A little over a month ago, we checked off a HUGE adoption milestone- NOC (No Objection Certificate). This basically means India has no objections to us adopting our daughter. We received it on a Wednesday (church night!), so we celebrated with Chick-fil-A dinner/dessert at the church playground. Many people have been so kind to ask… Continue reading Adoption Update- We have NOC! Now what?!

There are many hard things as we transition to motherhood. Diapers are overwhelming, there’s little sleep, & the spit-up is just plain gross. While these things are difficult, personally, the hardest transition for me was in regards to ministry. When Hunter was born, I went from participating in every youth event to sitting in the… Continue reading Doing “Big” Things for Jesus- Does that Really Include Changing Diapers?

Morning by Morning was one of the first ministries to publish my writing. They're no longer an active site, so I'm excited to share some of my pieces here in my own space. The command to show hospitality is clear, yet often overlooked, in Scripture (Romans 12:13). The word “hospitality” can scare us. We hear… Continue reading “The Gospel Comes with a House Key”- A Book Review & Call to Radically Ordinary Hospitality

I absolutely love being a boy mom (I mean, put a baseball bat in their hands, and it’s the cutest thing ever!), but for as long as I can remember, I’ve desired to be a mom to a little girl too. With my pregnancies with both boys, I was sure they were girls, until the… Continue reading Adoption Update- Why a Daughter + Her Name

We don’t have to look too hard to find our culture’s view of the word “submission”. With the feminist movement, how marriage is portrayed on TV, and the general crumbling view of marriage, “submission” might as well be classified as a bad word. To a degree, the word gets its bad reputation from those who… Continue reading Being a Wife & the Call to Submit- What is it? What isn’t it? (Spoiler: It IS a Good Thing!)

Like most toddlers, my 4-year-old loves asking questions. One day, during a 15 minute drive, I counted 25 questions he asked. I don’t always have answers for some of his questions, though, which causes him great frustration. He wants an answer, and he wants it now. We adults like answers too, don’t we? In fact,… Continue reading Bible Study- Practical Steps for Those Tough Parts of Scripture

This post was originally published on LifeWay Girls. By God’s grace, he saved me when I was seven years old. There’s never been a time in my life when I haven’t been actively involved in the local church, yet as I grew older, I battled doubting my salvation. Now, as a youth pastor’s wife, my… Continue reading Doubting Salvation- Bearing Fruit & the Marks of a True Believer

We’re so grateful to every person who’s celebrated our match with us. Truly, we’re humbled by the amount of people who love our family, including our daughter. She’s so loved! Matching was a huge step, but we still have a long way to go until we can travel to bring her home. This graphic gives… Continue reading Adoption Update- We’re Matched! What’s Next?

On July 25, 2019 we officially began the matching phase of our adoption process. On January 8, 2021, we said “yes,” and were matched with our daughter! This phase was so emotionally and mentally draining. I truthfully wondered if our match would ever happen. We even seriously prayed about switching countries. The line from the… Continue reading Adoption Update- Our Matching Story!

The Halloween costumes weren’t even put away quite yet, but the internet was already a-buzz of  people putting up Christmas trees. I'm not a "No Christmas till after Thanksgiving" stickler. This year has been rough. We could all use a little extra dose of Christmas spirit, right? However, for me personally, I thought, “I just… Continue reading Christmas is Here, but What if I Don’t *Feel* Like Christmas?