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Planning Your Work Future

Where are you headed? Maybe you’re already on track for your “dream job,” or maybe you don’t even know what it looks like yet.  Either way, now is a great time to start thinking critically about your professional future. First things first, you need to know yourself. This…

Love and Confusion

Is he your future husband? A few weeks ago we talked about how racing to find “the one” can lead to some bad romantic decisions.  But what do you do if you’re in a relationship and wondering, “could this guy be my guy?  Is he right for me,…

Pray: Keeping Faith First

Are you keeping your priorities straight? Faith, family and relationships, work. We all know how our priorities should look, but with deadlines at work and relationships demanding attention, it can be easy to slip out of balance.  We rush around trying to satisfy the most “urgent” demands, and…

Work: Building Up Women at Work

Are you supporting other women at work? We can all do more to help support each other.  And we SHOULD do more!  First, because it’s the right thing to do; and second, because women need sponsorship and support in the workplace.  Research shows that having a sponsor or…

Fearlessness Grounded in Faith

Is fear holding you back? Fear can be a powerful, crippling force if you let it take hold.  But God knows your fears and defeated them before you were even born.  How do you know?  Because HE said so: “In this world you will have trouble. But take…

Pray: Waiting With Purpose

What are you waiting on? Sometimes it can feel like you’re just constantly waiting for the “next step.”  Waiting for “the right” job or promotion like we talked about last week; waiting for romance, marriage, or kids; waiting for God’s direction in any number of areas.  Just, waiting.…

The Bad Job Blues

Do you love your job? I read a good article recently about how to deal when you find yourself in a work rut as a young professional. It reminded me of a few jobs I went through right after business school. That’s right, I said a few jobs.…

I Went From Sea to Shining Sea…

Feeling torn? As working Christian women, we’re so often pulled in multiple worthy directions.  If you focus on the dissonance, life can get overwhelming, fast! Remember instead that God binds all things together. I had a kind of physical reminder of this last week.  I started the week…

Racing to Find "The One."

Want to marry the right guy? Feeling like you’re behind schedule? As working Christian women, we like plans, goals, tasks to complete.  We are women of action!  That’s why it can be hard to really trust in God’s timing when it comes to love.  God doesn’t operate according…

Celebrate a Birthday With Hammers and Glue

Have you volunteered lately? Last week for my daughter Annie’s birthday, we spent time as a family volunteering with the Salvation Army at the White Shield Center, a young women’s home in Portland, Oregon (http://goo.gl/wEQT5 ).  All of the family members in Portland, plus a few friends, spent…

God Was At the Nail Salon

Met anyone new lately? Last week I was reminded again that God is working in every area of our lives, even at the nail salon.  He is opening doors, all we need to do is train ourselves to recognize and step through them!   That’s not always as simple…

Love From Afar, Part II

Big decisions to make? The Lord makes firm the steps of the one who delights in him; though he (or she!) may stumble he will not fall, for the Lord upholds him with His hand. (Psalm 37:23-24). My husband Chris and I have faced a lot of “big”…

Love From Afar, Part I

How do you maintain (and build!) a marriage from different states? My husband Chris and I are currently what you might consider “geographically challenged.” Chris works in Tacoma, Washington.  I work primarily in Dallas, Texas and Portland, Oregon, and do consulting work that takes me all over.  We…

Some Practical Thoughts on Professional Success.

Want to distinguish yourself at work? Good! Just because “work” isn’t the very highest priority of us Christian professionals doesn’t mean that we aren’t called to do it well.  God calls us to excellence in all things, including our professional lives:  whatever you do, work at it with…

Unexpected Refreshment for the Soul

Running on empty? God knows exactly what you need even when you don’t.  He will replenish your soul, sometimes when you least expect it! I’ve had a pretty packed schedule over the last few months, crisscrossing the country multiple times for work, family, and service obligations.  Mostly I…

A 6,000 Mile Bump in the Road

Life is not a smooth ride, what do you do when you hit a bump? My friend Linda and her family are going through a “bump” right now.  Her military husband was just notified that he would be receiving a 2-year posting in South Korea (his 3rd overseas…

A Speech, a 'Lost Boy,' and a Center for Hope

Are you listening for God's direction? God’s plans are unbelievably vast.  If you open your heart to his direction he will LEAD YOU to where HE CAN USE YOU and YOUR GIFTS to HELP OTHERS. On February 2nd, I was asked to be the warm-up act at a…

A Romantic Hit and Run

What do you do when a guy is hitting on you?  What about when a polite hints don't work? I’ll start by stating my age, 52.  Even old ladies get hit on.  Even old, very married ladies. So what do you do? Two weekends ago was my daughter,…

Call Me "Coordination Challenged"

Are you a klutz like me? It is amazing how God seems to be in the middle of everything . . . even broken fingers. When I was in Grand Rapids in February at Zondervan, the publisher of my book, “Work, Love, Pray,” they gave me the opportunity…

Don't Go It Alone

Are we having fun yet? The life of a Christian working woman can be chaotic, frustrating, confusing and terribly isolating.  Or it can be joyful, exciting, and utterly fulfilling.  For many, it falls somewhere in between. The good news is this: God has equipped you perfectly for everything…