Living as a Victorious Christian Woman

For anyone not familiar with the tourism industry, people of all kinds weigh in on the community where you live. Some have lived here all their lives, some have moved here, some visit regularly, some have been here once, and some have never been here before - but they all have an opinion about who you are and what you're doing. Last week I posted this on LinkedIn, a social media platform for leaders in business and industry:  "I reached a “what’s the point?” moment this morning. Someone I’ve never seen before posted two walk-through videos of our town mall, mocking and insulting every business, restaurant, and closed storefront along the way. It was painful to watch, knowing that man didn’t have a clue. * He saw a bakery with no one at the counter. I know they’re in the back, working feverishly on dozens of special occasion cakes every week so they can keep their local business afloat. They have a camera to see when people walk up and a bell so they can hear when they’re ready...

Never, ever have boring "just add water" hot cocoa. Life's too short for that kind of mediocrity.  As temperatures continue to hang out around in the single digits here in southeast Iowa, it's the perfect time to experiment with cocoa - flavors, textures, mix-ins, and all the other good stuff. I tried adding chai powder to mine, and I loved it. Take a look at the ingredient suggestions below, mix and match to your heart's content, and let me know which ones you love the most. Creamy Bases Replace water with: * Whole milk * Oat milk * Sweetened condensed milk + water * Coconut milk * Half & half Extracts and Syrups *  Coconut extract * Hazelnut syrup * Orange extract * Maple syrup Blend-ins * Nut butters  (peanut, almond, hazelnut) * Marshmallow fluff + torch  (s’mores vibe) * Chocolate chips  melted in * Ice cream scoop  for instant “hot chocolate affogato” Candy Mix-ins Throw in pieces to melt slowly: * Andes mints * Toffee bits * Root beer barrel cand...

If you do a search online for how to sleep better at night, you'll get a ton of mediocre responses. Go to bed earlier, at the same time, in a cold room, with lots of blankets, after a cup of hot tea, and after an all-natural supplement. Turn off your screens 60 minutes before bed, read a good book, and don't start any new projects. Sound familiar? Is it working? Maybe? Kinda? Sorta? When I went to the Bible instead of Google, my sleep research came out a little differently. Here are two positive suggestions and two warnings that Scripture says are important when it comes to sleep and rest. I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep: for thou, LORD, only makest me dwell in safety. Psalm 4:8 One of my favorite verses about getting a good night's sleep comes from a psalm that starts with distress. David was begging God for mercy in a difficult situation, and he lays awake all night thinking and praying through things. By the end of the psalm, David's peace and calm have b...

Sometimes you know you're going to have one of those weeks. I wish you could seen my planner layout After The Pen already - it's full of meetings, Boards, youth group, after-hours work stuff, and lots of little bits and pieces. I knew exactly what this week was going to need. It needs lots and lots and lots of Scripture. You know those weeks, the ones where if you're not prayed up and read up and wisdom-ed up that you're not going to make it through. Well, I tackled that problem right from the get-go by choosing many of my favorite Scriptures and filling my planner pages with them. They will not go unnoticed, standing out among all the to-do lists and appointments. Whether you already know it's going to be a busy week or not, this is the time to pull out your sword - the Word of the Lord - and get down to business. Fill your planner and your heart with all the Scripture possible so you're ready for whatever the week brings. My prayer is that we'll be so fill...

Once again, I'm working on a handmade greeting card order that I wish I wasn't. Yes, I enjoy having business, but I don't like having to make sympathy cards. Yes, I'm blessed that someone who is hurting will receive  a beautiful, original card, but I'm sad that they have to go through a heartbreaking season to see it. Sharing God's love and truth is the best way I know to shine a light in the darkness of this world. And if putting His word on a piece of paper in an envelope, then I am blessed beyond measure to serve Him this way. If you find yourself sending a multitude of cards to uplift and encourage right now, it can be difficult to come up with words and Scriptures after a while. Here are some of my favorite phrases and passages to include in my sympathy cards, designed to shine the love of God where it is needed most. May the tender love of God bring  peace and comfort to your heart. Praying the Lord will touch your  heart in a special way today. May the ho...

There's nothing better than a rich, classic chocolate lava cake. Unless it's two. I was going to save this for Valentine's Day prep, but why? You can make two tiny, luxurious cakes any time you want. That's the joy of being an adult and having your very own oven. This recipe is sized perfectly for two 5–6 oz ramekins (3.5x1.5 inches). As long as you keep the baking time close to the shorter end - please don't overcook this! - you'll have a nice, gooey center for the perfect lava cake. I didn't try it, but I've read you can add a small chocolate bar to the middle of the batter before you bake it for some extra lava. Now I want to try this again! Ingredients 2oz dark chocolate (60–70%), chopped 2 Tbsp unsalted butter 1 large egg 2 Tbsp granulated sugar ¼ tsp vanilla extract 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour Pinch of salt 1 Tbsp butter and a sprinkling of  cocoa powder to prep the ramekins 1. Prep the ramekins by generously buttering the insides and dusting with ...

