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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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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Daily Treasure Guest Appearance

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Daily Treasure Guest Appearance

I’m honored to be a guest writer at the Daily Treasure blog this week.

Below is an excerpt of the introduction provided by Sharon Betters and the links for each day will follow. I’m also including a link to the Help & Hope podcast where I joined Sharon to share more of my story of chronic illness and God’s faithfulness through it.

Sharon’s intro begins:

Dear Friends,

Ann Swindell, a Help & Hope podcast guest and founder of Writing with Grace, introduced me to Rosann Coulon when I asked her if she could recommend some of her students as guest writers for Daily Treasure. I’m so grateful to Ann for this connection. Rosann not only wrote this week’s devotions but also joined me as a guest on the Help & Hope podcast. In Monday’s devotional, Rosann shared Psalm 34:6 as Today’s Treasure: 

THIS POOR MAN CRIED AND THE LORD HEARD HIM AND DELIVERED HIM OUT OF ALL HIS TROUBLES.

These words immediately took me back to 1968. I was twenty years old, living in Indiana by myself, brokenhearted by my break up with the young man who would later become my husband. I was lonely, afraid, and uncertain of my future. In those days, churches never locked their doors, so out of desperation for hope, I slipped into the little church I attended and walked up to the Communion Table where I found an open Bible. Tears streaming down my cheeks, I whispered, “Lord, help me. I don’t know how to do this.” The Bible was open to Psalm 34 and truly, the words were like fresh water for a parched soul. Rosann’s experience with this hope-filled chapter reminded me once more of God’s faithfulness to a broken-hearted young woman, not only then, but throughout my entire life. On her blog, Leavingawell.com Rosann explains her mission:

“I’ve served in church ministry in some capacity most of my life and now feel compelled to offer encouragement to women who find themselves heartbroken, burned out, and struggling to be enough. All of these things led me into a valley of dis-ease physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually….

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Look to God's Peace || Just Between Us

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Look to God's Peace || Just Between Us

I’m honored to have an article published with Just Between Us. To read the full article click the link below.

I could hear the low rumble of my car’s motor as the cool air from the AC blew strands of hair into my face. The summer heat in the South pushed a band of perspiration across my forehead, and with one swipe of my hand I pushed back the hair, patted the sweat, and wiped a stray tear from my eye. The urgent to-dos on my list overwhelmed me.

That’s why, for the second time that Sunday, I drove back to church in hopes of hearing something that would shake me out of the doldrums that I felt locked inside. As my grip tightened around the steering wheel, I whispered, “Help me, Lord.”

I heard His voice speak to my heart with a clear question, “What do you want me to do for you?”

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3 Things to Remember to Inspire a Heart of Thanksgiving

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3 Things to Remember to Inspire a Heart of Thanksgiving

Give thanks in all circumstances;

for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

1 Thessalonians 5:18 ESV


“Am I supposed to thank God for this?” I clasped my hands into a fist as I stared back into my counselor’s wise eyes.

“No. You don’t have to thank God for the storm. But you can thank Him for who He is in the storm.” Her quick reply immediately set my upside-down perspective upright again.

Weeks before this encounter, flood waters from a passing hurricane left damage to my home. It was the last catastrophe on a list of tragedies that occurred in my life during that season. And “broken” is the only word that describes how I felt that day years ago. Words of thanksgiving and praise were not on my lips, and they were a galaxy away from my heart.

Sometimes it is difficult to be thankful when we’re hurting. Our thoughts war against offering praise to God when our lives are seemingly falling apart. But as challenging as it is––offering thanksgiving and praise––open the doorway to victory for a heart burdened by worry, fear, and defeat.

So how do we give thanks in the hardest times? Here are three things to remember when it’s difficult to praise:

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You Can Trust the Potter's Hand

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You Can Trust the Potter's Hand

“Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand.”

