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Learning a New Language – Speak Life!

By Samantha Evans

"The tongue has the power of life and death." Proverbs 18:21 Just like with any skill that’s worth attaining, learning a new language takes a lot of practice. English is my second language and I attribute my ability to speak it fluently to three main things – desire, input and lots and lots of practice. I lived in the U.S. for a year when I was in 5th grade and that was very helpful. It definitely provided me with a good English foundation. However, once I moved back to Mexico I only had some English classes in middle school and…

Marriage, Parenting, Personal Development, Relationship Building, Spiritual Growth

Accepting The Things We Cannot Change

By Samantha Evans

Accepting what I cannot change has been one of the most liberating and empowering things I’ve ever learned to do. It has also been one of the hardest. I am not going to suggest that anytime we face a difficult or disappointing situation we should just shrug our shoulders, accept it, and move on. Not at all. First, we must pray for “the wisdom to know the difference” between what we can change and what we can’t. If God is calling us to do something about it (i.e. ask for forgiveness, set a boundary, have a difficult conversation, forgive, stand…

Personal Development, Spiritual Growth

You Are No Ordinary Mom

By Samantha Evans

I came across this old picture of my daughter in my Facebook memories. I thought it was so cute that she was wearing her brother’s medieval armor while cuddling her baby doll. I didn’t realize God would later use this image to paint a vivid picture of my role as a mother, and to remind me that I am no ordinary mom. Guess what? Neither are you. As believers, we have weapons available to fight for our children with authority, hope, and confidence. In Ephesians 6:10-18, Paul uses the imagery of a soldier ready for battle and assigns a spiritual…

Parenting, Relationship Building, Spiritual Growth

El Roi – The God Who Sees Me

By Samantha Evans

She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her: "You are the God who sees me," for she said, "I have now seen the One who sees me." Genesis 16:13 During a season when I was feeling particularly invisible, the Lord prompted me to order an encouraging custom sign for a friend. I remember thinking, That is so sweet, Lord. Immediately followed by, I wish someone would get me a sign too. I felt kind of childish for even having that thought. It reminded me of the times when I’m doting on one of my children, and later find the other one…

Spiritual Growth

Four Lessons from King Solomon’s Life

By Samantha Evans

In Proverbs 4:3-9, King Solomon remembered his father’s words to him: For I too was a son to my father,still tender, and cherished by my mother. Then he taught me, and he said to me,“Take hold of my words with all your heart;keep my commands, and you will live. Get wisdom, get understanding;do not forget my words or turn away from them. Do not forsake wisdom, and she will protect you;love her, and she will watch over you. The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom.Though it cost all you have, get understanding. Cherish her, and she will exalt you;embrace…

Parenting, Relationship Building, Spiritual Growth

Do You See What I See?

By Samantha Evans

"Anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!" 2 Corinthians 5:17 Sometimes God speaks to my heart through the most unusual, perhaps even mundane activities of my day to day life. I love that He meets me where I’m at to reveal a spiritual truth where I least expect it. A few days ago, I decided to finally redo the front room in my home. It is one long room that functions as a formal living and dining room space. My dining table sat in one half of…

Personal Development, Spiritual Growth

Don’t Let Fear Keep You from the Mountain Top

By Samantha Evans

"The thief comes only to steal, kill, and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly." John 10:10 When I first married my husband, I had no idea family ski vacations were so high up on his happiness list. I grew up in a beach town in Mexico, and I didn’t see snow until I moved to the U.S. as an adult. On top of that, I was not what people considered outdoorsy or sporty. We live in Texas, so I thought surely my husband would get over his ski obsession at some point, right? Not…

Parenting, Personal Development, Relationship Building

Breaking Generational Strongholds

By Samantha Evans

Have you heard Kari Jobe’s new song, “The Blessing”? Such a beautiful song inspired by Numbers 6:24-26 which reads: “The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.” Just when you think the song can’t get any better, Kari belts out this powerful declaration: “May His favor be upon you, and a thousand generations. In your family and your children, and their children, and their children.” Doesn’t that sound wonderful? More than anything, I want to pass on…

Parenting, Relationship Building, Spiritual Growth

With a Little Help from My Friends

By Samantha Evans

"Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor." Ecc. 4:9 I struggle with discipline. I am not a morning person, a fitness enthusiast, or a nutrition guru. I don’t connect with God at the same time and place every day, I don’t cook dinner as often as I should, and I find it difficult to stick to any kind of routine long term. It’s easy to become discouraged when you find yourself constantly failing at things that other people seem to do with ease. When my kids were little, we went through a season…

Personal Development, Relationship Building

The Lord Will Fight For You

By Samantha Evans

"The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still." Exodus 14:14 It might be one of the most annoying things to deal with as a parent, but it is undeniably true: if you have more than one kid, sibling conflict is a part of family life. My kids have had their fair share of quarrels over the years. Too many to remember them all. However, there is one particular incident that will forever remain engraved in my mind and heart. Partly because of how comical it was to see it play out, but most of all because…

Marriage, Relationship Building, Spiritual Growth

What Needs Resurrection in Your Life Today?

By Samantha Evans

"He is risen! He is risen indeed!" I’ve heard that familiar phrase year after year every Easter Sunday. However, I was a Christian for many years before I even began to understand the power of Jesus’ resurrection and its implications for my life today. For the longest time, I associated the word “resurrection” with Jesus being raised from the dead, with His second coming (when all the dead in Christ will rise again), and with the people that Jesus or the Apostles raised from the dead. That was it. I had no other context for that word. I still remember…

Spiritual Growth

Celebrating Effort Regardless of the Outcome

By Samantha Evans

“Mom, we have to be the first ones to get to school tomorrow morning!” my daughter announced with excitement. Her Language Arts teacher was going to assign poems for the school’s annual declamation contest, first come, first serve. My daughter, who was in 6th grade at the time, wanted to recite Shakespeare’s “Is This a Dagger Which I See Before Me?”. She knew to have a shot at making it to the finals she had to choose one of the High School level poems, and she wanted to make sure she could get her first pick. This came as a…

Parenting, Personal Development, Relationship Building