Sanctified not Sanctimonious

Social Media is this generation's technology tool that many struggle with how best to use. To provide context, in my generation, it was the TV. Social media has brought down leaders, rebuked citizens, notified us of prominent deaths prior to regular news outlets, shared the gospel, and highlighted areas that warranted our attention. But one of the things it has also done is made us all more self-focused to the point that reality is blurred. We see most people boasting - about their families, their accomplishments and their good deeds online. Sometimes I feel like a voyeur because so much of what is posted is not for public consumption. A lot of it feels like bragging, even humble bragging which is just a

Making Your Marriage Last Through Hard Times

I have a friend that I chat with regularly who has been married for 43 years. That’s a lifetime! I always enjoy our times together because whenever the conversation turns to anything marriage-related she smiles because she’s been through it all, and then she always reassures me. The things that come up are not earth-shattering, just things that are par for the course but that can become burdensome if our perspective is skewed. Things like dealing with adult children, or the empty nest phase, or just day-to-day stuff.

The Sound of New Beginnings

As a little girl in the Caribbean, I never experienced the distinctive beauty of four seasons. So in my fertile imagination as an avid reader, I imagined what each season was like and how I would experience it if given a chance. When my family moved to New York in the spring of 1978, with its promise of new beginnings came my opportunity to confirm my thoughts about the seasons.

When we emigrated, there was nothing spring-like about that time of year except the calendar, since New York had recently experienced one of the worst snowstorms in its history. I distinctly remember the cold, being woefully underdressed and ultimately frostbitten. I saw other kids playing outside at recess though there were piles of melting snow around the playground and instantly decided that spring was not what I envisioned and therefore it was not for me.

10 Most Popular Christian Hymns (and Why We Love Them)

I love hymns. The lyrics usually minister to my soul, the melodies are moving, and the repetition – verse chorus, verse chorus, verse, chorus or a slight variation of this theme are soothing. There’s a solemnity and dedication that underlies most hymns that makes me pause as they usually bring me to a place of introspection and reflection on life and what it means to serve a big God no matter what life throws at me. In this day and age, you might be made to feel that hymns are for old folks, but that’s not true.

How Are We to Deal With Evil?

How are we to deal with evil? Evil is showing its ugly face in the form of random shootings, sexual assault, abuses of power, riots. I've grabbed these categories all from recent news events. Who can forget waking up to hearing there was shooting in Las Vegas with approximately 60 casualties and numerous injuries? My chiropractor's daughter was supposed to have been in attendance but sold her tickets, but my brother's boss was one of the people fleeing the arena for their lives.

Then there was the revelation of a major Hollywood producer whose actions finally

Moved By Faith

There was once a man who had great authority - a Roman Centurion, whose servant was ill. It would appear that he was so ill, conventional medicine at the time was having no effect on his healing. This great leader had a chance meeting with another Great Leader - Jesus.

In his encounter with Jesus, he asked Jesus to speak the word, so that his servant could be healed. His servant wasn't with him but this great leader knew that the other Great Leader was a healer by miracles; His reputation had preceded him.

When Jesus heard the great leader's request, he was so amazed that He exclaimed: "I tell you the truth, I haven’t seen faith like this in all Israel!"

After speaking further on this man's faith, Jesus uttered these profound words: “Go back home. Because you believed, it has happened.” And in that same moment, his servant was restored to

And Still, Be Still

Stillness. Quietness. Peacefulness. The absence of movement and sound. Something we crave yet we can't seem to find the time to Be. Still. Hush. Be Quiet. Be Still.

Be still, in the morning as you take your first breath before you open your eyes and check the time.

Be still, before the day's tasks get the best of you.

Be still, As you listen to your child's last-minute request or hear the fear in his voice as he faces the day.

Blessings or Not?

Children are a gift from God; a reward from Him. In the KJV it says ".....and the fruit of the womb is his reward." When we think of children we forget the gift part; we forget the feeling of receiving a gift - that feeling of unexpected glee and joy while simultaneously feeling undeserving of such a gift. It's equivalent to the feeling that you have on your birthday and you are presented with gifts because of the special person that you are.

More often than not we don't initially ascribe positive words or thoughts to children. 

Women of the Word - Trillia Newbell

Trillia oozes joy - it's in her writing, her picture and her tweets. She is an author, blogger, and speaker in addition to being a wife and mother. I discovered Trillia many years ago through her writing and there was something in her writing that was relatable to me. (I think we would be good friends in real life)! I am thrilled to introduce this month's Woman of the Word - Trillia Newbell.

Trillia Newbell