Jeremiah 18:6b NIV

I entered my first pottery class with nervous excitement. After carefully choosing a misshapen ball of moist clay, I heard the instructor’s directions, “You have to throw the clay hard onto the wheel to make it stick.” Hesitatingly, I dropped the clay and as soon as the wheel began to turn, the ball slid from side-to-side. It was unpliable in its present state. My foot released the pedal and the wheel slowly stopped. I reattempted my beginning. This time, I slung the clay onto the surface with force and made solid contact with the center of the wheel.

In Jeremiah, God describes Himself as the Potter and His people as the clay.

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God's Memory Book

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God's Memory Book

The Lord paid attention and heard them, and a book of remembrance 

was written before him of those who feared the Lord and esteemed his name.

Malachi 3:16b ESV

One summer I spent hours sorting, cropping, gluing, and embellishing family photos that my grandmother had collected over her lifetime to compile a memory book. As my grandmother shared the stories chronicling her life, and the lives of her children and grandchildren, I carefully penned the details beside the pictures. Along with birth dates and wedding dates, it was important for her to note when each family member invited Christ into their hearts––the day they chose to fear the Lord above all else.

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Cultivating an Attitude of Prayer

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Cultivating an Attitude of Prayer

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances;

for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 ESV

For years I struggled with prayer. We may not know how to pray, what to say, or find it difficult to find time to pray. Additionally, there is always something vying for our attention––cell phones, tv, family members, or responsibilities––that get in the way of time with the Lord.

My grandmother once told me that one of her friends exclaimed, “Rose, I pray every minute, every hour, every day.” And with laughter in her eyes, my grandmother followed up with, “You know she was lying.” But in 1 Thessalonians, Paul instructs us to “pray without ceasing.” If it is an impossible task, why would God implore us to do it?

Because it’s not impossible––but it is a choice. I am learning that this instruction is less about the task of prayer and more about having an attitude of prayer. So how do we cultivate an attitude of prayer?

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The Hope of Resurrection

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The Hope of Resurrection

While they were talking and discussing together,

Jesus himself drew near and went with them.

But their eyes were kept from recognizing him.

Luke 24:15-16 ESV

Two men, Jesus’ disciples, are walking down a dirt road leading into the town of Emmaus. They witnessed the death of Jesus on the cross three days ago, and they just heard that His body has disappeared from the tomb where He was buried. The women told them an angel proclaimed Jesus had arisen from the dead, but they’re finding this news difficult to believe.

Heads hung low, and brokenhearted, they’re wondering how they could have gotten it so wrong. After all, when Jesus said He was the One they were waiting for––the One who came to set the captives free––they wholeheartedly believed Him. They’d sunk their hopes into His promise of a better life. But now, all those dreams have vanished, and they are filled with dismay.

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Hope in Troubling Times

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Hope in Troubling Times

Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you preserve my life.

Psalm 138:7a (ESV)

The first daffodils are blooming here in the South with bright golden hues, and the first day of March ushered in 80-degree temperatures. Certainly, Spring is in the air, and I must say I’m welcoming it after two snow falls in January (a rarity). And just as the weather has already set records in this new year, this season in my heart revealed its own record of pain––my family has experienced another great loss.

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Replacing Lies with God's Truths

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Replacing Lies with God's Truths

Holding the crisp pages in my trembling hands, I kneeled and spread the note before the Lord. My sense of direction, peace, and joy was lost. The enemy’s whispers had become resounding. I realized the only way to regain steadiness was to go to God for answers. It was time to face the enemy’s lies that had replaced God’s truths in my life: the lies that kept me bound to fear, disappointment, and discouragement.

The paper I held so tightly contained the lies from the enemy that constantly swam in my mind. And I came to petition God for reassurance of the truth. At the Holy Spirit's prompting, I searched His Word to find out His answer to the taunts, and I replaced them with the truth.

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When Only Peace Will Do

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When Only Peace Will Do

And Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?”

And the blind man said to him, “Rabbi, let me recover my sight.”

Mark 10:51 ESV

I could hear the low rumble of my car’s motor as the cool air from the ac blew strands of hair into my face. The summer heat in the South pushed a band of perspiration across my forehead, and with one swipe of my hand I pushed back the hair, patted the sweat, and wiped a stray tear from my eye.

