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.
I love the reminder from Exodus 13 where God goes before His people as they flee Egypt.
His presence went before them in a cloud by day and fire by night.
It made me think of how often we stumble forward in hope that God is leading us out of captivity, out of bondage, setting us free and leading us toward His promises and good plans for us.
But sometimes all we see is the clouds around us or even fires of adversity.
What a comfort to rest assured that what we see with our physical eyes is not all that is there.
No, His presence goes with us. He leads us forward to better days. And no day is good without His presence.
At the beginning of a new week, beloved may we fix our gaze, not on what is seen but on what is unseen. Let us hold fast to our Savior and rest in His presence.
He never leaves us and always goes before us is such good news! Who else needs to hear this?
10 years ago we spent our spring break at the beach. Alan’s body had just been buried but I knew he was fully ALIVE. 2 years after that I penned words sharing what the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart that day. The truth of them is still breathing life into me today.I find myself growing in the fertile soil of them. I pray they will breath life into you as well, no matter where your heart is challenged in believing today.
“Yesterday as I worshipped I felt Christ brushing past the rubble in my broken heart. In some ways the pain of Alan’s absence can feel fresh all over again. It’s on those days I’m made aware again of how life doesn’t look like I thought it would. The shock has gone. The flashbacks of painful days are fewer and fewer. Yet, I often found myself kneeling in a graveyard of broken dreams, unable to find a vision for the future. As I would walk about seeing others grow old together, I would wonder what that would have looked like and sometimes the new dreams God was giving me felt too BIG or far away. But God…
I felt the Spirit whisper to my heart, ‘The graveyard is the perfect place beloved. I am not daunted by death. No, I conquered it. In fact, you must know something… I Still Move Stones.’ Cue the tears friends. He still moves stones!
Have you ever heard more beautiful words? I can hardly think of any.
Mark 16:4 says, “ But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away.” That great big stone that covered the tomb where they lay our Lord’s body had been moved. He came to conquer death. Then He tells us in Romans 8: 11, “ The same power that raised Jesus from the dead is at work in you.” At work in us? How is that possible? He is in the business of moving stones. The resurrected one wants to resurrect our hearts. He wants to conquer death on our behalf . Not just once when our earthly flesh fades, but every day! He longs to take the stones of brokenness, sin , heartache and death from our hearts. He wants to move the rubble out of our paths so we can LIVE resurrected lives. Because He lives, we can too.❤️#seekandsavorpodcast #christinus #liftupyoureyes #sundayiscoming...
Many of us will describe peace as , something we experience in a particular place or when something hard is absent. And while these might bring about a feeling of peace there are also things we do to gain a sense of peace that are really just distractions. Remove those thinigs and our peace is gone once again. The newest episode of the Seek and Savor podcast will help you find true peace to anchor your heart in. ❤️ Link in my bio.i...
Maybe you need this reminder. The sheep hear His voice. That phrase has been resounding in my heart lately. It made sense that the first episode of the Seek and Savor podcast Season 7 should be this. So, I made space to lean in and SEEk Him on this. I am so excited to share it with you.
Friends, If Jesus could do nothing by himself, then surely I cannot, we cannot.
When we quiet our hearts to hear His still small voice we can better partner with Him in the work He is already doing around us.
We can feel His peaceful presence even in the midst of many questions.
Join us at the link in my bio for 10 minutes that will calm your soul and bring the light of His presence.
He is the Living Word. ❤️ #seekandsavorpodcast #hopeinthedark #trusting #goodshepherd...
35 years ago today I married Alan Dickson. It is strange when the one you would celebrate this milestone with is in Heaven. It is worth remembering and celebrating. Though it be both bitter and sweet I make space to grieve the things that are not and give thanks for what is. I am a glass half full person. Not because I was born that way but because I have learned to fight the good fight that way. I have learned to endure and lead my heart back to a place of trusting God . It doesn’t mean the grief is gone. It means I can feel everything and land in a place of looking up. ❤️#lifeafterloss #grievingwithhope #onethousandgifts...
