Forgiveness should be a fairly familiar concept for all of us.It’s a practice that we each come face-to-face with on a regular — perhaps, daily — basis. We have no choice really. Any human relationship of any consequence requires truckloads of it. We wrong each other repeatedly — in ways both small and large, inconsequential… Read More Rx: Forgiveness
Do women experience their relationship with God differently than men do? If so, in what ways? And what does that mean for our churches? For our ministries and our sermons? And for the way that pastors lead? Today I’m writing over at PastorResources.com about the particular way Jesus ministered to women. CLICK HERE to read more!
Are you waiting for anything right now? The next life event? An answer to prayer? The end of a particular pain? Today I have the honor of writing again about the theme of waiting, this time over at Elisa Morgan’s blog, Really! Join me there as I reflect on what it’s like to wait when you’re… Read More When the Wait Is Worth It
We are a love-thirsty people. We try so many ways to satiate those longings that we live with, but ultimately only one source—the living water—will satisfy. A couple of years ago my husband Peter and I wrote a little book called 20 Things We’d Tell Our Twentysomething Selves. It started as a blog post,… Read More Pierced and Embraced Releases Today!
For me, the month of July has been all about re-ordering my life in several important ways. I’ll share more about that in future posts… But this morning I just wanted to take a minute and invite you over to my Facebook page. One element of my “re-ordering” has been the re-establishment of a more meaningful… Read More Join Me in James
I admit it. I like Pinterest-worthy parties. I mean, I really like them. The beauty. The order. The creativity. The perfection. The sparkle. The shine. They speak to me. However, a Pinterest-worthy party has not been our reality this week here at This Odd House. Yesterday, my favorite little girl turned six years old. And… Read More Crepe Paper Streamers and Balloons: Our Anti-Pinterest Party
We had been trying for a long time to take our family to Peter’s homeland of England. Several years ago we started putting money aside every month specifically for that purpose. But then a car would need repairs or an appliance would need replacing, and—bang!—would go our travel fund. Eventually, for one of Peter’s birthdays,… Read More 5 Lessons that Traveling Can Teach
This trip has been years in the making. Ever since we became parents in 2009, we have dreamt of taking Daryl—and then Amelia as well—to England to meet Peter’s family and English friends, and to experience his homeland. A couple of years ago we thought we would be able to make the journey, but then… Read More From England, with Love
On Mother’s Day 2004 I made the silly mistake of going to church. By that time my husband Peter and I had been floundering in the stormy sea of infertility for over two years, and I was tired. Depression was weighing me down—anger, too—as we rode wave after wave. The monthly swell of hope, then… Read More When Mother’s Day Is a Matter of Life and Death
It often happens this way. Peter and I are asked to speak on the subject of marriage, and our own relationship comes under particular attack. Sometimes it comes in the form of a full frontal assault, a crisis beyond our control. But more often the enemy sends in stealth bombers—our own poor choices, rogue… Read More 20 Things We’d Tell Our Newly-Married Selves
