Jesus Died for...All

My kids and I went to see The King of Kings movie this week. I didn’t know much about it except for reading one review. The premise is Charles Dickens {yes, the novelist} wants to teach his son about the greatest King who ever lived. So he tells the story of Jesus, from birth to resurrection. As he hears the story, the boy “lives” the scenes his father is describing, trying to warn the family that Herod is killing babies, showing Mary that Jesus is teaching in the temple, etc.

At first, the intrusion into the biblical narrative of a Victorian dressed boy and his cat was a little jarring. But as the boy “experiences” miracles, the Garden of Gethsemane, and the crucifixion, the movie watcher is also welcomed into the narrative; maybe to experience these Bible events in a fresh way.

While this post is not an endorsement for the film {it does have some biblical inaccuracies}, it did make me consider a few things through a new lens. And that’s the lens of people — the individuals who lived what we are prone to breeze through in our Bible reading.

The scenes portrayed are ones I knew in an instant: the blind man healed, the paralytic lowered through the roof, Jesus walking on water and feeding thousands. But thinking what it would have been like to experience them in person made me pause. Especially in one scene: when the woman caught in adultery is brought to Jesus.

In the movie, you see the crowd grabbing rocks, yelling it is lawful to stone her for her sin, the Pharisees smirking, the woman crying. Jesus stands from writing in the dirt and simply says, “Let the person who has never sinned throw the first stone.” In the movie, he looks around as the angry faces in the crowd turn to surprise, confusion, guilt. Hands lower, rocks fall to the ground, and everyone walks away.

That realization that we have all sinned. That there is no ranking in God’s eyes. Sin separates us from the perfectly holy God. Lying is a sin just as pride is, just as adultery is, just as murder is, just as idolatry is. We have no merit or goodness on our own. And that is why Jesus came. For all sinners, because we need a Savior.

It’s hard to believe I need to say this…but that person you disagree with politically is saved by the same sacrifice of Jesus that saved you. Those family members who don’t follow the same life rules you do, Jesus died for their sins when he died for yours. Salvation isn’t limited to who we think deserves it. It’s an open invitation that every person has to choose to accept but that God freely offers to all.

If you are trying to do good works, be a better person, reach God on your own merit, please stop. Jesus died for you. Maybe you don’t feel worthy of his sacrifice. Maybe you’ve rejected him in the past. Come now. Repent of your sins, ask Jesus to save you, admit you are a sinner in desperate need of a Savior. Meet the King of Kings at the foot of the cross.

Photo by Duncan Sanchez on Unsplash

How We Change

Change is inevitable.

Nothing stays the same for long. Where I live, we are currently inching from winter to spring. Snow is on the mountains, trees are starting to bud out, the temperature climbs a little more each day.

I look at my kids and I see change. My teenager is suddenly looking me in the eye, excited to pass me up in height this year. My 11 year old is growing more confident, my first grader is trying to read more. Nothing can stop the change.

In life, we change; I look back at who I was 16 years ago when we moved to Utah and I’m thankful parts of me have changed. Motherhood, ministry, experiences, walking with friends through hard things. All that continues to work through me and I’m {prayerfully} being changed to be more like Christ.

But how do we look at things in our lives and know if a shift is necessary?

We are told many places in the New Testament that there is an “old man” and a “new man” for those who trust Christ. The old represents who we were in sin, living for ourselves. The new is who God has changed us to be and is currently sanctifying through the rest of our Christian walk.

We know we will change after salvation because our desires and habits are transformed. We are no longer given over to worldly things but our desire is to pursue Christ. We want what God wants, we mourn over things that grieve him, we view our lives as made for God’s glory.

However, this reality of being transformed has limits. Over the last several years, I’ve heard of Christians deconstructing their faith and many times, it leads to them completely abandoning their faith for secularism. We also have bitterness and anger changing people after a tragedy or unexpected situation. I would argue change is not always good or helpful.

So how can we know we’re changing in a good way?

First, we need to honestly ask if in our change we are moving away from God or closer to him. Questions aren’t bad but we need to be going to the correct place to find the answers.

Which leads to the second point. We need to stay in our Bibles. I’ve heard many deconstructionists say that in their attempt to get a fuller picture of the truth they turned to secular sources. This is not how we find out about God or truth. The world is at odds with its Creator. If we ask an atheist about God, we’re going to get a warped view of who God is. That will not help us change in a beneficial way.

The Christian life shouldn’t be stagnant. Sometimes in our questions and experiences, we might falter as we walk through difficult valleys. But don’t stay there! Don’t turn around and abandon the path. May we keep our eyes on Christ and pray that everyday, we are changing to be more like him.

Slowing Down for Beauty

When you think of beauty, what pops in your mind?

Maybe a flawless face, a certain piece of music, a rose. Beauty can be seen in many different ways and different people appreciate different applications of beauty. But all beauty is appreciated more with time and attention.

When we see something beautiful we want to stop and consider it, look closer. It’s sometimes difficult to put into words why something strikes us. Other times we immediately put our finger on why we call it beautiful. But to fully savor the thing or moment or experience, we have to slow down and give our attention.

The reality of this fully took form when Tommy and I went to Paris last year. We were able to experience amazing food, incredible historical sites, and surround ourselves in completely new things at every turn. One of the top things on my list of “want to dos” when we were planning our trip was to visit Musee de l’Orangerie {Orangery Museum} where the famous Waterlily paintings by Monet are.

I don’t know exactly when I started loving them, but Impressionist paintings are my favorite style and Paris museums are filled with Monet, Degas, Renoir, and a host of others. But l’Orangerie is especially magnificent because Monet himself worked on the plan to renovate the building, planning how his studies of the waterlilies from his garden pond would look on display. The panels are over two yards tall and when put together are almost 100 yards wide. Stretching in ovals around two rooms, there really is nothing like it.

The immensity of the paintings hits you, especially when you’ve only seen them in books. While the paintings weren’t the tallest or the most detailed paintings we saw, the scale of them arching around the room, the calming colors set off by stark white walls, and the quiet as visitors took them in was beautiful.

But while Tommy and I stood in the middle of the room and I attempted to etch every color and detail into my memory, other tourists were there for an entirely different reason. They stood at the painting, back toward the masterpiece, and smiled for a friend to capture the moment on camera. Picture secure, they headed to the next room, some of them spending less than a minute before Monet’s 30 years of work.

