I had a complete meltdown Tuesday night. Ouch! I cried out in excruciating pain and began to yell at the one who inflicted this pain on me, telling him to get out of the room. I was angry as I blotted the blood running out of two deep wounds on my foot. Hobson was in trouble. For those of you who don’t know, Hobson is my lovable, but challenging, two-year-old cat. He didn’t mean to
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Recently a friend asked me how she could pray for me. My response was, “Pray that I will stay attentive to the Lord. Pray that I would listen to Him, not the world around me.” The world tells me success is found in making money and achieving status in the eyes of others. God tells me success is obeying Him and living to please an audience of One. The world tells me it’s all
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I’ve heard it said that the ABC’s of spiritual growth are Adversity Builds Character. And I’ll be the first to admit, I don’t like adversity. But if we’re going to grow spiritually, adversity is part of the growth process. When I’ve found myself in the midst of adversity, I don’t enjoy it. But when I’m on the other side and look back over that season, I can see how God has used that time
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I came home today to something totally unexpected. As usual, I stopped by the mailbox as I pulled into my driveway. There was a letter in the mailbox that puzzled me. It was hand-addressed to Janene Keeth, and I thought, well, it’s not from anyone in my church because they all call me Crickett. There was no return address on the envelope – only a Memphis postmark. My address was printed in all caps, and
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Is there a past sin in your life that haunts you – something you hope no one will ever find out about, something you regret deeply? Perhaps, you sometimes question if God could really forgive you for that sin. Or you feel you need to punish yourself or serve Him even harder to ensure that you’re forgiven. You may even be wondering if perhaps you have disqualified yourself from being used by God because
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I realized this week that I like to talk. I’ve had laryngitis the past two days, and I didn’t like not being able to verbalize what I was thinking. I learned several things about myself from this situation. I like to interact with people. When I can’t, I feel isolated. I like to sing out loud with worship music in the car. It’s frustrating when I have to keep quiet. I need others. Laryngitis isn’t
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We just celebrated Valentine’s Day this past Tuesday. Many look forward to this day each year. But for others, Valentine’s Day is a tough day. You may be single and feeling lonely, or you may be divorced or widowed and feeling the sting of being alone. Or you may be married, but feeling unloved in your marriage. As an older single, I have to admit that I don’t always look forward to Valentine’s Day, but
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This past week, I felt the sting of disappointment – not once, but twice. I was waiting to hear back from two different publishers who were considering several Bible studies I had written. I had been praying for God’s will in both of these situations, and a peace regardless of whether it would be a yes or a no. (My heart’s desire was for a yes.) I received two no’s three days apart. Ouch… Even
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What do you think of when you hear the term discipleship? Do you think of going through a curriculum together, or do you just hang out and talk? I think both can be true. Some of the people I have discipled have asked me to specifically go through something structured with them. Others have just wanted to spend time with me and talk about things going on in their lives. Sometimes I do both with
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How would you describe your prayer life? Is prayer a special part of your day? Do you protect and cherish that time, or do you just go through the motions so you can check it off your to-do list? Is prayer an obligation or a necessity for you? Have you made it a ritual, or is it about the relationship? Martyn Lloyd-Jones wrote in his book, Studies in the Sermon on the Mount: “Prayer is
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