The House You're Building

Hello Blog Readers!    It has been months since my last post and I was delighted to see that despite not having put out new content, I’ve had a regular stream of visitors from all over the world.  I’ve been contributing in this online space for the last 10 years and am always amazed that God consistently brings believers to engage with Him through my posts.  What started out as an act of gratitude as my family of four moved into the house He built for us, has become a space for me to grow alongside you and share out what He is doing in me as He builds His church. Thanks for sticking with me as a took a break this summer.  God gave the green light this week at work as a coworker (Thanks B!) encouraged me to get back to my writing, which was the nudge I was needing.     This post is a preview of a new series I’m developing and intend to put out each week.  It’s not a bible study or a devotional, but a hybrid of the two....

Recently I just got back from a trip—my first time on an airplane in over a year!     Like many of my friends, we took for granted before the pandemic how easy it was to travel and it felt amazing to get away.     When you’ve been gone from home for a week or more, usually other than laundry, one of the first things you need to do is hit up the grocery store.     In my day-to-day I’m a “Clicklister.”     I order my groceries online and pick them up after work on Friday.     Working full time, I love the convenience of having someone retrieve my weekly list for me, saving me a longer trip.     Since I usually don’t go in the store, this trip took longer than usual. Things were moved in different places and I had a big list, being out of produce and pantry items I had let dwindle.  When my overfull cart was unloaded and the cashier had finally totaled up my purchase, she asked if I wanted to round-up to the nearest doll...

    Home decorating has become a cash-cow in the recent pandemic.  Stuck in their homes, more than ever people are using their quarantine to do major updates to their home decor  [1] .  In fact, I have several friends who used their time to do various projects like painting, updating bathrooms, and buying new furniture.  I wish I could say the pandemic inspired me to get out complete a home renovation, but if I’m honest I baked more and expanded my waistband instead.    Several years ago, my family had the privilege to build a house and at that time Hobby Lobby showed up quite frequency as a payee on my checkbook register.  I wanted everything new! At the time, dark woods and red tones were in fashion.  Because home decor styles change as quickly as everything else, soon after I had furnished my new residence blues we in.  No one will ever accuse me of being Joanna Gaines, so when my family moved 5 year...

  What would you say if you knew you were about to speak to someone for the last time?    As I ponder this question, a scene from pop culture comes to mind.    In the popular Harry Potter film series, Lupin and Kingsley have just fought a group of death-eaters as they transported Harry to the Burrow, a place of refuge.    To prove their identity to one another, as the enemy had been impersonating those in their order, they speak Dumbledore’s last words to one another: “Harry is the best hope we have.    Trust in him.” Last words are meant to be memorable and instructive.    In my own life, I can recall a last moment that will always stick with me.    One summer a few years back, my husband and I went to visit a spiritual mentor.    This pastor had discipled us, encouraged us, and married us.    He was like a spiritual father and having moved away, we hadn’t seen him in several years.    In vis...

  Are you a gift giver?  If you’re at all familiar with Gary Chapman’s landmark book  The Five Love Languages , you’re aware of his theory that each person receives and gives love in different ways. Personally, receiving gifts is not the primary way I receive love.  Yet I love to give them when there is no expectation to supply a present.  When I’m online or in a shop and see something personal, funny, meaningful, I usually buy it and give it as a “just because” present.  Not for a birthday or Christmas, I like to surprise people with thing that reminded me of them.    Spiritual gifts work in a similar way.  They are at times intentional, but more often a spontaneous offering meant to bring joy to another.  They seem natural to us because they are indeed in our nature.  God gives every believer, though the anointing of the Holy Spirit, a unique role that is needed for Christian community to functio...