Have you ever been to a restaurant where the waitress was so attentive to your needs that your glass never even runs empty? Each time that you take a sip, she seems to know, and intuitively comes rushing to your table to refill it again and again! When this happens, I always feel so noticed and cared for! But, sometimes the opposite is true – the waitress takes your food order and seemingly disappears into thin air, leaving you feeling forgotten (and thirsty)!

Have you ever attended a wedding where you were captivated by the lavish decorations, where you felt the “love” in every detail? Maybe you experienced something like that at a women’s retreat, weekend conference, or birthday party.

The seasons have certainly shifted!  Perhaps you have flipped your closet to a warmer wardrobe and pulled out your cardigans!  Have you stripped your toenail polish of the summer shades for deeper tones or for fuzzy socks and boots?  And, many of you have the coveted pumpkin spice latte in hand as you peruse the local farm for the best fall décor for your porch.

Have you ever had one of those moments where the thought just hit you, “I was born for this!” There is something so empowering about that feeling when your unique set of skills and your passion collide with a need that you can be an answer to. You are in the right place, at the right time, with the right tools to make a difference. 

Kids are back at school, leaves are falling, and schedules are in full swing. Have you sat by a fire or fireplace, sipping your pumpkin spice coffee? I recently had an Apple Crisp Oatmilk latte that was amazing. There is much to love about FALL!

As you pause and take a break from your workday, school day, or just busy day, you are here now reading this blog. Welcome, daughter.

There are so many different hats that we wear in this life. These hats can be things that we enjoy, and bring fulfillment and purpose. I’m sure if we were sitting together, you could tell me all about the different hats that you wear.

Feet.  What do you think about yours?  Are you blessed with perfect tootsies? Or like me, you have trouble finding comfy yet fashionable shoes? Most of the summer, I try to complement my extra wide feet with a pretty polish color hoping to distract from their gargantuan size. (I guess I could say that I have a firm foundation?!) 

A theme that seems to pop up often is “finding your people” and “belonging.” I’ve read some great books on the topic over the last few years as well, and to take it a step further, I’ve read about how to create community and promote a culture of connection. We all want to belong. Lately, I feel like I have just a deeper understanding of what that can look like.

Most kids have returned to school, and families are back to the school year routine. For those of you who are coffee drinkers, pumpkin spice is back at Starbucks and DD! Fall is here.

While everyone is typically ready for a routine to replace the lazy summer days, that first week of school can shock your system as parents.

When you feed your fear, you’ll starve your faith.  But when you feed your faith, you’ll starve your fear! 

In our busy world, everyone seems to want to be better. Climb the corporate ladder.  Strive for excellence.  Be better than Pinterest. Even in our churches, we see the need to want to be the best.  But something happens when we hear the call from the Lord to do something greater for Him. 

Book bags replace pool bags. Pull out your new calendar to mark the first day of the new school year. Or maybe the school year has already begun! Whether we have come to terms with it or not, it's revving back up! All of it! All the homework and carpooling, long days punctuated by sports practices, and busy weekends filled with games. Maybe your work gets more hectic, and church ministry, dare I say, (starts planning for the holidays). Shhhh! We scream, "Slow down!" It all goes by too fast. But does it?

The capacity of a seed is truly a remarkable thing. I’m sure you’ve seen many seeds in your life, whether you are enjoying a nutritious piece of fruit or cutting up some fresh veggies to eat. Seeds come in all shapes and sizes. The next time you eat an apple, take one of its seeds and put it aside. It’s hard to imagine that everything that a seed needs is packed inside of it!

It is what everyone desires. “If I only…”  or “If I had…”  or “If I didn’t” is the beginning of far too many sentences. It is the beginning of too many thought processes. It is the end of too many dreams, purposes, and untapped potential.

Recently, on a beautiful evening in Myrtle Beach, we took our oldest son Steve, his wife, Leah, and their three boys to Top Golf. Top Golf offers the experience of a driving range for up to six people in a bay, along with the opportunity to add on food and drinks to enjoy. Upon arrival, you are assigned a bay on one of three floors and given two hours of play.

Have you ever gotten a gift and as you unwrapped it there was another gift box inside another and another and another? What happens is that the gift just keeps getting smaller and smaller until at last, it is revealed.  I confess that I’ve done this before. The joy of giving a tiny gift and presenting it as a HUGE present is so much fun.

From the time we are little ones in school, we are taught to play the game, “Follow the Leader,” or to follow the teacher in single-file fashion down the hall. As a former elementary teacher and children’s ministry director, gathering children to get in line, and then maintaining that straight formation can be compared to herding the Israelites in the desert! I must wonder if the Lord often feels this way about His very own children today!

I think we’ve all felt it, if even for a moment, a hollowness that hits perhaps following a loss or a disappointment. It can be an emptiness where the ache in your soul cries out and echos back, seemingly making that hollowness even deeper. We can see such feelings depicted in the Psalms. 

I love Summer! For me, Summer brings memories of extended family times, late nights, picnics, and swimming in the pool in our backyard. We bought and installed an above-ground pool when our oldest grandchild was about three.