She Runs By Faith

Recently I won the book, Pulling Back the Shades: Erotica, Intimacy, and the Longings of a Woman's Heart , in a giveaway on Faith's blog, "Life of Faith" . I was excited to read a book by Dr. Juli Slattery because I had heard her on Focus on the Family though I wasn't sure if the subject matter would be very relate-able for me. After finishing the book, I found that this can speak into the lives of all women, whether you struggle with sexual sin or not. Pulling Back the Shades opened my eyes to how destructive the Fifty Shades of Grey series is and how vital it is for us to guard our hearts and minds from Satan's deception. It broke my heart when I read the statistic that of all American adults who read the Fifty Shades series, 1 in 5 are Christian women . This isn't something I can write off because it's not "my battle". Erotica and other immorality are destroying the integrity of God's people, our brothers and sisters, from the in...

Leo and I are celebrating 730 days of marriage today! 730 days or 2 years - call it want you want to, this is the sequel to the "365 Days of Marriage" post. We dug out our marriage vows today and reread them. The weather is rainy today, which is not good for farming but, on the bright side, Leo gets to spend some extra time with E and I! Marriage hasn't been easy, but it is character-shaping and it is a wonderful blessing. Marriage belongs to God - always has, always will. “God created marriage. No government subcommittee envisioned it. No social organization developed it. Marriage was conceived and born in the mind of God.” Max Lucado This was us then: We took a ton of pictures on our wedding day and it was a blast!  This is us now (+1): Now we attempt one family photo and it turns out like this :) “But at the beginning of creation God ‘made them male and female.’ ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, ...

Pinterest is awesome. I'm a frequenter of the "Health & Fitness" boards because, well, I suppose I'm passionate about health and fitness. I'm noticing more and more that there is an ungodly obsession with being a "strong, independent, and powerful" woman. One Pinterest image I saw related the marathon was "Never underestimate the strength of a woman. Never f*** with one who runs 26.2 miles for fun." I enjoy running 26.2 miles "for fun", but would never want to be included in that quote's generalization. I have more accurate text to go with that Pinterest image I mentioned... "Never underestimate the stubborness of a woman who runs 26.2 for fun. " Running a marathon doesn't necessarily mean you are super strong. In my case, I'm just a stubborn Scandinavian that likes shiny medals, the runner's high, and staying in shape :) The world's concept of a strong woman is seriously delusional. They...