I work at a law firm in Northwest Arkansas. There's a team of about 15 people, all from different backgrounds and differing beliefs. Some of the people vote very red and others, very blue. It's amazing the culture that they have created where you are able to hear one another's opinions, value each other as … Continue reading Politics in the Church
Happy New Year! I very simply want to start 2021 with my eyes on Jesus. There were SO, so many distractions in 2020. I think the vast majority of us had our eyes glued onto our circumstances, rather than onto Him. We talked and talked about all 2020 was taking from us. I want to … Continue reading Jesus
Well friends, we did it! We made it to the end of 2020! I hope you take some time to sit and process what you’ve learned this year. It was hard, yes, but I bet God did some really great stuff in you through it. We ask God to give us a word every year. … Continue reading TRAIN
I am guilty of singing lyrics to songs without really thinking about what they mean. I’m a product of the 80’s and my parents are fans of rock and roll, so I grew up singing all kinds of things! When I had my own kids and tried to introduce them to music that I grew … Continue reading The Weary World Rejoices
Hi friends! I started this series asking you to imagine a sign up in my house that says, “Family Values” and then lists off the things I expect to see from my spiritual family. This is by no means an exhaustive list but I expect my family to: Assume the Best, Disagree Respectfully, Work Hard, … Continue reading Family Values – We Walk in Victory
This series has been one of my favorites to write. I hope that it has been helpful to you. Today we are talking about how in the family of God, We Work Hard. My brother and I basically grew up in a barbecue restaurant. My dad was the manager/meat smoker, my mom worked the cash … Continue reading Family Values – We Work Hard
Welcome to week three of our Family Values series. So far we have learned that in the Family of God, We Can Disagree and We Assume the Best. This week our value is: We Celebrate. It just happened to fall on an appropriate week for celebrating! Happy late Thanksgiving to you! Celebrating is deep in … Continue reading Family Values – We Celebrate
Howdy loves! Welcome to week two of Family Values. Last week we began this series talking about how We Can Disagree. Even in the family of God, there is room for differences of opinion, as long as the Bible is our standard. We aren’t going to agree on everything 100% - we aren’t expected to. … Continue reading Family Values – We Assume the Best
I was listening to my favorite podcast a few weeks ago and heard one of the ladies say the phrase, "The sin of presumption." I had never processed that presumption was sin so, it caught my attention. Then, later that week, I was listening to a sermon about the sin of jumping to conclusions. Unfortunately, … Continue reading The Sin of Presumption
This will be our third and final week in this series. This post is a bit different from the other two posts about reading the Word and prayer. Those topics are expected when talking about the basics of Christianity. This week, I felt a gentle nudge from the Holy Spirit to end this series talking … Continue reading Back 2 Basics – Character
Hi there! I have worked exclusively at churches since I was 16 years old. The culture and way of communicating in the church were foreign languages to this gal when I first started. I had no frame of reference for Bible stories or words like, "redeemed", "righteous", "sanctified", etc. Overtime, they slowly became familiar and … Continue reading Back 2 Basics – Prayer
It has been on my heart to lay a very simple foundation for those who are new in their faith. When I gave my heart to the Lord, I was so blessed to be discipled right away. I asked ALL the things and had amazing people who patiently answered every single question I had. I … Continue reading Back 2 Basics: Studying the Bible
Fall came quickly here in Northwest Arkansas! Leaves are starting to change and the temperate isn't getting higher than 70 degrees. IT HAS BEEN DREAMY!! I love this particular season for all kinds of reasons: people start to come back from their summer travel (except not this year - thanks, Covid!), there are pumpkins everywhere, … Continue reading Seasons Change
Welcome back to week 2 of our Yours, Mine, and Ours series! I was curious to learn what I am spiritually responsible for so, I went digging in the Word. I hope this is helpful for you too. Last week we learned what things are God's responsibility. You can read that here. We can take … Continue reading Yours, Mine, and Ours – Week 2
Welcome back! This is our third and final week in this series. So far, we have detailed what things the Bible describes as God’s responsibility and what things are our responsibility. There are also several things that we are called to do together, in partnership with God. As we lean in to Him, we start … Continue reading Yours, Mine, and Ours – Week 3
I feel like we are supposed to dig into the idea of spiritual responsibility for the next couple of weeks. This series is called Yours, Mine, and Ours. I want us to go through the Word together and determine what is God's responsibility (Yours), what is our individual responsibility as Christ followers (Mine), and what … Continue reading Your’s, Mine, and Ours
We have been spending a LOT of time in our house… what am I saying? We've been spending ALL of our time in our house. I wrote last week about our mandatory quarantine because my hubby and I were both positive for Covid-19. When you're an introvert and can't get away from your kids. And … Continue reading Worship Your Way Free
