This August will go down in the history of Augusts as a doozy. But as August bows out and September takes the stage, the thing that I am most overwhelmed by isn’t the chaos and confusion.It’s the grace.

Since the release of Beneath the Surface , I have fielded a ton of questions. For example . . . “Why doesn’t more of the book take place underwater?” Well . . . here’s the thing. Some people enjoy lots of details about regulators and buoyancy and diving techniques. But I have to tell you that when I’m… [ read more ]

I don’t like talking about this.  It feels like bragging.  I’d much rather let someone else share the good news while I nod, smile, say thank you, and we all move on. How do you tell people you won an award (or, um, two) without it sounding cocky or prideful? I don’t know. Covert Justice… [ read more ]

A few weeks ago, I watched a  live Adele concert . The lucky people who filled the venue were an enthusiastic audience. There were cheers, applause, and the occasional sing-a-long when she sang a favorite. I’m a fan so I enjoyed it immensely, but I couldn’t help but be struck by her vulnerability. She stood on the stage and… [ read more ]

Despite the fact that he has never been left and has absolutely no reason to expect me to forget him, one of my children needs constant reassurance that I’m not going to leave him alone. This summer, I arrived early to pick him up from Vacation Bible School. I took a seat at the side… [ read more ]

Twelve Years Ago, I Was Afraid I’d given birth to our daughter at 5:22 p.m. The NICU team had gone to work immediately and rushed her away from me. I didn’t even get to hold her. A night that should have been filled with joy was tinged with fear. Knowing what I know now, I… [ read more ]

Coming in last. I hate it. Really hate it. Maybe you do, too? Have you ever thought about why you hate it? I have and I’ve boiled it down to a simple statement. I’m afraid. Ick. It’s safer to say that we hate to come in last. It doesn’t sound quite as pitiful as admitting… [ read more ]

First day of 1st grade Tomorrow is the first day of third grade for my sweet Emma, so I decided to revisit something I wrote two years ago—on the first day of first grade (isn’t there a Veggie Tales song in there?). **For those of you who might not know, Emma was born with Rubinstein-Taybi Syndrome .… [ read more ]

Where do you live? I don’t mean geographically. I mean day-to-day. Hour-by-hour. Minute-by-minute. I’ve been thinking about this a lot, and I’ve come to this conclusion. I live in that murky place where fear and faith collide. You might not realize this, but I know a few things about fear. I’m not afraid of heights, spiders,… [ read more ]

When I left the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference in May of 2010 I overflowed with writerly confidence. My manuscript had received a positive critique. The words “you’re almost ready” had been uttered. I left with marching orders . . . to submit fiction proposals to three agents and one editor. And I intended to. As soon as I incorporated… [ read more ]