I found attending church after miscarriage an uncomfortable experience. Women would make their way to my wife to express their condolences and ask how she was doing. Most men simply gave either a greeting or a handshake, engaging in conversation as though nothing had happened. A few expressed their sorrow for our loss. Only one man hugged me.... continue reading
We could spend all our limited time and energy chasing answers to our questions. It's certainly tempting to think that if we only caught them, we'd be satisfied. But what if God intended our questions to drive us to him—the satisfier of our souls—instead?... continue reading
There will be a day when every child of God will be invited to the one funeral that we will all want to attend: we will be invited to the funeral of death.
Yes, it really is true—death will die and eternally be no more. Along with it will die all the grief, pain, fear, sadness, suffering, and loss that death always drags with it. The completely righteous life of Jesus, the acceptable sacrifice of Jesus, and the victorious resurrection of Jesus, all accomplished on our behalf, guarantee that the enemy of everyone living—death—will finally and forever die.... continue reading
Meditating on God’s word is a powerful and biblical way to fill our minds with truth to chase away anxious thoughts. Picking just a few words is ideal when our concentration is hampered by anxiety. But we need to pick wisely! Let’s consider how we could fight anxiety by meditating on those four simple words: “Your heavenly Father knows”.... continue reading
Life can be desperately difficult. The impact of the fall is everywhere and hard things come at us each day. Sometimes it feels relentless. Sometimes we’ll want to weep. Of course, the Lord has deep compassion for us in those moments - his love and care never fades - but, we don’t always remember that. When it’s hard, it’s easy to get distracted and let our minds think things that just aren’t true.... continue reading
Anxiety is a lonely place. A cursory glance at our social-media feeds and everyone else appears to have it all. Even when we remind ourselves that social media isn’t an accurate representation of how life is, that sense of being alone with our pain can remain.... continue reading
For many of us, the world has shrunk over the past year. Rather than going out to work, we’ve stayed home – rather than taking our children to school, there have been months of sitting next to them in front of screens. Church has been online. Social events have been reduced to the occasional walk with a solitary friend. Homes that were once a hub of hospitality have been eerily quiet.... continue reading
Many of our circumstances hurt and cause us significant stress. It’s right that we lament. It’s good and proper that we take our burdens and our pain to the Lord and, like David in Psalm 86, tell him how weak we are feeling and how much we need his help. The Christian is not called to stoicism. We don’t need to pretend we’re OK.... continue reading