Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been tagged as “self-sufficiency”
When my daughter was a toddler, one of my her favorite refrains was “I do it my big-self, Mommy.” It was a phrase that simultaneously made me happy (so proud!) and terrified (she’s not ready!). If you’ve spent any time around the preschool scene, you know toddlers can go from clingy to independent in an instant. It’s fun to watch …
By Beth Demme Do you remember Paul Harvey? He was on the radio back in the day, always sharing “the rest of the story.” Well, in Christianity, Ascension is the rest of the story. As much as my faith is based on incarnation, crucifixion, and resurrection, it is also about ascension. I declare this every time I say the Apostles’ …
Praying and Waiting A Biblical Hero’s Lesson In How NOT To Do It By Beth Demme Are you good at praying … and then waiting? I spend a good amount of time praying, even listening, but I’m terrible at waiting! Abraham, the patriarch of Jewish, Christian, and Muslim faiths was also not good at waiting for God’s promises to come …
Christmas IS About What You Get By Beth Demme “Tis Better to Give Than Receive” – you’ve definitely heard it, and you’ve probably said it. It’s what we are supposed to think about gifting in general, but it is especially supposed to be our attitude at Christmas. Paul even tells us in Acts 20:35 that Jesus said it! Giving instead …
Stepping Out in Faith By Beth Demme Has anyone ever told you to take a leap of faith? It can sound irrational, even dangerous. For example, in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, one of the last challenges Indy faces as he searches for The Holy Grail is a “leap of faith” across a deep chasm. When he steps out …
It’s Not About What You Can Do God Can Make Abundance From Nothing By Beth Demme I know you know the story. The story of the Feeding of the Five Thousand. Jesus wanted a little peace and quiet to mourn the death of John the Baptist. He tried to go off by himself, but the crowds followed him. Jesus put …
The Birth of Jesus is the Death of Self-Sufficiency By Beth Demme In 1944, a German Catholic priest named Alfred Delp spent his final Advent in a Nazi prison. A few weeks before he was hanged, Father Delp described the Virgin Mary as “the most comforting of all the Advent figures.” He wrote: Advent is the promise denoting the new …
By Beth Demme One of the major lessons of the Bible is this: God loves us even when we act unlovable. A great example of a Biblical character who fails to live loved is a man named Gideon. When we meet Gideon (in Judges 6), he is feeling a little hopeless. The angel says (and I’m paraphrasing here), “nice day …