Untangled Blog
The concept for the Untangled Blog came about in an unexpected manner. One day I accidentally knocked over my necklace holder, and as a result, two of my necklaces became tangled together. It was a slow, tedious process to separate them. As I worked through the process, it occurred to me how these necklaces represented our lives.
When untangled, the necklaces were each a thing of beauty to be worn and displayed. However, in their tangled condition, their beauty was obscured among a myriad of twists and knots. If left in that state, they would be unable to be worn, unable to serve their intended purpose.
So it is with our lives when we get tangled up in our emotions and our circumstances. We can get all twisted and knotted up inside, unable to display our beauty to others. We can feel useless and become ineffective, unable to function the way we were intended. We can lose our purpose.
We aren’t meant to live this way, and the good news is that we don’t have to. We have a choice in the matter. I invite you to join me on this journey to examine how we can rise up out of the muck and mire of our daily circumstances to live a life filled with joy and purpose … a life Untangled.
-
When the Heat Is On
“That poor pregnant lady,” a man remarked to my husband as I walked across the parking lot to meet him. To which my husband replied, “Yeah, that’s my wife.” It was past the middle of August, and the heat was on. Triple-digit heat. And at eight months pregnant, I sure was feeling it.
-
Glowing Because You Know Him
“You’re glowing,” the lady next to me proclaimed as I turned her way. We were at a church prayer service and had just finished praying for someone. At her words, I couldn't help but smile as I recalled the private prayer request I had made to God earlier that month. My prayer request came about during a time of reflection with God. During this time, God drew my attention to Moses’ face becoming radiant from spending time in God’s presence (as recounted in Exodus 34:29-35). And this then became my prayer – that my time spent in God’s presence would make me radiant...
-
Are Your Doors Open?
Are your church doors open to people who are different than you? How about the doors to your Christian circles, your life, and your heart? Are your doors open to those who look differently than you, dress differently than you, act differently than you, behave differently than you, and/or think differently than you? Many may answer yes to that, but I challenge everyone to really stop and consider if that’s the case. Because I know many who profess this to be the case but whose actions show otherwise.
-
Hear Me Roar
The lion image in this post is something that I drew using a graphic design program several months ago. There’s quite a story behind it, and God recently began to impress on my heart that I should share it, along with a title of “Hear Me Roar.” It all began last summer…
-
In the Waiting
Earlier this week, I posted a song on Facebook that I wrote this past October. It began one day when my friend, Margie, texted me this line and said that it needed to be lyrics in a song, “I stand in your presence in the waiting.” I jokingly asked Margie if she was commissioning me, and she replied that she was. She said that as this came to mind, she envisioned me singing it.
-
About Finding Joy and Where We Get It Wrong
I received an article that was an excerpt from a book written by a Christian author about finding joy. But after reading it, instead of walking away in total agreement, there was something that left me feeling unsettled. Something that left me thinking that this is where we get it wrong … a lot of us anyway.
-
A Heart That Is Broken
A couple of days before Thanksgiving, I wrote a post on Facebook that made a few people wonder about me … wonder if I was okay, wonder if something else had happened on top of the already difficult circumstances that the November winds had blown my family’s way earlier that month. The post was a bit out of character for me. It wasn’t peppered with the usual grace that others were accustomed to seeing from me. But a heart that is broken is not always graceful – sometimes the pain speaks louder.
-
The Gift of Suffering
The gift of suffering? Seems like an oxymoron – two contradictory terms used together. I think it’s fair to say that most of us would rather avoid suffering. And if someone were to offer us suffering as a gift, we might question whether that person understands what a gift really is.
-
When God Speaks Through a Cup of Coffee
Several months ago, as I was returning to work one afternoon, I noticed there were no cars at the drive-thru of a local coffee shop – where there is always a line. So I decided to swing by and take advantage of this rarity, plus I had a gift card, so even more reason to do so. It had already been a particularly difficult day, and I was emotionally depleted, so this unexpected treat was quite welcomed. If there was anytime I could use a little pick-me-up, it was certainly now.
-
In the Middle of the Desert
There are times in life when you find yourself in the middle of a desert place. Perhaps you got there because you lost your way. Perhaps you made a series of wrong turns. Or perhaps you made just one wrong turn.
