You must leave your abuser to find Joy

You'll never find joy if you stay with your abuser. Why?  I'll give you my top three reasons. There are so many, but I'll stick with three for now.  An abusive spouse/boyfriend becomes your prison guard...from which to escape. He controls you. The way he treats you, which is a systematic plan of dominating you, …

See Yourself Through God’s Eyes

We can learn so much from our littles can’t we? That we’re deeply loved super heroes? I know this little guy feels that way. I don’t know about you but I don’t wake up feeling like a loved super hero every day. It doesn’t change the way God sees me though. God loves us unconditionally. …

Keep Singing

I was walking along                Singing my song He said, "I don't like your sound"                I thought Whatever could he mean?                                           …

A dead bird, a security camera, and the meaning of life

There it lay, a dead bird outside our garage door. It must not have seen the huge garage doors and flew smack dab into them or gotten into a fight with another bird. At least that’s what I thought until I watched the security camera footage. Yeah, I’ve got some time on my hands. I …

Domestic violence hits close to home

We were just back from our honeymoon when my new husband didn't like something I said, and he backhanded me across the face.  It was the first time he ever hit me. I sat, stunned, my teeth ringing, as his wedding band, the symbol of forever love, smashed into my mouth. I tasted blood. My …

Run Free, Woman!

A friend of mine told me about a church she knows of that is exacting discipline on a woman because she filed for divorce from her husband. She claims he emotionally abused her. The elders, all male, in the church say that she has no “biblical basis” for divorce. Therefore, they are “disciplining” her. I’ll make …

Ethereal Underpass

This morning I sensed an elation driving past the cracked, crumbling fields where the earth upturned dark in the purpling light, where crows speckled the treeline, posing as dark little islands atop yellowing leaves. Today I awoke a little bolder— How should the earth be written? As a soft feather, becoming swept up at the first gust? …

The Ocean

Ours is a magical love affair You bring me gifts, shimmering shells of gold and green. You whisper sweet calm to me all through the day Misty memories of a happy childhood dream   But yesterday you were angry, and into the night. I woke to your roar waves still crashing Churning up sand, not …

At a Certain Age

I was holding my dog Lely on the cold steel table as her male Veterinarian explained female dog incontinence. That was the first time the phrase "at a certain age" was indirectly directed at me. He gave me a "you know what I mean" look and apparently I must have had a look similar to that of …

How the hell do I forgive someone who abused me as a child?!

 This is an excellent question, but the answer may not be what you think. We’ve been told that forgiveness is giving up the right to revenge; that it’s the right thing to do, and if we don’t forgive, that we won’t be forgiven. Visions of hell taunt us if we fail to forgive our abusers …