The Nothing Blog

Our sweet rescue dog, Lexie, was a delight to our family. Our hearts broke when she  died in 2012 from a fall that severed her spinal cord. She left us with sweet and precious memories! This devotion was written a year before she died and was published in Totally Devoted 2.    “A happy heart makes the face cheerful.” (Proverbs 15:13) This morning I took Lexie, our adorable, adopted rescue dog for a long walk/jog. She has endeared herself to our family so much that we joke she’s an adopted sister of our daughters Grace and Mary. Lexie is black and weighs 19 pounds. She a pug/terrier mix and a very happy dog who is well-fed, well-groomed, and overall very well loved and cared for by our whole family. She knows it, too. She’s a contented, happy, obedient dog. She wants to please us and is a delight to our family. Lexie wholeheartedly trusts her caretakers, so she’s very content and secure. BAM! Right there is an analogy of how God wants us to be with Him; fully trusting Him ...

Grace Balint, one of our daughters, on the set  of the TV show, Criminal Minds,  in Hollywood, CA “She is clothed in strength and dignity...” (Proverbs 31:25) Uh-uh, Sisters, we're going to talk briefly about two passages in Proverbs 31, but we can’t skip over this devotion just because the woman described in Proverbs 31 intimidates us with her godliness and wisdom! This passage is meant to show us the significance of being wise and the influence we can be in this very dark world if we have a teachable heart.  In all the years of women's ministry, I've often heard women moan about studying the woman in Proverbs 31:10-31 because she's described as "an excellent wife" (v.10), "works with willing hands" (v. 13), "provides food for her household and portions for her maidens (v.15), "her lamp does not go out at night" [WHAAAAAT?] (v.18), and so on. Ladies in previous studies have asked,  "How can I ever measure up to her?" and ...

Yes, the battle is real. And Jesus is always the answer to the struggle Christians face every day: How do we stay faithful instead of freaking out when this world is like a relentless, spoiled brat desperate for our undivided attention? Jesus says we need to "take heart."  Yep. "Take heart" even when we are tempted at every turn by the rowdy, rebellious kid who is deceitful, manipulative, and loud. Very loud. Worldly. Uh-huh.  If we don't turn our backs on the world and turn our hearts to Jesus we won't know about His power or even see or experience the deep love Jesus has for His people. We won't know of His amazing, tender side, either. Yep. That's right. Even His tenderness is full of greatness! Nothing about Him can be contained! "...His greatness no one can fathom" (Psalm 145:3).   The world speaks with a megaphone calling out to us to become idolaters, seekers of celebrity status, and instant gratification. God speaks to us with a st...