“Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at...

When I walked into the support group meeting, my tears rushed forward as if a dam released. Each tear represented a broken promise, a silent lie, a passed out state, another crack in my heart. We all gathered around the table, each sharing a summary of the story that brought us through the door. Some were dealing with alcohol, others, drugs. When it was my turn to share, I explained one child fighting alcoholism but was unable to speak the truth of drug use in my other child’

“I sink in deep mire, where there is no foothold; I have come into deep waters, and the flood sweeps over me.” Psalms‬ ‭69:2‬ ‭ESV‬‬ Swim...

"He leads me beside the still waters." Psalms 23:2 "A ripple effect is a situation in which, like ripples expand across the water when an...

“Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.” ‭‭Colossians‬ ‭3:12‬ ‭NIV‬‬ Let’s face it…Hollywood is messing with our heads. As I watched the previews for newly released movies about families dealing with addiction, I recognized the faces of parents desperate to save their children. Panicked mothers and fathers, played by larger-than-life Hollywood actors, went to the most extreme me

“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at a proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” Galatians 6:9 Worn Out Life...

Anxiety is a very real emotion for most of us at one time or another. The question is, “Is there a cure for anxiety?” According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, "Anxiety disorders are the most common mental illness in the U.S., affecting 40 million adults in the United States age 18 and older, or 18.1% of the population every year." Anxiety is can be debilitating. According to the Webster’s Dictionary, anxiety is described as "a feeling of worry, nervou

and provide for those who grieve in Zion— to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor.” Isaiah‬ ‭61:3‬ ‭NIV‬‬ A Deeper Kind of Grief The words kept playing over again in my mind. What do they mean for me and for you? I have heard many say lately, "I am just so sad. I am tired of

I will never forget the day addiction knocked at our door for the first time. It came in quietly, unannounced.

“‘Don’t call me Naomi,’ she told them. ‘Call me Mara, because the Almighty has made my life very bitter. I went away full, but the Lord...

"For no one ever hates his own flesh but provides and cares for it, just as Christ does for the church, since we are members of his...

“A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling. God sets the lonely in families, he leads out the...

Let them give thanks to the Lord for his faithful love and his wondrous works for all humanity. For he has satisfied the thirsty and...

"Hope deferred makes the heart sick...” Proverbs 13:12a NIV I often make the snarky comment, “If I knew how selfish I was, I never would have had children”. Now, in my defense, I think I’ve come to realize that there are times when motherhood really hurts. Nothing, and I mean nothing, could have prepared me for the highs and lows of being a mother. In reality, a mother's love was meant to hurt. A love this deep bears the weight of all our hopes and dreams. It carries with it

“He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.” Psalm 147:3 NIV ‬Wounds hurt. We don’t like pain. We are anxious to be healed. We...

I am one of those "fix-it" kind of people. I am also an over-thinker. Okay, I'm a control freak. Hey, before you judge us control freaks as all bad, remember that we are the ones that keep the order in the family. We put balance into what could be complete chaos. But like any personality strength, there is also some weakness.

I have never been comfortable with the idea of letting go of my children for any reason; addiction is no exception. Even though they are adults and making grown-up decisions for their lives, the advice to let them go and allow them to hit their rock bottom shakes me to the core. Ask any mother the hardest decision they've had to make regarding their struggling child. They will most often say it was the "letting go". The same holds true for wives, sisters, and grandmothers. It

“For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you.” Isaiah‬ ‭41:13‬ ‭NIV‬‬ The...

People cry out when they are oppressed. They groan beneath the power of the mighty. Yet they don’t ask, ‘Where is God my Creator, the one...

“So he got up and went to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him;...