Some 25,000 winter coats are being gifted to children in Syria this Christmas. The effort is being led by Sister Annie Demerjian and the Congregation of Jesus and Mary, with support from Aid to the Church in Need (ACN). The thousands of coats have been made by tailors in Aleppo, northern Syria, which was devastatedContinue reading “Something to Keep You Warm”
Category Archives: Family
Secularism and Infertility
Declining fertility rates have a significant correlation with increased secularization, according to Baylor University professor Philip Jenkins. Much of modern Africa tends to be devoutly religious and they also happen to have high fertility rates, Jenkins said. By contrast, the lower a population’s fertility rate the greater the likelihood it is for people to separateContinue reading “Secularism and Infertility”
Do I Dare Tell People I Had An Abortion?
How do I communicate about my sexual past—which sadly includes two abortions—to the people in my life? I often hear from women trying to process the aftermath of an abortion. What I like to do is pour a cup of coffee and invite them to tell me the whole story. I share mine, too, andContinue reading “Do I Dare Tell People I Had An Abortion?”
Women Need Each Other
Growing up, I had many guides in Christ, but not many mothers (1 Corinthians 4:15). I sat under the teaching of various women and read extensively, but I did not know many believing women intimately enough to imitate them (1 Corinthians 4:16–17). I also learned from the teaching and example of my pastors, but IContinue reading “Women Need Each Other”
Parenting Is Working the Scar
One of my parenting heroes likes to talk about our lives as a garden. She encourages us to think through the process of planting, tending, weeding, and harvesting as a lifelong process. What do you wish to reap? This is what you ought to be sowing. How you spend your time, what you prioritize, whatContinue reading “Parenting Is Working the Scar”
The Glory of Motherhood
Moms often measure their lives by the opportunities outside of the home they say no to. Regularly, we say no to serving more in ministry or taking on more hospitality. We say no to opportunities to grow or use our gifts. We say no to free-time activities because our time is not free. In theContinue reading “The Glory of Motherhood”
Hope Is Better Than Nostalgia
Let me begin with the confession that I am deeply nostalgic. Merriam-Webster defines nostalgic as “longing for or thinking fondly of a past time of condition.”[1] Smells, songs, sceneries, places, people—they all have a way of taking me “way back” (and I’m only 29). The most random and insignificant things do it for me—the smell of diesel fuelContinue reading “Hope Is Better Than Nostalgia”
By Faith We Let Them Go
A couple of days ago a couple of friends sent me pretty much the same email at pretty much the same time. Both thought I would benefit from a reflection written by Charles Spurgeon. It was, indeed, the right word at the right time. Here it is, modernized through the pen of Alistair Begg. OContinue reading “By Faith We Let Them Go”
Lockdown Prayers
As a second national lockdown in England begins, the Archbishops of Canterbury and York are asking people to unite in prayer. In a joint letter to the nation, they spoke of “deeply challenging and difficult times … surrounded by fear and suffering”. The letter reads: “There is a story in the Bible where Jesus andContinue reading “Lockdown Prayers”
My Dear Son Is Gone
In all the years I’ve been writing I have never had to type words more difficult, more devastating than these: Yesterday the Lord called my son to himself—my dear son, my sweet son, my kind son, my godly son, my only son. Nick was playing a game with his sister and fiancée and many otherContinue reading “My Dear Son Is Gone”
