Hurting
When An Unsaved Loved One Dies
The main speaker at a ladies’ retreat I recently attended gave an excellent message on keeping our focus on eternal things, and among the examples she shared was the story of her sister’s untimely passing. Although devastated, the speaker took…
How Can We Mourn With Those Who Mourn?
This week tragedy struck in our church family, and as a result, we are in the midst of planning a very unexpected funeral. Through the sadness, I have witnessed church members effortlessly jump into action to serve this family. To…
When The Church Hurts You
I got saved at 26 years old, and I had some pretty naïve and idealistic ideas about what being in a church would be like. Thankfully, I was correct about the potlucks. I’ve been to plenty of those over the…
Grief Is A Process And That’s OK
My mom’s birthday was yesterday. She would have been sixty-one years old. Sadly, less than a month after she turned fifty-seven, she died due to cirrhosis of the liver. Our relationship was strained…to put it in the most positive light…
Where Is God In Depression?
This week my oldest child turns eleven, and our whole family is thinking back to when she was just a little baby. I have tried writing about the experience of becoming a mom countless times in the past, but I…
Mother’s Day When You Have A Bad Mom
Mother’s Day is upon us once again. For many, maybe most, people it seems like a day to lavish mothers with flowers, candy, scented candles, obligatory church attendance, and well-meaning attempts at breakfast in bed. At church we give testimonies…
A Birthday Letter To My Mom: After She’s Gone
*I wrote this letter two years ago to share on my personal Facebook page. My posts often go unnoticed, but this one seemed to resonate with a lot of people. Especially women. As I write this, it’s Christmas Eve, the…
It’s Actually True: My Mom Is Dead
*Update: I originally wrote this in the Summer of 2018. I needed to write it in order to process. I usually process out loud, but I couldn’t speak these words. Today, the 2 year anniversary of my mom’s death, I…