Can you appreciate the beauty of the thing and the experience in such a blink? You certainly can’t capture the whole painting or the feeling in a snapshot. These were not beauty seekers. They were focused on the adage, “If I have a picture of it, it happened.” Or maybe, “If I post it on social media, it happened.” We saw similar tourists at Versailles, the Louvre, even restaurants. So absorbed in their phones, their pictures, their posts that they didn’t care about what surrounded them.

What a waste of beauty! Maybe you believe they took those photos and look at them and reflect on what they saw now, months after the trip. But I doubt it. If you can’t appreciate beauty when you are in the moment, will you ever have time to look back? And it won’t be the same.

Sunsets are my favorite. I love the splash of color that is ever changing. No two sunsets are the same; the temperature, the air quality, the position of the sun makes each one a unique painting from God. And try as I might, a picture of a spectacular sunset is never the same as watching it happen in real time. Same with rainbows. Pictures never seem to capture the colors, the expanse, the shimmer of a rainbow. To fully enjoy them, we must slow down and look right then! So it is with all beauty.

Our society seems to be based on a breakneck pace. Do more, faster! Be more productive in less time! These types of attitudes don’t go well with savoring experiences, looking for beauty, and enjoying what’s in front of you. The thought something better is just after this moment keeps us from finding contentment where we are and slowing down. We think if we slow down we’ll miss something but the truth is, in our race to the next thing, we’re missing hundreds of beautiful things and moments.

Don’t stand with your back to the masterpiece and rush to the next photo op. Look around, enjoy the moment now, while it’s here, and you might be surprised that you can find beauty in so many things.

Photo by Richard Hedrick on Unsplash

Why Work Matters

The beginning of the year is filled with resolutions and new ideas and entire lists of wishes.

It is also filled with work. Cleaning up after Christmas decorating and parties. Decluttering. Maybe scrubbing germs away from a sickness. Work fills our lives, not only in January but throughout the year.

It can be easy to just plow through the work; much of it is necessary. Cleaning, laundry, cooking, learning. All these things are needed but that doesn’t mean that it’s always fun or easy.

One of the conversations I have with my kids is in the realm of their schoolwork. They wonder why it’s important, why it matters, why they can’t just do it fast and be done. I have one child who would be willing to do a year’s worth of science assignments in a week and be done with science for the year. But that’s not helpful. Often work is slow, takes perseverance, needs focus and continual effort.

Many people in today’s society believe that work is bad; some Christians might even consider it part of the fall. However, in Gen. 2:15, we see that the LORD gave Adam the responsibility to keep and cultivate the garden before sin entered the world. We also see Adam naming all the animals in verses 19-20 {which seems like a huge job to me!}.

So if work isn’t inherently sinful, how should we approach it? Well, again, the Bible gives us a guideline. The book of Proverbs alone has almost a dozen references to work. Here are a few —

• Our work will return to us {12:14}

• Work leads to profit {14:23}

• Being lazy will have consequences {18:9}

• Our work will be noticed {22:29}

The New Testament mentions the heart motive behind our work: Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. {I Cor. 10:31} This verse doesn’t put stipulations on what type of work is valuable but rather EVERYTHING we do should be for God’s glory. Meaning putting forth our best effort because God is the one who gives us the ability for it all.

I don’t believe we can effectively glorify or accurately represent God when we do things grumbling, upset, or half hearted. Yes, the work might be hard but hard doesn’t equal sinful, bad, or wrong. Hard exists because of the curse of sin {Gen. 3:17-19} but it doesn’t mean hard things are bad. I appreciate the wisdom of Abbie Halberstadt, a homeschooling, podcasting mom and author, who wrote a book titled, “Hard is Not the Same Thing as Bad” {I encourage you to read it}.

We have this mindset that difficulties should be avoided. Work that is too hard, too strenuous, too time consuming isn’t worth doing at all or can be done begrudgingly because it’s bad. That’s not the truth from the Bible. We can learn valuable lessons from doing hard things. We can discover that we actually enjoy the challenge in some tasks.

I remind my kids — and myself — that trying new things is hard but it is necessary. We shouldn’t complain or give up when we attempt work that is hard and we don’t immediately succeed. That’s part of the learning and growing process! Despite what you might have heard, nothing is easy for anyone the first time. Musicians, craftsmen, athletes, teachers, everyone has to work to improve to the point they are at. They might naturally have good hand/eye coordination but they have to practice to gain the accuracy to make the shot. They might have good pitch naturally but they have to learn to read music and play with musicality.

It’s all work. Plain, honest hard work. And it’s worth doing because we can glorify our Creator through our efforts and attitude.

Photo by Raphael Rychetsky on Unsplash

The Value of Children

As the year comes to a close, I like to look back and consider things I learned, what stood out as important, and use it as a framework for the coming year. Two things stood out to me in 2024; I’ll address one here and one in this post.

A theme culturally in 2024 that struck me was children. Slowly but surely the dialogue about and the treatment of children is becoming hostile. Starting with abortion and throughout childhood, children are being targeted in so many ways, and sometimes by those who should be protecting them: their own parents.

When we talk about protecting children, we automatically think of their physical safety. With the acceptance of abortion and the trans movement, along with people turning a blind eye to human trafficking, considering the literal, physical safety of children is indeed important.

But we often shove a facet of caring for children aside. That is their value and emotional health. I’m afraid the worldly, everyone’s a winner mentality has caused many Christians to shift to the other extreme of just grow up and get over it. I believe there is a balance to be had.

We can encourage and cheer on our children, be proud of their efforts and accomplishments, and let them know they matter to God without making an idol of them. We were all children at one point and I think we can all remember a time we were bullied, made fun of, embarrassed, etc. and we shouldn’t purposefully do those things to our children as payback for our own experiences.

I saw a disturbing trend on social media that was labeled as “Watch my child react while I…” and the videos were parents filming themselves cracking eggs on kids’ heads, throwing flour at them, lying about going to Disneyland and recording how their children reacted for the purpose of posting on social media and getting likes. These are the same parents who no doubt will complain that their kids no longer speak to them once they reach High School.

If we want good relationships with our teen/adult children, we need to cultivate that in our toddler/elementary age children. This means not purposefully embarrassing them, making fun of them, posting their failures. We need to remember that those toddlers will grow up and they will use how they were treated as a guide for how to treat others.

Those of us posting as parents now didn’t grow up with parents on social media. Imagine your parents filming your disappointments, chronicling your attitude issues for a host of strangers online.

