Being Overcome

A word has been buzzing through my mind this Holy Week: “Overcome.” I woke up after a hard stretch of days, and that word just weighed heavy on my thoughts. Truthfully, with many of the hardships our family has dealt with the last five months and also just having to say goodbye to my grandparents’ home as I’ve known it … Read More

Wonderful Counselor

Do you ever choose a word for your new year? It’s usually a word that summarizes what you hope to be the over all tone of your coming 365 days. My word for 2015 was: Intentional. One thing I chose to be intentional about for these past twelve months was reaping the benefits of counseling. I was in an intense … Read More

What to Do When Even Christmas Offends You

Last Christmas, I was a mess. Four months prior, I lost my first child- a miracle child- to miscarriage. My world stopped spinning for a while and so much offended me. Things that were part of my regular rhythms weren’t cutting it for my broken heart. Going to church didn’t feel safe for me, but I went anyway. I was surrounded by … Read More

Navigating the Colorless Road

A few months ago, I was on a solo road trip, heading back home to Virginia. The cusp of winter was in the air. In fact, a mid November snow had just come where I had been visiting. As I checked to be sure my headlights were on, I noticed that everything around me was a sort of monotone grey…almost … Read More

The Middle of Your Story

Thoughts race through your mind as you hear yet another person’s success story of how they got through something difficult or how they skipped the circumstances that you are going through all together. You wonder, “That’s great for them. But what about my story? How’s my story going to turn out?” You may fret and hyperventilate a little or a … Read More

Put Your Love on a Map

Pastor Jonathan Falwell put it so truthfully when he said, “Love shows up when everyone else is leaving.” Probably you have experienced something that hurt so deeply and that made you  feel completely alone until…   somebody showed up.   Did you feel loved then? Did you feel remembered? Did you feel friendship? Did you feel a little more hope? … Read More

When Love Shows Up

Over a year ago, I jotted down a note from my Pastor’s sermon, “Love shows up when everyone else is leaving.” I haven’t been able to get that out of my mind since then. The quote has been set before me as a challenge to try to show up after the dust has settled in the midst of terribly hard … Read More

A Letter of Purpose To My Son

Manuel Elias Meyer and His Purpose Written by his Mother, Emily Ann Pereira Meyer          God knew you before you were even born. He ordered the number of your days. He gave purpose to each one of those days. He made you full of purpose for each one of those days. We knew about you before most … Read More

I’m Not OK, But God is Good.

I’ve been in the throws of intense grief, heartache, and uncertainty at least three times in my now 30 years. Losing my dad to cancer…unexpectedly. My husband losing his job…unexpectedly. Finding out I was pregnant and losing our baby, both…unexpectedly. During those types of times, do you know what is the absolute worst possible question someone can ask you? How are you … Read More

But I…

I hardly know where to start. It’s not often that a writer is at a loss for words. Really, I’ve got many words, but just am not sure how to communicate what it is I need to write about because there is so much to tell and so much not to tell. This is going to be a five-part series. These words … Read More