Rejoice Always…Really?

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand Philippians 4:4-5 ESV It is a constant throbbing pain. Some days I “feel” every bone in my ankles, fingers, and wrists. It is exhausting and depressing. So when I come to Philippians 4:4…
Read More

A Battle

A Battle By Angela Mackey They. People I trust and love People I hide from If THEY knew… If they knew what I thought If they realized what I have experienced THEY would call me names… Heretic. Foolish. Liar Progressive. Conservative. Wrong. Or would they? I do not know because I hide.
Read More

Culpable?

Culpable? by Angela Mackey It happened before A leaving, a void, a rift   I see it. How it happened. Where we have been. Will they listen? Decisions tabled Waiting, flailing, languishing I see it. The coming storm. Will they listen? Do I dare? Bitterness whispers Tearing, ripping, wounding I see it. The anger roiling.…
Read More
EnJOYing Election Season: Cultivating Joy in the Chaos

EnJOYing Election Season: Cultivating Joy in the Chaos

“Evangelicals for Harris” are all CHINOS — Christians In Name Only. God is not fooled. Neither should we be fooled. My Social Media feeds are full of vitriol…from both sides of the political divide. “How can any Christian vote for a convicted criminal, rapist, insurrectionist, etc.” And it grieves me. The Bible says that all…
Read More

Art and Beauty: How to Embrace Beauty to Change Culture

“I found I could say things with color and shapes that I couldn’t say any other way… things I had no words for.” ― Georgia O’Keeffe Sometimes we forget that God created beauty. At least we evangelicals who value utilitarianism above beauty and art do. We forget that God is the original artist. He paints on canvases…
Read More

A Reason to Go to Church: God’s Presence and Joy

“Silence is the perfectest herald of joy. I were but little happy if I could say how much.”  Claudio, Much Ado About Nothing, Shakespeare God does something special when His people come together as a congregation. When we sing, take communion, baptize people, listen to the preaching of God’s Word, His presence comes to us in a special…
Read More

Joy and Presence

Just a note…I have missed sharing this space with you all. So through prayer and planning, my goal is to post here twice a month. I hope you are blessed. Where Joy is Found You [the LORD] reveal the path of life to me;in your presence is abundant joy;at your right hand are eternal pleasures. Psalm…
Read More

Intimacy, Holiness, and Power

“Lord, who may dwell in your sacred tent? Who may live on your holy mountain?” Psalm 15:1 My heart echoes the cry of the psalmist. How do I get close to God? How do I develop a deep and abiding relationship? Can I move-in with God? What must I do so I can dwell with…
Read More

Discipline and Missions

The word God gave me this year is discipline… I am flat out bad at it. I feel constrained by schedules and when I don’t accomplish tasks on the days I plan I chastise myself. But then I don’t plan my time and so I have a stack of things that need mended or a…
Read More

God Did It – A Conference, A Call, and You

In case you didn’t know, last week I spoke at The M.O.M. Initiative’s Better Together Conference. Here are some pictures of the conference.   I flew on a plane to Jacksonville, Florida and met with 22 authors and speakers who shared break-out sessions and keynotes to several hundred women. It was a sweet time of…
Read More

Saturdays are for…

Sleeping in (sort of) at least until 7:00 AM if that counts… Ibuprofen for the head injury I received when a certain 4-year-old kicked me in the head while she was sleeping. Playing outside in the unseasonably warm weather… Talking through sibling relationship issues with a 7-year-old. Sipping some coffee (from a cup my friend…
Read More

A Little Reality

In case you have a picture of me…Dressed perfectly…Perfect kids…Neat and tidy house…. Let me tell you the reality of me… 1. I LOVE to wear “work-out clothes.” Always. An elastic waistband and a cotton t-shirt make me smile. I feel home. Don’t get me wrong dressing up is ok, but I prefer active wear.…
Read More

Grace…

So God has been working on me about grace. I am slow to learn, but yesterday something came to me… When I remember that I am in desperate need of grace, I am free to extravagantly extend grace to others. It frees me up to love God for He is the giver of all grace…
Read More

Big Boy Bed, Tears, and A Thankful Heart

We finally did it. My sweet little man now has a big boy bed. I know that he was well past the age of needing a big boy bed. Signs he needed a big boy bed included: he has to bend his legs to fit into the pack-n-play when we go traveling and he climbed…
Read More

1,000 Gifts Continued

Have you ever noticed that enemy tries to attack us and drag us down when we are stepping out in faith? So we have these warring factions in our hearts…One encouraging me because I am doing God’s will and it brings the peace and joy that comes from honoring and glorifying our Lord and Savior.…
Read More

Saturday is for…

Pancakes and battles…Coffee and AWANA work…. What are you doing this Saturday?
Read More

Hooters and Honoring God

“Hooters?!” I said incredulously as we drove past what used to be an empty commercial lot. “Yep,” my husband nodded and he made the first left turn after Hooters to head to our lot. The lot we were building our new house on. I could hear the questions before they came. The questions from little…
Read More

Spiritual Gifts

I feel blessed to help lead my church’s Wednesday night ministry to fifth and sixth graders. They challenge me, they ask me hard questions, they drive me to my knees often (either that they know Him better or that they sit quietly for two seconds in a row so they can learn). Anyway, last night…
Read More

Why the Little Things?

Longing…Oh the stretching, longing, burning… The dream of what could be, where to go, but how to get there hangs in the air… We can’t see it. The journey from here to there, but the hope of there is planted firmly in our hearts. The here seems insignificant, unimportant, little. Oh but what we do…
Read More

Gray Day

Dr. Seuss wrote a book before he died titled My Many Colored Days. He describes how on different days he feels different. Well, today is a gray day. “Gray day…Everything is gray. I watch, but nothing moves today.” It is cool overcast winter day. The kind of day that the clouds look more like they…
Read More