Facing Up

Anyone can hide. Facing up to things, working through them, that’s what makes you strong. - Sarah Dessen, The Truth About Forever

Grief

So far I have felt the normal feelings of a man my age --- like an old tree that is losing all it's leaves one by one: this feels like an axe-blow near the roots. - J. R. R. Tolkien, after the death of C. S. Lewis

Interfere

I swore never to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation. We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. Sometimes we must interfere. - Elie Wiesel

Winter

He who marvels at the beauty of the world in summer will find equal cause for wonder and admiration in winter. - John Burroughs

Four Powerful Words

I believe in you. - Otis Skillings

Delay

Sometimes a delay in your plans is God's protection. - Author Unknown

Unsaid

Sometimes leaving things unsaid is more difficult than knowing what to say. - Ruth Ayres

Grateful

When you are grateful, fear disappears and abundance appears. - Anthony Robbins

Take Home

What children take home in their heads and hearts is much more important than what they take home in their hands. – Bev Bos

Gift

Some people are blessed with the gift of knowing what needs to be said and when. - Julie Cantrell, Into the Free

Today

We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget that he is someone today. - Stacia Tauscher

Coming Home

"I've had a splendid time," she concluded happily, "and I feel that marks an epoch in my life. But the best of it all was the coming home." - Lucy Maud Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables

Christmas

Christmas is not a myth, not a tradition, not a dream. It is a glorious reality. - Billy Graham

Cherished

Children will not remember you for the material things you provided but for the feeling that you cherished them. – Richard L. Evans

Gratitude

There is a calmness to a life lived in gratitude, a quiet joy. - Ralph H. Blum

Home

Seek home for rest, for home is best. - Thomas Tusser

Christianity

Christianity isn't about building an absolutely secure little niche in the world...Christianity is about learning to love like Jesus loved, and Jesus loved the poor, and Jesus loved the broken. - Rich Mullins

Findings

I've found that some of the happiest, most generous people in the world are the ones who have the least. - Julie Cantrell, Into the Free

Swirl & Swing

I love writing. I love the swirl and swing of words as they tangle with human emotions. - James Michener

Miracles

The whole world is a series of miracles, but we're so used to them we call them ordinary things. - Hans Christian Anderson

Change the Course

A simple act of encouragement and faith in a child can change the course of their lives. - Joy Vega

Inconvenienced

The measure of our love is the measure of our willingness to be inconvenienced. - Elisabeth Elliot

Vulnerability

Vulnerability sounds like truth and feels like courage. Truth and courage aren't always comfortable, but they're never weakness. - Brene Brown

Maker of the Waters

Maker of the waters, we ask You to speak peace over the chaos that is raging. - Kaitlyn Bouchillon

Play

Children play. Wherever we find children, we find play. They pretend. They try on life. Play is as natural to children as eating and sleeping. It is a fundamental force in growing. - Geraldine Brain Siks

God Loves You

My prayer is that the love of God will grow so deep into the soil of your life, that it will be the first thing that comes to mind when you're fearful - that God loves you. - Fern Nichols

Because

I read because it helps me breathe. - Author Unknown

Children Play

 Children play for the same reason that water flows and and birds fly. - O. Fred Donaldson

Mustard Seed

Sometimes we are afraid that we do not have enough faith to pray for this child or that marriage. Our fears should be put to rest, for the Bible tells us great miracles are possible through the size of a tiny mustard seed. - Richard Foster

Humblest Tasks

 The humblest tasks get beautified if loving hands do them. - Louisa May Alcott

Un-overwhelmable

My many things list felt heavy and impossible. I had so many things.

And then Renee [Swope] spoke of the choice we have to receive the gift of rest, because we have a God who sees and cares and notices. He will not come undone. He remains un-overwhelmable.

- Emily P. Freeman

Purpose

We won't be distracted by comparison if we are captivated with purpose. - Bob Goff

Our Homes

Our homes, imperfect as they are, must be a haven from the chaos outside. They should be a reflection of our eternal home, where troubled souls find peace, weary hearts find rest, hungry bodies find refreshment, lonely pilgrims find communion, and wounded spirits find compassion. - Jani Ortlund