Hope
-
Weekend Worship – Colossians 1:9-14
Let's start with a prayer… Precious Lord, we continue to ask You to fill us with the knowledge of Your will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives us, so that we may live a life worthy of You, Lord, and please You in every way: bearing fruit in every good work,…
-
A Day in the Life of a S.U.M.
Hello, my dear friends! How I missed you this past week. I shared in my last post that my hubby and I were off to a get-away to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary and have some R&R. Our destination? Kauai, Hawaii. Yes, truly and for real. This was our first time to visit this tropical…
-
Receiving Grace
Last week I spent five days and four nights in Dallas, Texas at the American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) conference. This was my eighth year to go and yet again God had some things to show me. Maybe you're wondering why I'm sharing this here since I keep my fiction side (nonfiction authors call it…
-
Astonish Us, Lord!
Yesterday many in the S.U.M. fasted and/or prayed for Rash Hashanah. Did God reveal something new to you? Be sure to jump over to our Facebook page and share. We'll be talking about it there as well as here. “Behold, I will do something new, Now it will spring forth; Will you not be aware of it? I…
-
God, I Need to Hear From You
Ever have one of those weeks where you end in a completely different place than where you started? That’s what happened to me last week and this was the prayer of my heart. God, I need to hear from You. I needed direction, guidance and affirmation. You name it, I needed. Life had taken a…
-
Weekend Devo- What’s Your Mountain Top?
This is the hilltop in the middle of a park that's in walking distance to my home. In the background you see the hills that back up behind the cluster and crowded homes in my neiborhood. This place is my mountain top where I sometimes go to walk and pray-an oasis in the middle of…
-
One More Story…
My friends, I don’t think I ever shared in detail about how things played out with my daughter’s cancer. Maybe it needed to be now so that I can share in context of how God comes, shows up and works in ways that are blatantly astonishing or the opposite, so subtle that we don’t realize…
-
Let Me Tell You a Story…
This is a story I wrote in 2006, but it actually happened to me during the Summer of 2002. The reason I want to share this is because it shows how God can work in a simple activity like grocery shopping. God showed up BIG that day for me and I wasn't the only affected.…
-
Who is This Man?
On Sunday my hubby called me from the disc golf course and asked if I’d like to go to a movie with him. It took me a few seconds in my fumbling surprise to say yes. Why? Because we have had this ongoing disconnect about going to the movies. I know this sounds a bit…
-
More Than Just Waiting, Part 2
Yesterday I left you with the question, what is the key to this? In other words, what is the key to worshiping God even as we wait? Back up to verse Isaiah 40:26: “Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens:” What if that lift of our eyes is a constant state of awareness-constantly…
-
Weekend Devo – We Are Not Alone!
On Wednesday I was on the Moms Together Facebook Page (special thanks to Suzie Eller for having me) and the most common comment I saw as the women there shared their hearts about being mismatched was their relief to find out they're not alone. As I shared in our book, that was life changing for…
-
LIft Up Your Face
In case you haven't figured this out yet, I'm a huge Third Day fan. I find their music so worship-filled and inspiring. And when I listen to music like that, I begin to hear God's voice. Seems to just work that way for me. For Lynn, it's her prayer walks. For me it's music. Another…
-
Weekend Devo – The Sound of Your Voice
I just have to share this song with you, my friends. It's by Third Day, and brings me to my knees everytime I hear it. Listen to God's voice as you listen to the words. Praying & believing,Dineen
-
The Call to Stand Firm
(This is from a 2009 post that I dug out and updated. It fits our ongoing series so well even after three years!) The stories in the Bible display a constant thread of struggle and perseverance. From Jacob to Joseph to Moses and the Israelites. In Genesis 32, Jacob is faced with a potential disaster.…
-
BIG Astonishing HOPE
Click on Join Us and The Community Map We are all community. We believe in an extravagant and all-powerful God. We are His hands and feet. He’s placed us all around the world to be light, to serve, to love, to reflect Jesus. It’s this amazing community that God has intricately and purposely placed…
-
Spiritual Warfare, Part 2: Your Bible is Really a Sword
In last week’s post on spiritual warfare we talked about shifting our focus and seeing who our real enemy is. This week let’s dive back into Ephesians 6 and talk about one specific piece of our armor. Our sword. Before we do that, I want to make one more interesting observation about verse 12: For…
-
What Does Respect Really Mean?
At church one Sunday, a friend who is also mismatched asked me about how to handle a situation that she either went behind her husband’s back to do what she thought was right in fulfilling a law or being up front and asking for his input and leadership with the understanding that he may well…
-
Chronicles of the Donovan Clan – God Hit Me Upside The Head
So what has happened in our marriage, in my husband’s faith journey? Well do you remember that conversation that started this weird journey? I shared that with you last week, read it here. Well, my husband started to attend church with me…… every week…… He has been attending church every Sunday since February. Interestingly, my…
-
An Open Letter from Courtney
An Open Letter from Courtney: Hi Lynn and Dineen, I never thought I would say this, but I'm going to miss this season being in a spiritually unequal marriage in some ways. It just dawned on me this morning during a very precious and tear-filled quiet time with Jesus. As the Lord has been impressing…
-
Weekend Devo – Standing for Marriage
Even in Singapore, people are standing for their marriages. Enjoy!
-
That Old Familiar Ache
It snuck up on me again, that old familiar ache. The one I used to walk around with constantly early on in my mismatched marriage. I thought I’d made peace with it, made the choice to trust God with my husband’s salvation and the future of our marriage. I’d learned to bring that ache, that…