Life with Christ will not be pain-free. This is a prominent theme throughout Scripture. First, let’s just acknowledge how abnormal it is to embrace such a life. When traveling from point A to point B, we enter the destination into our navigation system, expecting it will provide us with the shortest route. The one with…
So Long Normal: What’s So Bad about Normal?
INTRODUCTION Leader, read this section aloud to the group: Have you ever tried to grab your breath on a cold morning? It may seem like an odd question, but it’s undoubtedly something we’ve all tried to do at some point in our lives. Catching our breath is like trying to maintain a sense of “normal.”…
A Better Broken
Messy Endings When songwriters are trying to figure something out, they often write a song about it. The song I wrote was called “I Can Just Be Me.” The lyrics begin with me trying to do everything but not measuring up. Then in the chorus I ask God to be everything that I can’t be. …
Blessings at Christmas
God had clearly spoken. “We can start trying to have kids!” Martin said later that night. “I know, it’s crazy, isn’t it? Just think, nine months from now our life could look very different!” I said. Nine months later, our life looked exactly the same. I hadn’t gotten pregnant and now the disappointment we felt…
Don’t Be Surprised By Trouble
Our hope comes in Jesus, even when He doesn’t do what we want Him to do. Even when He doesn’t fix what’s broken in our life… When Jesus is with us, He’s our anchor in the rough waters of a troubled life. If we want to survive the storm we need to cling to Him…
Dear God, Help Me to Daily Surrender to You
I have a proven tendency to mess things up. I have good intentions and even a few really good ideas. But sometimes things can go sideways so fast that I find myself questioning not only my actions but also my worth as a child of God. Not too long ago, I traveled to The Cove…
I Give Up — Wrapping It Up!
Hey, friends! It’s time to wrap up I Give Up already — time to review, catch up, and digest all that we’ve studied and learned from Scripture and from our dear teacher, Laura Story. If you want to rewatch the videos this week is your chance, so let’s get everything out of this study…
I Give Up OBS Week 5 — The Ripple Effect of Surrender
God is the only One who can see the full story. And, our job is to trust Him enough to surrender. ~ Laura Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me more than these?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord, You know that I love You.” He said to Him,…
I Give Up OBS Week 4 — Being Transformed
Does [Jesus] expect me to be superwoman? No. He’s challenging me to be surrendered… and the beautiful news it that He doesn’t expect any of this to happen in and of myself. ~ Laura I can do all things through Him who gives me strength. — Philippians 4:11-13 Hi there, friends! It’s already week four…
I Give Up OBS Week 3 — Giving In and Up
There’s nothing natural about surrender. And, there’s not one of us that in our flesh nature loves to give away the things that we consider to be ours… When it comes to surrender, it’s just plain hard. ~ Laura Story So that the world may know that I love the Father, I do exactly as…