After my son was arrested, I shared our situation with a trusted colleague. She told me over and over, “Shonda, remember to be kind to yourself.” Each time she said that, I said, “Okay.” But I didn’t know what to do to be kind to myself. I am a wife and a mother. I’m busy taking care of my husband and son. I’m busy volunteering at the sports field, working in the concession stand, running errands, etc. After some years,…
Do you believe God is able? Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego faced the option of being thrown into the fiery furnace for refusing to bow down to the golden statue. While staring death in the face, they declared, “God is able.” “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego replied, ‘O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God whom we serve is able to save us. He will rescue us from your power,…
“… always pray and never give up” (Luke 18:1 NLT). That phrase from the NLT version in the first verse of Luke 18 became seared in my mind after my son’s arrest. While my oldest son sat in a county jail awaiting trial, I cried out, “Lord our life is not supposed to look like this!” I prayed for my son to love the Lord his God with all his heart, soul, and mind. Now we faced a tragic situation…
The day we received the phone call that our son had been arrested, my initial reaction was to write out Romans 8:28– “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose” (NKJV). Then I turned that Scripture into a prayer. Honestly, when I prayed that Scripture back to God, my desire was for Him to keep my son out of prison. To me, that would be…
After watching the movie Walt Before Mickey, I was inspired by how Walt Disney never gave up his dream regardless of his circumstances. He found himself homeless and hungry, yet he kept his dream alive in his heart. As I ponder this past month of the new year, I realized I want this to be a year of significance. Significance for me, means touching lives and making a difference in my circle of influence because I have dared to dream…
Holidays are a special time for families to get together. However, for some family gatherings they have someone they love missing. Some have lost loved ones who graduated to heaven. Others are separated due to other extenuating circumstances such as illness, finances, work, military service, or addictions. Then there are the families with a loved one incarcerated. When my son was sentenced to prison, I grieved. Hard. The life I imagined our family would have vanished with the incarceration. That…
How long have you prayed for something you know is God’s will, but still have not received the answer yet? First, how do we know if it is God’s will? God’s word is His will. So, when we pray His Word, His word does what He says it will do. (Isaiah 55:11) However, there may be times in our lives that it seems we pray and decree the Word of God. We ask and ask. After all the Bible says, “Ask,…
Jesus completed the will of the Father by being obedient to death on the cross. Then God the Father raised Him from the dead. All this was accomplished so that all people have an opportunity to be reconciled to the Father through Christ. “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’” (John 14:6 ESV) Jesus is the only way to the Father. In order to come…
We all have dreams and desires. When we marry, we dream of the happily-ever-after life and all that comes with living with the person we love. When we have children, we dream of them growing up and becoming the next great leader, inventor, doctor and such. When life turns in an unexpected direction, what about our dreams? Did we miss God? In Genesis 37, we read about how Joseph dreamed that his brothers would bow down to him. Not just…
Most readers of this blog attend church on a regular basis. Which is a good thing. But take a moment to think about the kind of programs your church offers to foster spiritual growth and development. Perhaps your church offers: Ladies Bible study Men’s Bible study Meals for the infirmed Mother’s Day out MOPS AWANAs Divorce care Celebrate Recovery Prison ministry About prisoners, according to the Prison Policy Initiative…. “The American criminal justice system holds more than 2.3 million people…