frustration was getting real, but God spoke to my heart and said, “They are what this is all about.” It’s about people, relationships, and sharing Jesus with others. It’s like making an investment for the future, but instead of investing money for worldly gain, we invest love. We love others and share with them the love of Jesus, so that hopefully those seeds that are planted will grow into a relationship with Him. I have heard a quote several times that says the “only thing from this life that we can take with us into eternity is other people”. That thought is so humbling to me! It is only through Jesus that anyone is able to be saved, but he does use us to show His love to other people.

It can be so hard to have an eternal perspective when, every day, this life reminds us that we currently live in a broken world. God is so good to guide us, though, when our focus begins to shift. He gives us opportunity after opportunity to love on others-whether that is a stranger at the grocery store or the children in our home. I happened upon a shirt the other day that says, “May heavenly things constantly interrupt our earthly things.” I loved the way that was worded, and that idea has been on my heart ever since. It is something that I pray will happen in my day to day. I am hoping for many opportunities for eternal investments! “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” 2 Corinthians 4:18

We want to thank Courtney Harper for sharing this post.