I spend a lot of time in my van. I am a busy homeschooling mom of three active kids, and a lot of our talks about God happen while on the road. It is important to me to have Jesus as the driving force in our family. When we moved from Kentucky to Nashville, Tennessee, I had no idea how quickly this would unfold. During our adventures driving around a new town, we found a ministry where we could serve together and it has become important to our family. As a parent, I always wanted to give my children the… Read More
Children
-
-
When our son, Isaac, was 17 months old, we were told words that no parent ever wants to hear: “your son has cancer”. I remember feeling numb. And I wanted to run screaming from that room and tell them they were wrong. Instead, I sat there rocking my baby and silently asking God ‘why?’. I remember looking out the windows of the hospital those first days very angry, thinking "how can the sun still shine when we are in such darkness?" Then I realized that the sun is always shining. Even when we can’t see it on… Read More
-
One Saturday of every month, I host a prayer breakfast for adults in my home. One day, we noticed a diverse group of children walking up and down my street with nowhere to go and nothing to do. Idle time can create trouble for pre-teens and teenagers, especially without much supervision at home. I prayed and asked God, "Lord, if you want me to start a Bible class for these kids, then send me five to participate. I could hold a class on the other three Saturdays of each month." I chose the number five because of the five letters… Read More
-
As a university professor, I spend most of my time with adults. I love mentoring these future leaders. It's very fulfilling work. But twice a month, I spend my lunch hour with an elementary school boy that I met through Big Brothers/Big Sisters. I joined Big Brothers/Big Sisters as a way of showing my students how to give back to the local community. As a father of three adult children, I knew I would enjoy spending time with a little boy, but I had no idea just how much life our relationship would give me. I look forward to these… Read More
-
My wife and I opened an ice cream shop three years ago, and it's been an amazing experience for our family. Not just the ice cream, although that's good! It's our 12 employees. All but one are young adults with special needs. We have some with autism, some with Down Syndrome and one in a wheelchair. They bless us and our customers each day. They truly enjoy their job and simply pour out love to everyone that walks through our doors. I've been in the restaurant industry my whole career, an industry with a terrible turnover rate. So many people think they… Read More
-
I founded Sufficient Grace Ministries for Women in 2004, eight years after the loss of my twin daughters Faith and Grace and about six years after the loss of my son, Thomas. Faith and Grace were born still in 1996 at 26 weeks, while Thomas only lived for six hours after he was born full-term. When I was pregnant, he’d been diagnosed with Potter’s Syndrome, which was termed ‘incompatible with life.’ I chose to continue to love and carry Thomas to term so we could meet and hold him before he went back home to Heaven.… Read More