Another disturbing trend is the crashing birth rate, not only in the US but throughout Europe as well. I acknowledge that some couples want children and physical reasons keep them childless. But the majority of young people today are choosing to not have children for financial, selfish, and career pursuits. Children are no longer a joy; they are an inconvenience, an obstacle to getting more from life.

But I argue that there is a certain joy found only in children. Watching children learn new skills, try hard things, enjoy creation. One of the things that brings tears to my eyes the most is watching my children take in new experiences. Laughing, exploring, learning, seeing the world through their perspective and innocence.

Children should be treasured and wanted, at every age.

Photo by Josue Michel on Unsplash

The Value of Beauty

As the year comes to a close, I like to look back and consider things I learned, what stood out as important, and use it as a framework for the coming year. Two things stood out to me in 2024; I’ll address one here and one in this post.

I am somewhere between minimalist and hoarder.

While I don’t love little trinkets and figures displayed on shelves that will need to be dusted on rotation, I also don’t love the sparceness of nothing. The empty walls and shelves half filled with books, spine facing in {seriously, who started that trend and can we please stop?!}.

I am also sentimental so keeping things is important to me too. The few things I have on display are from special people or certain times in my life. The minimal clutter they cause is worth it to me because of the memory associated with it.

And in those simple things — memories, experiences, creation — we can find beauty. There’s many different definitions of what is beautiful or what makes something beautiful. And we pair that adjective with many different things: nature, architecture, music, people, food. When we use “beautiful” to describe something we are, in a way, assigning value to it. That walk at sunset was worth it or is worth remembering because of it’s beauty.

I’m afraid sometimes in our modern desire for minimalism, we leave beauty in the dust. Our buildings are built to be efficient, not to inspire wonder. Our furnishings and fashions are designed according to trends, not for beauty.

On our trip to France, I was astounded at the beauty everywhere we looked. The gardens were designed with precision, the stained glass in the churches told stories, the columns of buildings were perfect down to the smallest detail. Even something like a staircase, practical and needed, was carved with intricate designs. I appreciated many things about that trip but the need to slow down to really see everything taught me a lesson about beauty. It’s not something to be rushed by or glanced at. Beauty is to be savored.

Our drive to minimalism and the rush to do everything has kept us from the joy of beauty. We are in too big a hurry to slow down and appreciate what we see and experience. We discard the old for the sleek minimalism of new. Sure, we still use “beautiful” to describe things but is it a hasty use of the word because we can’t stop to think of anything else to say? When did we last pause to consider the true beauty of something?

Whether in God’s creation or something man has made with the talents God gave, beauty in its many forms should make us delay in our rush. We should linger in front of that painting and consider the brushstrokes, we should reread that sentence of perfectly melded words, we should put our fork down between bites and savor our meal.

God could have given us a world in gray tones and beige. Yet he filled it with beauty; he gave us the ability to design and appreciate it. The senses to experience beauty in multiple ways. What a gift!

Photo by JOHN TOWNER on Unsplash

The Small Gift of Gratitude

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. Yes, I love the food and time with family and football games. But I especially love the focus on stopping and being grateful.

Gratitude is one of the simplest joys you can add to your life. It doesn’t cost a thing — except maybe your pride — and truly adds to your life. Studies have shown grateful people are more happy and more optimistic. And it’s a nice change to be looking outward in our selfish culture. Unfortunately, sometimes we miss the joy of gratitude because we’re focused on the wrong things.

When we think about what we are thankful for, we tend to think of big picture things: health, a new house, a promotion, etc. And while those are definitely things to be thankful for, if don’t experience any “big” moments in our year, we can overlook some incredible small blessings if we aren’t careful.

My kids are wonderful at pointing me to the small blessings, even if they don’t realize it. They see the world through a different lens than I do and their perspective can be refreshing. My daughter was noticing the clouds move through the sky today and remarked how they looked like God was pushing them along. I love that. God being sovereign over His creation, moving the clouds that will create the storms that will bring the rain and snow we need. Small blessing.

My oldest daughter made a purse and I asked if she was keeping it or gifting it. “I’m giving it to a friend,” she replied. I’m so thankful my kids have friends that are good influences, kind, helpful, fun, and encouraging. None of them are perfect, but they are all working and learning and growing together in Christ. Small blessing.

I could go on…pink sunsets, the heater under my desk, music, birds at my feeder, books, sweet memories with friends, laughter, the smell of cinnamon, bread fresh from the oven, snow.

It really doesn’t take long before our gratitude stretches across pages. But only if we have eyes open to appreciate the simplest, smallest of things.

I hope you have a happy Thanksgiving and may gratitude become a way of life.

Photo by Stephanie Klepacki on Unsplash

Consistently Faithful

Why is faithfulness so difficult?

I believe most Christians would say they want to live a faithful life, serving Christ over the long haul. But I think if we were honest, we sometimes think more about the razzle dazzle of service than what faithful living really looks like.

We read missionary biographies and marvel at the adventures and answered prayers. We follow social media Christian influences who travel and speak and do all the “cool things” of serving others on a large platform. We have our favorite teachers and musicians and think they are living in ultimate service for God. If only we could have a portion of that excitement in our lives!

Instead, we moan over the routine and daily grind of where we are. Social media certainly doesn’t help as we see the vacations, ministries, parties, and activities of sometimes friends, sometimes random people we follow. But that is such an incomplete view of someone’s life and faithfulness! Online is definitely a curated place, not meant for true authenticity.

Just like we don’t see the hours of practice for athletes and musicians, we don’t see the everyday moments that create a faithful lifetime.

I believe a big part of this mentality is the “now” mindset about everything. Food, internet, movies, entertainment. Our society thrives off of the immediate gratification movement. It’s not worth doing/having if you have to wait. We want it and we want it now! But this mindset and faithfulness aren’t compatible.

The Hebrew word conveys the idea of stability and trustworthiness. Neither of those can be proven in the short term. It takes time and familiarity to be known as trustworthy. It takes day in and day out living to show you are stable in how you live and what you believe.

Consistency is not a fast and flashy lifestyle. It is small moments, unseen moments, doing what is right and necessary and needed, even if no one ever knows.

Glenna Marshall is the author of “Everyday Faithfulness”* which I highly recommend. Here are a few of my favorite quotes:

“Today’s efforts aren’t just for today! They’re for tomorrow and next week and next month and five years from now.” {p23}

“Our hearts will not casually become more holy while we sit around and no nothing to feed our faithfulness.” {p28}

“Our faithfulness isn’t just for us. It announces to the world that Jesus is worth every drop of our devotion.” {p155}

Faithfulness in the Christian life is doing what we have been called to do today — tending children, meal planning, laundry, yardwork, cleaning, encouraging someone — it all matters. And it’s these small disciplines of consistency that lend to a fully faithful life.