My post last week felt a little bit ironic. I wrote about taking care of your body while my body was not cooperating with me. We found out last Saturday morning that my husband and I were positive for Covid-19. I was trying to write but my mind was foggy and my body felt miserable. … Continue reading My Experience with Covid-19
Welcome back, friends! This is week four of our Spirit, Soul, and Body series. I hope that you have learned all kinds of things so far! We will be discussing God's heart for our bodies today. I'm warning you now, this one is not for the faint of heart! "Now, may the God of peace … Continue reading Spirit, Soul, and Body – Week 4
Welcome to week three of Spirit, Soul, & Body. I had so much to say about the soul last week that I had to extend this particular study into two parts. We are diving deeper into our study of the soul this week. Here are the links to week 1 and week 2 if you … Continue reading Spirit, Soul, and Body – Week 3
Welcome to week 2 of Spirit, Soul, and Body! Last week we learned that God made us triune beings and studied our spirits. If you haven't read that post yet, I recommend doing that before you move on to this one. We are learning about our souls today. I am so excited to dive into … Continue reading Spirit, Soul, and Body – Week 2
God is three distinct beings: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Each of them has unique roles, but collectively are One. God created us, in His image, as triune beings made up of a body, a soul, and a sprit. "Now, may the God of peace and harmony set you apart, making you completely holy. And may … Continue reading Spirit, Soul, and Body
“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world,” (John 16:33 NIV). The Bible promises us trouble. How we respond to it determines our character and maturity. Do we get offended and keep our hearts … Continue reading Set Apart
Trigger warning: if you are battling anxiety, please read ahead with caution. I will be sharing some personal details of my own battle with anxiety and it may trigger you. I have written this prayerfully and hope it helps but, if you need to move on, I completely understand and support you. I had several … Continue reading Anxiety Doesn’t Belong to You
I feel like I have been around in the world in 80 days! I have gotten to see my favorite people in the span of about 3 weeks. My body is tired from running all over but my heart is extremely full. People are my favorite thing and I have been blessed with some of … Continue reading My Treasure
The Fourth of July has been my favorite holiday for a long time. There are several reasons why I love it: watermelon, snow cones, flip-flops, and fireworks; dressing in red, white, and blue makes me very, very happy and, the most important reason, I love my country! In the 33 years that I've been alive, … Continue reading Dear America
I'm going to go ahead and tell you now that this one is going to hurt. It hurt me as I wrote it. It's important, as Christ followers, that we wound our flesh. With all that's going on in our world, we need to be checking our motives and reactions. If you're a believer, I … Continue reading Am I a Pharisee?
Happy Father's Day, guys! I did a post like this for Mother's Day. You can read it here. Now it's time to hear from my wonderful man. Jon-Michael is a leader, loves Jesus, prioritizes our marriage, and is an intentional father. He has been a huge example to me and will hopefully encourage you too. … Continue reading Happy Father’s Day!
With all that is going on in our world, I simply want to speak life, hope, and encouragement over you this week. If you are reading this later, we are three months into Covid-19. Just as we thought that life was getting back to "normal", our numbers are spiking with people being affected in Northwest Arkansas. … Continue reading Shine
Last week, I felt led to write about racism. I simply reached out to a friend, Janay, and asked what I could do. That question changed my life. It turned into a blog post, then an Instagram live, talking with my kids, taking them to a protest with me, challenging my life group, and sweet Janay … Continue reading Upside Down Kingdom
I started to continue this series the way that I had planned but with the events of this week, I just can't shake that we need to talk about a different kind of lie that some of us believe:"The color of my skin makes me better/worse than others." I know this is a huge, complicated issue … Continue reading We Believe Lies, Part 3 – Racism
Last week we talked about lies that the enemy feeds us about God. This week, we are looking at lies that we believe about ourselves. Have you ever said, "I will never," or "I could never,"? Maybe I should rephrase that and ask you to think about how many times you say those words every day?! … Continue reading We Believe Lies, Part 2
"I will never, I could never, I am not, I have not." These phrases used to color my view and came out of my mouth daily. They are subtle (and sometimes not-so subtle) lies that we believe and justify fiercely. I snuggled up next to these thoughts, like they were my friends, calling their presence … Continue reading We Believe LIES
Hi friends! Last week we talked about who the Holy Spirit is. Today we will be discussing what He does in us. Next week we will talk about what the Holy Spirit does for us. He has so many, jobs that I had to add another week in this series just to cover them all! I … Continue reading Who is the Holy Spirit? Part 2
We just finished week four of isolation. We were told recently that we still have two more months. Now what? Personally, I think God wants us to intentionally prepare for what's next. There will be a day when we aren't stuck in our homes anymore and we should use this time we have wisely. When this is … Continue reading Now What?
