Available, Brave, and Connection: My Heart Plan for 2017

2016 was not my best year on record. In fact, it was pretty rough. Not in the way everyone might notice but, for my heart, 2016 was brutal. My journal is full of tear-stained pages begging for God to make clear the path He has for me and pleading on behalf of people I dearly love. The year began and ended with crushing words from people I had trusted with my heart. In many ways, I am more aware than ever of the fickle love we offer each other, the frailty of our relationships, and the desperate ... [Read More]

{Some of} My Favorite Books of 2016

Okay, before we get started I need you to know something ... writing posts like this is super hard for me because, really and truly, books are like friends for me and choosing my favorites is akin to asking me to leave people off the list for a big party! Life would be so much easier if you all lived on my street instead of in my computer and then you could just come over and browse my bookshelves and I could tell you why every book on them is amazing and how it might encourage you. But since ... [Read More]

{Book Review} Listen Love Repeat by Karen Ehman

Have you ever read a couple of lines in a book and had to stop because the words resonated so deeply within you that you needed time to stop and allow them to sink in and soak in and expand. Four years ago, I read a book by Karen Ehman titled Let. It. Go. It rocked my world. Seriously. Two years ago, I was honored to endorse her next book, Keep. It. Shut. Another awesome book. But her latest, Listen, Love, Repeat: Other-Centered Living in a Self-Centered World, is even better. By the time ... [Read More]

The Advent Invitation: Come in all your messiness

I've been doing the She Reads Truth study on The Beatitudes. It's one of my favorite passages—and also one that reminds me how much I need Jesus. I started reading these verses in Matthew 5 the day after the election and I've been reading them, meditating on them, praying them, and studying ever since. “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the ... [Read More]

{Book Review} Planted with Hope by Tricia Goyer and Sherry Gore

Have you ever felt like the place you are isn't the place you're supposed to be? I'd imagine at some point we all have. Tricia Goyer and Sherry Gore have written a lovely story that speaks to those times when we're wrestling with all the feelings that come with not fitting in. Planted with Hope by Tricia Goyer and Sherry Gore Planted with Hope is the second book in The Pinecraft Pie Shop series and as I read it, I found myself connecting with Hope, the main character. Since her family's ... [Read More]

STAND OUT: Recommended Resources

This transformation journey began for me, as many things do, with books that piqued my interest and challenged my thinking. And, as I dug into the Word, I longed to understand more about what a counter cultural life is and how it looks for a very unremarkable wife and mom in north Alabama.  As I studied and prayed, I also sought more resources and insight from others who were farther along in the process than I am. I've listened to podcasts, read blog posts, and marked up books ... and today ... [Read More]