While God will never forget or abandon us, at times we will feel forgotten. It’s not that God is distant; it’s just that sometimes He feels distant. It’s not that God is preoccupied; it’s just that our struggles make us feel like we’re facing the world alone. What is amazing is that we are given…
Fiction Friday — Colleen Coble: What Every Aspiring Fiction Writer Should Know
It’s Fiction Friday! Today, we get to hear from our friend, Colleen Coble, a USA TODAY bestselling author and the CEO of American Christian Fiction Writers. If you love story-telling or you’ve thought about writing, Colleen shared with us 10 Essentials Every Aspiring Fiction Writer Should Know: Expect rejections. The rejection isn’t a personal thing either. The…
Pain Is One of Those Things I Don’t Like Much
Editor’s Note: This post, taken from Lisa Gungor’s new book The Most Beautiful Thing I’ve Seen, touches on the moments after she, her family, and her close friends discover that her newborn daughter Lucie (Lucette) has Down syndrome. Lisa wrote a song about Lucie titled “Light,” which is what Lucette means. Click here to watch the music video. I…
Don’t Waste the Wait
We wait in hope for the Lord; He is our help and our shield. In Him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in His holy name. — Psalm 33:20–21 Have you ever noticed that there’s a lot of waiting in the Bible? Abraham waited for an heir. Hannah waited for a child. King David waited…
Out of the Pit and Singing a New Song
You will have a new song in your mouth, a hymn of praise to your God. That’s the second way you’ll know you’ve waved goodbye to the pit. Right after the psalmist tells us that God sets us on the rock and gives us a firm place to stand, he tells us God gives us a new song: He…
Cutting New Paths and Taking New Ground
Sometimes you just have to memorize and meditate on the good news loops out of obedience in order to start to make the correct synapses. Memorize it, and then repeat the good news to yourself over and over. I’ve realized that the three kinds of false belief—I can’t do this, I’m not enough, and nothing is ever…
Quit Negative Thinking and Preach to Yourself
Can I be honest for a second? It’s easy for me to get stuck in my head. I’ve always had a noisy mind, when I was little I couldn’t fall asleep unless I was lulled by the endless drone of talk radio. That whooshing and whirring, loud and purring brain of mine can feel like…
You’re Invited to the Preach to Yourself Book Club
“We know Christ came to speak life — so why does our inner critic keep showing up and stealing the mic? If we’re honest, she’s a harsh one, saying things we’d never dream of saying to others…” – Hayley Morgan, Preach to Yourself Do you struggle with negative self-talk? Do you often feel like you…
Waking Up to God’s Goodness Around You
When my doorbell rang last August, Michelle was the last person I expected to be waiting on the other side. I’d only met her a few times in the four years we had lived on the same street, and none of those times had been particularly noteworthy. I made an effort in the beginning, dropping…