April 2017 – I went to church today with the six youngest children in tow. The pastor’s sermon was about Hebrews chapter 11, which is a veritable Hall of Fame of faithful people in the Bible.  Every verse begins with the same phrase. “By faith…” By faith Noah built the ark, by faith Abraham offered Isaac, by faith Sarah had a baby in her old age, by faith the prostitute Rahab was not killed because she hid spies. There are many people mentioned, and their names are still remembered long after their deaths – because of their faith.The pastor said if our faith was sagging or lagging – we should read…

My sixteen year old son is a real hit with the ladies right now. He has been described as a “snack” which is a bit disconcerting to me as his mom. I feel like it was just last Wednesday I was teaching him to tie his shoes. He frequents the gym to keep his washboard abs from rusting while also working a landscaping job that keeps his acorn brown tan in perfect order. He recently said to me, with a gleaming smile created by his orthodontist and his parent’s money, “I’m the Rizzlord.” As a mother of ten children, I know that teenage slang words change daily, if not hourly,…

Dear reader, I have not written in some time because I haven’t been feeling quite myself. Medically, I needed treatment for Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. Spiritually, I needed replenishing and I found it by taking a recent solo trip to Italy. Standing on top of a mountain in the Italian Alps, four and a half thousand feet above sea level, I inhaled the sweetest cool air and was literally engulfed by descending clouds. The view was completely peaceful and brought me to tearful prayer. It was the living embodiment of this scripture, Psalm 19:1: “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands.” I thanked God…