• God Ponderings,  Looking for the Real God

    I’m Just Here for the Broken Ones

    My grandpa loved burnt cookies. That last pan that got forgotten in the oven, the extra crispy ones with the hard brown edges that no one else wanted to eat, those were his favorites. When my grandparents came to visit, he always had the same question for my mom. “Got any burnt cookies?” At first I thought he was joking or just trying to make my mom feel better if she’d burnt any. But as I grew up, I realized that my grandpa was actually serious. One of thirteen siblings, his mom was just a little busy and burnt cookies were often the result. Strangely, Grandpa not only got used…

  • And Then I Met Jesus,  God Ponderings

    Hunting Pokemon

    Last night my husband and I went out for a late anniversary date. After our delicious, wood-fired pizza, we decided to walk down to the popular, nearby dam. It was a beautiful summer evening: warm but not hot, gentle breeze, flowers blooming, water flowing. Absolutely gorgeous! But, as we approached the dam, it was clear that something was wrong. People huddled in silent groups, sat motionless on the ground, or slowly walked by in a daze, all staring intently at the devices in their hands. Go figure, the dam was a popular spot to catch Pokemons! Everyone was playing Pokemon Go. As one of maybe three or four groups of…

  • And Then I Met Jesus,  Exposing Legalism,  God Ponderings,  My Story

    Finding My Message

    On Tuesday I sent my book proposal to my agent, Karen. It’s been quite the 2.5 year journey to get to this point! I think I spent more time trying to run away from writing a book than actually being obedient. Good thing Jesus is so gracious and so persistent. And now it is out of my hands and into His. It feels exciting, terrifying, kind of unreal, and unexpectedly peaceful all at the same time. My sister and bestie (who also happens to be my editor, encourager, and confidant) asked me the other day, “Are you ready for this to potentially change your life?” I don’t know. But I’ve…

  • Exposing Legalism,  God Ponderings

    Would We Recognize Him?

      This is re-blogged from last year with some changes and updates. 🙂 If Jesus came and visited my church would I recognize him? Would you? Most of the religious people missed him last time. The Pharisees were some of the religious elite. They looked good on the outside. They were filled with zealous passion. They not only followed the rules in the Law, they made up more rules and followed them too. They read and taught the Scriptures. But when God showed up, the promised Savior of the world, these same religious people missed him. In fact they didn’t just miss him, they claimed that he was a drunkard, a sinner,…