Author
Julie Tofilon
“What are these people’s stories? How did they end up here?”, I wondered, when I first met some of the residents at a homeless shelter a group of us volunteered at for a week. Some of them fit the stereotype—“grungy”,… Continue Reading →
“There is a way that seems right to a [person] but its end is the way to death.” Prov.14:12 Last week our family visited a sea turtle conservation center, where they bring rescued sea turtles for rehabilitation and treatment to… Continue Reading →
Have you ever met someone that “comes on too strong”? We can interpret “strong” in many ways—aggressive, opinionated, overbearing, talkative, friendly, enthusiastic, etc. While some of these are obviously negative, some traits can be positive, such as friendly and engaging…. Continue Reading →
As those of us in the U.S. observe Memorial Day, there’s also celebration—cookouts, time with family and friends, enjoying the day off, etc. Some may ask “Why? Isn’t this a time to remember and mourn the loss of those who… Continue Reading →
People are often surprised by encouragement. Why? 1) Low self-esteem—they don’t believe they deserve encouragement. In their minds/hearts, they’re not good enough. Or what they did wasn’t good enough. Or what they plan on trying to do won’t be good… Continue Reading →
“Come apart” here doesn’t mean “coming apart at the seams”. It means intentionally getting away, by ourselves, to relax, reflect, retool, refuel, rejuvenate, and re-energize. If horses and machines are allowed time out and shutdowns for maintenance and maximum performance,… Continue Reading →
Few monarchies remain in the world, yet royalty never fails to intrigue us. Fairy tales, books, movies, modern media news on royal family members, feed our fascination and create dreams in the hearts of children and adults alike. What if… Continue Reading →
Ever feel like you’re going bananas trying to balance your life? First, there’s your family: your spouse and his/her needs; training and helping your kids, who are running in all different directions, some of which you have to take them… Continue Reading →
The Lord is your keeper… The Lord will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life. The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore. (Ps. 121:5, 7-8) Let’s look at that word “keeper”. As our keeper, the Lord… Continue Reading →
Lk. 24:13-35 recounts the journey of two men on their way home from Jerusalem to Emmaus. For these guys, it had been a long, hard, weekend, watching their hope for rescue die with Jesus on the Cross. Time to pack… Continue Reading →
“’Whoever has two tunics is to share with him who has none, and whoever has food is to do likewise.’” (Luke 3:11) Moms like to muse. Especially as we’re getting older and missing those younger days when our children were… Continue Reading →
“I have stored up Your Word in my heart that I might not sin against you.” (Ps. 119:11 ESV) Other versions read “I have hidden your Word…” Personally, I prefer the idea of “storing up” to “hiding”. Hiding implies that… Continue Reading →
You’ve probably seen the Darwinian depiction of the evolution of man. It shows 5 stages, beginning with an ape, on the left, with its long arms on the ground by its feet, then the gradual “coming up” of his arms… Continue Reading →
Late last year I learned something about myself that I didn’t realize before—I really don’t like to need or accept help! And here, all these years, I thought I was one of those “hopelessly/happily dependent females” – the kind that… Continue Reading →
In Part 1, we looked at the dangers of counterproductive thought patterns, and how such “stinking thinking” results in terrible feeling, behavior, and relational breakdown. We investigated the first two major categories of this– mindreading and mind-feeding—then how to recognize… Continue Reading →
