The Hanley family has talked for years about the fun memories made camping and how we want to carry that legacy on with our kids. After 14 years of marriage and several kids later, we finally said, “This is the year we vacation together.” Picking a spot somewhat in the middle, we scheduled our camping […]
Perspective
When Worship Songs Become More about Me Than God
Back in the early nineties, traditional churches started transitioning from the hymnal to what we termed praise choruses: “As the Deer,” “Shine, Jesus, Shine,” “Jesus, Lover of my Soul,” “Awesome God,” “Lord, I lift Your Name on High,” and more pop into my mind. We added these songs gradually, because many Southern Baptists struggled with […]
Helping Your Kids Deal with Stress
Everyone’s heard of our natural response to stressful situations with the “fight or flight” mode. When our adrenal glands overwork, our liver dumps extra sugar into our system, the hormone epinephrine fuels the body, the heart rate accelerates and the lungs work harder (Exploring Creation with Anatomy and Physiology). But what happens when we can’t […]
A Mother’s View
Many people have contemplated Mary’s perspective regarding the birth of the Savior. After all, verses are dedicated to her thoughts and feelings in response to His arrival, but what about when her son, the promised Messiah of the world, was beaten and hung from a tree? What was she pondering in her heart in those […]
Changing Your Life with Two Words
Last Sunday, Joe White spoke at our church. The central theme of his talk could be extracted down to two words: I’m third. His stories demonstrated the impact of infusing this mentality into everything a person does. All week, I contemplated the power of living a life as “I’m third” and how that would realign […]
Who am I Impressing and Why?
My nature, I’m not a people pleaser, but I don’t like failing either. I set goals, and if I’m honest, I find too much satisfaction in impressing others with my responsible and proactive nature. Recently, God has been asking me, “Who are you trying to impress here?” Last night, I read in Priscilla Shirer’s book, […]
What I Learned from Wild Kratts and the Musk Ox
Life can be harsh and unrelenting and sometimes the cold is just too much for one person–or ox–to face alone. My boys love watching Wild Kratts, and the other day I overheard an interesting fact about the musk ox (a goat-like animal that lives in the arctic regions). When wolves or frigid temperatures overwhelm the […]
Holding Onto Unwavering Love Even When You Don’t Feel It
Last week, I stood in my kitchen, doing dishes while listening to a John Piper message on Romans 5. His opening prayer prompted a volcano of tears and the mountain kept gushing over the next 38 minutes. Despite all my training and rational understanding, my heart doesn’t always incline itself toward the love of God. […]
Common Sense Has Left the Building
Imagine your neighbor comes over and plants a rose seedling in your yard. You don’t notice it right away, but even after you do see it start to develop and grow, you think, “Man, this isn’t a convenient time to have a rose bush. What do I know about growing and maintaining roses and do […]
Getting Your Kids to Think Deeper
The things my children say–and I in response to them–would never have crossed my imagination prior to having offspring of my own. You just can’t believe the quirky quips they toss….without even trying. At lunch time last week, my youngest–and most talkative–assessed the items on his plate. “What is this orange thing here?”My response: “Um, […]