Finding Security in the Character of God
"I will say to the Lord, 'My refuge and my fortress, my God in whom I trust.”'
Psalm 91:2
There is a song, often sung with greater conviction in seasons of suffering, that contains the line, “When all around my soul gives way, He is then my hope and stay.” I know, because in my own season of loss, that song took on far greater meaning. In fact, most songs did. At least the lyrics themselves caused me to think and wrestle in ways I hadn’t before.
There is a difference between slapping on truth, and truly wrestling with it. When we wrestle, we begin to discover ...
Dear Noelle: A Letter to my Hope Baby
Noelle,
My dear, we miss you. Oh, we miss you. You’re missing from every day. There’s a hole in our family. How I want you! I got to wrap my mommy-arms around you in the hospital. You were a perfect baby. Full cheeks. Sweet hair. Plump lips. You were beautiful. I’m not over losing you. Though my grief is much different now these years later, it seems that yours are the tears that don’t stop being shed. And, I’m still waiting.
Jesus. That’s who you’re enjoying now. How blessed! How beautiful! How rich! How glorious! I’ve gotten to know him better since you ...
In the Word: God of All Comforts
Welcome to Hope Mommies In the Word devotionals. Over the next several weeks, we will be meditating on 2 Corinthians 1:3-11. As we study the truths found in these verses together, we’d love you to use the comments as a place to dialogue with us about what you are learning and share your answers to the questions below. We pray that you hearts will be encouraged as you dig into God's Word each week with us!
"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction" 2 Corinthians 1:3-4a...
Abiding in Security
The word for abide quite literally means: to make our home somewhere; to pass the night. Typically, our home is the place where our defenses are let down, and the real stuff comes out. Let us dwell; let us stay and abide in the safest place that God has given us. Let us live there, and rest in the secure promises of God—the promise that we now have access to the holy place, and sit under the shadow of His wings. And when we know we are secure, we can bring our questions and fears to the Lord unashamedly and without condemnation.
The question is, is the real stuff coming ...
The Heart of Joy
Joy—do you neglect this fruit of the Spirit like I do? Jesus has spoken to my heart, challenging me to a life of greater joy. It’s a hard word for me, I will admit it. He knows that. So, He gives me days to breathe, converse with Him, relax, be, rest, recuperate from sorrows—and yes, to summon joy to my heart little by little. Just as He kindly challenges me, He also provides the means for me to look to Him and receive the joy that He gives. As bits of joy appear in my life like little stars of glory, I start to wonder what it would look like for my joy to be full ...
In the Word: Father of Mercies
Welcome to Hope Mommies In the Word devotionals. Over the next several weeks, we will be meditating on 2 Corinthians 1:3-11. As we study the truths found in these verses together, we’d love you to use the comments as a place to dialogue with us about what you are learning and share your answers to the questions below. We pray that you hearts will be encouraged as you dig into God's Word each week with us!
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort."
2 Corinthians 1:5
READ:
The old Swedish hymn, ...
Dear Simeon: A Letter to My Hope Baby
Simeon,
How can I even begin to tell you how grateful I am to be your mother? You are so loved and so missed. My heart aches at the thought of the many, many moments I have longed to share with you on this side of eternity. Your absence is felt every day—in every family picture, on every vacation, throughout each holiday. How I long to look into your beautiful eyes, see your smile, hear the sound of your laughter, wrap you all up in my arms. Someday, my sweet boy. Someday.
Looking in at our household full of boys, I am sure some might assume that one more boy added ...
Where Security Begins
It was just a few months after losing our second daughter when my husband and I sat across from a friend talking through our grief. I remember him saying to me, “Lindsey, what would it look like for you to rest in the safety of God’s arms right now?” I cringed at the thought. “Safe?” God surely didn’t feel safe to me at that moment.
My first daughter had died over 14 months earlier, and then we had walked through virtually the same situation with our second daughter. I could grasp that, somewhere, in all of this pain, God was good, God was at work, and God ...
In the Word: Leaning on Mercy
Welcome to Hope Mommies In the Word devotionals. Over the next few weeks, we will be meditating on themes of God's mercy. As we study these truths together, we’d love you to use the comments as a place to dialogue with us about what you are learning and share your answers to the questions below. We pray that you hearts will be encouraged as you dig into God's Word each week with us!
"I have told the glad news of deliverance in the great congregation; behold,
I have not restrained my lips, as you know, O LORD.
I have not hidden your deliverance within my ...
Dear Noah + Isabelle: A Letter to My Hope Babies
My Precious Babies,
Can you believe it has been six years since we lost you, Noah, and five years since we lost you, Isabelle? Sometimes, I don’t know where the time has gone, but I do know that I have spent a lot of that time missing you so very deeply.
I have wanted to be a mama as far back as I remember. Anytime I played house growing up, I was the mom. I dreamed about getting married and having kids one day, so once your dad and I got married, we could not wait to have a baby! Noah, when I found out I was pregnant with you, I was home alone because dad was at work, ...
