Why “Lift My Noise?”
My daughter used to belt out her favorite praise song, “I love you Lord.. and I lift my noise…!” The rest of our family gave up correcting her and simply followed suit. But her phrase fits our family. Given the lively atmosphere of our home combined with my desire that any “noise” I lift be for the encouragement of those around me: “If you have a message of encouragement for the people, please speak.” Acts 13:15
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The Boy on the Plane
"Man, I'm thirsty." I glanced down at the young boy nestled beside me on row 29. We hadn't even met, but he leaned into me, our shoulders touching. His expectant brown eyes peered straight into mine. I offered him a soft smile and returned to my book. "I mean,...
What wisdom can we find that is greater than kindness
55 years of Corbin! Fall 1993. 21 years old, fall of my junior year in college, I climbed into bed with my walkman tape player and headphones. I hit play on Tommy Nelson’s popular Bible study on the Song of Solomon. Laying in the dark, I listened to Tommy’s story...
A Hard Time ~ A Simple Story with a Big Lesson
As our driver wound through the streets of San Miguel last March, the conversation in our car flowed with laughter and anticipation as we headed into a five-day writer's retreat. Minutes before we pulled to the curb in front of our lovely home for the long weekend,...
For Such a Time as This
Who needs a little encouragement this week? Reposting an edited version from 2016, but nine years later I need to hear it again myself. Sometimes perfect strangers will see me out with my children and say things like, "I can't imagine parenting in this generation."...
A little encouragement if your daughter is right this minute going through sorority recruitment
This photo from last night took my breath away. Crowded into one of the lower sections of Jordan-Hare Stadium, thousands (a record-setting 2349, to be exact) of hope-filled girls huddled together in the stands for Auburn's first night of sorority recruitment. What a...
The View from the Finish Line
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The Gift of a Little Pink Rose
Walking to the Amazon return counter at Whole Foods, a little girl interrupted my mental to-do list. Her thoughtful, round eyes locked with mine as she reached out with a pink rose. “Here, this is for you.” A simple smile, no explanation, just an unexpected gift of...
Theo of Golden by Allen Levi ~ Book Review
So far I've given away 17 copies. Most notably, four to my children on Mother's Day, with a request that they read it - at some point - as a Mother's Day gift to me. I saw Theo of Golden recommended on a friend's Facebook story and immediately ordered it from Amazon....