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The Kids are All Home. Now what?!

Rearview mirror mama child

Summertime Family Reentry and the Importance of Practicing Mercy in the Home

 

ALL IS GRACE. That was my theme phrase for the new year, and this week I needed a reminder to keep going. The transition from May to June is a test of a mom’s true understanding and implementation of grace. May feels like falling off the wheel, losing steam, survival mode, and good intentions gone to the wayside. June feels like a fresh start, a new kind of chaos, a breath of fresh air, summer fun.

 

If I’m being honest, a big regret I have is Read more

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Raya and the Last Dragon Reminds Me of What I long For

Raya and the Last Dragon title

“How did this world get so broken?”

 

“It was paradise, but then…”

 

“We all became enemies.”

 

This is how the story begins. The narrator sets the scene. It sounds severely and sorely familiar.

 

I’m queued in. I know this story. The one where the people live harmoniously with their God, and the people live in peace with each other.

 

But it doesn’t last. There’s a disruption. There’s a force that is opposite—that is not. It is the antithesis to all of this peace and harmony, and this force, whatever it is, is set on destruction. The force, in this case called Read more

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Navigating the Unexpected

Housewife Title

Mom-Life in a Pandemic + That’s Just Every Day!

 

I thought my life was going to dramatically change this year. My youngest was heading off to kindergarten, and I was going to have 35 hours of uninterrupted single-minded brain activity a week where once I had zero. With all this newfound brain space (plus the reinstallation of my personal bubble), I was envisioning doing all the things I hadn’t done with my life over the last decade and dedicating that time and space to something other than wiping noses, pulling teeth, coordinating playdates, and warding off the World War III of sibling rivalry.

 

My self-diagnosed adult Read more

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What Disney’s Soul Taught Me About Satisfaction

Planning to finally sit down with your family and watch Disney’s Soul over Spring Break? It’s an intriguing new movie from Pixar Studios where end-of-life and after-life themes get wrapped up in a psychedelic-techno dream-like animated package suitable for a child. At least it’s supposed to be since it’s animated and it comes from Disney. But it doesn’t take long to realize there’s going to be some heavy stuff in this movie, interplaying with (as Disney so genius-ly does) a silly mix of antics from our main character, Joe Gardner, whose psyche and circumstance are so relatable to just about any adult-trying-to-adult and any child who loves talking cats. Yes…umm, you’ll just have to watch.

 

But even though there are forthright references to end-of-life scenarios that some kids might not be ready for and spiritual undertones from an amalgamation of world religions and belief systems, I still found a way to see the truth of my Christian faith alive and well in the heart of the message that Joe’s life and journey convey. And as usual, it came up in conversation with my kiddos. (Psst! Read more

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Asking for the Dead Thing

abandoned sanctuary

A faith that moves mountains willingly rejects current circumstances, disowns common sense in pursuit of beholding radical hope

 

The stairwell was filled with raccoon droppings. We tip-toed around each one and made our way into the large steel-framed room that opened up near the bottom of the staircase. Letting our flashlight lead the way, the yellow beam caught glimpses of material hanging down from Read more

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We Are Never Too Far

Nemo in a coral reef

Jesus Goes to Great Lengths to Find Us

 

“How deep the Father’s love for us,

How vast beyond all measure,

That he should give His only Son,

To make a wretch His treasure.”

-“How Deep the Father’s Love For Us” lyrics, Stuart Townend

 

Finding Nemo is one of my personal favs in the world of Disney. Not only is it a menagerie of God’s creation of aquatic life set off the coast of Oceana and a beautifully animated tale about a school of fish riding a magic school bus (insert an enthusiastic stingray in place of the red-headed, eccentrically dressed nut), but it’s a larger-than-life adventure of a clownfish in search of his lost son. Beneath the cuteness of the story is Read more

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Three Little Words to Power Your New Year

Birds over beach sideways

The Power of a Focus Word

 

I first learned of the practice in my Mops group. A few years ago, we were led as a group through the process of individually choosing a focus word for the new year. In the last handful of Januaries since then, I have continued the practice of entering the new year with a word of God’s and my collective choosing. Not a resolution, just a word. A focus. A landing place for the hope that I will grow more fully into my potential in the coming year. In the weeks surrounding the ball drop, I take extra care to Read more

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Not a Waste

Rainy cross photo

With the world on pause…

we’re witnessing the God who is not

 

I came across a post about funny holiday cards this season. Breaking slightly from tradition, many felt an obligation to acknowledge this year as one like we’ve never experienced. Normally, I’m not a Christmas card sender (one less thing to stress about, among other reasons), but I decided to make a go at it:

 

Kruse Christmas card front Kruse Christmas Card back

 

It’s an age-old pearl of wisdom that intentionally reflecting on the past helps inform our future.

2020 was hard, but we’re not letting it go to waste

 

In a year that a lot was taken away from all of us physically, my hope comes from the belief that much was accomplished spiritually. Why? Read more

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When a sandwich works a miracle

picnic lunch with Don

Back in January, at one of the very first opening Sundays of our new church plant, the kids and I didn’t know what to do with ourselves after the first service ended. Justin was staying for second service to lead the student ministry, and we hadn’t yet established a rhythm for our new Sunday routine. I thought about sticking around and seeing if the kids and I could be utilized on one of the serving teams or just connect with people in the lobby, but it seemed mostly covered.

 

As such, we made our way out to the car– the kids started complaining about how hungry they were and suggested Read more

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Hope Was Born…For you. For 2020.

City Christmas light display

December reflections for a holiday like no other

 

“Every perfect gift is from God.” -James 1:17

 

If ever there was a time that our Christmas lists would look a little different, it seems this would be the year. When so much has been stripped away—the security of jobs, the simple pleasantries of dinners out, the elusive guarantee of good health, uncomplicated holiday plans—we are all reevaluating what matters to us. Not what matters most, just what matters at all.

 

It’s a family joke that my Dad is admittedly never short on gift ideas for his own big day or for Christmas (really, it’s helpful!), but he recently reposted the below tear-jerker, with a simple resounding “yea”: Read more

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