Lessons Learned in the Valley
Years ago, following our baby girl’s open heart surgery, doctors were unable to close her sternum, so they sewed a patch over her incision, and sent her to the PICU. […]
It was a sunny October afternoon when death came to visit. Once my favorite season—filled with family birthdays at apple orchards, hot pumpkin spice lattes on crisp, frosty mornings and […]
Four years ago, today, I stood in a hospital corridor, begging God for the life of this man. There are no words sufficient to describe what my whole being was […]
Do you feel irreparably broken? A few minutes of watching the news or scrolling social media reminds me that I don’t hold a monopoly on brokenness. There is pain, devastation […]
Just a few weeks after my husband’s funeral, a young friend stopped by the church to see me. She wondered why God would allow a godly man’s life to be […]
This is resilience. I remember a huge holly tree that took up residence next to our house when I was young. She was actually quite beautiful, but when she started […]
Sometimes, it’s good to remind myself that I don’t corner the market on suffering. I was watching my new favorite podcast today, and one of the guys (Josh) was walking […]
I pass by a small child, with a deliciously drippy ice cream cone in her hand on a sweltering hot day. What joy she must be feeling in that moment! […]
Self Portrait “I took this picture today. Looking at it later it dawned on me, this is a picture of widowhood. See that tree, unnoticeable at first, in the middle?? […]
Dear friends, Another Mother’s Day has passed and Father’s Day is upon us. It is right and fitting to honor those we love. But what of the orphan, the childless, […]
To the girl who is dreading Mother’s Day… I see you. My very first Mother’s Day was spent in silence—with excruciatingly empty arms—only two months after burying my little girl. […]
It’s Saturday. The most hopeless day in history. Hope personified is laying in a tomb, lifeless. The disciples are hiding, mourning the death of their friend and teacher, grieving over […]
