The Warmth of Other Suns
February 25, 2026
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I know many of you are familiar with the prolific author, Isabel Wilkerson, who, ten or eleven years ago, had a book published called The
Relationships
Who in the Bible Fought Like a Black Girl From Brooklyn?
February 23, 2026
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“So, Nehemiah, cupbearer to the king, fought like a Black girl from Brooklyn?” I said out loud as if someone told me the world was
Was It Reasonable? The awkward story of our Savior’s birth
December 28, 2025
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Was it reasonable to appoint a teenage girl, never yet known by any man, to wear such unbefitting evidence of unspeakable sin? To explain
Unshaken: Standing Firm in God’s Word
December 9, 2025
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XHOmBV4js_E IN THIS VIDEO: This is what can happen when you think you’re standing firm in God’s Word, but realize you haven’t guarded against your
Woman’s Day – Sherry Boykin – “Steeped black tea bags cured my sties!”
June 10, 2024
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Indisputable Identity: A YouVersion Devotion and Reading Plan
December 2, 2023
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Sometimes a really bad breakup is a really good thing. Find out how in “Indisputable Identity” on YouVersion. Read it HERE.
Some People Turn Out to Be Way Different Than You Think
June 24, 2022
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My family were a little worried when they first met B. He had just been at a carwash because he had hit a deer…an ALREADY
When You Just Want to Have a Baby
March 3, 2022
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Sometimes, you just want to have a baby. Period. I remember well the years I spent begging God for the gift of being a mom.
But I Thought I’d Be Married By Now
January 22, 2022
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New Missionary-on plane to Peru-still single . . . I couldn’t help bursting into tears. I was genuinely ready, excited and intrigued about what lay
What a Black Woman in Brooklyn Has in Common with a Jewish Woman in Antiquity
January 6, 2022
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At six-years old, I overheard someone say my father was dead. I did not yet fully understand the finality of dead, but I sort of
How to Get Your Kids to Remember What God Has Done
September 18, 2020
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Here’s an easy way you and your kids can remember what God has done–on purpose! Build an altar! (I did this with our daughter and
When a Wilde Man Weeps
February 23, 2016
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Just visualize this true story as you read it aloud: A famous man lives a double life. While living with his wife and two children,
When You Don’t Get a Do-Over
June 26, 2014
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Ever been afraid of telling it like it is? Afraid of telling the truth because the would-be recipient was older, more experienced, or somehow more
A Call to Biblical Manhood: Whose job is it to keep his pants up?
May 20, 2014
32 Comments
SOMEONE, help me with this–please! Just how responsible are women for maintaining the sexual purity of men? If you’ve ever been part of an institution
Relationships in The Wild: BUT-Kickers seminar, week 6
April 28, 2014
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On Sunday we finished our BUT-Kickers seminar with one last look at “Relationships in the Wild.” And after six weeks of hanging out in the Book of Judges
Relationships in The Wild: BUT-Kickers seminar, week 5
April 14, 2014
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This week we discussed “Relationships in The Wild,” the only fitting name I could think of to describe the resolute craziness of events in Judges, chapter
When It’s Not Your Fault but You Pay the Price: But-Kickers seminar, week 1
March 16, 2014
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Today we started a six-week But-Kickers seminar with a look at what happens when your life is shaken up by something you had nothing to do
Why Marriage is not for Virgins
March 7, 2014
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Just recently on a clip from The Taste, a reality show based on a cooking competition, I heard Chef/Author Anthony Bourdain say that a dish
Is God a Two-Timer?
February 25, 2014
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“For your Maker is your husband—the Lord Almighty is his name.” (Isaiah 54:5) Will you marry me? There it was, plain as day. A
Why I’m Still Married and What That Could Mean for You: Valentine’s Day edition
February 14, 2014
13 Comments
Today is the 14th anniversary of my husband singing me Steven Curtis Chapman’s, “I Will Be Here,” and asking the greatest rhetorical question imaginable: “Will you marry
3 Ways to Pray for the Children of Phillip Seymour Hoffman
February 5, 2014
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A young father. Found dead. In an apartment in New York City. An apparent drug overdose.
Honest Abe, Geico, and How You Can Know if You’re Ready for Marriage
February 4, 2014
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A couple of years ago my husband and I saw a commercial for Geico brand auto insurance which dramatizes a supposed conversation between Abraham Lincoln
On Wives and Handcuffs: How to break out of relationship jail
January 17, 2014
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Did you know that the Spanish word for “wives,” esposas, is the same as the Spanish word for “handcuffs”?
