On June 19, I turned 40.  And I had absolutely no desire to celebrate. It had nothing to do with turning 40. I consider aging a privilege. A privilege that is unfortunately denied to many.  Although, the words “I am forty” still feel forei...

If there’s anything I’ve learned while rehabilitating from a broken Autonomic Nervous System, it’s that we human beings have unrealistically high expectations for ourselves. We think that we can master self-improvement and gain control of our lives ...

In 1937, Irish missionary Amy Carmichael wrote about meeting with God in seasons of suffering in her book Windows: “Bare heights of loneliness, deep valleys of depression, a wilderness whose burning winds sweep over glowing sand, what are they ...

When developing a lasting quiet time habit, it is sometimes wise to follow your heart. If that statement makes you uneasy, you’re not alone. I once felt the same way. For most of my life, I firmly believed that my heart was “deceitful above all thin...

As believers in Christ, we understand the importance of meeting with the Lord daily. Like Augustine, we know in the deepest recesses of our being that “[God] has made us for himself…and our hearts are restless until they find rest in [him].”¹ Our re...

I’m willing to bet that if you are reading this post, then you, like me, have struggled at one point or another to establish the spiritual discipline of daily Bible reading and prayer. Whether you refer to this daily practice as your quiet time, mor...

There’s an autumn phenomenon that chronic illness sufferers know all too well (at least those of us who live in the Northern Hemisphere). It’s known as the “October Slide”. The weather gets colder, the days get shorter and darker, and the sick get i...

Above Photo: My husband and me July 2022 at Kinzua Bridge State Park. We had just taken a (very steep) hike and I couldn’t figure out why I had almost passed out. I would be diagnosed with POTS one month later. Three years later, camped out in my ...

“Can you guys come visit us for Easter Break?” It had been another rough year of battling my unrelenting chronic illness. But I had been feeling better recently, and this invitation to visit my brother and his family at Virginia Beach felt like a ti...

It started the day before Christmas break. My oldest son (8) began to complain of headaches and fatigue and, quite frankly, looked a bit run down. Surely not, I thought to myself. Surely this can’t be happening again. Not three years in a row. But i...

“But what if godliness is elusive (at times) because of our failure to believe that Christ has sympathy?”¹ The sentence hit me like a thunderclap. I’ve been struggling recently. Really struggling. Yes, I’ve been struggling with chronic illness: tach...

“I’m running to the store, do you need anything?” “Yeah, can you get me a new body while you’re out?” This is a running joke between my husband and me. It’s kind of funny but mostly pitiful. There’s a real grief attached to this joke. Because really...

Our culture praises hustle. They say that the harder you work, the higher your value. Rest is for the weak and the lazy. There is always more work to be done, and if you aren’t doing it, then you are wasting time. After all: You have the same number...

I came across this quote while scrolling my Instagram feed this past week: Moses spent 40 years thinking he was a somebody; 40 years learning he was a nobody; and 40 years learning what God can do with a nobody.- Dwight L. Moody After reading this q...

I have always loved Christmas. I love the lights. I love the presents. I love the time with family. I love the good food. I love the Christmas Eve service at church. I love the decorations. I love the Christmas specials on TV. I love the songs. I lo...