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by Jess Griggs
The Newest Elevation Worship Song Has Me in Tears!
We find examples of worshipping the Lord in song and praise all throughout scripture. Psalm 71:23 tells us, “My lips will shout for joy, when I sing praises to you; my soul also, which you have redeemed.” And later on, in Psalm 150:6, we read, “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord! Praise the …...
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by Jess Griggs
Powerful Verses to Pray Over Your Home
Home is so much more than where we lay our heads at night. There are complicated family relationships, frustrations, joys, sorrows, and an environment cultivated by the words we speak and the love we give. Let’s take a look at some powerful verses to pray over your home and family and spend some time talking … Continue...
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by Jess Griggs
Blind Man Praises God After His Sight Is Restored
A 65-year-old man in the Philippines had his sight restored after a quick 7-minute surgery. He suffered from cataracts for over 20 years, 19 of which he spent blind. The man’s wife told Newsflare that her husband first lost his vision in his right eye, then slowly lost the vision in his left eye, too. … Continue reading...
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by Jess Griggs
Need Some Encouragement Today? We’ve Got You Covered
Whether it’s been a difficult season or a season of growth and joy, we could all use some encouragement in our walk with the Lord. It’s amazing what little pieces of advice and inspiration we can gather from simple words and phrases. At the same time, words can hurt and tear down. I’m reminded of … Continue...
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by Jess Griggs
5 Ways To Get More Out Of Studying Your Bible
You’re probably familiar with the seemingly never-ending cycle of feeling guilty for not reading your Bible, so you avoid it as if you’re avoiding the wrath of God, which in turn makes you feel even guiltier, and so on and so forth. Some of you may even feel like it’s been so long you wouldn’t … Continue...
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by Kelli Hamann
Christmas: Not the End of the Story
Stocking stuffers. Pajamas all day. Candy canes. Breakfast casseroles. Squealing children waking groggy parents long before dawn. Coffee–LOTS of coffee. Long-awaited dreams fulfilled. Joyful surprises. Food, food and more food. Christmas movies and snuggles. People, stop reading this post and get to celebrating! But–if by...
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by Kelli Hamann
Advent Day 24: Maybe Christmas Means Something More
I love it that the classic tale, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, is still being revamped and retold since it was first published in 1957–sixty-three years ago! Why? Probably because its message still has relevance to us today, especially during a year like this, when a big Grinch named COVID-19 has been stealing so much …...
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by Kelli Hamann
Advent Day 23: Love Keeps Tapping You on the Shoulder
I have some friends who are much better at being good friends than I am. You know the type: They text regularly just to let you know they’re thinking of you; they remember things about what’s going on in your life and ask you how those things are going; they’re the first to call when … Continue reading Advent Day 23: Love Keeps...
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by Kelli Hamann
Advent Day 20: Love Always Wins
Amazing factoid about me: My husband and I have been married for (drumroll, please) almost 35 years! I know–we’re rockstars, right? We’ve beaten some HUGE odds, and we’re pretty darn proud of ourselves. And even better–we are still madly, sickeningly in love with each other, more and more each day. Yes, really. We often get...
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by Kelli Hamann
Advent Day 22: The Waterfall
I live in the most beautiful state in the union: Washington. I bet you thought I was going to say Hawaii, didn’t you? Or maybe Florida, California, or somewhere else where it’s warm most of the year? Well, all I have to say is that Washington rivals every one of those states in so many … Continue reading Advent Day 22: The...
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by Kelli Hamann
Advent Day 21: Unexpected Love
Ok, you can relate to this, all you Amazon shoppers–oh, wait, that’s everyone, isn’t it? Picture this: You order something on Amazon, you’re super stoked to get it, you check the driveway every five seconds for the truck, it seems like it’s taking FOREVER (even though it’s coming next day via Prime), and then the …...
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by Kelli Hamann
Advent Day 18: Love Fights for You
Warning: I’m going to give you an ear worm right now: “We all need somebody to le-e-ean on.” These words, so soulfully recorded by Bill Withers many decades ago, are well known all around the world–and still true today. Who is your go-to person (or people), the one(s) you lean on, count on, confide your … Continue reading...
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by Kelli Hamann
Advent Day 19: Love Doesn’t Strut
I was once a pretty good strutter. I’m embarrassed to admit it, but in high school I dragged myself out of bed at 4:30 in the morning, not because I was taking a special class before school started, not because I was doing chores, not because I was praying for my family or my classmates, … Continue reading Advent Day 19: Love...
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by Kelli Hamann
Advent Day 15: The Universal Language of Love
I speak some Spanish, and I’ll jump at the chance to practice with native Spanish speakers. Usually these conversations involve awkward pauses for think time, a few confused looks when I say something completely ridiculous, and a bit of miming when words fail me. Language barriers are hard to bridge, but there is a universal...
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by Kelli Hamann
Advent Day 17: His Love Brings Joy
One of the things I love most about teaching first graders is how excitable they are. I discovered very quickly that if I get excited–or make them think I’m really excited–about what I want to teach them, they jump right on board and instantly engage. And everything is a big deal to them, whether it’s … Continue...
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by Kelli Hamann
Advent Day 16: It’s the Simple Things
Truth: Someone mistook me for Jesus once. And I emphasize: ONCE. One dark, chilly spring morning I woke up early to get my bearings before the day started. At the time, my husband, Dan, and I were running an inner city ministry in Portland, OR, and not long after the rooster crowed, our revolving door … Continue reading Advent...
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by Kelli Hamann
Advent Day 10: His Love Buries Your Past
Love can drive us to do some crazy things sometimes. I eat up delicious stories about outrageous marriage proposals, people risking their lives to save loved ones, and regular Joes stepping in to help perfect strangers in an emergency. What makes us do these things? I would suggest that people who express this kind of … Continue...
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by Kelli Hamann
Advent Day 11: Love That Offers Second Chances
My husband and I start every Christmas season by watching the 1971 musical version of Scrooge, starring Albert Finney. Even though neither of us really likes musicals most of the time, this particular version of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol is so powerfully done that it sucked us in, and it’s become a yearly...
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by Kelli Hamann
Advent Day 12: Woot! No Condemnation!
As I start every new school year, I try very hard to not discuss my class list with other teachers who are familiar with my individual students. It’s tempting to want to have a little inside information in order to mentally prepare and strategize, but I have the eternally optimistic view that kids who have … Continue...