Are you crying out to God? Are you asking why? Why didn’t I get the job? Why didn’t I get the house? Why didn’t I get the guy? “Are you even listening, Lord? Why are you so distant? Why will you not answer my prayers?”
Read MoreIn today’s world, the concept of presenting our lives as a living sacrifice to God can be hard to understand. Because many of us, especially those living in first world countries, have built up comfortable lives where we get along with the world yet still call ourselves Christians. Very rarely do we find ourselves paying the cost - giving something up for Christ, something valuable to us, something that will leave us with an open need. And very few have been called to give up our lives for the sake of Christ.
Read MoreAs I approach my third wedding anniversary, I’m aware of just how much I didn’t know about marriage when I first got a ring on my finger. I thought that I was the kind of person who was more interested in having a good marriage instead of planning a good wedding, so I focused on reading as many books about marriage as possible and listening to all the advice I could find beforehand.
Read MoreOver the past year, there have been many days where I have been overwhelmed and enamored by the goodness of God and the intense joy of living fully for Him. There have been countless moments I can’t believe I get to have a front-row seat of the work He’s doing in the lives of my friends, family members and women in the city.
Read MoreAt this point in time, throughout my years of serving Tirzah Ministries, you have heard the behind the scenes story of my time of preparation. You’ve seen what it’s like to burn ships - to destroy old ideas and concepts that no longer serve the future God has planned for me. I can’t say it is easy to be transparent about your life. However, I have been so fortunate to have so many AMAZING women ministry leaders, authors, and pastor’s wives pour into me. I may never meet you in person, but I hope my stories teach you and your ability to share your story on Tirzah inspire you to a deeper faith.
Read MoreDo you have anyone in your life right now that you admire? I do. I am fortunate enough to have several women in my life who are ahead of me both in years and faith that I look up to and who are full of godly wisdom. Prayerfully, there are some younger ladies in my life who look up to me in that way.
Read MoreSometimes, we as Christians get comfortable in our faith. This happens especially when life is good and everything appears in order. So, we start to believe that our salvation is safe - that we can let down our guard and enjoy life. And of course, it helps when you compare yourself to people in the world or even other Christians and end up concluding that you or your church is so much more Godly.
Read MoreI never saw myself continuing this story yet again. We’re talking about Burning ships & Building Bridges again, but this time I’ll pull you back out of leadership and into my personal world. I’ll never forget the week of February 21st. It was the week I burned ships, so I could learn to build bridges.
Read MoreThis is the beginning conclusion of my “Burning Ships & Building Bridges” series. The next three parts are actually going to pull you into the final chapter of “How God Led Me to Start a Home for Teen Mothers”. What I hope you learn from this is that there are topics that are important here on earth. They are important for us to understand and learn how to build bridges versus burning ships. All of the topics I’ve discussed have been temporal issues - gender, race, sexuality, pro-life, and more. The final issue that is most temporal of all that I want to discuss is everyone’s favorite topic, politics.
Read More“Did you use your eyeballs?” I respond when my husband can’t find something and asks if I’ve seen it. He’s a good sport to go back, look more thoroughly and usually returns with the found object. We laugh that he can never see what is right under his nose.
Read MoreIt was a Friday morning, my day off- I enjoyed a quiet slow start and had a leisurely breakfast. As I prayed about how to spend my day, a verse I had read came to mind. “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you.”-Matthew 7:12a NIV
Read MoreI feel most beautiful, my true self, when I have no makeup on, and I am in jeans and boots, complete with a baseball cap. That is a far cry from where I was in high school; then I wouldn’t have dreamed of going out of the house without a full face of makeup.
Read MoreThe state that I live in has just entered a week of full lockdown restrictions in the wake of the Delta strain being found among local Covid tests. It was both annoying and stressful to receive the news just one day before school holidays were due to end but, in another way, somewhat timely.
Read MoreIn the United States, today’s war seems to fall more along black and white than Jew or Greek. It is interesting to me how people think victimization of a race is new and unique. When we look throughout history, we can go all the way back in time to the war between the Jews and the Greeks in the Bible. All over the world there are culture clashes and race wars. There are the Hutus and Tutsis in Africa, the apartheid in South Africa, and a war in the Slavic areas that broke out because of people in different countries marrying one another!
Read MoreSwitching on the kettle to make my morning tea, I looked out through the window at the sky, dark with a beautiful full moon! I pull out my journal, Bible and pen- and sit on our red couch to meet with Jesus one on one!
Read MoreHave you ever seen two children squabble over a toy, and when a parent comes into the fray and sorts it out, if it turns out one of the kids actually earned the toy properly, they walk away gleefully as the winner, leaving the other child to sulk or cry? One child feels like they “got” something someone else wanted, while the other feels like something was taken away that should have been theirs.
Read MoreWhat is love and how do we know if it is lasting? I have asked myself this question throughout the course of my life. Time and time again, I have been reminded what lasting love looks like by looking in God's Word. In 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 NIV, I have been able to read, see, and feel what true love looks like. It isn’t just some reading that is popular at weddings and it isn’t just some nice sounding script that looks good on a Pinterest plaque. It is a description of who God is while also being a guidebook for how we are to love. While the first aspect of love in 1 Corinthians is being patient, the second characteristic of love is being kind, and listed right behind these is “love does not envy”.
Read MoreWhat is love and how do we know if it is lasting? I have asked myself this question throughout the course of my life. Time and time again, I have been reminded what lasting love looks like by looking in God's Word. In 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 NIV, I have been able to read, see, and feel what true love looks like. It isn’t just some reading that is popular at weddings and it isn’t just some nice sounding script that looks good on a Pinterest plaque. It is a description of who God is while also being a guidebook for how we are to love.
Read MoreSince we’ve been on the topic of gender for the last few weeks, I thought it would be great to shift gears to everyone’s favorite topic - sexuality. In the 21st century, sexuality is our new identity. Why?
Read MoreThe gospel is beautiful in its simplicity, but for Israel, a people whose beliefs were steeped deep in the law and tradition, as we studied last week, the gospel became a stumbling block. So, Paul goes back to the teachings of Moses to make his point about where faith comes from and that the message of salvation is for all.
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