Spirit Led Woman

Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?" My sister, Rachel, is gone now. She died last Wednesday, March 18. I received a phone call from my family earlier that day to let me know the time was short. I changed my plans and left for Tennessee. I was there for about three hours before she died. I was able to hold her hand, pray for her, sing to her and just be there. One of Rachel's biggest fears was not being able to breathe. It was awful to watch her continue this way. I consider it a blessing that at the very end of her life, her breathing became easier and more shallow until it finally stopped. It was very peaceful and I know she is finally at peace. My husband preached the funeral. He did an awesome job and shared the story of Lazarus. A friend had sent me the scripture during this time and it had been on my mind throug...

All I can say is WOW! This is by far the best book I have received from Thomas Nelson Publishers. This is a coffee table picture gift quality book. The book was authored and the photographs were taken by world renowned photographer Ken Duncan. The pictures themselves are beautiful. They include landscape photographs of the places Paul travelled throughout his life, as well as paintings, maps and other artifacts of the life of Paul. And if the pictures and illustrations themselves are not enough to get your blood pumping, the book tells the story of Paul is the words of the author, scriptures, and Christians theologians and historians like John MacArthur, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Philip Yancey, and Max Lucado. I originally planned to keep this book to give to my husband on a special occasion but I can't wait! Not only do I know he will want to read it now but I want to read it again and I know my teenagers will also. I highly recommend this book to anyone out there interested in the lif...

I try to do too much.... I think I am like most women in that regard. It seems I am always juggling more than one plate at a time. While I am juggling, I am thinking about the other plates that are waiting on me to pick them up! During this struggle with my sister dying, I have been beating myself up over and over. If I am Illinois taking care of my family, school and church responsibilities I am thinking about the reasons I should be in Tennessee. When I am in Tennessee, I feel guilty for all the responsibilities I have waiting in Illinois. And like most women, I am my worst critic. My oldest son is a musician and before we moved our last church was short on musicians. One day he said to me "Mom, if I could just play the guitar, piano and drums at the same time it would sound good." My life feels like that right now! But the truth is I can't do all the things I would like to and be effective at any one thing. My husband has a great illustration he uses for himself...

If I lose everything but Christ, yet Christ is my everything, what have I truly lost? Nothing! As a pastor's wife, almost daily people tell me their problems. The news of economic hard times is not a joke. Confessions of spouses getting laid off, people losing their homes, and cars being repossessed have become frequent in my life. I am like most people in that I thought I would always have certain possessions and luxuries. We personally are down to one car right now and I am in school an hour away from home. My husband is a pastor and a vehicle for him is a necessity.... We have made this a matter of prayer and are borrowing a car right now so I appreciate you adding that to your own growing prayer list! I heard on the news the other day that households are combining with other households in order to save on living expenses. Another news reports compared the tent cities of homeless in major cities to those during the great depression. And yet God is still God. He is in the ...

I just finished reading an awesome book called "Rachel's Tears" All of us remember the Columbine shooting. This book is written by the family of one of the Christian girls that was killed that day. It is a compilation of those who knew Rachel Scott and letters and pictures from her journal. The book journeys through the events leading up to and following the Columbine tragedy. If you know my family situation, you know we are facing our own difficult time. I picked this book up during a time when I was very down and depressed. I was literally too exhausted to talk to anyone and needed an excape. I cried as I read about the life and death of this young girl. I was so moved by her desire to be used of God while she struggled with the normal teenage desire to be accepted and loved by her peers. The year before she died she wrote the following in a friend's yearbook: Don't let your character change color with your environment. Find who you are and let it stay in ...