Echoes

By Jane Thornton 

I reached up to hug my son today. Not down. Up. Then I watched as this young man threw his backpack in the trunk, climbed into the passenger seat, and, with a final wave, joined his friends on the trek back to college. The holiday was over.
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How To Be The Perfect Woman

By Khristy Hullett 

We live in a world that requires women to be all things at all times. We’re supposed to be supermom who makes homemade goodies and is the room mom every year in elementary school. We’re supposed to the successful career woman, clawing our way through the glass ceiling. We’re supposed to be the wife extraordinaire—never nagging, always supportive, always in the mood.  We’re supposed to be Mary, Martha, and Ruth, all rolled into one—we teach a Bible Class, head a Ladies Ministry, and volunteer at church every time the doors are open. On top of all that, we’re supposed to do a credible Martha Stewart impression with a spotless house, gourmet meals, and exquisite crafts gracing our home.

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It All Comes Down To Respect

By Rhonda Clark 

“Give honor to marriage, and remain faithful to one another in marriage. God will surely judge people who are immoral and those who commit adultery.” Heb. 13:4(NLT)

Americans give very little respect to the institute of marriage. Some see it as a shackle that imprisons one to another, sort of like the ring in the nose to be led around. Many see marriage as something to pass the time until a better deal comes along, while others simply don’t understand the concept of marriage, or their role in the union. Then there are those who believe marriage is unnecessary. A piece of paper shouldn’t stand in the way of love.
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The Thing Trap

By Sarah Onderdonk 

Overcoming Unhealthy Give & Take

I received a special gift once. I remember reaching deep into a cake-size blue box and working through clouds of white tissue paper. My fingers landed on cold metal. I remember audibly taking in some air as I retrieved a lovely antique silver box covered in textured swirls and bygone metal loops. I touched my hand to my heart and said “It’s just beautiful… thank you.” To which the gift giver quietly but purposefully relayed a condition around which the gift could be kept.

So I had just opened and accepted a gift that was not really a gift. But a strange loan of sorts. I could feel the blood swoosh from my feet to my head as I contemplated the deeper meaning behind the gift and what it said about the giver's feelings toward me.

Many years have passed and the sting of that incident has faded. What’s more, this unusual present would ultimately become one of life’s most special gifts. Because it would begin for me an uncomfortable but spiritually essential journey to a place of discernment about the things in life that really matter.

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Make Your Marriage a Legacy

By Stanley Leffew 

You ever observe couples handling their marriage like a New Year's Resolution? 

Yes, it's the time of year again when people everywhere start looking to change something about their life. Perhaps, it is having just come through the holiday season where the primary focus is "other-centered" that triggers this sudden interest in what we can change about who we are. Whatever it is, more people at this time of year than at any other decide to punch the clock at "ME, Incorporated." In other words, they go to work on themselves.
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