"Divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded"—these are the words describing the fate of each of Henry VIII's wives until July 1543 when Katherine Parr married King Henry of England as his sixth wife. "Published author" are words describing Katherine. In her inner circle as queen, Katherine was a scholar and leader in England's complicated, tumultuous, and [...]

We fancied ourselves clever, witty explorers roaming the galaxy in search of its most priceless treasures. Our current location was trying our perceptions of ourselves. This planet's underground network of tunnels was dark, steep, and narrow. Sometimes we had to crawl on our bellies; sometimes ropes around our waists were the only threads dangling us [...]

We've all seen it: a discussion going quickly from friendly to heated in the comments section. Even other Christians on social media can be rude, quick to argue, and mean-spirited. When someone insults you, is your initial desire to offer a worse insult? Mine frequently is. The world encourages us to lean into selfishness and [...]

How do you react when you meet someone with a disability? People with disabilities are often excluded from activities. People make assumptions about them and avoid them. Even in our Christian circles, people with disabilities often feel like they don't belong or can't contribute their talents to the church. Our society can be harsh. Sometimes [...]

(Today's story is an allegory for Proverbs 3:1-6 and 6:20-23) On the morning that I was to set out into the world and seek a trade, my mother gave me a special gift. “This was given to me by my mother. Her mother gave it to her,” she said, clasping the chain and pendant around [...]

Sometimes, it's hard to share the thoughts and feelings weighing most heavily on our hearts. Maybe we're struggling with depression, bullying, a parent's divorce, the death or illness of a loved one, or the sins we are most often tempted by. We might feel embarrassed or ashamed that we feel the way we do. We [...]