The enemy knows the exact time of the month to bother me. He’s noticed that time of month when my emotions will be heightened, and my insecurity easily ignited. It’s like the devil knows my need to measure up especially during this time of the month, and in that moment of feeling nothing but lack, it’s easier to fall than to stand in God’s strength.

Following Jesus as my true north meant plotting my course by coordinates and boundaries, provided by Jesus in his Word, to avoid any shipwreck in my life. When I started to feel like I was being “tossed back and forth by the waves and blown here and there by every wind” (Ephesians 4:14), I would say to myself, “Don’t forget to turn north” and fix my eyes on Jesus – my steady compass.

To be a receiver, means that we simply accept the gift. To accept Jesus’ gift of eternal life means that we have to give up ourselves—our own selfish desires—in order to receive the blessings that come. So, it can be said in this way: we first have to give, in order to receive. And as we receive, we give praises to our Savior’s well-thought-out plan.

That’s what my Nikes have become for me, a remembrance of His goodness and faithfulness. A reminder that He has brought us through a storm before and we can trust Him to do it again. I’ll treasure those shoes forever. I may even put them in a shadow box and hang them up.

In this world, fear is a natural feeling, but we can’t let it lead us into exalting the worthless. What if we highlighted the Holy One and blacked out the dark one? Stop giving worthless things all of our attention and exalted The One who has victory over our fears. Walk with joy and hope for where you get to spend eternity.

So, each day I set a new goal to ask myself, “What would Jesus do?” To remember the practice of renewing my mind day by day so I can truly know God’s good, pleasing, and perfect will.

One of the ways I’ve gotten it backwards is believing that I have to earn Jesus’ acceptance. As if there are standards that I’m not good enough for, but if that were true, the cross would be obsolete. He accepts us just as we are, all we have to do is believe it and walk in the freedom it provides, then follow in his example of love, grace, and forgiveness.

Do you remember being confident in your prayers when you were little? I had a confidence that I could pray and walk away knowing that He would take care of it in His time. Now, almost twenty-three years later, my prayer life has matured, but sometimes maturity can shrink the “exciting childlike faith” confidence.

Jesus saw the woman in Mark 14 reflecting His love back to him. He saw her breaking through the barrier of what others might think. He saw her letting go of what most people would have held onto. He saw her pouring out all she had for Him and because He saw her display of self-forgetfulness, she became a part of His story.

Our sister didn’t just anoint him for the kingly position he deserved, she prepared him for the journey he would choose, from death and burial to rested and resurrected. What an incredible event she prepared him for! Her faith was proven in her preparation.

This woman, however, understood what value was in her hands before she broke and as she poured. She knew there was so much more value in the letting go than in the holding on. Just as Jesus was about to sacrificially pour out all of His grace, she too wanted to pour out all that she had, completely and willingly.

The Bible says she came, meaning she stepped out. Despite what others were going to think, she came to Jesus as she was. Then, she broke the jar, and she poured the whole jar of oil on Jesus’ head. She understood Jesus’ final hours were just ahead of Him and she understood the depth of His willingness.

My expectations were set, yet there in the muddy swamp of assumption lied the problem: MY expectations. I had envisioned the trusted momentum of teamwork, camaraderie on a common day, and having fun in the face of any frantic hour. It was going to be great, but then it wasn’t. The hope in my heart was a rolling spring, but the reality I walked through almost evaporated it.

Once I strengthened my vision (with a cute pair of glasses), then my posture changed too. Posture follows vision. Once my vision was strong and focused, my posture felt more confident to take in and commit to what was being seen.

If God can use an uncomplicated boy, from an uncomplicated town, to do a very BIG task, then he can use me, and you, to do big things too. We just have to uncomplicate ourselves. See ourselves for the beauty that God created us to be and use those bare essentials that He gifted each of us with.

David said, “I can’t walk in these.” The armor that had been put on him was not put on him by God, but by others. It was armor that was sized specifically for the king and meant to protect him. It wasn’t built to protect David or help him fight.

You see, we are all called according to our purpose and our purpose requires preparation. Guess what, preparation is sometimes hard to handle! Yet, it’s our high’s and low’s in life that prepare us for tomorrow.

The more we grow in our faith, the smaller that mighty mountain of frustration becomes. When frustration does come, we can look at it and step over it with the help of the Holy Spirit, moving on with our task to bring more glory to God.

Everyone hopes to be a part of something great. Like beautiful ferns, we want to be used to display the glory of the One who cares for us. Jesus told us in this world we would have trouble, but to take heart, because He has overcome the world.

Our honeymoon was packed full of obvious firsts. The first time we had ever spent a whole night together. The first time we shared a bed. Our first time away from family, by ourselves, for a whole week (I called my mom from the airport to let her know I was okay, lol). Through all of these firsts—and through our 19 years of marriage—we’ve had to learn to live together as one, in unity.