*“Everyday Faithfulness” published by Crossway, 2020

Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

What Does Giving Grace Mean?

Something I’ve been hearing a lot in recent years is, “Give them grace.” And I think some people use this phrasing to mean, “Be patient with her.” Maybe the person is a new believer and she is struggling through theological truths and you need patience as you help her. Maybe someone is walking through a trial and you need to demonstrate patience in your expectations on her during this time.

But when we consider what grace means and how it is used in the Bible, what should we be meaning when we say we’re giving grace and how do we go about actually doing that? Do grace and this idea of being patient go together? Or should we use another word?

A flip through the New Testament and we are confronted with the word “grace” many times. We probably recognize it the most for being Paul’s standard greeting in his letters {Rom 1:7; I Cor 1:3; II Cor 1:2; Gal 1:3; Eph 1:2; Phil 1:2; Col 1:2; I Thess 1:1; II Thess 1:2; I Time 1:2; II Tim 1:2; Titus 1:4; Philem 1:3} where he says, “Grace and peace.” He also closes all of his letters with “grace” {Rom 16:20; I Cor 16:23; II Cor 13:14; Gal 6:18; Eph 6:24; Phil 4:23; Col 4:18; I Thess 5:28; II Thess 3:18; I Tim 6:21; II Tim 4:22; Titus 3:15; Philem 1:25}.

So what is this grace and peace and grace of our Lord Jesus that Paul finds so important? God’s grace is what saves us from sin. Eph 2:8-9 tells us it is by grace, not works, that we are saved. I learned the definition as grace is God giving a free gift that we can never earn. Nothing we do will give us grace. God offers it because he loves us and is rich in mercy toward us {Eph 2:4-5}.

The Unger’s Bible Dictionary says, “Any intermixture of human merit violates grace” {p504}. If we try to work our way to salvation, we are saying God’s perfect grace, his gift of salvation to us, isn’t good enough. We have no part in salvation except confessing our sins and accepting the free gift of God’s grace. A note in Thayer’s Greek Lexicon states that, “Karis {the Greek word for grace} contains the idea of kindness which bestows upon one what he has not deserved” {p666}. In God’s kindness, he gives us karis; grace we don’t deserve.

When we think about peace, we think of calm, restful, quiet. But Paul isn’t merely wishing his readers a calm day. He is talking about spiritual peace, rest and confidence that comes to us because we have God’s grace. True biblical peace is not something we can fabricate. There are hundreds of things that steal our peace and only knowing and acknowledging Who controls them all will give us any semblance of rest. Note that when Paul opens his letters, he says, “Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” {emphasis mine} He is reminding the reader that our peace comes from God, not from meditation or anything we can force. God offers grace. God gives peace.

So bringing this back to our original question, what should we mean when we say we are giving someone grace? To be consistent with what the Bible means, we are stating that we choose to show kindness to someone who doesn’t deserve it. It almost seems to have more to do with forgiveness than patience, doesn’t it? We offer grace to someone who has hurt us, we show kindness to someone who isn’t kind to us.

It’s not wrong to say, “Give them grace” but keep in mind what grace means: Unmerited favor. Undeserved kindness. What God gives us freely in salvation and what we should freely offer those around us.

Photo by Maurice DT on Unsplash

The Danger of Feminism

I don’t use my written words to rant. I believe honest, thoughtful communication is the most productive and helpful. I have been known to get on a soapbox when I’m talking to friends but I prefer to think and ponder and reason out my words before sharing them, especially online.

I say that because what I’m writing today might make some of you angry. You might think I’m flinging this off the top of my head but I want to assure you, I’ve thought about this, watched examples of this, and I’m concerned. If you disagree, I’m not mad at you. But please take time to think about what I am communicating here.

I have never identified as a feminist. I believe sometimes we are too hasty to throw on whatever label is trending to seem relevant without considering what that label stands for. But I can honestly say, I’ve never been a feminist. And {this is the controversial part} I don’t think any Christian woman should fall in line with that label in today’s world.

We don’t have the space here to go into all the waves of feminism over the last 200 years, but I recommend the book Mama Bear Apologetics for an insightful chapter on this topic. I’ll only say this: the feminist movement started out wanting to be helpful {voting rights, protecting women from abusing husbands} but as we moved through the 20th century, women got grabby and obnoxious to the point where feminists now believe women are better than men. It’s not about equal rights anymore; it’s about women taking over because we are better.

While I have many problems with this ideology, a sticking point for me that no one talks about is that feminists aren’t really supportive of ALL women. Feminists champion the women that support their views. Other women? Traitors, brainwashed by their evil husbands and fathers. If you think this is an exaggeration, you live in a bubble. Listen to any feminist in an interview, read any article about those fighting for women’s “equality.” They will show their true colors rather quickly and rudely.

Let me give you an example. I have a college degree, I worked full time while my husband went to grad school, and I worked part time before we had kids. After my daughter was born, I worked part time out of the home for six months but then I decided I wanted to stay home with her. I found a remote job {before remote jobs were cool} transcribing interviews and I did that during naptimes and whenever Tommy could watch the baby. As life moved on, I stepped away from the transcribing by my own choice and was “just a stay at home mom.” I’m putting that in quotes because that’s what I’ve been called for over a decade now.

It should also be mentioned that this was a sacrifice. Tommy was making enough to pay the bills and put a little in savings but we chose to live frugally {didn’t eat out much, no fancy vacations, etc.} so that I could stay home.

Our family increased to three kids, we started homeschooling, and life got more busy. In the 13 years I’ve been “stuck at home” with my kids, I’ve never regretted it. I don’t wish I was a CEO or hustling my dream career or anything else. I love learning alongside my kids. I've taken up hobbies like gardening and watercolor painting. Our church activities keep us busy. I live a full life that I am thankful for.

But there are some women who believe I’m not reaching my full potential. Or that I’m trapped and desperately want out but my conservative ties {read: men} are holding me hostage. These feminists do not champion me as a mom choosing to raise her kids. They think I’m ignorant or brainwashed, possibly both.

And that’s one of the places I call foul on the whole feminist movement. If you have the audacity to admit that you are happy in a non-corporate, non-boss babe, suburban life, they believe you are being forced to say it. They will stand against you as you fight for unborn lives and mock you when you speak against agendas targeting kids. Feminists champion one thing: people who agree with them.

