This is part one in a mini-series by Esther on how practice hospitality without stressing over your home. Look for part two, next week, called, "Are You Home Insecure: Three Questions to Ask Yourself!" Do you let the state of your home dictate whether or not you are...
Christian Living
You Have Great Purpose
I looked out our second story bathroom window onto the blooming tree in our neighbor's yard. I noticed a massive number of bees swarming around it's blooms. There were so many of them I'm sure had I opened the window I would have heard the buzzing. I don't necessarily...
Lessons from the DustBuster: Don’t Suck it Up
I unpacked all the fresh fruit and vegetables that once filled the box. It looked a bit on the dirty side, so I was anxious to get it off my kitchen counter. I carried the produce box to the garage, then walked back into the kitchen. That's when I saw it. A huge pile...
Just a Little More Beauty, Lord: A Poem
"Just a Little More Beauty, Lord," is an original poem! My first, in fact. It may not be Emily Dickinson but I hope these words will still touch you and (maybe) make you smile as you reflect on the truth about our desires and our body image struggles . . . Just a...
Are You a Fixer Upper, too? What Body Image and Home Improvement Have in Common
I love home improvement shows. I'm so inspired watching the amazing transformations. These brilliant designers take a hideously ugly, old and dilapidated home and turn it into a modern day dream house. It's really quite impressive. I'm also a little obsessed with...
The Brand Name Blues: When You Want to Fit In
We moved to Dallas from the suburbs a year and a half ago. Energized by a new (to us) home, new part of town to get to know, new church, I struck out on my own to make terrific new friends. My expectations never higher, I signed up for everything--MOPS, an ecumenical...
Full:: What REALLY Fills Us?
Normally, it's a good thing to be full. As someone who has struggled with loving food a little too much for the last 34 years of life, feeling full is one of my favorite feelings. In first grade, I ate two Whoppers from Burger King without blinking an eye. In middle...
Disoriented:: When God Changes Your View of Everything
I think I know what it might have been like to wake in ancient Judah, to go out of my house and not see the high places, the altars, the pillars to familiar gods that had been there the day before. There must have been a palpable buzzing of shock and anxiety, as well...
Is it Time to Stop Blaming Barbie?
"Finally, Barbie will look more like us!" The radio DJ exclaimed. "This will help little girls feel better about themselves. It's so great for them." She gushed. But is it true? Will the new, curvier Barbies--or their darker skin or shorter stature...
Enjoy Life!
About a year ago, a woman who I love and respect sat with me and listened as I shared all of the perils of my current life as a 25 year old female. I had no idea what I wanted to do for a career (despite plenty of searching), all of the good guys were taken and I was...