Garage sale junkie. That’s certainly part of who I am and something I enjoy! I actually had a garage sale this past December after purging items from our home while on COVID confinement.

A very sweet couple stopped by and while the gentleman played with my grandson’s toys, I carried on a conversation with his wife. It didn’t take long for us to get on to the subject of Jesus or for her to hand me a postcard inviting me to City Awakening. We must have talked for 15 minutes before I called my husband outside to meet Mary Kay and Jeff. We then continued our conversation.

In April 2020, my husband Randy and I began isolating due to the COVID outbreak. We were accustomed to seeing family multiple times a week. Because of our age, we were both very afraid of contracting the virus and of all of the “unknowns” at the time. It was lonely, and we weren’t sure what to place our hope in. Our daughter, Kristen, is on staff as the Missions Coordinator at City Awakening. We have always enjoyed attending church with her when we visit, so when she suggested we watch the service online with her, we were eager to join. Although we were hours apart, it felt like we were going to church together each week.

There is a significant problem with the term “justice,” because we’ve turned it into a convoluted term that’s defined by our own competing visions for justice. We’ve created a limited singular view of justice that advocates for our own singular areas of interest, while ignoring numerous other areas of injustice. We’re advocates against racism, but not abortion...We’re advocates against abortion, but not racism...We’re advocates for singular areas of interest.

But God….two simple words that I’ve repeated countless times in my head and sometimes out loud since becoming a Mom over twenty-three years ago. I was new to my faith and relationship with Jesus when Joe and I became parents. And if there is a life-changing event that can push you to your knees, it’s parenting. If I’m honest though, my dive into knowing and fully relying on Jesus came at first out of selfishness. I’ll just say it, I was invited to a bible study and they had me at ‘free childcare’. Find out how God changed my life through motherhood by clicking read more!

It’s been said that being a mother is the hardest job in the world – overworked, underpaid, on call 24/7, and often under appreciated. There is something unique about the role of a mother. When a human grows inside of you, there tends to be a special bond that forms. It’s 9 months of sweet and agonizing anticipation. Outside of the womb, the bond continues. In most cases, mom is the one who provides immediate care for her baby with God-given instincts and physical abilities that dads just don’t have. At home it’s mom who sets the schedule for feeding and sleeping. It’s primarily mom who makes sure the baby is growing, reaching milestones, and staying healthy. Even before books, blogs, and Google, mothers have always had the unique ability to care for their babies in a way that is only natural; almost second nature.