Bread and Butter: The new premarital sex
January 9, 2014
24 Comments
Is it me, or does it seem that lately any consumption of food that isn’t organic, raw, vegan, or gluten and GMO-free has usurped the position of premarital sex as
How to Keep Your Faith From Making Your “But” Look Big: 3 Keys to overcoming mediocrity
December 27, 2013
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But I could lose everything if I tried something like that! But they would never like me if they knew my whole story.
Does Anyone Hear You?
December 12, 2013
8 Comments
We have an ongoing tradition in our home of having our 8-year-old daughter “pay” for unexpected, unbelievably sweet, thoughtful, adorable things she does that so overwhelm her
3 Reasons Your Teens and Young Adult Kids Won’t Take Your Advice: How to get them to tune you in
December 4, 2013
2 Comments
“But I’ve always taught my kids the truth. Why won’t they listen to me?”
Thankful I Didn’t Have the Last Word: Are You? A Thanksgiving Confession
November 28, 2013
8 Comments
Not that I want to be muzzled like an ox, or that I harbor some secret desire to be bound and gagged, but there’s something
5 Godly Things God Doesn’t Want You to Do
November 26, 2013
12 Comments
Make a joyful noise to the Lord (Psalm 100:1,2) . . . without addressing the unrighteous outburst you splattered over your eight-year-old for acting like a second-grader.
What Finding Nemo, The Lion King, and Your Life Have in Common
November 12, 2013
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They are all wonderful illustrations of . . .
Is it Your Fault Your Kids Don’t GET Christ? After you catch them red-handed, then what?
November 8, 2013
3 Comments
Is it your fault your kids don’t GET Christ? After you catch them red-handed, then what?
Why Would God Say Something Like THAT?
October 29, 2013
6 Comments
When it seems like God is wrong, then what?
Why Chicken Soup Doesn’t Always Cure Colds
August 31, 2013
9 Comments
Okay, there’s that sore spot again. You know how you press your big toe against the inside of your shoe over and over again when you
I Don’t Know What “Made Love” Means
July 21, 2013
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Yep–that’s what the image says: “I don’t know what ‘made love’ means.” Let me explain. These last couple of months the developing of But-Kickers has been a big
A Lesson from My Seven-Year-Old: The Family Recipe?
July 9, 2013
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My seven-year-0ld daughter and I watched our favorite cooking show last week in preparation for the Fourth of July. The show featured a chef who had built
Don’t Ever Get Married If You Can’t Do This
May 10, 2013
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So glad I ignored my “What’s the Matter With Those PET PEOPLE, anyway?” attitude last night! It all started with a tweet by awesome news anchor, @danbharris,
Why I’m Still Married, Part II
April 18, 2013
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Remember yesterday when I told you about my right-bran-thinking/left-brain-talking husband with those “uncomfortably long pauses” between awkward statements and heartfelt, fuzzy words? Well, what I didn’t mention was that
Why I’m Still Married
April 17, 2013
7 Comments
So glad someone beat me over the head about giving my husband the benefit of the doubt early on in our marriage. He’s one of
Survey: Best Advice for First Year Newlyweds
April 8, 2013
5 Comments
In 50 words or so, tell us the best relationship advice you received in your first year of marriage.
A Sweet Love Story – Two thumbs up!
April 5, 2013
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Wow! Just gotta smile at a great love story.
Seriously . . . Don’t Let This Happen to You
April 2, 2013
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For all the lovesick out there, you just have to check out these strange, but true articles! Newlywed Files for Divorce After Husband Brings Mother on
Do You Ever Wonder . . .?
March 28, 2013
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Do you ever wonder what Job’s wife might have said if she knew how Job got on Satan’s radar to begin with? Do you ever
How to Fuel the Budding Writer or Illustrator in Your Child
November 30, 2012
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Write a simple story for your child and have him or her illustrate it . . . Or have your child make up a story that
No Excuses
October 31, 2012
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No history, no in-laws, no ex’s, no secrets, and STILL Adam and Eve managed to struggle with the same relationship pitfalls we do–especially in the areas
What I’d Love to Ask Eve
October 16, 2012
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Adam’s silence when he was offered fruit from the only tree whose fruit he couldn’t eat really irks me. Did Adam at least scratch his head
Mr. Wonderful
October 4, 2012
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Ever been told something so devastating you wanted to slip through a keyhole and disappear? Check this out: http://www.inspireafire.com/mr-wonderful/
Backs in Search of Bones
July 29, 2012
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This past week at Teen Leadership Conference, high schoolers were asked to write about significant events . . .
Considering Culture (Prodigal Pilates, Part 3)
April 13, 2012
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I just realized the elder brother in the parable of the prodigal sonS is an even bigger jerk than I thought a week ago. Notice how
The Prodigal God Pilates
April 1, 2012
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This spring some friends and I are stretching ourselves through the parable of the prodigal son (or more correctly, the parable of the two lost sons) as