Today’s feminists want the power, the money, the job, the everything. It’s not about doing what you’re good at or even what makes you happy. It’s about upending the way “things have always been” and embracing the female future. Have you heard the phrase, “The future is female”? They weren’t just going for alliteration. They actually believe it.

This thinking isn’t doing our daughters any favors. At an all-time high moment of peer pressure, we are making our daughters feel less-than if they don’t have world changing aspirations. Do I want my daughters to succeed in life? Absolutely! But that isn’t always going where no woman has gone before.

Before you stop reading, hear me out. I’m not saying we discourage our girls from working hard, dreaming big, and trying new ideas. I am saying that we shouldn’t make that the focus of their lives or teach them that dream will fulfill them in a way only Christ can.

There are some dreams that just won’t happen {I wanted to be a princess at one point in life} and we shouldn’t tell our daughters they can do or be anything they want…because that’s not true! At another phase of life, I wanted to be a nurse. My mom discouraged that when I started getting faint when I had shots and scored terribly on my biology tests.

As my oldest gets closer to high school and adulthood, something we talk a lot about is what her talents are, what her desires/dreams are, and how she can use those in multiple ways. We talk about how not everyone will enter full time, paid ministry positions but as Christians, everything we do is for God and therefore can be a ministry. What does she love that she can use for God? Because that’s where her ultimate joy will come from.

For me, I believe at this stage my greatest ministry is my kids and the more time I can spend with them, the better. It doesn’t mean I’m perfect, especially patient, gifted, or better. I am not the only one making sacrifices and I can sometimes be selfish about my time. But my ultimate goal in life is to teach my kids Jesus and, prayerfully, live in a way that points to him.

And that’s something 21st century feminism does not support.

Photo by Keegan Houser on Unsplash

Be Not Anxious

It’s hard to ignore the state of our country and world today.

More than ever, we seem divided, angry, bent on proving we are right even if it divides more. And all of this tension can bring anxiety to the calmest soul.

I am usually a glass-half-full, optimist kind of person. I can get discouraged but I have learned from experience that things out of my control shouldn’t control my attitude. So I try to go with the flow and not allow things to make me uptight. {I should add I’m still working on this!}

However, when the world is rioting, countries are on the edge of war, our country is fighting and changing what we stand for, and up seems to be down…. I have to remind myself of biblical truth because nothing else will help.

One of my take aways from reading Proverbs is that the wisdom of the Lord is far greater than that of man. One verse I have been continually coming back to in this season is:

The heart of man plans his way,

but the Lord establishes his steps. Prov. 16:9

We might feel like the world is out of control and crazy. But that doesn’t mean God is thwarted. Man is out there trying to work his plans and God is not bothered. Nothing we do can keep God’s ultimate plan from happening.

I’m also reminded of Psalm 140. David pleads with the Lord to save him from the evil/wicked people that seem to be winning and surrounding him. He uses words like “deliver me,” “guard me,” “preserve me.” He is asking for help, not revenge. And he knows God is the only one that can help him. Lydia Brownback in her book on Psalms, says, “Revenge isn’t his {David’s} motive. His hope is the triumph of righteousness over evil.”* And so should our goal be.

When we are anxious and crying out to God about the state of our world, our prayers should be focused on God showing his strength and justice in an unjust world. What strikes me about Psalm 140 is that it ends without God judging the evil. However, David has a firm assurance that his prayers will be answered in God’s time.

I know that the Lord will maintain the cause of the afflicted, and will execute justice for the needy. Surely the righteous shall give thanks to your name; the upright shall dwell in your presence. Ps. 140:12-13

Do not be discouraged or anxious. As much as everything is in turmoil and the wicked seem to be thriving and winning, God’s plan will ultimately come to pass. Everything that happens today is moving us toward what God has planned and foreseen from the beginning. Nothing catches him by surprise, nothing forces him to change strategies. He is the Ruler of all and we can live in full hope of that.

*Sing a New Song: A Woman’s Guide to Psalms by Lydia Brownback copyright Crossway 2017

Photo by Mario Álvarez on Unsplash

A Poem for Summer

I usually don’t write poetry; I’m too much of a rule follower. :)

But as I prepared for teaching two creative writing classes in our homeschool co-op, I realized if I was going to talk with kids and teens about poetry, I needed to get poetry in my mind. I’ve been reading different types and styles and decided to try my hand at writing a free verse-inspired poem about our summer.

This was the Summer

This was the summer

I bought water balloons,

Which the kids filled

And flung around the yard.

This was the summer

For both new and familiar things:

Baseball and movie marathons,

Youth group and playdates;

Trying to say yes when possible.

This was the summer

Of a stomach bug

That knocked us out,

Of allergies

That tickled and itched.

This was the summer

We cuddled on hot days

Because next summer, will you ask?

We talked past bedtime

Because tomorrow, will you want to?

This was the summer

We ate ice cream and snow cones,

Of hiking, swimming, laughing;

For enjoying every moment we could

Because next summer won’t be the same.

At the beginning of the summer, I realized time is passing fast. My oldest is almost 13, quickly approaching the age of summer jobs and doing her own thing. These carefree days of simple joys experienced together won’t always be there. I know time changes things, not in a bad way, but life becomes different.

This summer, I wanted to set aside the things that could wait and be completely present for my kids when possible. I wanted to say yes to things that were nos in the past {like water balloons} and let them try new things {like baseball}.

It was a great summer. Full, exciting, memorable. This simple effort captures just a glimpse.

Photo by Sergey Shmidt on Unsplash

To the Woman Fighting Comparisons

I believe no matter how realistic we are in life, at some point we will be tempted to play the comparison game.

Maybe we look at a friend who always seems to be happy and content and assume nothing challenging comes her way; hence the reason she is always happy and content. Maybe we see someone with a trim figure and assume she has great genetics or perfect discipline. We see a clean house or well behaved children or….

There are dozens of ways we compare ourselves to each other and we usually feature ourselves on the short end of the stick. We feel like we’re out of control, not normal, life is too hard, everything would be better if…. All these are dangerous words and assumptions.

Over the years I’ve had to remind myself of several different truths whenever I start dipping my toes into the ocean of comparisons.

