3 Steps to Gain Hope in Life’s Disappointment

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3 Steps to Gain Hope in Life’s Disappointment

Life will bring disappointment to each of us. Discouragement knocks when a valued relationship suddenly ends, we’re denied the job opportunity, or an unexpected health crisis throws us into a tailspin. I’ve endured all these things.

One particular season filled with disappointment was the long years of chronic illness I endured because of fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome. Stripped of my independence, enduring physical pain, and watching my friends celebrate milestones that seemed impossible for me weighed heavy on my heart. 

When fall rolled around, I experienced another blow to my spirit. I was unable to return to my role as a classroom teacher.

I watched the yellow school buses drive by my house, signifying the beginning of schoolhouse festivities. Yet I sat in the same place as….

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Someone's Praying for You

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Someone's Praying for You

Christ Jesus who died—more than that,

who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God

and is also interceding for us.

Romans 8:34 NIV

A notification flashed across my phone’s screen as I ambled through my morning routine. I swiped to read the words enclosed in a gray bubble: “I’m praying for you today.”

 

When my friend shared her message with me, she had no idea I had endured a restless night of sleep. My mind had looped through a series of questions: How will I accomplish the endless tasks on my to-do list? When will God answer my prayer for my loved one? And where will I get the resources I need to fulfill a commitment?

 

During the night, I vacillated between giving my worries to the Lord and trying to figure out how to solve my own problems. But instantly, peace washed over me as....

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An Anchor of Hope for Your Soul

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An Anchor of Hope for Your Soul

We have this hope as an

anchor for the soul,

firm and secure.

Hebrews 6:19a NIV

I slathered sunscreen on my shoulders as my husband turned the key to our speedboat. The motor roared to life. He shifted the accelerator and pointed the bow to the farthest side of the lake. The boat’s hull split the water, and we jumped over the wakes in our path. My husband enjoyed racing across the lake, so I braced myself in my seat. Closing my eyes, I prayed, “Lord, meet me here.”

In the weeks before our outing on the water, I had wrestled with health setbacks. The headaches that I thought were gone had suddenly reappeared, and my nights included more time awake than asleep. The weight of my pain, along with a handful of other personal struggles, weighed on my heart, and I questioned if hope had grown wings and flown away.

Within minutes, we reached the....

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When Trouble Sets You Aside

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When Trouble Sets You Aside

Know that the Lord has set apart the godly for himself;
    the Lord hears when I call to him.

Psalm 4:3 ESV

Shadows from the morning sunlight danced across my bedroom ceiling and caught my eye as I awoke, but it was difficult to welcome its presence.  After another fitful night of sleep, my physical forecast for that day appeared the same as the long stretch of days preceding it: sprinkled with gloom and containing a splash of doom.

Years had passed since…

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Finding God's Presence in Clouds of Uncertainty→

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Finding God's Presence in Clouds of Uncertainty

I’m honored to have an article published in the Just Between Us Print Magazine, “Finding God’s Presence in the Clouds,”Spring 2024. You can read an excerpt below and follow the link to order to continue reading.

I wrapped the pink towel around my neck to support the weight of my head––the only answer to the screaming muscles in my weakened neck. Clumsily, I stooped to secure the leash to my yorkie’s collar and guided him down the porch steps as the screen door banged behind us. 

We slowly wound the path around the mountainside next to the rented farmhouse that I had called home for the last two years. This farmhouse was a place that represented so many fulfilled dreams––a new job that offered independence after college graduation, a life in the NC mountains, and budding friendships that solidified around its table––and it was the home I was preparing to bid goodbye.

My declining health was robbing me of the ability to support myself financially and meant that I would ….

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A Reason to Hold on to Hope

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A Reason to Hold on to Hope

HOPE is a beautiful four letter word.

But sometimes it’s hard to hold onto hope when all I see are the struggles, strife, and hardships in the world around me. Constant reports of growing crime rates, increasing prices, and rising global conflicts fill my newsfeed. And that’s besides the difficulties to get by day to day in my own life. It’s enough for me to question whether there is any hope left in this world.

In the Old Testament the prophet Jeremiah endured his own battles with hopelessness, both internally and externally. He was appointed to spread God’s Word in a time when people…..

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The Gift of Comfort

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The Gift of Comfort

I’m honored to be a guest on The Love Offering Blog with Rachael Adam’s. You can read an excerpt below and follow the link to read the full devotion.

One of the most powerful statements I’ve ever heard is, “I know.”

When my life was plagued by years of chronic illness brought on by Fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue, I often felt that no one in the world understood me. Questions swirled in my mind. Why me? Why this? And when will it end?

After one particularly long battle with insomnia that rolled in for several weeks, depression sank my heart into a bottomless pit. I could see no way out of the spiritual and physical struggle that I faced. Curled into a ball on my couch, a whisper slipped out, “Lord, help me.” At that moment, the phone rang and I answered to hear the kind voice of my aunt. “Rosann, I was praying for you and wanted to see how you are doing?”

“Not good.” I choked out the pain that consumed me and I told her about the drudgery I faced.

“I know.” Her compassion seeped through the line; it was all I needed to hear to gain composure.

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