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My Married Story Has Ended
[Guest Post by Sue Birdseye. I met Sue through my friends at Tyndale Publishers about her book When Happily Ever After Shatters. If your story has ended and you feel like a failure because of it–I hope her story will encourage you.] My story ended and began with these few little words uttered by my husband of 17 years. “I think I’m going to leave.” As our 5 children and their friends raced around us, my husband spoke words that changed the course of my life, our lives, and our family forever. The next few days and weeks were a desperate attempt on my part to convince my husband to…
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Suicide, Mental Illness, Murder, and the Church
As the creator of Quarter Life Conference, I am honored to announce the next #QLC online event on June 20th on the topic of church. Honestly? This couldn’t come at a more important time. Earlier this week, I heard the devastating news that Pastor Rick Warren lost his 27 year old son, Matthew to suicide. I was touched by his personal letter on the Saddleback Church blog. He said, “But only those closest knew that he struggled from birth with mental illness, dark holes of depression, and even suicidal thoughts. In spite of America’s best doctors, meds, counselors, and prayers for healing, the torture of mental illness never subsided. Today,…
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I Am A Dreamer
[Guest Post by Ronel Sidney. I can’t even remember how we officially met, but I remember when she offered to let me come and speak at Praise and Coffee in San Diego, CA. We became great friends because of our drive to further God’s kingdom, love for others, and writing. I love that she is a dreamer, and knew she’d be the perfect fit for this month’s theme.] I am a dreamer! I dream about having more babies. I dream about writing a book. I dream about my husband and me leading a Bible study together. I dream about moving up within my company. I dream about buying a house.…
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New Theme for April: Pursuing Dreams
This April I am introducing a new theme on pursuing dreams. When I was in my early 20’s, I had a dream about my future. I was at a concert and I had a brochure of people’s pictures and where they would end up in 20 years based on the choices they were making today. I hoped to see my picture, and when I did I was immediately excited. In my picture, I saw that I was married and we had a daughter. I couldn’t wait for this dream to come true. I became very frustrated when the years 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, and 25 went by with no…
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What's good about Good Friday?
[Monthly Contributor – Hannah Stovall – I always appreciate the way Hannah’s writes about events with such child-like faith. As she writes about Good Friday, I can’t help but see the wonder from the point of view of a child.] Working in children’s ministry, my brain is constantly in kid mode, especially when it comes to holidays. What do they really think about Halloween? How exactly do they feel about Christmas? What is good to them about Good Friday? That was the big question at our midweek programming on Wednesday night. Small talk with littles quickly turned to the Divine when their wheels started turning. It was hard for them…
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Living Together As A Step Family
[Guest Post by Jeanne Cesena. I’ve known Jeanne now for many years through our mentor Pam Farrel. She and her husband have an incredible ministry to step/blended families. If you are the person who thought you’d always marry a pastor–you have to read her article!] In a Step Family, there is at least one spouse that has gone through a divorce. It’s like throwing everyone in a microwave and turning it on high. Divorce was a very hard season in my life. My ex husband and I were on staff at a church as worship leaders and youth pastors. My ex began to do drugs and sleep with women. Pastors…
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Living Together Through The Worst
[Guest Post by Sarah Markley. I met Sarah a few years ago at a Starbucks in Orange County. She and I both graduated from Biola University and have been blogging for many years. I finally got her to write a piece on community (a topic she is definitely passionate about). I hope you are encouraged!!] I’ve lived with my husband for almost seventeen years. He’s seen me at my worst (and best) and I have seen him at his. If you really want a good example of community, look at any married couple. Or any family for that matter. In any nuclear family there are three, four or ten individuals…
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On Anxiety: An Adulterous Relationship Breakup
[Guest Post by Rebecca Halton] – Entangled in an adulterous relationship in my early 20s, I was no stranger to anxiety. I lost unhealthy amounts of weight and sleep. I isolated myself, sequestered by secrecy and shame. I was drowning under the weight of worry, fear, paranoia, shame and self-loathing. And even as a believer already, I felt too “disqualified,” too unworthy, to seek the One who I knew could rescue me. What then? That’s when I started to “circle the wagons”– to rally people in my life for prayer and counsel. The concept isn’t mine, but I know it’s inspired by the defense mechanism of settlers pioneering the West.…
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Anxiety is a Gift
[Guest Post by Teri Antti] – Anxiety is a Gift? Yes! A Blessing! I once read that true peace can only be sustained when what you say, what you believe and what you do are all the same thing. At the time I read this anonymous quote, my thoughts, beliefs and actions were as far from being aligned as you could possible imagine. I was in a season during which my anxiety was at an all time high. I could not leave my house. Fear had found its way into every ounce of my being. I was rapidly loosing the confidence to even parent my three daughters. I had a…
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Reflections on Life and Failure
Tonight, I write to make sense of life and reflect on failure too. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed hosting guest bloggers for the past few months, but I felt a stir in my spirit tonight. So, instead of sleep, I will listen to that still small voice and write. Write aloud. Write to heal. I started a series called Monday Meditations last month and it has not gone well. In fact, it failed. I wouldn’t be surprised if I got more than 30-40 hits per blog. Compared to the almost hundreds (sometimes thousands) of hits I got for previous series including I Survived My 20s or Pre Engagement Questions–this is shocking. Well,…
