This is the place you’ll find hope. The kind of hope that can carry you through those hard places you unexpectedly find yourself in.
I’m no stranger to the hard life throws at us and in the midst of trying to find my way through one of those dark places I heard 4 words deep in my spirit,
“Lift Up Your Eyes.”
It was a gentle reminder from our great God that I needed his perspective instead of my own to walk through my husband’s unexpected journey to Heaven.
Those words carried me and you too if you’ve followed along with me. They also led us to creating the Seek and Savor podcast which equips us to lift our eyes on a daily basis.
I’m Mama to four amazing young adults and Nana to six darling grands with two more on the way.
My sweet husband got to meet his Savior at the age of 47 after a year long battle with brain cancer. We miss him every day.
Life for me, felt like it was ending but God was doing a new thing.
I don’t know where life finds you today beloved, but God, He is all about doing a new thing in us and it begins when we fix our gaze on Him instead of our circumstances.
Life may be filled with hard things dear one, but we were made to do hard and holy things and in the process we become vessels of beauty, fit for the KING.
“My presence will go with you and I will give you rest. ” Exodus 33:14
I’d love to connect with you.
Email me using the form below and I’ll respond soon. I’m also available for speaking events for women of all ages and stages. For a list of topics, please visit my Speaking Page.
We set our minds on many things. Some of them are good and some of them just further distract us from the very present battles waging war against our souls. I was thinking about how to handle those battles one day so I returned to The Word. And here is what happened…. “The TRUTH of the Word was doing something inside me. It was bringing life to my bones. It was waking up parts of my heart that were asleep. Perhaps dear ones, if we truly saw the WAR going on in the spirit world we would quake in fear. We might even feel overcome. But I believe God has chosen us to live in this time period for a reason. I believe the enemy wants us to SLEEP but our God who is rich in mercy is saying WAKE UP beloved. WAKE UP. Put on the full armor of God. The BATTLE IS AT HAND. And so we get to choose. Comment Yes, if you want the link to one of the most listened to episodes of the podcast: The Year of No Fear. #liftupyoureyes #thebattlebelongstothelord #fixyourgaze #fightthegoodfight #wordofgodspeak...
Sometimes I wake up and after a quick prayer hit the ground running. All day long it feels like an engine is revving in my heart and mind. I may even be too busy too pay attention to that feeling so I just keep going like the energizer bunny from one thing to another.
When I finally pause in my day I notice feelings like, stress, irritability, worry, or frustration with others. There is a lack of overall peace.
But when I wake up early grab my coffee, spend time “resting” in The Word of God and allowing him to reset my heart, everything changes. He quiets my soul. He replaces lies the enemy has spoken to me with truth. My perspective shifts from a temporary one to an eternal one. When difficult moments come through the day I am more likely to let them roll off my back and choose joy. It’s really other worldly, of course it is! This world is not our home we are travelers passing through. We require food from our native land to sustain us! And, that is what He does He sustains us!
“ Cast your burden upon the Lord and He will sustain you; He will never allow the righteous to be shaken.” Psalm 55:22 #bruisedbutnotbroken #renewyourmind #dailybread #resteasy...
*Life is always changing. Even this snow covered path I walked a couple of years ago is covered in ice today. Trees are uprooted and branches scattered all around.
Lift up your eyes friends and look back to see where you’ve come from and how far God has brought you.
Then ask him what’s next. Not in a 10 year plan kind of way. But just a “today” kind of way.
And maybe it starts with “Thank you!”
Thank you for bringing me this far.
I would love to pray for your next steps. Drop a comment if you want that.❤️
I think one of the single most powerful things we can do is practice the presence of God. This is something I’ve been learning to do more and more since my beloved moved to Heaven and I wonder now why I didn’t do it before, when he was still with me. It changes you dear one. Now when I find myself alone or called to do something I’ve never had to do or that Alan used to do I talk with Jesus as I do it. Something shifts. The quiet isn’t so quiet. The hard thing is easier. Maybe that’s what it means… “His yoke is easy.” We aren’t in this alone friends. It’s Jesus right next to us plowing that tough road ahead. Remembering we serve a very PRESENT God is what Christmas is all about. As we practice living in His presence that reality will sink in and change the fabric of our hearts. I share more about this in my e-book “Let All The Weary World Rejoice. “(on Amazon. 💕)#seekandsavorpodcast #liftupyoureyes #rejoicealways #immanuel...