We just found out a few days ago that we have until the end of April in self-isolation. We are three weeks in and have at least four more to go. I am seeing an extreme response from some people during this time of isolation. They are consumed with how it is affecting them. They … Continue reading SELF
We've been cooped up in our homes for long enough. We need backup, y'all! This post is not in any way heavy or theological. It's just a resource for you to have some new stuff to do. These are some of my favorite online resources. There are many yucky, scary voices out there. Hopefully these … Continue reading A Few of My Favorite Things
This has been a strange week! If you are reading this at a later time or from another country (welcome!), we are in the first week of social distancing in response to the Coronavirus, here in Arkansas. People are trying to work from home while homeschooling their children. Others are trying to figure out what … Continue reading Sword of the Spirit
Confidence and Freedom are two of my absolute favorite things. I'm not sure that there is anything more beautiful than a woman who is sure of who she is in Christ. Her confidence has little to do with her and everything to do with the God inside of her. She accepts God's elaborate gifts and … Continue reading Confident Freedom
"Authenticity is a collection of choices that we have to make every day. It's about the choice to show up and be real. The choice to be honest. The choice to let our true selves be seen." Brene Brown "Insecure people want you to know how important they are; secure people want you to know … Continue reading Authentic Security
So far in this series we have studied how women of God are Living Loved, Fully Surrendered, and have Extravagant Worship. No one would be surprised to see those traits in a Biblical study of women of God. Those things have been taught to us before and are expected. So how did Feisty Focus make … Continue reading Feisty Focus
Hi friends! We are in a series studying characteristics of women in the Bible. These amazing girls are foundational to our faith and teach us how to live for Jesus well. The first week we studied Jesus' mom, Mary. Last week we studied Rebekah. Today, we are studying Mary of Bethany. She is one of my … Continue reading Extravagant Worship
"The man or woman who is wholly or joyously surrendered to Christ can't make a wrong choice - any choice will be the right one." - A.W. Tozer I am a little bit of a control freak. I'm one of those weird people who likes to make lists just so I can have the satisfaction … Continue reading Fully Surrendered
What do you think of when you hear the phrase "Woman of God?" If you're anything like me, you probably imagine some unattainable, perfect superhuman, who's hair is always set in place, and whose children are all on the dean's honor roll. (I know that lady and she is intimidating!) We are going to spend … Continue reading Living Loved
“Remember to celebrate milestones as you prepare for the road ahead.” — Nelson Mandela One of my friends posted something on her Facebook around the end of the year that stopped my mindless scrolling and stunned me a little. It was a simple but profound question: "What is one thing from the last year that … Continue reading Reason to Celebrate!
Imagine being nine months pregnant and living on the third floor of your apartment in humid and hot Texas. Carrying groceries, nine months pregnant, up to that third floor apartment. The smell of drugs is unmistakable from one of the doors you have to walk by. Another door opens EVERY. SINGLE. TIME you walk by … Continue reading Trust & Obey
Hi everyone! I had no idea what to write this week. I usually have an idea of what direction I am going for the blog. Not the case this week. It's been a busier week and I dove head first into an audible reading app that zapped my brain! I drove to OKC to celebrate … Continue reading What Are You Learning?
My mind has been replaying this sentence over and over this week: "You get to choose." We make choices ALL DAY LONG. Before our day even begins, we have a choice of how we are going to start the day. Are we going to go to bed on time or stay up later than we … Continue reading You Get to Choose
It's 2020! Can you even believe it? I love the start of a new year. Everyone has fresh hope and vision. There's nothing magical about 12 am on New Year's Eve, but there is something important about how you end one season and enter into another. 2019 was a good, hard, character-building year for me. … Continue reading 2020
I started this post at the beginning of the year but didn't feel super victorious so I put it on the shelf. Now that the year is over I can see a little bit of what God had in mind. vic·to·ry /ˈvikt(ə)rē/ noun "an act of defeating an enemy or opponent in a battle, game, … Continue reading VICTORY
Choosing Trust 