If You Only Read One…
You Don’t Need More Talent or Time by Glennon Doyle Melton
You, the one without time or talent, you are the one. Write, paint, dance as a public service to our human family. Be a servant with your art. Don’t use it to say “Here I am!” Use it to say “Here we are. We are okay, you know.”
But Also Check Out These…
What an ALS Family REALLY Thinks About the Ice Bucket Challenge by Bo Stern
As I watch my strong husband struggle with things that used to be easy and automatic, I sometimes wish that everyone could see life from his perspective.
A Note to My Former Self and the Interrupted Link-Up by Jen Hatmaker
There is a cost to following Jesus; pay it. You’ll be so glad you did. It is pittance compared to what is coming. This is the best yes you’ve ever offered. The loss-and-gain rhythm of the gospel is real.
Why You Didn’t See Me in My Swimsuit Online by Crystal Stine
You are doing a great job in all the unseen, un-photographed, un-viral moments because you are PRESENT with your family. You are teaching, loving, disciplining, praying, feeding, comforting, and pouring into lives that will be forever changed – not because of what you wear or what anyone sees online.
#TellHisStory: The Ministry of the Sharpened Pencil by Jennifer Dukes Lee
It’s a maddening place, this world. But it’s also a beautiful world – where you can look at the familiar and see something fantastic. And sometimes you’ve got to make yourself see the fantastic, because if you don’t, you might miss the familiar thing that will save you.
Our Children, Our Neighbors by Jen Wilkin
If children are people, then they are also our neighbors. This means that every scriptural imperative that speaks to loving our neighbor as we love ourselves suddenly comes to bear on how we parent.
Your Sin is Not in Your Junk Drawer by Erin Davis
Yes, we are all sinners because we all fall short of the glory and perfection of God, not because there is dirty laundry on the floor and expired cheese in the refrigerator. Jesus didn’t die to redeem your junk drawer. He died to redeem you from your tendency to run in the opposite direction of God and His plans for your life.
In Case You Missed It…
On Writing, Shovels, & Speaking Your Verse by Kristen Lunceford
I have no idea what the outcomes of this will be, but managing the outcomes is not my job. My job is to show up, to do the next thing, to speak my verse. Your job is the same.
Get Into These Books…
A Million Little Ways: Uncovering the Art You Were Made to Live by Emily Freeman
Let’s All Be Brave: Living Life with Everything You Have by Annie Downs
The Last Word…
The posts this week from my friend @KristinRogers Instagram feed will both wreck and restore you.
Please pray for her family’s collective heart.
The ocean may have my dad, but heaven has his soul.
Before my eyes, my dad took a wave body surfing yesterday and never came back up. Gone. In an instant. My heart physically hurts right now and I cry so hard my eyes are almost swollen shut and my throat is in pain….. But can I just tell you that shows how much I loved my dad?
I want to shout it on rooftops how much I loved him for a sec. My crazy, white water rafting, fishing, camping, taught me how to be adventurous …..dad. He knew I loved him and I’m so grateful for that. He lived a full adventurous life and I’m thankful for that too. He would never claim to be a perfect man but he was a man thankful for grace. He loved the gospel and all it held for him. He was the guy you wanted to be around and talk to…. fun and brave. My dad.
I just had to tell the world that for a moment. I miss him, I ache for this not to be true….. but I grieve with hope knowing he is where he looked forward to being one day.
For those prayerful souls, can I ask? Please pray for our family. For God to take this wound and bind it with his grace…. that His peace would persevere in our hearts. This is so very hard…