When You Wonder if God is Faithful and Good | Hosanna Revival

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When You Wonder if God is Faithful and Good | Hosanna Revival

I’m honored to be a guest contributor at Hosanna Revival | WHEN blog. You can find an excerpt below and click the link to read the full article.

When my father’s substance abuse could no longer be hidden, denied, or explained away, his public fall––unavoidable as a pastor in a small town––wasn’t even the most painful part of it all. It was the sorrow that happened behind closed doors in the hearts of my immediate family and within my own soul.

Shattered, broken, and questioning God’s love, goodness, and faithfulness, I sought Christian counseling. Nestled between two pillows, I slumped on the leather couch within the cozy surroundings of my counselor’s office when she prompted me to admit my struggle with seeing God as a faithful Father. 

I sat in my car in the counseling center parking lot after our session, bent over the steering wheel as tears formed puddles on my lap. Before turning on my car’s ignition, I sputtered a prayer that I….

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God as Father: Finding His Faithfulness When Earthly Fathers Fail | Family Life→

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God as Father: Finding His Faithfulness When Earthly Fathers Fail | Family Life

I’m honored to be a guest contributor at Family Life. You can find an excerpt below and click the link to read the full article.

Throughout my childhood and early adulthood, I counted on my dad to be my rock. He was a pastor who consistently studied the Bible, introduced me to Jesus, fueled my desire to serve the Lord, and imparted unto me a love for the Scriptures. I was secure in his love and care.

But in my thirties, my relationship with my dad shifted. After decades of suffering with chronic illness, the medication that was meant to help him turned into an addiction. My father’s drug abuse changed him––and it also shifted something inside of me, as his behavior produced a distance that caused me to question his goodness. It also brought a question to the surface of my heart: Is God a good father to me?

It was difficult to admit, but because it seemed….

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Our Heavenly Father Gives Comfort in the Valleys

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Our Heavenly Father Gives Comfort in the Valleys

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,

I will fear no evil, for you are with me; 

your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

Psalm 23:4 ESV

I associated the 23rd Psalm with death for most of my life. As a pastor’s daughter, I attended numerous funerals and the majority of those services––in some way––included Psalm 23. And I understand why. This psalm gives great comfort in times of mourning.

Yet, it’s not only a song to sing when we experience the darkness brought on by the loss of a loved one. It’s a passage to cling to in every dark experience we endure in this life.

Sometimes the darkness is in the form of rejection, an unexpected diagnosis, job loss, familial discord, or a child who walks away from the faith. In these valleys, we battle fear, despair, and doubt.

One miserable valley I’ve circled in and out of throughout my adulthood is….

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