A Thankful Heart in Difficult Times

Paula Masters
2 Nov 2014
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  Thanksgiving is drawing near and for many finding reasons to be thankful can be a bit challenging. In fact, trying to come up with just one noteworthy circumstance or event can even be a chore. It doesn’t help that many of us are feeling a loss of the initial heart and zeal that once shaped our spiritual lives. How do we manage when the passion that was constant and fervent becomes fleeting and flat…let alone be thankful? I’m not referring to the normal ebb and flow that is a natural part of the Christian walk but rather the darkened […]

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Laughter is Good Medicine

Paula Masters
14 Oct 2014
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When discouragement causes us to feel depleted, considering the medicinal effects of laughter can prove beneficial. Disappointment is simply a part of our world whether it’s jobs, careers, family, romance, school, church, justice, health or anything else. Life will let us down at some time and on some level. When it does, we may be surprised by the therapeutic results laughter can deliver. My daughters are all grown up now, but I remember marveling how one of my daughters in her youth handled disappointment. It struck me because I thought it unusual for such a young person to redirect hurt […]

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laughter is good medicine

Approval Seeking

Paula Masters
9 Sep 2014
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I remember my mother talking about a group that was gaining popularity in her time called the Red Hat Society. Basically, she described how these older women would gather in red hats and purple dresses to proclaim, not only support of each other, but freedom from the cultural confinements and expectations of their youth. I vividly recall myself as a young woman coming upon a table filled with just such ladies at a restaurant. They were, of course all in red hats—and the stark contrast of their purple dresses only magnified their fearless pursuit of independence. I couldn’t help marvel […]

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Mid-Life Collision

Paula Masters
4 Aug 2014
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We may have heard the term “mid-life crisis” and thought as believers we were in the clear. Yet, surprisingly, there is a similar phenomenon that happens within Christian circles. It is the timely collision of the old and new — who we were in the past is now conflicting in an implosive manner with who we are now. Interestingly, the results can be likened to the Scripture in Mark 2:22 about putting new patches on an old wineskin. After a certain amount of time, the wineskin can’t help but bursts at the seams. Let me explain; to one degree or […]

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Transition of a Growing Child and Mom

Paula Masters
2 Jul 2014
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Transition

Picture yourself sitting at the table with your now grown-up daughter as she plops down a packet of information with the title “Peace Corps” on front. Your mind drifts to the first time you ever held her as a precious baby in your arms—then quickly rushes to images of hostile foreign people groups trying to pry her from your grasp (while in the Peace Corps, of course). All at once you reel in your imagination and regain your dignified, yet slightly shaken, composure. She looks at you, “Mom, are you okay?” These are the many crazy feelings and emotions we […]

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