Posts

Imago Dei

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I know that I haven’t been very consistent in writing here recently, but there are some things that are keeping me awake at night that I truly feel God is asking me to write down and share. When that happens, I try to be obedient. My heart is heavy and broken. There are so many things happening in the world right now that are affecting me deeply and are affecting those around me. I won’t presume to speak on matters of which I am not well informed and I will not presume to know others’ experiences. I do not claim to be an expert on any of this, but I will share some thoughts that I have been having. Please forgive any rambling or poorly chosen wording as I write this late at night with a cat on my shoulder begging to play fetch after many nights of little sleep due to my teething baby. Of late, there are many things that have caused me to ponder the phrase “pro-life” and what it really means. I will say that it is a concept that many claim to subscribe to and it’s a phrase that a l...
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Echoing the Voice of God

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Do me a favor. Close your eyes for a moment and think about who you are.  How do you see yourself? What comes to mind first when you consider that question?  Is it something you would want to change about yourself or something that makes you smile?  Now consider who you are in Christ and how God sees you. I’ve been thinking a lot about these questions recently and, while I would never claim to be a theologian or Bible scholar, I feel it’s something that God is calling me to address in this blog.  I hope you leave this post feeling encouraged. It’s no secret that the world we live in today can be a cruel place and it can be difficult to hear the truth through the chaos. It seems like there’s always someone or something telling you that you’re not good enough, strong enough, smart enough, thin enough, enough in general. Sometimes that someone or something is on the outside -- ads on Facebook for weight loss supplements, your grandma at Thanksgiving asking when...
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Before the Start

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The night before last, I had gotten out of the shower and was laying down, talking to my husband and that’s when it happened.  My baby girl kicked and I saw it from the outside of my stomach. This is the first time that had happened and you can imagine how excited my husband and I were.  It was the most amazing moment since we saw her for the first time and heard her little heart galloping away at the ultrasound. I know it’s really cliche to say, but every time I feel her move it’s like another little miracle that God has blessed me with.  My husband hasn’t been able to feel or see her movements yet, so it’s like a private secret that baby and I share, just the two of us.  This got me thinking. The Bible has a lot to say about babies.  Psalm 139:13-16 speaks of how God builds and designs us from the start.  Even before I knew I had a baby growing inside of me, God was there, putting her body together and forming her perfectly how He wanted her to be...
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Where Did I Disappear to Anyway?

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I know it may seem as though I haven’t posted anything in centuries, but trust me, it feels that way for me too.  I have several pending posts that I just haven’t had the chance to finish writing yet, but I hope to fix that soon.  You know those seasons of life when it seems that everything is happening at once and it takes conscious thought just to remember to breathe, much less take the time to write a blog post?  That’s where my life has been for about the past year. Let me catch you up on some of the things that have happened: I did an internship at a church in St. Louis last June.  It was an amazing experience but it kept me pretty busy.  As a result, I was really only able to find time to post the poems that you’ll find further back in the archives of this blog and that you can find on my YouTube channel (feel free to go check them out! And here’s a link to my channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDQhCvWIEyHRSLGOPe3fcUg ) My (then) fiance and ...
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When People Suck: What to Do and How to Do It

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God has been teaching me a lot over the past couple of years. People suck sometimes. This may not sound like a good Christian thing to say, but it’s true. People can hurt us and betray us and do all kinds of dirty, nasty things that make us feel inadequate and angry. It happens to everyone regardless of race, gender, or background. And what’s worse, they may not even know they did anything to hurt you - or they could be totally aware and just not care. It’s completely inexcusable, right? As the wise Jedi Master Yoda pointed out in the famous movie The Phantom Menace, anger leads to hatred and suffering of the worst kinds. The Bible speaks a lot on these topics and how they can affect us in our walk through life. We hear sermons all the time about forgiveness and verses like Matthew 6:14-15 which says “For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.” or ...
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This Trap I Face

Here's another poem I wrote! Find it on YouTube!  "This Trap I Face" on YouTube This Trap I Face (3 November 2015) by Ariel Douglas I feel like a mouse In a maze Surrounded by different paths Down one, a five foot death fall to the floor Down another, a hungry cat Down still another, a pool of poisoned water Down the last, a piece of cheese On a spring loaded mousetrap I’m under a magnifying glass Prodded, poked, pulled Tested, tried, toasted Flipped, flopped, frozen “I wonder,” says an observer, “How much more the little mouse can take.” I’m beginning to wonder the same The little mouse is alone in the maze Alone, save for the predator Nowhere to hide No one to offer her sanctuary Everything is being stripped away from her Freedom Safety Friendship Happiness The little mouse is frantic Spinning around looking for an escape Any escape But she finds none There is no one here No one but the mouse And her ...
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Divine Appointments

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Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about the Samaritan woman at the well and the story of Jesus’ interaction with her.  For those of you who may not be familiar with the story, or might need a refresher, the story takes place in John 4. Just in case you don’t have your Bible app handy, I’ll give a synopsis. I’ll start with some background information and then jump straight into the story: The Jews didn’t like the Samaritans and they hadn’t for many generations.  The Jews saw the Samaritan people as unclean, unfaithful posers (to use modern terminology).  However, Jesus needed to get back to Galilee and He decided to cut through Samaria on His way.  The Bible never says why He decided to cut through Samaria, but He had a very important job to do while there.  Because Jesus was a human man (thought also fully God), He experienced the same things we do -- weariness, hunger, thirst, and so forth.  He comes across a well in the heat of the day and sits, bec...
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