Topic > When Life Hurts
We Won’t Break
As a native Californian and lover of all things sunny, I shy away from all things cold. I do, however, enjoy beautiful photos of snow. So I couldn’t help but smile when my friend from Illinois shared a winter picture of a sapling outside her window. Admiration turned to sadness when I noticed its bare, knotted branches bowing under the heavy fringe of sparkling icicles.
How long could those bending boughs endure before breaking under their icy burdens? The heaviness threatening to crack the tree’s limbs reminded me of my shoulders, hunched beneath the weight of worries.
After Jesus affirms that the…
Everywhere and Nowhere
A family friend who, like us, lost a teenager in a car accident wrote a tribute to her daughter, Lindsay, in the local paper. One of the most powerful images in her essay was this: After mentioning the many pictures and remembrances of Lindsay she had put around their house, she wrote, “She is everywhere, but nowhere.”
Although our daughters still smile back at us from their photos, the spirited personalities that lit up those smiles are nowhere to be found. They are everywhere—in our hearts, in our thoughts, in all those photos—but nowhere.
But Scripture tells us that, in Christ, Lindsay…
Praising Through Problems
“It’s cancer.” I wanted to be strong when Mom said those words to me. But I burst into tears. You never want to hear those words even one time. But this was Mom’s third bout of cancer. After a routine mammogram and biopsy, Mom learned that she had a malignant tumor under her arm.
Though Mom was the one with bad news, she had to comfort me. Her response was eye opening for me: “I know God is always good to me. He’s always faithful.” Even as she faced a difficult surgery, followed up by radiation treatments, Mom was assured of…
Able and Available
My husband was at work when I received news about my mom’s cancer diagnosis. I left him a message and reached out to friends and family. None were available. Covering my face with trembling hands, I sobbed. “Help me, Lord.” A resulting assurance that God was with me comforted me through those moments when I felt utterly alone.
I thanked the Lord when my husband came home and support from friends and family trickled in. Still, the calming awareness of God’s presence that I sensed in those first few hours of lonely grieving affirmed that God is readily and faithfully available…
The Baby Who Wasn’t Meant to Be
“We are going to have a baby!” My husband and I couldn’t contain our excitement that night as we told our two children I was expecting.
Emotions Can Blind You To The Truth
Whether you’re near-sighted or far-sighted, without the right lens, your world’s going to be a blur. And it’s no different spiritually! Today on Discover the Word, the team wraps up their series called, Eye Openers, with a look at how our emotions can blind us to Jesus’s presence. Listen today to Discover the Word!
“Eye Opener”
Have you ever run around the house looking for your glasses, only to find them already on your head? Sometimes we miss the most obvious things! And today on Discover the Word, we’ll continue a series called “Eye Openers” by showing a common reason we miss seeing Jesus in our lives. Get your spiritual vision […]
How Do We Love Others If We’re Lonely?
I got into a great conversation with a girl at a party recently. She’s been a friend for a long time, but it went so well I started to wish she was more than a friend. But I could tell she didn’t want the same.
Christmas Can Be a Time of Loneliness
The Christmas season sometimes feels like an incredibly lonely one for me, and listening in on other people’s exciting holiday plans makes things worse. “Am I the only one doomed to be spending Christmas holed up in Auckland with my family?” I think.
Everlasting Hope
The week before Christmas, two months after my mom died, holiday shopping and decorating sat at the bottom of my priority list. I resisted my husband’s attempts to comfort me as I grieved the loss of our family’s faith-filled matriarch. I sulked as our son, Xavier, stretched and stapled strands of Christmas lights onto the inside walls of our home. Without a word, he plugged in the cord before he and his dad left for work.
As the colorful bulbs blinked, God gently drew me out of my darkness. No matter how painful the circumstances, my hope remained secure in the…
When Crisis Strikes at Christmas
I will never forget Christmas Day, 2014. It was the day my wife had a panic attack. We were getting ready to leave for church that day.
The Cure for Anxiety
We were excited about moving for my husband’s job. But the unknowns and challenges leave me feeling anxious. Thoughts of sorting and packing up belongings. Looking for a place to live. My finding a new job too. Making my way around a new city, and getting settled. It was all . . . unsettling. As I thought about my “to-do” list, words written by the apostle Paul echoed in my mind: Don’t worry, but pray (Phil. 4:6–7).
If anyone could have been anxious about unknowns and challenges, it would have been Paul. He was shipwrecked. He was beaten. He was jailed. In…
Trusting God Even If
Due to an injury that occurred in 1992, I suffer from chronic pain in my upper back, shoulders, and neck. During the most excruciating and disheartening moments, it’s not always easy to trust or praise the Lord. But when my situation feels unbearable, God’s constant presence comforts me. He strengthens me and reassures me of His unchanging goodness, limitless power, and sustaining grace. And when I’m tempted to doubt my Lord, I’m encouraged by the determined faith of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. They worshipped God and trusted He was with them, even when their situation seemed hopeless.
When King Nebuchadnezzar threatened…
Can God Be Trusted? My Struggle with Asperger’s
“Have you heard of Autism Spectrum Disorder?” David, my mission team leader, casually asked me while we were having lunch at Makassar, Indonesia, while on a mission trip.
How God Liberated Me From My Mental Battles
Depression and anxiety are no strangers to me. Panic attacks are routine, followed closely by waves of doubt and unbelief. I’ve experienced different traumas, toxic relationships, and being knocked down many times.