We don’t see the whole picture

One of the dangerous things about social media is we’re constantly seeing snapshots of people’s lives without always remembering they are snapshots. They are clips; memories; brief moments of time chosen to highlight. Most people are not going to share moments disciplining children {and they probably shouldn’t!}, or washing dishes and doing laundry. They aren’t going to showcase failures and disappointments. We see the highs on social media and we tend to think those people ONLY have high moments. They ONLY go on vacation. This is simply not true. I have struggles and disappointments daily, either with myself or with others. But I prefer to show pictures of my flowers then selfies of my crying face.

We need to remember, if we are basing our information about people entirely on what they post on social media, we aren’t seeing the whole picture! If we are only seeing people in certain places or situations, we aren’t seeing the whole picture.

A season for everything

When my three kids were little, my life looked a lot different. I had two children who were terrible sleepers, didn’t nap, needed to be held all the time. During that phase of life, I got done what was necessary: I fed my family, did laundry, cleaned when I noticed dust. I didn’t have a garden, I didn’t pursue hobbies, we didn’t go out a lot. We did things with our church, which was our priority. But we didn’t do big trips, we didn’t do a lot of playdates, I said no to things.

However, as my children became more independent, older, and started sleeping better, I started having more time and coming out of the fog. I could garden without carrying three kids and all their gear outside. I could paint without a toddler wiggling in my arms and knocking my paintbrush. My kids started helping with dinner, cleaning, and doing chores. It makes a HUGE difference in what a day looks like when you have kids that need help with everything versus kids that can do for themselves.

If you are in a difficult, in-the-trenches, in a trial stage of life — because of kids or health or a work situation — don’t look to women in completely different circumstances and compare your life to theirs. Those stages are different and will look different for everyone.

Not everyone has the same capacity

I will sometimes look at everything others are able to do and feel a little envious. Go hiking for that beautiful view! Take my kids to that amazing place! Bake all the desserts! But if I’m honest, not all those things are really my favorite way to spend time. So why would I be envious? Because of the end result. Because I wish I was interested in certain things. Because I feel like I’m missing out or causing my kids to miss out on something that could be amazing.

And that’s a silly reason to compare myself to others and get bent out of shape! I am not a Type A personality. I like to sit and read for the afternoon instead of running unnecessary errands. I enjoy walking through my garden alone instead of going to every party and event. Once I realized and admitted that doing all the things really held no interest for me, it was much easier to stop comparing myself to the moms going all the places.

I don’t think we will ever outgrow the temptation to compare our lives to others. We need reminders of what’s really important and what God has called us to on a daily basis. When comparisons start to cloud your thinking, look up at what’s surrounding you and take hope that it won’t last forever, that no one’s life is perfect.

God has put you where you are. And he’s not going to leave you there alone. When I was deep in the little years, I would read the Psalms and it helped me consider how much God cares for me. I read Lam. 3 and it reminded me God is faithful and every morning is new with his mercies.

Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

The Wonder of Creation

One of our favorite family activities is watching nature documentaries. Our kids have always loved animals and animal facts, and it’s relaxing to see creatures and landscapes from all over the world.

The BBC’s series “Planet Earth” and “Blue Planet” are some of our favorites. While there are mentions of evolution and global warming, our kids can spot those lies a mile away! From the beginning of reading library books about dinosaurs and watching Wild Kratts, every time millions of years, big bang, evolving, etc. was mentioned, we stopped and walked our toddlers and elementary kids through the truth of the Bible and the falseness of evolution theory. Now, we can watch those programs and they will usually point out the errors before we have a chance!

But the reason we put so much thought and effort into still watching programs that have evolution is to show our kids how amazing creation is and to talk through the incredible attributes of God. I want to highlight a few animals that we learned about from the recent “Planet Earth III” documentary.

The pearl octopus lives deep in the ocean. To keep their eggs warm enough to grow and hatch, they travel to hydrothermal vents where water temperatures can be ten degrees warmer. After laying her eggs, the mother stays with them as a layer of extra warmth and protection. She doesn’t leave, even to eat. When the eggs finally hatch {almost two years later!} and the babies swim away from the vents, the mothers die. They give everything for the survival of their young. Here’s an interesting short clip about this octopus.

One of the animals that had us laughing and marveling was the archer fish. This incredible creation shoots insects off leaves by accurately measuring the distance, accounting for distortion in the water reflection, and spitting water in a perfect stream at the insect! It really is fascinating to watch!

The final animal I’ll mention is the lily trotter, or African Jacanas. These birds seem to run on the surface of the water but their large feet are actually spread across lily pads. What struck us about this bird is shown at the end of this video. To protect the chicks, the father lily trotter tucks them into his wings and carries them to safety. What a beautiful picture of how God cares for us! He doesn’t leave us when we need him or expect us to figure out trials on our own. He lovingly shields us.

Creation is a wonder filled place. As we watched “Planet Earth III” and heard about animals new to us or places just now being discovered, I dwelt on the thought that God knew all along. That creature, that place has been there all along. Even when we didn’t realize it, God was getting the glory for creation that only he saw.

Take this as encouragement to explore creation with your kids. Watch documentaries. Read books. But always point them to the Creator.

Photo by David Clode on Unsplash

The Danger of Your Own Truth

The world is becoming an increasing unfamiliar place to me.

Things I never dreamed would need to be explained, debated, discussed are now huge talking points that can sometimes come to blows. Truth is no longer a set guideline. If you don’t like what has been truth for generations of mankind, you can make you own! No matter how ridiculous it is, others aren’t allowed to critique or criticize without being labeled hateful.

In every part of our culture, we see truth thrown aside for something new. And the disturbing thing is Christians are following along! Watching a sinful world adopt these practices is difficult but it’s hardly surprising. People who don’t have the Holy Spirit guiding them are going to act like people who don’t have the Holy Spirit. But when people who claim to be following Christ develop this ungodly “live your truth” mentality, they do more harm than good.

When we “live our truth” and encourage others to follow that logic, we are falling for the lie that truth is objective. But the very definition of truth is that it is solid, unchanging, and the opposite of a lie. If there is more than one truth, it defeats its own definition!

Another danger is that if sinful men get to decide what truth is, that truth is tarnished. People are fickle. What is a convenient truth today might be out of favor tomorrow. And so we are constantly bending in the wind, not grounded on anything solid.

Speaking up in a world gone crazy is hard. We will be attacked, mocked, cut off, canceled. But the reward of standing on God’s truth and living by God’s standard far outweighs the current scorn. We need to believe that this world is not the end; earth is not our final home. We are living and longing for heaven.

Photo by Eric Lagergren on Unsplash

Thoughts as I Enter 40

I remember when my parents turned 40. I was 9, 10 years old and 40 seemed like an age I would never reach. Last Saturday, I turned 40.

