Sometimes, silence screams. She harangues us with intrusive thoughts: You’re alone. You’ll always be alone. Nobody sees you. Nobody understands. Nobody cares. And for a valley-walker, the relentless shriek can […]
Grief Support
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Last Words
My husband’s last words to me were, “Not goodbye.” We were on a very brief video call with him before he was put on a ventilator. We hadn’t seen him […]
Grief Support
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Feeling Cheated by Death: Wedding Anniversary Thoughts
Sunday is my wedding anniversary. We should be celebrating 29 years as Mr. and Mrs. Smith. We were supposed to grow old together. We were just getting started. Soon, my […]
devotional / Easter / faith / Grief / Grief Support / Holidays / Resurrection
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Palm Sunday and My Fickle Heart
Today, my daughter and I got to celebrate Palm Sunday with a beautiful congregation in Costa Rica. It was almost transcendent to stand in that space, worshiping one Savior in […]
Grief Support
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When Grief is Loud
When you’re faced with an unwanted new life—devastated by loss—and you become overwhelmed by sorrow, Seek the face of the Savior. He knows the agony of separation and the anguish […]
Child Loss / Grief / Grief Support / Widowhood
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The Valley Between Gardens
Grief and joy, coexisting. So much pain and loss; so much for which to be thankful. Living in that juxtaposition is just part of life between the gardens, isn’t it? […]
Devotional / faith / Grief / Grief Support / Post-Traumatic Growth / Surrender / Widowhood
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Drop Your Nets and Follow Me
Change is hard—especially when it’s not my idea. Especially when it leads to the unknown. Especially when it means letting go. “Immediately they left their nets and followed him.” With […]
Devotional / faith / Grief / Grief Support
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You Can Do Hard Things
Sometimes, God requires us to do hard things. Really. hard. things. I don’t know about you, but I have to admit that when He called me to some of these […]
Bible Study / Devotional / Grief Support
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But God Saw…
For many years, she was confined to widow garb, waiting for her father-in-law to do the right thing. Yet, in all those years, God did not forget about her. For […]
Child Loss / faith / Grief / Grief Support / New Year / Widowhood
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Prayer for a New Year
A Valley-Walker’s Prayer for a New Year Dear God, as we step into a brand new year, we lift up this honest and heartfelt prayer. Our hearts are full of […]
Christmas / devotional / faith / Grief / Grief Support / Holidays / hope / Waiting
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Hope Has Come: Advent
I can think of nothing that threatens my hope more than the silence of God—endless waiting with not so much as a whisper from the One on whom my expectation […]
faith / Grief / Grief Support / Thanksgiving / Widowhood
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What Does it Mean to be Blessed?
Are we really blessed? In our culture, we tend to think of blessings as: But Jesus said, blessed are: Those last 5 are not exactly blessings I would choose. But […]