I ran across this picture the other day. It always makes me stop and puts a big lump in my throat. Because #1 Hands tell SO much. #2- This was Alan and I and one of the kids praying before we walked across the street to yet another cancer appointment in Chicago. It made me think about what our hands are doing. I thought about how they speak volumes of what lies inside of our hearts. Excited.9:10 tells us “Whatever your hands find to do, do it with all your might.” This made me want to share someone’s hands that have touched me! “I remember her hands. I used to lie on her lap twisting the chain that hung from her watch. Her wrinkles and spots were beautiful to me. Those hands were rarely still. Always cleaning, cooking, washing, mending. Doing something for someone. She never met a stranger. She found something kind to say to everyone, at the store, at church and in her home. I watched her sit at the table writing letters, reading recipes and clipping articles from the newspaper. Her head bent, her brow furrowed as dedicated to these tasks as any other. Whether I was in her home or she was in mine she encouraged me to rest while she labored. She expressed her love in fudge making, blanket knitting, linen closet cleaning and hand holding ways. She poured herself out. She was my grandmother, and she let her hands be used by Jesus.” What are we doing with our hands beloved? Whose hands have touched your life?
We serve a God who will not let us go missing. He leaves the 99 to go after the one lost sheep. Sometimes beloved we are lost because we wander. And sometimes we are lost because the weeds grow high, we get distracted and darkness falls all around us. Take heart. Lift up your eyes. And let the stars remind you that he knows your name and he will not let you go missing.
“Lift up your eyes on high, And see who created these stars, The one who leads forth their host by number, He calls them all by name. Because of the greatness of His might and the strength of His power, not one of them is missing.” #liftupyoureyes #countthestars #thosewhowander #lightoftheworld Is 40:26...
I remember when Alan moved to Heaven, and then we moved 3 months later… I longed for nothing more than things to STAY the same. I NEEDED things to stay the same. But Jake joined the military, Abbey and Adam heard God calling them to California and things kept on changing. Take it from a girl who hasn’t seen anything stay the same for the last almost 10 years. Our comfort isn’t supposed to be found in things staying the same. It isn’t supposed to be found in “things” at all. Our comfort comes from Immanuel, “God with us.” And while this didn’t start out to be an early “Christmas post,” isn’t that what this season is about? A need in our hearts is uncovered maybe by change maybe by something else. We look up in the uncomfortable, in the longing and we remember even in the quiet and the dark we are not Alone. He is Immanuel. He is God with us. No matter where you find yourself today and in the days to come I pray the lights you see remind you of the Light of the World that came down for YOU. May He be your comfort and your joy. #liftupyoureyes #lightoftheworld #lifeafterloss #grievingwithhope #seekandsavorpodcast...
What encourages you to keep going friend? Is it setting goals? Is it words of affirmation? I was thinking about how hard it can be to persevere when life feels hard. When all we want to do is REST… And I had a memory come back to me. I was in high school in the middle of a track meet. I wasn’t fast. A sprinter I was not. No, the mile was my race. I never considered myself a runner, just someone who could endure. But as I remembered circling the track I was taken back to the stretch of turf that ran in front of the home crowd. You know, the one right before the finish line. And, I remembered instead of slowing down because I was tired and it was near the end of the race, I actually ran faster. I had a bit of a kick at the end. You see, it didn’t matter that my body was tired. I had witnesses. All my friends and family were cheering me on! I wanted to give it everything I had to finish well. Guess what! We have that still.
Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses,let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.(Hebrews 12:1)
So friends, let us lay aside or throw off every weight be it sin, or sorrow or heaviness or fear and let us RUN. * Save for the days you feel weary.❤️ #seekandsavorpodcast #rejoice #finishtherace #hopeforthefuture...