For the last little bit, I’ve been thinking about this milestone age and what lessons I can take into the next decade. My 20s and 30s were filled with a lot of changes: getting married, moving across country, having kids, ministry life, homeschooling. And I learned a lot through all those experiences. Something about hitting a new decade made me look back and consider what to take with me.

Take time to think before you speak. As I’ve gotten older, some things seem easier, others more difficult. I remember the younger me rattling off all my thoughts, spur of the moment, never considering if there was nuance or gray areas. Everything was black and white to me; what I liked, what I disliked, right and wrong, helpful and hurtful. Age has drawn me in, brought me to moments of reflecting for days and still being hesitant to verbalize my thoughts. It’s not that my standards have changed. What I view as morally wrong and right are the same, but I’d like to think I’m more considerate in how I share my views or maybe I’m more particular about when I voice my opinion at all.

Choose your attitude. I’ve heard that one thing you can always control is your attitude. Outside pressures and perception from others, things running late or failing are usually outside our control. But we can decide how these unexpected things will affect us. Attitude matters. I think after having kids this became more apparent to me! Having a joyful or positive outlook can make even a difficult day a little better. And who doesn’t want to be around a happy person!? When I think of this in light of sanctification, it doesn’t mean we paste on a smile and never show sorrow or frustration. But it does mean that we don’t allow those circumstances to dictate how we treat people or deal with life.

Popularity does not equal value. So much of our current culture is obsessed with likes, clicks, and being viewed positively. People flock to concerts and sporting events to be able to participate in the “it moment” of right now. If you are popular you are listened to, even if you have nothing worth listening to. The more “followers” you have, the better chance of landing a book deal, TV spot, sponsorship, etc. Being popular is the idol so many are striving for. But popularity does not make a person correct, smart, informed, or kind. The world is full of interesting stories and people and experiences that are largely ignored because we don’t believe they are as valuable as the stories and thoughts of a popular person. In the life of a Christian, it shouldn’t be this way. We shouldn’t clamor for the latest and greatest in the eyes of the world. We shouldn’t judge a person’s value on what they think or contribute to society. Every life is valuable and precious, every story worth listening to.

I’m still processing, I’m still learning. It will be a lifelong pursuit and not just something for entering this decade. But I’m thankful for the opportunity and space to consider these things. And my hope is that they spur you on to think too, no matter what age you find yourself.

Photo by Bruce Tang on Unsplash

Friendship at Every Stage

Friends are such a gift. I am so thankful that God placed us in community and gave us people to walk through life with. I have learned a great deal from the different friends God has given me at various stages of life; things like kindness, listening, gift giving, the joy of watching others succeed, how to encourage others. I have had/do have friends in my life who have demonstrated these things to me and taught me how to be a good friend.

This week, I had dinner with two friends from childhood. I remember playing house and Barbies and dress-ups with them. Sleepovers and birthdays and lots of little girl giggles.

Our friendship has lasted decades. We’ve seen each other through hard times and life changing decisions. Babies and houses and moves and job changes. We have a familiarity because of the years of memories accumulated with each other. I am so grateful for their friendship and encouragement and the fact that time and distance has not taken anything away.

While we often think of friends as being a staple of childhood, adults need friends too! I’ve had several conversations with people lately about the difficulty of making friends as we get older, and to some extent I think that’s true. We become more self conscious, maybe more particular, busier, stuck in our habits. But with all the obstacles, I believe having friends is an important part of life.

Even after all the times I’ve read through Proverbs, I’m still surprised at the number of friend passages. Many of these are warnings to choose the right type of friend, which proves how influential people are in our lives. But we also have verses like:

Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another. Prov. 27:17

Oil and perfume make the heart glad, and the sweetness of a friend comes from his earnest counsel. Prov. 27:9

A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity. Prov. 17:17

A biblical friend isn’t just someone to have a good time with but is someone who strengths you, who builds you up and offers encouragement. And we never outgrow our need to be encouraged to stand strong in the truth of the Gospel!

This month, I will enter the decade that used to be called “Over the Hill” and I still feel the need for good friends. On the other end of the spectrum, I’ve been having conversations with my kids about their friendships. About playing nice with everyone and not excluding people from games of tag to preteen hurt feelings when old friends start heading in a different direction.

There is always a risk, always a chance of getting feelings hurt or being misunderstood and left out. And as easy as it would be to say we outgrow our need and move beyond all that, it’s simply not true. If anything, as I’ve gotten older I’ve relied on my friends more for sound advice, encouragement when I’m disappointed, and help during trials.

As I go into another year, I’m more grateful for my friends than ever. The ways they help me, point me to truth, make me laugh, enjoy life, and celebrate life’s moments. My 40 years on earth wouldn’t be the same without the people God has brought into my life at times I needed them. And I will always be thankful.

Photo by Hannah Busing on Unsplash

The Countdown Month

In almost exactly a month, I’m going to turn 40.

I’m not upset or worried or overwhelmed at the prospect. I don’t think a number has to change your outlook on how you live. But I know that entering another decade is a milestone and a blessing. I don’t take a day for granted and I know everything could change in a minute. I’m very thankful for these 40 years.

It’s easy to become reflective when milestones are on the horizon. We remember past moments, maybe regret previous decisions. Over the last two months, I’ve been considering how I’ve changed in the last decade, lessons I’ve learned, things I want to aspire to.

Initially, I thought I’d share 40 thoughts on 40 years but as I began writing them down, it was easy to come up with more than 40. I don’t intend to share them all with you. But over the next few blog posts, I want to highlight the ones that stuck out the most, the ones that kept coming to mind.

As previously stated, I don’t take turning 40 for granted. No age is guaranteed. Which makes the process of approaching this birthday exciting and a time to consider. How have I grown in the last decade? How have I changed and is it for the better? I try to not dwell on regrets but those can be life shaping also.

My goal in this reflective process is to put to words some of what I’m feeling going into my 40th year. And to also challenge you to look at your life. Even if you don’t have big celebrations on the horizon, there is always space to learn and be grateful for this life. I hope my future posts encourage you to do just that.

Photo by Seyedeh Hamideh Kazemi on Unsplash

The Value of Memorizing the Bible

This semester, one of our ladies Bible study groups has been reading a wonderful book about Bible memorization. Memorizing Scripture: The Basics, Blessings, and Benefits of Meditating on God’s Word is exactly what is sounds like: a guidebook to how and why we meditate on the Bible.

