Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been categorized as “Encouragements”
I woke up crying this morning. Yup. I’m a hot mess over here. I crept out of bed, trying not to wake Matt, and tip-toed my way to the library. Two hours later when Matt padded in to see if I was okay, I was in a total state. For those of you that didn’t wake up to a weeping spouse this morning, Matt would probably like to come stay at your house tonight. I’m joking, of course. He handled it with incredible grace, as he usually does. We had coffee, and then he took me on a drive. I …
I first met the incomparable Meg Wilson at a writer’s retreat by the sea. Meg and I were the only early risers, eager to see the sunrise. So each morning, we traipsed down to the beach together, and there on the seashore, God used Meg to change my life. At the time, I was struggling with some really difficult heart issues and questions about my future and what God had for me. One of those issues had to do with who I was called to be in the kingdom of God. As you probably know, I’ve preached for my parent’s …
For your reading pleasure. 🙂 Introducing “Second Reads by the Sea: The Blue Sword” — a short story by Tracy Joy Jones. *** The bell above the bright blue door jangled merrily. Moshi’s head bobbed from the depths of his book to offer a greeting. “Welcome to 2nd Reads by the Sea.” The stranger waved her acknowledgment, spared him a small smile, and immediately began her search. Moshi wondered that she could see anything through the sunglasses she’d neglected to remove. Perhaps they had prescription lenses, and she needed them to read. Or perhaps she was so used to neglecting …
“When I thought I lost me, you knew where I left me. You reintroduced me to your love. You picked up all the pieces and put me back together. You are the defender of my heart.” There was a time when “Defender” by Jesus Culture played on constant repeat in my headphones. Something about the idea of losing myself, and God knowing where I left me felt so achingly poignant and true. I was battling health issues and riding the up and down seesaw of hormones that didn’t want to find a level place to be. I thought I was …
The first time I used the half bathroom in our new home, I brought a scraper. Not for me, for the wall. I’d been itching to scrape the walls from the moment I first saw the bathroom, so I figured, this was the perfect opportunity. The previous owners had hot-glued marbles to the walls, and to say I have texture issues is putting it mildly. I really hate bumps. They make me itchy. So… I sat on the potty and took my first swipe with the scraper. A cascade of marbles hit the floor. It felt wonderful. I took a …
I have a problem. I can’t clean the mirror in my closet, and it desperately needs it. Over the past year or so, I started writing on the mirror the promises that God had given me. I read them every time I look in the mirror. I see the promises instead of my outfit. I see God’s encouragement to keep going instead of my doubts. I’ve tried to convince myself to just erase the words and write them again after the mirror is clean, and yet I can’t make myself do it. Each challenge and promise were written during moments …
When I started writing my first book six years ago, I had one of those “Aha” moments Oprah used to talk about. Every single thing in my experience, life, education, faith, personality seemed to come together in one overwhelming passion. I’d been blogging for years, but writing a novel was something else entirely. I wrote my first full-length novel in five weeks, and it was the happiest five weeks I’d ever spent. I love to re-read books, but I’d never lived in a story for that long. I fell in love with the characters and the adventure of it and …
A few months ago, I read the story of a lady who had lost 109 lbs on WW (used to be Weight Watchers) over the course of a year and a half. 109 lbs is an amazing achievement, and she looks incredible. But the thing that impacted me the most about her story was when she said there was hardly a day on her journey when she wasn’t disappointed by what she saw on the scale. Some days she thought she should have lost more, other days she’d gained weight. Drop and gain, drop and gain. But she kept on …
There are two kinds of vacations: an adventure vacation and a relaxation vacation. Also known as, my kind of vacation and Matt’s kind of vacation. If you go on an adventure vacation, your priority is exploration, finding great places to eat, seeing everything you can, as well as squeezing in some quality beach time. A relaxation vacation involves lying on a beach or relaxing in a hammock in the mountains. Period. And in my opinion, there are two ways to approach bookshelf decor: Let the books speak for themselves and fill the shelves. Or, decorate your shelves for aesthetic tranquility. …
When Matt Jones proposed to me down on one knee on the old pedestrian bridge spanning the Arkansas River, I didn’t immediately say yes. The night was pitch black, and the old bridge had no lighting, so my surprise exclamation wasn’t “yes”. Instead, he asked his beautifully romantic question, opened the ring box, and I said, “A light!” We still laugh about it. The jewelers had added a light to the tiny ring box, and it completely stole the show. Of course, I followed our laughter with an emphatic “yes.” But twenty-two happily married years later, and the lights are …