Vulnerability is powerful, but it also comes with many pitfalls, one of which is how we approach online vulnerability versus local vulnerability. How does vulnerability look different online than when we’re in our local communities?

Many thoughts assail us in the midst of suffering, to the point of questioning all that we believe. How do we guard our minds and fight against such thoughts when our hearts are so weary?

Do you have a well-stocked spiritual pantry? If not, how do we stock our hearts to prepare for the upcoming storms? Here’s the advice of a woman much wiser than me and the story through which she taught me.

Discernment is often a battlefield—we throw grenades of insults, snide remarks, and sarcastic comments. When dealing with true false teachers, we should separate ourselves. But what about a fellow believer who perhaps misspoke or is still learning how to teach and share about their faith?

When we’ve endured much suffering, bitterness comes naturally, as if it always existed in us. What’s harder is learning how to cultivate gentleness or a gentle spirit. What if suffering could produce such gentleness in us?

Our phones keep away boredom and the awkwardness of silence by filling our every moment with content. But what if that’s a bad thing? What if we’re meant to be bored and have quiet once in a while? What if that’s the way God created us? Not having this kind of reprieve from the noise can actually lead to burn-out.

A trendy, perfectly furnished home is not required to be useful for the kingdom.

Is contentment found in gratitude lists and ignoring our desires? Or is there a deeper level we must look for? True contentment takes our sights off ourselves and our possessions and focuses on Christ.

What does it mean to be productive? Does it mean flying through our work at warp speed, multi-tasking our way through every task? Is multi-tasking even helpful? Let’s consider psychology and the biblical calling together for a biblical view of productivity.

Right biblical doctrine shouldn’t make us feel angst; rather, when theology causes us distress, we should get curious. How can we go about investigating doctrines that make us uncomfortable?

How much does a memory weigh? / When it falls over me like a heavy blanket / In the darkness of my dreams, / It’s like a hand crushing me with its weight. / How strong is a memory? / When it grips me like a fist / In bright daylight, unashamed of its evil, / It’s a captor’s hand leading me to places of terror.

Does habit formation cause us to trust in ourselves for sanctification rather than God? Or is it another way of relying on and turning towards the work the Spirit is already doing?

Branding is what helps us recognize our favorite brands—it helps us buy the smooth and creamy almond milk instead of the stuff that tastes like water and chalk. It sounds harmless, right? Perhaps even helpful. As a believer, you may even strive to choose your church based on its branding—or lack of branding for that matter. But what if branding shouldn’t be a part of the church at all?

A child, I stood parched for water, / I searched for a brook of life to nourish, / To carry me down the stream to wholeness, / And cleanse me from all that left its mark. / Yet you were a polluted water, / Your fatherly care poisoned me from within / Through toxins entering inside my skin, / And gathering on my hands to rot all life away.

It’s easy to become flustered about homeschooling decisions, especially in the early years. What curriculum? What courses? What method? We could simplify the whole decision and remove the stress by reminding ourselves of the purpose of education: Making our children more human.

Dressed in white and lace, / In polished shoes and straightened ties, / We bent low to pour our sand to a vase, / To plant seeds of love and faith. / Young and unaware of the death to follow, / The shattering of seed hulls yet to come, / We didn’t know the years of sorrow / That comes from planting seeds of love together.

We have many prayer requests each day, and a lot of them can seem like they go unanswered. We barter and plead, but we receive no answer. Is this proof that God isn’t good, or is this a sign of his Fatherly kindness and wisdom? How should we view unanswered prayers?

Good thoughts and prayers sound so meek, / And tears shed still don’t fall as healing waters, / My reach, my unsovereign hands feel so weak, / As suffering billows over loved ones like fire. / If only my words could mend broken hearts, / If only they could blow away the dark clouds, / If only they could outshine the smoke and dark / That covers those I love tonight.

Walking through suffering can feel as if we’re stumbling through a foggy, endless night, unable to ever find the light again. Here are three lampposts to guide us through.

In this dry summer heat / Like fallen autumn leaves / The grass crunches under our feet. / Though the flowerbeds wither, / And the water trickles into our wells, / The weeds push through acre upon acre. / Their green stems stand tall and strong, / Stretching toward the burning sun, / They thrive though the summer heat is long. / They cry, “Cursed! Cursed is this ground, / Because man could not deny the serpent’s taunt.”