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Grace is Messy

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Select a Month January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 June 2015 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 June 2013 April 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 September 2011 August 2011 May 2011 July 2010

April 2016

April 24, 2016

On Target and How I’m Parenting Through Controversial Issues

When abuse is your first memory, it colors who you are. I was molested when...

April 14, 2016

12 Antidotes for Toxic Christianity

My buddy Morgan Guyton has written a new book, How Jesus Saves the World from...

April 12, 2016

How God’s Grace is Like a Waterfall

And sinners plunged beneath that flood Lose all their guilty stains. William Cowper, 1772 I...

April 06, 2016

Tangled in the Web of Postpartum Depression

Ben was born September 22. When he was placed in my arms the first time,...

April 05, 2016

Was Judas Mentally Ill?

I used to wonder what caused Judas to sell-out; but in the days immediately following...

March 2016

March 31, 2016

What a Crumbled Cake and a Broken Bottle of Wine Taught Me about Faith

I’ve not felt very spiritual lately. I’ve just felt busy. The Easter season is supposed...

March 27, 2016

Easter Baskets or Butter Bowls?

The people brought children to Jesus, hoping he might touch them. The disciples shooed them...

March 25, 2016

Where the Hell was Joseph?

I don't know where Joseph was, but where do I find myself? Hiding outside the...

March 24, 2016

What if….

Because the sinless Savior died My sinful soul is counted free For God the just...

March 17, 2016

Finding Hope in the Now and Not Yet

Together, we are living in the gaps. With the tension of unfulfilled dreams. With the...

March 17, 2016

Setting the Record Straight about Gay Christians

For years, I have said my struggle is not knowing what I believe about homosexuality...

March 10, 2016

Dear God, Thanks for Letting Me Cuss at You

Why don’t you fix me? Why don’t you just wave that *%#$ing magic wand I...

March 06, 2016

Check Out My Interview on The Project Pastor Podcast!

I had such a great time during my interview with Troy McLaughlin from Project Pastor!...

March 04, 2016

Finding Light and Love in the Notre-Dame

I wanted the experience of a communion - the drinking of spicy red wine and...

February 2016

February 29, 2016

Finding Grace Where I Least Expected

The past year was exhausting for Lindsey and me. We needed some space to breathe....

February 18, 2016

I'm Not Mad at God.

I was supposed to be pregnant. After years of waiting, I’d carried a baby just...

February 16, 2016

God has Always Loved the Girl With the Ponytail

I was at a friend's house watching American Idol when I got a text message...

February 15, 2016

The Psych Ward and The Church

As the nurse wheeled me down the long and lonely corridor and through the locked...

February 14, 2016

I Saw What Love Does

A True Story about what Love Does...

February 11, 2016

Cancer's Unlikely Gift

Do you remember the iconic scene from Forrest Gump, when Forrest tells the woman on...

February 05, 2016

Eggshells and Jesus

In times when I see someone I care about struggling, my default is to revert...

February 04, 2016

Living Through the Aftermath of My Mom's Suicide

I was twelve when my mom killed herself. My parents were divorced. My dad was...

February 01, 2016

Struggling in the Spotlight

The struggle with anyone who chooses a more public life is that the fishbowl concept...

January 2016

January 29, 2016

Happiness is the Enemy of Joy

It has been said that Hope is an anchor for the soul. And I think...

January 28, 2016

Time Travel, Potatoes, and Grace

For months, my counselor and I worked toward dealing with my emotions instead of shoving...

January 24, 2016

My Son isn't the Only One Having Tantrums

My four-year-old has had five meltdowns in the past two weeks. It’s a new record....

January 22, 2016

All people need is permission.

In the book of John, chapter five: Jesus was at the Pool of Bethesda, a...

January 20, 2016

God helps those who …

I live in the South, where “Christian” is synonymous with “Republican.” My older family members...

January 19, 2016

Suicide and the Church

Being interviewed is such a fun gig! I love when people like Fiona allow me...

January 18, 2016

I'm Not Disappointed in You

The year had grown harder, week-by-week and month-by-month. There were days I couldn’t scrape together...