Sometimes, we just need to step away and remind ourselves that our God knows all that is troubling our souls and He has not given us over beloved.
For me that often looks like walking. After I walked this beautiful farm I sat on top of a hill and witnessed the ever changing sky. Minute by minute the colors changed, chasing each other until even the lavender faded to black.
It reminded me that everyday he goes to great lengths to show us He is present. We can either stop and notice or continue on, overwhelmed by what our feelings are speaking to us.
He is for you beloved! How do you press pause and remind your soul this is true?...
So thankful for this man my children got to call Dad. He was so selfless always putting our needs above his own. He was faithful and filled our home with laughter. His work ethic and how He used it to serve others and teach our boys how to serve is one of my favorite things. But nothing surpassed His desire to follow Jesus more. I love that my children will always remember waking up to Him in his chair, Bible in his lap and coffee in hand. I wish He was here today to tell him one more time how loved He is and how grateful we are for all the ways He cared for our hearts. Love is more than words. It is laying down your life, your desires for someone else. ❤️ Thank you Father for Alan Dickson. #lifeafterloss #loveisaction #fatherlove #rejoicealways...
There is hope in the midst of the fire. Don’t miss this week’s episode of Seek and Savor. Find 10 minutes of pure encouragement at the link in my bio. ❤️...
Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think....(Eph.3:20) We serve a God of FAR MORE beloved.
Somewhere along the way, whether by fiery arrows of doubt and fear from the enemy or by our own insecurities; this truth becomes threatened.
We begin to think small. We begin to ask for little. We begin to tell ourselves to settle for less. We may even begin to think that we are hoping for too much.
Ah, what welcome relief to know that we serve a God who is able to do far more, abundantly than all we ask or think. And the cherry on the top is the next verse: “According to the power that works within us!” When you follow Jesus and His Spirit comes to live inside you, you have this same power, the power that raised Jesus from the dead. That’s no small thing friend. So let’s dream with God. Let’s set our minds on things above rather than the earth. Let’s ask and seek and knock and do it all for His Glory. #seekandsavorpodcast #hopeforthefuture #renewyourmind...
More time at home can mean more time to look inside ourselves.
This makes us uncomfortable so we often fill our time with Netflix, music, or anything to distract ourselves.
I love a good movie as much as the next person. But I’m determined to walk out of this season with MORE.
When the Spirit led me to pray this prayer, it took me by surprise! “God please use the dead things to nourish the soil of my heart.” What did that even mean?
We’ve all got them beloved, things that aren’t bearing fruit. But here is the good news! He will use even those things.
Invite Him to turn the soil of your heart. Give it a good weeding. He works all things together for our good
We can trust Him.
Even as we see things slipping through our fingers that we wanted to hold onto.
God is already in the act of bringing life from that.
Can you trust him beloved? What is he asking you to let go? #lifeafterdeath #goodsoil #trustgodsplan...
I woke up this morning with these words coming out of my mouth. “Up from the grave He arose.” But they continued… “With a mighty triumph o’er His foes. He arose a VICTOR from the dark domain And He lives FOREVER…” These words are from a song written by Robert Lowry. But my heart claimed them aa my own upon waking. The enemy comes to steal, kill and destroy. But Jesus came that we may have LIFE friends! I don’t know the things you may find yourself wrestling with in your everyday life. I don’t know the wilderness season you may find yourself in or the grief that may feel like is breaking your heart. But I do know this good news is bigger than a day! It was for yesterday, today and tomorrow. It will carry you when you feel weary and hide you in the shadow of the Almighty as you wait for deliverance. The good news that Jesus came, He died and He rose from the dead is for EVERYONE! It’s for you beloved. John 14:1 (ESV) “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me.“ Psalm 9:10 (ESV) “And those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you.“...
