Admittedly, this question may have caught you off guard. But let’s walk into it. Forgiveness is beautiful. It makes for a great theme in movies or novels. Forgiveness is central to the gospel. We all need forgiveness and long to know that our faults will not define us. But it’s worth asking, what part of forgiveness is beautiful? The answer is, the last part. The early and middle parts of...
We all have voices that tell us we are never enough. If we measure up in school, we don’t in sports or attractiveness or anything else. We always have voices, around us and in us, that assure us we are, indeed, substandard—or average, which feels just as bad. Hiding, insecurity, not comfortable in our own skin, failure, feeling worthless or at least worth less than others, fears of rejection...
“What’s Your Story?” “What was it like growing up?” “What were some important moments in your life?” “What did you learn during that season of life?” We hear these questions everywhere. You might hear such conversations at a coffee shop, college dorm, or in a counselor’s office, because we are intrigued by stories. Many people believe that our stories hold the key to big life questions like, “Who...
What is the measure of a man? Is it athletic ability, strength, intelligence, or accomplishments? In Brave and Bold, his devotional for young men, Marty Machowski offers thirty-one daily devotions to encourage readers to become men whose strength comes from following Jesus and reflects him to a watching world. Machowski explores the truth that becoming a real man means trusting God in every...
If I look back at my high school self as if I were watching the movie version of my life from the safety of a faraway sofa, I see things more clearly now than I did then. With the distance of years and experience, I see a five-foot-eight, brown-haired wonder. She’s an Alabama girl at a New England boarding school, one of just a few students from outside the region. Walking to class wearing...
