Prisoners of HOPE

She is a former captive.

She has been set free by the King of kings.

She has been set free, yet remains a prisoner.

Not a prisoner of sin or bitterness or addiction or shame.

She is a prisoner of HOPE.

She refuses to see any situation as hopeless.

She has locked herself behind the bars of HOPE.

She has slammed her cell door shut and thrown away the key of doubt.

You see, she is a prisoner of HOPE.

The world may look at her in pity and see her unwavering HOPE as foolishness.

Those voices won't shake her for she is bound in HIS promises.

She changed her vision to see as her Lord sees.

She knows HIS plans to give her HOPE and a future.

The world may see tragedy, hardship, and hopelessness but she considers it all joy.

She will not give up. She will not lose HOPE.

You see, she is a prisoner of HOPE.

This HOPE is an anchor for her soul.

You come into contact with these prisoners everyday.

Who are these prisoners of HOPE?


The woman who is weary and struggling with depression but continues to get up each day depending on HIS strength. She is a prisoner of HOPE.

The woman whose child is sick and the doctors only have so many answers, yet she perseveres trusting the One who knit her child together inside her womb. She knows HE will not leave her nor forsake her. She is a prisoner of HOPE.

The woman who has experienced a broken relationship and a broken heart but presses on through the tears because she refuses to believe the lie that she is alone. She is depending on God to heal her heart and bind her wounds. She has placed her future in HIS hands. She is a prisoner of HOPE.

The woman who is in as much physical pain as emotional pain yet she smiles. Her joy is from HIM and she believes HE is her HEALER. She is a prisoner of HOPE.

The woman who has been waiting so long for her hearts desire. She dreams of the day that she will finally hold her child. She knows God is not the author of confusion but of peace. So in faith and HOPE she will wait and trust her God who loves her so. She knows HIS timing and HIS ways are perfect. She is a prisoner of HOPE.

The woman who has faithfully prayed for her husband or children for years. She sees no change yet she keeps praying because she has chosen to walk by faith not by sight. She keeps praying and believing on the only One who can help her loved ones. She knows her Father hears her and that HE is working even though she can't see. She is a prisoner of HOPE.

A prisoner of HOPE is not simply a positive person. A prisoner of HOPE has a confident expectation, not in herself but in her God.

As long as Jesus Christ is alive there is HOPE!
HE lives and reigns forever so there is always HOPE!


"Return to your fortress, you prisoners of hope; even now I announce that I will restore twice as much to you." Zechariah 9:12

Voice of Truth

I still see her tears in my mind. Those tears have made an impact on me. A little girl that I recently met came up to me with tears streaming down her cheeks. Another child had just said some mean and hurtful things to her about her appearance. With each tear I could see that she was starting to believe those lies. Each tear held the pain of rejection and the fear of never being good enough. I told her she was very beautiful and so special and it only matters what God says about her. I told her there was no one in the entire world just like her and she was perfect the way she was. She smiled and nodded her head, but sometimes it takes more than one dose of truth to finally wipe out just a few lies.

Proverbs 12:18 says....
"The words of the reckless pierce like swords, but the tongue of the wise brings healing."

Proverbs 18:21 says...
"Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof."

Hurtful words stick, they pierce like a sword. I'm an adult and can still remember painful words that were spoken to me as a child by other children. I want so badly for this precious little girl to see that she is fearfully and wonderfully made. That God sings and rejoices over her. That she is the apple of her Heavenly Father's eye. I want her to understand that our God keeps a record of every one of her tears. She. Is. Beautiful. And chosen and created for a wonderful and mighty purpose.I want her to be able to brush off all those ugly comments and smile knowing how Jesus sees her....knowing the truth of who she is in His sight.

There is a book by Max Lucado that I like to read to our boys and it's a perfect example of this. I recommend it to all parents. The title is "You are Special." Punchinello is the main character and he lives in a world of wooden people. Each wooden person receives either gray dots or gold stars. Punchinello always received gray dots (hurtful things others said about him) until he meets his Creator who tells him those gray dots don't have to stick. Punchinello soon realizes as long as he only cares what his Maker thinks neither the dots nor the stars stick to him because his worth is not found in the voice or opinions of others.

We have to choose to tune out all the other voices and listen to the only voice of truth. While others may be putting us down or saying not so nice things about us, we can keep our eyes on Jesus knowing that His voice and His thoughts towards us  is all that matters.

"Out of all the voices calling out to me, I will choose to listen and believe the voice of Truth."

Not in Vain

The Lord has been steadily teaching me lately to see Him and His purposes in everything. When we live our lives unto the Lord, nothing is in vain. It all matters.

As believers, Jesus lives within us, so that means we carry Him wherever we go. When we look at the gospels, there was never a dull moment in Jesus' everyday life. He always ran into people who needed His touch or His word.

 We are to live that same life, that same adventure. Our christian walk was never meant to be dull. When we truly give Jesus full reign by surrendering to Him, it's an exciting ride and nothing is wasted!

Yesterday I had jury duty. You know you're a stay at home mom when you are excited about jury duty haha. Anyway, I got there and was glad to see that I knew a few people. We had to do a lot of waiting and I got to spend a couple hours with a former youth student from church. It was so nice to see him and catch up with everything going on in his life. I knew something good would come out of a day of jury duty and waiting.

Months ago, I took our youngest to the doctor thinking he had an ear infection. Our doctor is over an hour away. His ears looked fine so as I waited for the nurse to come back in, the thought crossed my mind "well, I guess this was a waste of time." The nurse came in and I caught a glimpse of her bracelet. I immediately knew it was Psalm 91 because I had just read that Psalm that morning, so I asked her about it. She told me that a friend had given it to her and that she had recently been diagnosed with cancer. So Micah and I prayed for this sweet woman in the doctors office that day. A couple of weeks ago, I took Daylen to the doctor for an earache and this same nurse came up to us to tell us thank you for praying and that all her scans are now clear!! Praise God!!

Then while on vacation this summer, our boys wanted to go to the local gift shop. It was just an ordinary gift shop and the cashier was nice but not overly talkative. We checked out and were heading out the door when the cashier said "ma'am." I turned around expecting to see that I had left something on the counter and instead saw her crying. She looked into my eyes and told me she needed prayer. I grabbed her hands and we prayed right there. She had so much going on in her life and needed some encouragement and someone to pray with her.

I'm sharing all this only to say that I used to view everyday life as just life and my happiness depended on my daily circumstances. Jesus has taught me to wake up everyday asking Him "Lord, what are we going to get into today?" He is patiently teaching me that this life is not all about me and to take my focus off of myself and observe what He desires to do all around me. Even days that seem completely ordinary can be extraordinary when we look from His perspective. It's a beautiful thing to know nothing is really a waste of time. Open my eyes Lord to see You in the midst of waiting, life's interruptions, and just ordinary everyday life. With You, it's an adventure and absolutely nothing is in vain.


"Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain." 1 Corinthians 15:58