My Tribute to Billy Graham

  Rain beat down on us that spring evening in 1987, but we did not care.  We opened our umbrellas and held them high.  Nothing would deter us from having the opportunity to sit in the choir bleachers at Williams Brice Stadium for those eight evenings Billy Graham was holding his crusades. We arrived early each evening, as Cliff Barrow […]

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A Roadmap for the New Year

    Often it is difficult to see over our present horizon.  But, we have just embarked on a new year and with it arrive new hopes and new goals. Even if the world seems dark at the moment, we hope that by the end of this year, it will not feel quite so desolate. I recently heard Denzel Washington […]

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Praying for Our Enemies

I previously shared why we should forgive those that hurt us.  But God calls us to go even a step farther and pray for our enemies. Again, this is easier said than done. I have had several situations in which I was deeply betrayed by others I trusted and loved.  This hurt deeply.  But, I chose to forgive the and […]

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When You Are Angry At God

Last week, we discussed being alone and I shared to turn to God during that time. However, what happens when you are angry at God? If you’ve never been angry at God then bless you. However, at some point, something has happened in which you have probably been angry at God. In the Bible, Job was angry with God when […]

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When You Feel All Alone

There have been many times when I have felt all alone.  During this time depression set in and I could not seem to shake it. This was greatest when I was in my abusive relationship, but that is far from the only time I’ve felt that way.  However, that is where I’m going to focus at the moment. As I […]

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Forgiving Those Who Hurt Us

I had my heart broken and had been betrayed and I was angry. However, I had a choice.  I could stay angry or I could learn to forgive.  I chose to forgive.  I forgave for my own good more than anything and there is nothing wrong with that. In the book of Genesis, is the story of Joseph.  He was […]

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9 Ways to Make It On Our Own

  I often wondered how I would make it on my own, especially after I left that difficult situation. I was blessed in that I had a family to lean on and live with for several years while I rebuilt my life. I have a friend who worked three jobs when she left her husband to make ends meet for […]

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Living a life of integrity

Our pastor retired several weeks ago and the one thing that was consistently mentioned about him was that he lived a life of integrity. Integrity is defined as “the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles”. He exhibited this integrity both from the pulpit and in his personal life.  He was not afraid to address the hard issues […]

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What Fruit Do You Bear?

I have had several non-Christian friends ask the question, “Why should I go to church and make friends when the friends I have treat me better than the Christians?” That was a question that broke my heart and I had no idea ow to answer, but to tell them about my best friend, Jesus Christ. As Christians we are held […]

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When You Never Do Right

          King David took Bathsheba as his own and when she became pregnant he had to find a quick fix.  He called her husband, Uriah the Hittite, in from the battle field. But instead of going to his wife, as David commanded, Uriah refused stating a code of honor to his fellow soldiers still on the […]

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Crying Out in Our Moment of Despair

            For three years, I suffered every kind of abuse you can imagine.  With each day, the abuse grew greater and my despair increased. Sadly, God had tried to warn me when I first entered this relationship, but I refused to heed his warning.  I thought I couldn’t live without this man. So, God gave […]

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Listening to our Intuition

In the early days of my relationship, when circumstances began to spin out of control, my gut began to knot up.  I knew that something was wrong and this was not how it should be. I had a day when my insides felt as if they were all twisted in knots and I felt as if a battle was raging […]

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Dancing Through the Pain

Recently, I was watching a movie where the young woman, who was a professional dancer, experienced a traumatic loss.  However, she wasn’t allowed to dance in the coveted part immediately following that loss.  She didn’t want to just dance the part, but NEEDED to dance the part in order to work through her pain.  She turned her back on dance […]

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You never know who you might influence

In a recent interview Denzel Washington was discussing the difference a special librarian had made in his life and how he’d recently payed tribute to her.  His statement stuck with me, “You never know who you might influence”.  Each day we come in contact with other people and we have the option to be a blessing to that person or […]

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What is Your Legacy?

I recently discovered that a great-aunt I had not seen in decades died weeks before turning 100 years old.  I had so many family history questions I wish she’d answered but numerous request over the years went unanswered. I was saddened but not surprised to discover she was not only been mean, but nasty to all of those close to […]

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His Kind of Love: Encourage one another

Whether you hang out with a group of friends or on social media you will see individuals encouraging one another while others tear down one another. Tearing down and destroying is destructive. On the other hand, encouraging and building up in constructive. Hebrews 3:13 tells us to “encourage one another daily.” When I was in an abusive relationship, I did […]

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Will It Matter 100 Years from Now?

Recently I was watching a biography on President Ronald Reagan.  In the documentary, they were discussing how then Governor Reagan had written a speech for the burial of a time capsule back in 1976.  . The letter was buried in a time capsule that would be opened 100 Years later. The letter addressed many concerns that were important in 1976.  […]

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What is Your Validation?

Recently, I was listening to a Podcast and the speaker was discussing meeting his goals as a writer, however he did not find peace and joy.  He continued to want more and more and searched for his validation in sales, reviews,  and social media numbers. As a writer, we are told that these numbers are important. Then he said something […]

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Preparing for Change

In just a few days we will ring in a New Year. With a New Year, arrives new hopes, new dreams, new resolutions, and new promises. Whether you make resolutions or not, we all hope to improve or better something about ourselves. For me, it is finding different ways and strategies to work on my goal towards health and wellness.  […]

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