The summer of 2019 was a rough season for me as depression sunk deep into my soul. The welcome of new crops to the local farms signaled new life all around me, but I felt like I was slowly dying. I couldn’t contribute this heaviness to just one thing. There was a list of uncertainties consuming me.

That’s why, for the second time on that same Sunday, I drove back to church in hopes of hearing something that would shake me out of the doldrums that I felt locked inside. As my grip tightened around the steering wheel, I whispered the same words again, “Help me, Lord.”

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Finding Beauty in the Darkness

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Finding Beauty in the Darkness

The light shines in the darkness,

and the darkness has not overcome it.

John 1:5 ESV

The weather report revealed snow actively falling which sent me bounding across the hardwood floors to open the door and peer outside. Snow is so rare here in the South that when it comes I don’t want to miss it. At first glance I could not see it. Its beauty was obscured by the darkness of the night. It was only when I shifted my gaze to the streetlight that I could see the wisps of powder circling in the air. My soul quieted as the fluffy flakes fell. I wanted to perch by the window in a state of wonder at the glory showering down from heaven.



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A Christmas Prayer for Grieving Hearts

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A Christmas Prayer for Grieving Hearts

Today is the day.


I sit here staring at the twinkling white lights on my Christmas tree as “Silent Night, Holy Night––All is calm, All is bright,” rings softly in my ears. But I’m struggling to stay calm and things don’t feel so bright. There’s a knot in my stomach and a choke in my throat as I walk through this day with a weight on my chest that I can't bear on my own. The beauty and the pain of the season intertwines together. And I wonder if this is what it truly means to hold joy in one hand while grief weighs heavy in the other.

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Steadiness in Changing Seasons

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Steadiness in Changing Seasons

To everything there is a season, A time for every purpose under heaven.

Ecclesiastes 3:1 NKJV

Spring turned into summer, and summer has turned into fall. I’m not completely sure how it all happened so fast. Time does fly.

I sit staring out the balcony window as leaves flutter from the trees in bright hues of gold, orange, and red. The temperature is 68 degrees (today’s high), and it will be followed by a low of 43 degrees tonight. I don’t know what your dream temperature is, but these days are like heaven to me. I would like for it to stay like this forever. But nothing in this life remains the same. It is ever changing––leaving us with the before and after.

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Glorious Hope in Despair

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Glorious Hope in Despair

“As the deer pants for the water brooks, So my soul pants for You, O God.” (Psalm 42:1 NASB)

My hands tremble and my body shakes uncontrollably as the cold air of loss blows deep into the hollows of my soul. Like a broken record, I keep hearing the words, “He has passed…He has passed.” In my mind, I’m running away. It’s as though my heart has grown feet and they leap in response to the runner’s gunshot as I speed to out-run my opponent—in this case, reality.

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Finding Provision in Praise

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Finding Provision in Praise

“Sing praises to God, sing praises! Sing praises to our King, sing praises!” (Psalm 47:6 NKJV)

Anxious thoughts and an unsteady heart propelled me to my quiet place on the porch. Sitting in the old, paint-peeled rocking chair, I slowly began rocking as I opened my Bible. I plead with God to give me the words to pray because I felt empty.

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When I Need Comfort

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When I Need Comfort

“I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you”. (John 14:18 KJV)

In times of uncertainty, we look for someone to tell us that we’re going to be okay. We want assurance that we’re going to make it through to the other side and be better for it. For me, that woman was my grandmother. And, according to my recollection, my grandmother was a towering woman.

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Finding God’s Provision in Panic

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Finding God’s Provision in Panic

“And the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them along the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, that they might travel by day and by night.” (Exodus 13:21 ESV)

Slowing to a stop, I began surveying my surroundings. Cars blocked me on all sides. My breathing became shallow, my heart rate quickened, and my clammy hands clutched the steering wheel––with tunnel vision, my head swam. I was stuck!

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