rebelling against low expectations
If you are anything like me, you had a goal for your future relationship and marriage from a young age. You were going to do it right—you were going to save your first kiss for your wedding day, involve your parents and friends in the relationship, choose the right person on the first try, and live happily ever after. You probably watched friends and family members fall into relational and sexual...
If Christians are supposed to have God’s joy, then why am I unhappy? For some reason, I grew up thinking that Christians were the bubbly happy people who always had a smile and walked through their perfect lives in a ray of sunshine. On the other hand, I thought unbelievers lived under a gray cloud like Eeyore, moaning against the darkness and the lack of shelter from the storm. Imagine my...
How can we know the Bible is true? If it was written thousands of years ago, is it even culturally relevant today? As my black boots crisscrossed the brick walkway of my university campus, I thought about those questions. Some had been brought to mind by my Introduction to the New Testament class—where my professor explained a contemporary view of the Bible that contradicted many of the things I...
“God, am I even supposed to be writing?” I sat at the computer, resting my fingers against the A-L row on the keyboard. It wasn’t discouragement that was creating the war in my mind. Several of my articles had just been published, my blog was doing well, people were saying nice things about my words. But. I was doing it for praise, honor, recognition. My whole life I had struggled with this bane...
You would think that loving God in the good times would be easy. After all, thousands of books and articles are written to strengthen Christians who are going through trials. Why? Because it is hard to find light when everything seems dark. It is difficult not to despair when hope seems like a daydream. Because of this, you would think that when Christians receive blessings, they would...
A year ago, I was standing on the outskirts of an empty football field. The morning was cool — I breathed in, letting the air dry my tears. Putting in my earbuds, I started following the outline of the fence, passing rows of bleachers one by one as I willed myself to put the next sneaker forward. The inciting event had been someone asking, “How are you?” — to which I couldn’t work up the courage...
rebelling against low expectations
