Many people have stayed in relationships that ranged from friendship to business to marriage to church attendance, and it was the last place they should have stayed. Staying for the benefit of others is not a good enough reason to stay. God is bigger than divorce – of COURSE, He hates it! He hates that Read More
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Grace as an Excuse to Sin Freely … or Law and Judgment that Paralyze Faith
A dear friend of mine has some of the most interesting and deeply thought out questions! This morning when I opened up my Yahoo Messenger, this comment and question regarding grace as an excuse, or law, was posted in my message window: I’m reading in Romans 2 about the law. It’s no wonder there is Read More
Who Encourages the Pastor’s Wife? Enter … Sarah’s Tent and Other Pastor’s Wives
What appeared to be lost, was never lost. Not in your life, and not in mine. Nothing that God begins is ever lost… Sarah’s Tent is rebuilding. The word of mouth spread quickly and in just six short months, over 800 women were visiting Sarah’s Tent and participating in online chats, emails and phone conversations. Read More
Shattered Pastors, Shattered Marriages, Shattered Lives …
The moment sticks out in my mind as though it happened yesterday. As a young woman of 16, our lovely pastor’s wife sat down on the church bus seat next to me. The Hawaiian Luau youth event has long faded from my memory because of the following conversation between us became burned in my heart Read More
Why Your Vision May Be Hard to Articulate… and Share with Others
Find out why your vision may be hard to articulate and share with others. Understanding how your vision develops helps others to get on board. Many times it begins with a life-altering moment. A need is revealed or experienced and solving that needs becomes a life calling that does not fade with time. In fact, Read More
Are You Hurting and Feel Abandoned or Lost?
If you are going through some frustrating and difficult times, I would like to include some verses which became a real and tangible encouragement to me in one of my own most dramatic trials in life. David, Jeremiah, and Paul could not have expressed their frustrations and anger more candidly, nor could I or anyone else have put things Read More
Are You an “After Pastor”?
An “After Pastor” is the pastor who comes in after the devastation of moral failure from a senior leader or pastor and “cleans up” the mess. There are issues of betrayal, grief, anger, and disbelief which hit a congregation, causing ministry “paralysis”. If you or someone you know has stepped into the role of being Read More
I Do It … I Do it, You Watch … You Do It, I Watch … You Do It – Passing the Baton
Taken from the archives of Sarah’s Tent … Have you ever been confronted by a bored child, and then quickly responded to their whining with something inspiring like, “stop complaining and go clean your room!” or, “Don’t you know that there are millions of children who would give anything to be in your shoes?” As Read More
Leslie Vernick on The Emotionally Destructive Marriage
Ever since I entered into ministry work, I’ve been dismayed to witness marriage after marriage struggling with unresolved conflict. Many believe that no matter how horrible the marriage is – even if there’s abuse – no one should ever divorce, but work through the conflict. In a perfect world where BOTH partners are actually working Read More
What Does It Mean to Have “Ordered Footsteps?”
This question was asked of me recently, “If I plan my own future, isn’t that planning with my own will? If God is ordering my footsteps, shouldn’t I wait for HIM to tell me what to do?” The beauty of such a question is the humble heart in which this question was asked. This person Read More
To Judge or Not to Judge?
Guest Blogger, Laura Smith A righteous judge always considers all the evidence and statements from eyewitnesses before coming to a verdict. A skilled judge perceives the heart of the matter and discerns whether a person is lying or being honest. He has been in the business long enough and has seen enough people come through Read More
There’s Gold Hiding in Your Mud
In every crisis or obstacle, there is a treasure to be found. Each trial, challenge, difficulty, or drama that we encounter carries a lesson that will make us learn why we made the decision or decisions that we did. Knowing what our “Pay-off” was for making the choices and actions that we did will help Read More