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Karen Ruth Shock

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Progressive Christian

Fear Driven Faith

Select a Category anxiety comparison deconstruction faith Family Fear Driven Faith god homeschooling marriage Mental Health Misfit My momma parenting prayer Purity culture Rapture Theology Theology Uncategorized When church hurts

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January 2024

January 02, 2024

Is It Really So Simple?

Simplify. My word for 2024. Already doing it's work on me and it's only day...

December 2023

December 30, 2023

Knowing When To Hold On

Should I hold on or let go? When do I hold on? Who/what tells me...

March 2023

March 09, 2023

Living in Fear is Exhausting

Living in fear is exhausting. I've spent too much of my life being afraid. Driven...

January 2023

January 11, 2023

All I Thought I Knew

Looking back through journals. All the prayers. All the crying out to God. Years. And...

December 2022

December 30, 2022

I Changed My Mind About Spanking

"Choose your weapon." A mentor of mine told me she used to say it to...

October 2022

October 19, 2022

Are We All Just Sitting Ducks?

We attended a college conference in 2006, where John Piper said if we listen to...

October 13, 2022

An Apology (from a true love waits leader)

I’m sorry. I see now the damage that was done. Standing in front of you...

August 2022

August 21, 2022

Winning At All Costs

I couldn’t play the game anymore. Honestly, I didn’t even know what game I...

July 2022

July 26, 2022

Here’s The Dilemma

Somewhere along the line, I learned to beat myself up. Put myself down. The more...

July 20, 2022

So, Why Isn’t All of This God Stuff Working for You?

I sat across from my friend. We had met at the studio where our daughters...

July 19, 2022

When Nothing Makes Sense

Lots of tears last therapy session. Ugly crying, in fact. “I just don’t get it”....

July 11, 2022

It’s So Much Simpler Than We Make It Out to Be

I’ve always been known for hearing a teaching and being able to spew it all...

May 2022

May 10, 2022

Please Be Pleased With Me God

Striving This is how I used to spend my mornings with God My “quiet times”...

March 2022

March 27, 2022

There’s No Turning Back (and no reason why I would ever want to)

I can't un-know all I know. I can’t un-see all I’ve seen. There’s no turning...

March 01, 2022

Don’t Even Think About It

Purity. Pure. White as snow. Holy. Clean. Fresh. Beautiful. Clear. Unblemished. A culture of purity....

January 2022

January 20, 2022

Is Anyone Seeing Me?

How did I do it? How did we do it? Just sat there. Week after...

January 18, 2022

Does God Take All the Fun Out of It?

Fun. I love fun. Fun is good. I’m having to relearn this. When I was...

January 07, 2022

Stop It With The Guilt Thing

I used to feel so guilty. When my kids were young. I remember having a...

January 03, 2022

Perfect Love Casts Out Fear

So why has most of my Christian faith been based on fear? I’m not even...

December 2021

December 11, 2021

How Did We Get Here?

Don’t do this. Don’t do that. Don’t think of a big pink elephant. Yep. Just...

December 06, 2021

Sexy? Really?

I watched Matt Chandler say what he said. I watched it more than a few...

November 2021

November 23, 2021

Ok Then… I Hate My Life.

Don’t be confused, Karen. God is not the author of confusion. If in fact, you...

November 18, 2021

Why Are We All So Afraid?

Someone listen. Please. Anyone. Why does it seem like everyone around me has their head...

November 05, 2021

What Are We So Afraid Of?

I’m not leaving the faith. I never have been. It’s actually the opposite. You could...

October 2021

October 31, 2021

Whose Kingdom Are We Talking About?

A world of contradiction. Thinking back to the church debacle of 2008. Maybe that’s a...

October 28, 2021

Then… I Blinked

Grown up kids. Who would have thought? Just yesterday they were in my arms. Depending...

October 24, 2021

When Sundays Aren’t So Easy

I have to admit, Sundays have not been easy for most of my life. When...

October 15, 2021

You’re Scared of Us? – A Life Changing Conversation

I remember the first time I decided to really listen. Seven years ago. It started...

October 12, 2021

Just Do It For Jesus

So let me get this straight? Anything you do before marriage is a sin? Anything...

October 07, 2021

The Deep Dive

Currently sitting up in my bed overlooking the resort pool in Las Vegas. Last day...