These 7 prayers to say for your children can help be a springboard for your prayer life. Do you need new words to guide your heart as you seek God for your family? Let these prayers guide you. 7 Prayers to Say for Your Children I often pray for my children… That they are healthy…. [Continue Reading]
#WalkItOut
Celebrate Juneteenth & Foster The Reconciliation Our Country Needs
Today we celebrate Juneteenth–the oldest known celebration commemorating the ending of slavery in the United States. It was on June 19th in 1865 that the Union soldiers, led by Major General Gordon Granger, landed at Galveston, Texas with news that the war had ended and that the enslaved were now free. It’s impossible to understand this holiday and… [Continue Reading]
Find Freedom From Regret
“I wish I hadn’t done that…” My youngest child Casey broke his pinky toe on Friday. He was at gymnastics camp, and I later heard that he’d tried to do a front flip on the tumbling ramp … without the help of a coach. He is not a gymnast, but he is a daredevil. Casey… [Continue Reading]
A Marvelous Journey with an Amazing God
Dear Montana, we’re coming for vacation soon … I can’t wait. Seriously Montana is one of my favorite places on earth. We lived there for fifteen years, and I never took it for granted– its beauty, the people, the peace. Ten years ago, I was a mom of three (nearly an empty nester), serving in… [Continue Reading]
Helping Kids Cultivate God’s Goodness in their Lives
What lessons did you learn in the garden as a child? Personally, I remember the wonder of seeing new sprouts poke through the dirt and green strawberries brighten to red under the summer sun. Gardening taught me about God’s good creation, and as I became a mom I understood that I could cultivate patience in… [Continue Reading]
Giving Your Children a Heart for the World {Guestpost}
Our Life I felt like the worst homeschooling mom ever. While other parents were taking their kids on nature walks and art classes, I was dragging my three children along with me to the pregnancy resource center that I just helped to start. Cory, Leslie and Nathan—all in elementary school—helped me to fold baby clothes… [Continue Reading]
Praying God’s Word For Yourself and Your Child
Praying God’s Word Through the years I’ve seen how important it is to pray God’s word over and for my children. I’ve also watched how God moved in my kid’s hearts and lives when I shared the scriptures with them. That’s why I’ve made it a priority to read through the Bible each year and… [Continue Reading]
Spring is a Celebration!
They say ‘April showers bring May flowers.’ But when you’re an author (and a homeschooling mom!) it also brings a busy conference season! However, when May comes around the first thing I think about is my WWII friends. Because my first novel From Dust To Ashes was inspired by the liberation of Mauthausen Concentration Camp… [Continue Reading]
How to Invite Others Into Your Healing through Transparency
Years ago, in 2005, I faced one of the hardest struggles of my life. I thought I was doing so well—as a writer, as a mom, and as a wife. One November, I pondered my family and my work, and I thought things couldn’t get any better. I even prayed Psalm 139:23-24: Search me,… [Continue Reading]
10 Ways to Make Your Home a Place of Healing For Kids From Foster Care
John and I opened our home to foster care and adoption with a lot of hope and little knowledge of what the reality would look like. As a mom trying to help these kids heal, I learned a lot about children, trauma, myself, our mutual needs, and healing. Out of everything I’ve learned, the… [Continue Reading]
Top podcasts of 2018
I’ve had so much fun with my Walk It Out podcast in 2018. I thought I’d share my most popular guests. There were a few surprising things about this list. First, I interview far less men than women, but four men made the list! Another surprising thing, my interview with my son’s childhood friend (Zach… [Continue Reading]