Memorizing is quickly falling out of favor in all areas of life. Spelling tests, multiplication facts, state capitals, things everyone had to memorize a generation ago are no longer required or even encouraged in some spheres. Why? Because we have phones, tablets, the Internet is available 24/7 with all the answers. When your math teacher told you to memorize the 12s times tables because you wouldn’t always have a calculator with you…that no longer applies. So why spend the time, effort, and brain space on things that we can look up faster than we could recall?

The case for Bible memory is stronger than any other subject because God’s Word is different than any other subject. It has the power to change us, help us, comfort us, guide us, convict us, and the list continues. While I still encourage my kids to memorize facts that others look up, my encouragement to memorize the Bible is far stronger because the Bible isn’t man’s ideas, it’s from God.

My own road with memorizing is shaky. As a kid, my mom would record herself saying Bible verses on an endless cassette tape {if you don’t know what I’m talking about, ask Google}. As I played or colored, I would listen and absorb those verses. It was multitasking in the 1990s. As I got older, I would read verses to myself on repeat, look away, and try to say it as fast as possible before it slipped away. In high school and college, it was required to write out our memory verses for tests and quizzes and I learned that writing something memorized is not the same as repeating it.

As an adult, memorizing became less of an emphasis in my life. I read the Bible and studied it, but not to the point of being able to quote a passage I was going through. It was now readily available on my phone! I could search for a phrase and get a whole list of verses! Surely we had arrived!

But after becoming a parent and going over verses with my kids on repeat{we no longer have endless tapes}, I became more and more convicted about my previous lack of conviction about Bible memory. I started finding a verse in my daily Bible reading and repeating it over and over throughout the day, trying to seal it in.

When Glenna Marshall, an author and pastor’s wife, posted that she had written a book on memorizing, I preordered it. And when our Bible study decided to read it together, I volunteered to lead the study and write discussion questions. It’s been a true blessing to learn about this topic, encourage each other in our personal memorization habits, and discover why this is a crucial part of the Christian life.

I don’t want to give away Marshall’s points because I want you to purchase the book and read them yourself {wink, wink}. But I will say Bible memory is not as daunting as I believed it to be. She breaks down every excuse for why you haven’t been memorizing and offers so many helpful tips to get you started. She also goes through biblical principles of why Bible memory helps us in various times.

I am currently memorizing Psalm 107. Unlike previous attempts at remembering a jumble of words to repeat as quickly as possible, I’m letting the words soak in and make sense. I’m connecting the thoughts and allowing the truth to grow my love for Who God is.

Bible memorization is for all Christians. Your age, time constraints, stage of life, profession mean nothing. God’s Word is profitable for all people to know, love, and hide in their hearts.

Photo by Sixteen Miles Out

Books I'm Still Talking About

I read a lot of books. And I love it! Reading has been a hobby, pursuit, enjoyment for me for years. What I have read has changed over the years but the love of reading and learning has been the same.

While what I enjoy reading varies depending on the day, there are a few books through the years that I still love, still talk about, and still recommend. And I want to keep talking about them here. :)

I should tell you I’m not all into happy endings. It doesn’t bother me if a story/novel ends sad as long as it makes sense. I do not enjoy predictable, everything-ends-in-a-perfect-bow type stories. Real life is sad and hard and difficult. I like realism with a dose of hope. So the books listed below are not guaranteed to be happy. You’ve been warned.

• “Remember” by Lisa Genova (non-fiction)

  I learned so much from this book! It was not only interesting but easy to read and helpful. Genova writes about why we remember, why we forget, and how to remember things better in an almost conversational way. She inserts stories and examples that are relatable and explains the workings of our brain in a way the average reader can understand. Highly recommend.

• “Everyday Faithfulness” by Glenna Marshall (Christian living)

  This book was published in 2020 and I read it twice in that year. It is such an encouraging reminder that a faithful life of serving God starts today. You don’t have to wait for perfect circumstances to be faithful. It comes in small, consistent ways that grow over a lifetime.

• “Humble Roots” by Hannah Anderson (Christian living)

  Humility is a topic I’ve studied at different times and consistently need to be reminded of. Anderson pairs facets of humility and what it looks like with nature examples and it’s a perfect combination.

• “Parenting” by Paul David Tripp (Christian living)

  I was very convicted and encouraged by this read. It was full of practical advice and biblical wisdom. While Tripp did mention how he parented in certain situations, I felt he always brought it back to biblical guidelines and didn’t hold himself as the perfect parent to emulate.

• “Blitzed” by Norman Ohler (non-fiction)

  I’ve read a lot of World War II books but this one blew my mind. The use of drugs in the Nazi regime is staggering and it makes so many things make sense. I was literally cringing as I read parts of this; it’s amazing what a persuasive person can convince others to do or what to inject into their bodies.

• “Salt to the Sea” by Ruta Sepetys (fiction)

  This novel was heartbreaking but so well written and truly gripping. The changing point of views and the unraveling of each person’s story was perfectly paced and climaxed in a way you won’t forget. A forgotten part of history that needs to be remembered.

• “We Were the Lucky Ones” by Georgia Hunter (fiction)

  A World War II novel. This one is based on the author’s family and follows their remarkable journey from Europe to South America, separated then together but in devastating ways. It was a book I wanted to devour because it was so well written and interesting but I wanted to slowly savor to make it last.

• “A Place to Hang the Moon” by Kate Albus (young adult fiction)

  With the feel of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, this book seems like a classic although it’s relatively new. Meet three children, looking for their forever home amidst the uncertainties of London in the early days of World War II. Trundled off to the country, their foster home is less than ideal but the village library and kind librarian keep hopes alive that someday, they’ll find a place to belong. Beautifully written and appropriate for all ages to enjoy.

• “The Swallow’s Flight” by Hilary McKay (young adult fiction)

  The lives and experiences of four young people during World War II from very different perspectives. Each fighting their own demons and discovering their worth and purpose in a changing world. Themes of friendship, courage, kindness, and doing the right thing make this a winning story for boys and girls alike.

• “The Light Between Oceans” by M. L. Stedman

  I have found you either love this book or hate it! Set off the coast of Australia after World War I, a lighthouse keeper, recovering from war, and his wife, desperate for a child, embark on a journey that will test them in unimaginable ways. How far would you go to fulfill your deepest wish? And what would you sacrifice to do the honorable thing?

I could certainly go on. And perhaps I will in a future post. Have you read any of these? I’d love to hear what books you can’t stop recommending.

Photo by Kari Shea on Unsplash