Tag Archives: hope

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When It Feels Like God Is Not Good to You

Do you ever wonder if God has dropped the pen and stopped writing your life story? You know, when your life doesn’t happen like you wanted or seems less important or interesting than someone else’s life, you can question what God is up to. My friend, author Ashleigh Slater knows exactly how that feels and that’s why I’ve asked her to join us for Java today.

So, if you, like me, battle the tendency and temptation to compare your story with others’ stories, you’ll really benefit from these three truths Ashleigh reminds us to be purposeful to tell ourselves. I just love this and I know you will too.

Pour your coffee and settle in. Take it away Ashleigh!

“No matter what happens today,” I gently reminded my two daughters, “God is writing your individual stories, and you can trust Him.”

Both girls were about to audition in New York City for the national tour of a Tony-Award winning musical. It was an audition we’d spent weeks preparing for—not only vocally, but also emotionally.

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This One Change Can Make Your Bad Days Better

Last Christmas Eve, I made the world’s worst casserole.

Oh, girl, I am not exaggerating. If anyone else thinks theirs is bad, I will put this casserole up against it—and, I guarantee you, it would take home the title of “World’s Worst Casserole.”

The recipe called for milk, but I ran out and used buttermilk instead. Bad idea. Truly, it was the absolutely worst casserole ever!

But, my sweet family tried to be so mannerly and gracious as they swallowed each sour, sticky bite! After all, it was Christmas Eve and they were on their best holiday behavior.

When I called my dad to wish him a merry day, I told him about my Christmas Eve catastrophe, and how I had made the worst casserole. He said, “No, you didn’t. You made a great memory!”

My dad was an expert at extracting the good out of every single thing! He taught me how to create “Goodness Grabbers.” (Though, it probably would have been good if he had also taught me how to follow a recipe!)

Do you know what a Goodness Grabber is?

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What Is on the Menu at God’s Table

When I was a college student in Florida, Rose was a widow who lived nearby. Many of us students regularly visited her.

One evening, my friend, Mike, popped in at dinner time and Rose invited him in. They visited for a few moments … that is, until Mike noticed her kitchen table was set for two.

“Oh Rose,” he said, “I didn’t realize you were having a guest for dinner. I will scoot out.”

She stopped him, and explained that ever since her husband died over 30 years earlier she always set two places at her table.

Mike assumed the second place setting was to remind her of her late husband, but Rose corrected him.

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4 Powerful Prayers for When You Feel Weak

Any worn-out, weary women out there?

Oh, girl, we all feel it from time to time. I’ve been in the fast lane for the last several months and I’m feeling it! Between all the emotion of losing my dad paired with all the ministry travel, I feel like I’m running on fumes.

Life can just deplete us, can’t it? And I know you know exactly what I’m talking about.

When we feel weak, we need strength. It’s just that simple—and that difficult. That’s when we most need to pray.

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The One Thing You Need to Know About God’s Love

“Wanna do a concert in my hometown?” my friend, Lori, asked.

It was 1988, and I’d just recorded a CD. Lori thought it would be great if I could sing at some churches in the tiny Mississippi town she’d grown up in. So she then called uncles and aunts and cousins—and friends of uncles and aunts and cousins—until we had a whole hometown tour booked!

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One of those nights, I was scheduled to sing in a coffeehouse. When we arrived, the manager warned me, “We could have a full house or nobody at all. I couldn’t afford to advertise.”

I told him I was just grateful for the opportunity. And it was true—at first.

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3 Comforts When the Road Feels Long

When I am filled with cares, your comfort brings me joy. (Psalm 94:19 HCSB)

When I was a girl, every summer we visited my grandparents in northern Florida on the Apalachicola River. The closer we got to their house, the louder the cicadas sang and the thicker the humidity became. The sky was as black as the river that ran behind their house. On those sticky summer nights, to a little girl, it just seemed like there was only vast emptiness ahead of us.

In the vast darkness, our headlights seemed to be the only lights around. But, once we got close to Granddaddy’s house, we could see a tiny light blinking in the distance.

Granddaddy would always leave the porch light on and when we saw the porch light, we knew we were almost there.