Dear Friend, Tomorrow marks two years since my breast cancer diagnosis. Today I’m sharing my heart with you in hopes that you’ll take care of yourself and do all you can to prevent cancer and detect it early if it shows up in your life. Tomorrow I’m...
Last year our youngest headed off to college. Two hours from our home in Central Illinois, Austin started his four years of living in the dorm at Moody Bible College studying communications. In early November, I found myself in the Dollar Store to pick up a couple of...
Mark: Last week I was talking with a friend who was reeling from a big argument he and his wife had on Halloween. As we talked through the challenge, it became evident to me that the whole mess happened because expectations weren’t talked through. Been there…done...
“We never grow closer to God when we just love life; it takes deliberate pursuit and attentiveness.” ~Francis Chan
Last week I took a first ever four-day Silence and Solitude retreat all by myself. My body was tired, my soul was dry, and I knew I just needed to be with Jesus. I shared a couple weeks ago how I made the decision to take this soul care retreat. As an introvert, I...
Mark: When we found out Jill was pregnant with our fourth child I was angry. We had an appointment on the calendar for me to have a little “snip snip” surgery and the stick turned blue two weeks before surgery. I spent much of that pregnancy angry at Jill...
“Being fully me is so much better than being an imitation of someone else.” ~Lysa TerKeurst
“A comfort zone is a beautiful place but nothing ever grows there.” ~Unknown
It all started with the Willow Creek Global Leadership Summit in August. Several speakers talked about the value of getting alone with God. However, it was the statement that several speakers made about “not being able to hear God until the 3rd day,” that...
Mark: This past weekend was another tough weekend for Jill and I. We’ve shared before about our son’s mental health journey (and here too). Walking into a hospital Saturday morning after our son overdosed once again and seeing him on a ventilator is not...