One of my desires for 2026 is to study through Matthew Henry's commentary on the book of Matthew. I have it on my iPad, so I read, highlight, and scroll, then fill the notes section of my journaling Bible with the best parts. There are a lot of best parts. Some things I learned: * The Old Testament begins with the book of the generation of the world. The New Testament begins with the book of the generation of Him who made the world. * The Gentiles (the magi) knew the time of Christ's birth by a star. The Jews knew the place of His birth by Scripture. They were capable of informing each other, yet only one goes on to find Him. * Herod's raging rage and jealousy toward his family led to many of their deaths. Caesar Augustus said it was better to be one of Herod's swine than one of his sons. * John the Baptist was considered great, followed by multitudes, but he thought himself in the perfect place, to be attending to Christ. * From childhood to His baptism, Jesus is almos...

For the first time in quite a while, I'm excited about Bible study, the creative side of my work, my blog, and our home. It all ties back to delighting in the Lord again and looking for Him in all parts of my life. So this week's planner layout is a tribute to that delight and the resulting joy that comes from Him. I used the Illustrated Faith Print and Pray set Sweet Jesus by Shawna Clingerman. I printed it on white card stock and fussy cut it with just a thin border. I really like this spring-like color combination, particularly when it's 11 degrees outside this morning. And each day of the week has its own image, heart lollipop, and a ribbon banner with something special about the Lord to remember for that day. Where you're spinning so many different plates and trying to wear numerous hats at once, it can be daunting to open your planner in the morning. In those moments, I would encourage you to add something delightful to the pages - Scripture stickers, a beautiful ...

Eight-month-old Dachshund. Need I say more? Yes, probably, but you get the idea of what life is like in our house right now. Cooper is the youngest dog we've ever had - we got him when he was 3 months old. We're very much having to adjust to a not-so-tiny-anymore puppy, but there are several tricks we've picked up in the last few weeks. Puzzle feeders are the greatest thing since sliced bread. We put some puppy kibble in the top and bottom and fill the round holes in the middle spinner with peanut butter. Then they have at it. I can sit next to them, get some typing or study done, and they keep themselves busy in a safe and yummy way. This one is Outward Hound's Lickin' Layers. It spins and they love it. We've done lots of peanut butter-filled Kongs over the years, but I've never frozen them before or tried other combinations of fillers. Right now we're using peanut butter, mashed banana, and sweet potato puree. It's very healthy and keeps them occup...

As far as Mother Nature is concerned, this is my least favorite time of year. It's cold. It's dry. It's brown. Branches just snap off in the wind. There's no snow. The trees haven't even dropped all their leaves. And the ones they do have are brittle.  I'll be honest and tell you that I've felt as brittle as those dry, crunchy leaves lately. There's nothing really wrong, I'm just tired and under a good bit of stress. But I can relate to my tree - sometimes the limbs just break off in the wind. There are moments when all I can hear is the rustle of the dry, brown leaves. These are the days my soul is desperately thirsty. Just like a parched throat can only be satisfied with pure, clean water, my heart just wants peace and quiet time alone with my God. It's the only thing that's going to water what's been parched for so long. It's amazing when you open your Bible and the writer of that page feels the exact same thing you're feeling ...

I've wanted to do this Bible ribbon expansion project for years, literally. This week I finally put feet to my idea and added six new ribbons to my Bible in less than an hour. And it feels so good to get this accomplished, off my mind, and off my things-to-do list. It's really so simple, and I feel silly that I haven't accomplished it sooner. But I also felt like I was connecting with my mom, who did so much with plastic canvas over her lifetime. Add a few colors of thin ribbon, and I had everything I needed. I cut the plastic canvas to just thinner than the spine of my Bible.  It ended up being eight holes wide, though yours might be wider or thinner. Then I trimmed it down so it was just shorter than the height of my Bible. I don't want it to be seen from the end, so it's three or four rows shorter than the spine is tall. I took the plastic canvas out and started threading six colors of ribbon, leaving one empty row on either side. I wove each piece about 12 times...

This amazing soup is creamy without cream, comforting yet refined, and can be made entirely ahead of time and feels like a big in a bowl. If that doesn't convince you to make this roasted garlic and white bean soup, I don't know what will. When I made this for our anniversary, I got to do several things for the very first time: * I made soup. I've made stew and chili but never soup. * I roasted garlic.  * I used a stem of fresh rosemary, properly. * I made a recipe using white  Cannellini  beans. * I used an immersion blender. When it was done, I could have eaten the entire stockpot of soup by myself ... but it was our anniversary dinner and I thought that might be mean. So we shared, and we loved it. Ingredients: 1 head fresh garlic Olive oil 1 cup sweet onion, chopped 2 15.5oz cans cannellini beans 3 cups chicken stock 1 stem fresh rosemary Salt and pepper to taste Bruschetta chips for garnish 1. Prep the garlic to roast.  Peel away loose papery skin from the garli...

One of the absolute most wonderful things about living right on the river is getting to see eagles every single day in the winter. You can literally be a few feet away from them as they soar, hunt, and travel to their nests and back, right over your head. On Saturday, my wildlife event was held at our convention center, which has a wall of windows in the back that overlook the river. And the eagles. Seems more than appropriate for a conservation celebration. I snapped this picture through the window on my phone in the snow - three great setups for good pictures, right? But this eagle surrounded by gulls just made my heart happy, and I wanted to capture him in flight. It shouldn't be surprising how many Scripture there are about eagles. This week I'm putting together an order of cards for our Etsy shop, and I've found myself drawn to the eagle images I have collected over the years. I think I'll put them together with some powerful Scripture and make them a set. Maybe I...