Read Our Stories

“Quick” is the word I could use when describing how my anger level used to be. Ask my kids who all know the point when this mom is done with their ridiculousness. Yes, they had warnings…”Stop that!”. Then the next step was “I told you to____fill in the blank (stop that, clean that up, put that away). With each warning the tone of my voice got louder. Next was the famous, “I’m coming up there!” Why is it so necessary to push those “mom buttons”? Looking back (way back in my case) I suppose I did plenty pushing to my

Don’t ever be fooled into believing there is no Hell. If you know there is a Heaven, then you’d best know there is also a Hell. In the Gospels Jesus speaks openly about Hell and how to avoid it. Like a good parent telling their child not to touch the stovetop…we know what the consequences of their disobedience will be and the pain it will cause them. The problem is we can warn someone all day long, but they must make the decision whether to believe us enough to not touch it. When our youngest was little…probably about four years

I was listening to a debate on whether God existed, and the atheist exclaimed, “Tonight when I’m watching TV, God can bring a bolt of lightning into my living room and then I’ll believe in him.” God’s children…we’re a stubborn bunch. So stubborn in fact that I wonder if that bolt of lightning would still convince that speaker? I’m afraid some will still miss out no matter what you say to them. Some really want to believe but are afraid to say anything for fear of rejection. Then, some of us believe with our whole hearts without needing any proof at all.

She really hurt me. Although there was no physical pain, I could feel the knife in my back as palpably as if it was real. Why? Why would someone betray my friendship so effortlessly, so heartlessly? Trust is fragile. We have the misconception that the longer we feel we know someone the stronger we can trust them. This is false thinking. Betrayal can happen any instant. No, I’m not saying don’t trust anyone. I’m saying fall deeply. Trust extremely. Open yourself up to the vulnerability of betrayal. It’s in that sweet spot that faith blooms. Won’t this open you up

The story starts with a mom who wants something for her boys. Something BIG. She wants them to sit on each side of Jesus in Heaven. I think if it was present day and she had daughters, she’d be the tv dance mom or the pageant mom who was crazed at what position her girls had. The mom that did whatever it takes to get her girls into the ”right” preschool to be on track for the “right” college. In this story it was the mom of the disciples of Jesus, James and John. All three of them came to