I am trying to remember to press in. I want to be in tune with His voice not just when I am desperate and in times of deep suffering. But also when the sun is shining, my to-do list is long and all is right in my world that day. Commune means: To converse or talk with profound intensity or intimacy. I have not mastered it, but I long for it to become second nature, this walking and talking with God. No more boxes of time that he must fit in! Morning devotions, Bible Studies and church, yes, but also doing the laundry, taking a walk, driving in my car. When you walk in relationship with someone beloved there is a back and forth a giving and receiving.
Paul said that he had NOT YET attained to knowing Christ as he ought, but he pressed on toward that goal. Phil, 3:8 I want to know Christ and I want to be sensitive to His voice. Imagine a world where we listened more and talked less. What are some ways you make time for the Father to speak to your heart? #hisstillsmallvoice #leanin #soulfuel #hopeforthefuture...
It was just a few years ago on Christmas Eve, the house lay quiet, and I was the only one still up putting the last-minute gifts in the stockings. I smiled, anticipating the expressions of delight. Stockings are our favorite. It’s the place you still find surprise. You never know what you might find hidden in the toe. I thought back to Christmases past when I wasn’t alone. My husband sat beside me yawning. Placing one item in after another, anxious to climb into bed himself. I let out a sigh, longing for Christmas to make things right. And I began to wonder what it is we’re really hoping for at Christmas?
Surely, it’s not just that latest gadget, a beautiful sweater, or every item on our list. I think it goes deeper. It’s the eternal longing He placed in all our hearts to see His face. I remember one of my favorite Christmas songs. “O holy night the stars are brightly shining It is the night of our dear Savior’s birth Long lay the world in sin and error pining Till He appeared and the soul felt its worth.” Just like that my heart is laid bare. Like a surgeon ready to operate, I feel the Spirit exposing our deepest longing. We’re desperate to feel our worth. We want to be seen, known, and loved. So, what does our Father do? He goes to the greatest lengths to show us. Like light breaking the darkness, our Savior left His Father’s side and appeared here so that we might never doubt again, just how much we’re worth. May this Christmas find us all not encumbered by more Christmas treasures we find under the tree. But, may we finally see the greatest gift we have been given: the worth we have because of Christ. “I came that they may have life and have it abundantly” (John 10:10, ESV). 🎄MERRY CHRISTMAS DEAR FRIENDS!
Life is always changing and change requires trust. I have walked through devastating heartache. I have loved ones that are walking through heartache. You may too. Or maybe it’s you. I see the enemy launching his arrows this way and that. It can feel like we are all just tiptoeing into the New Year, hoping for a better one. Some of us write down “words” to live by others just hope to survive. But we can do more than hope beloved. We can REMEMBER. We are not walking alone. Our God is present and He lights up our darkness( Psalm 18:28). Every time I find myself wrestling to figure out the how and the why. I am learning to bring my heart back to this place. He is here. I can lay my questions at his feet and trust Him for future answers. And while I wait, I will fix my gaze on Him, away from the darkness and toward the LIGHT. #seekandsavorpodcast #liftupyoureyes #rejoicealways Save for a day your heart needs to Remember. For more hope subscribe to the Seek and Savor podcast....
The light is changing from summer to fall and even though the days are still warm, the nights have begun to grow cooler. Every year when September comes I find my heart giddy for all the things fall. When will the leaves change? When will the air grow crisp? Before I know it September and October are both gone and my feet are crunching the leaves under my feet.
Not this year, I said, I’m savoring it all.
Each golden afternoon, each unexpected rain storm, each random leaf thrown at my feet. I’m savoring the beauty of now. The moment I am breathing in and haven’t yet exhaled.
Are you savoring the beauty of what God drops in front of you dear ones or are you fretting about tomorrow?
Even good things can rob us. Sometimes we look so far into the future, we miss the glorious now.
Will you slow down with me?
Let’s walk slower, breathe deeper and taste and see that the Lord is good. He is really, really good. “Taste and see that the Lord is good. Blessed is the one who takes refuge in Him.” Psalm 34:8 (NIV) P.S. This is why the podcast is called Seek and Savor. Seeking Christ and Savoring his presence leads us to HOPE! Who else wants fresh hope? Check out the latest 10 minute episodes at the link in my bio. #seekandsavorpodcast #liftupyoureyes #rejoicealways #givethanksforlife...
