Where God's Word Meets Our Mess
I’ve never consumed alcohol—not even a beer at a party or a glass of wine at a restaurant or a sip of champagne at a wedding. There’s a simple, specific reason I’ve avoided alcohol. It’s required intentionality. And while you may not agree with my reason, I want you to know what it is.
I like mysteries—specifically TV shows and movies with mysteries. I’ve enjoyed many Hallmark mysteries over the years, but finding non-Hallmark mysteries without content issues is hard. That’s why I was so pleased when I learned about The Thursday Murder Club. Although it’s not a Hallmark mystery, it sounded like a good movie overall. Unfortunately, I was wrong.
Honestly, I’m not saying cynicism is always a bad thing because biblical principles like wisdom can accompany cynicism. However, I also realize cynicism can result in callousness. So in this post, I discuss two ways you can take a cautious—but not cold—approach to guarding your heart in romantic relationships.
I can’t believe it’s been over three months since I last published a poem. That poem was connected to a specific verse—Psalm 34:8—but this one is based on several verses from Psalm 139. It’s about how intimately God knows us. It’s short and simple, but hopefully, it’s a reminder of His wonderful love.
I’ve seen it more times than I can count—the girl who decides to take matters into her own hands when she loves a guy who’s ambivalent toward her or even uninterested in her. She makes excuses for his lack of initiation, claiming he’s just too nervous or too shy to take the lead. So she takes the lead instead. She seeks him out, talks to him, flirts with him, texts him, and asks him out. But deep down, it’s unsatisfying because she wants what every girl wants—to be chased.
As a former anorexic who’s struggled to accept her body and maintain her health, the main thing I want you to know if you turned back to your eating disorder is that grace and forgiveness are available to you. It’s not too late to find freedom again. You can return to what's right and true, and your brothers and sisters in Christ can help lead you there—if you're willing.
A couple years ago, I noticed a trend in the Christian book market. All of a sudden, it felt like there were lots of books about church hurt. I’m thankful I haven’t had any traumatizing experiences at church, but I did begin to wonder if church hurt is more common than I thought. Church hurt definitely is a real thing, and that's why I wrote this post.
I’m not going to sugarcoat it: Being ghosted is hard. The rejection combined with the lack of closure makes it a very unfun experience. It definitely happens on dating apps, but yours truly can attest that (unfortunately) it also happens beyond the dating apps. No matter how you were ghosted, though, I want you to know you can get through it. In last week’s post, I shared two radical truths to help you process the experience and move forward. Here are a few more radical truths you should also keep in mind.
I know James isn’t the right guy for me (or even a good guy in general), but it’s been super hard to get over him and what he’s done to me. Perhaps you, too, have been ghosted and can’t seem to move on. I completely understand your struggle, and I have five hope-filled truths to share with you during this post-ghost season that might surprise you.
