by Emily Wierenga | Dec 15, 2012 | adam lanza, america, connecticut school shooting, grieving, newtown shootings, prayer vigil, sandy hook school elementary, shootings
i would hand you a candle if i could. and we would light them together in trembling silence, for all of those children at Sandy Hook School Elementary, for all of those mamas with their torn veils and their husbands with a broken stance over their wives who’ve... by Emily Wierenga | Dec 14, 2012 | abroad, bidet, children, compassion, frugal, generosity, gifts, giving, God, money, mother teresa, overseas, poverty, st. francis of assisi, third world
We are now the proud owners of a bidet.Yes, one of those fancy toilets. The kind my husband fell in love with when we visited Japan five years ago. We’ve had a few lively discussions over the past about our need for a bidet, but apparently, we need... by Emily Wierenga | Dec 12, 2012 | advent, children, destiny, discouraged, dreams, hopes, imperfect prose on thursdays, Jesus, mary, savior, tara pohlkotte, trust
Mother and Child, Watercolor, by E. Wierenga (www.etsy.com/shop/canvaschild)(Guest post by Tara Pohlkotte) The flu is making its way around our house this weekleaving tired bodies, instant needs, and a weary mama leaning on door jams to regain strength when... by Emily Wierenga | Dec 10, 2012 | a broken hallelujah, christmas, foster children, hardship, humility, hurt, Jesus, pain, prodigal magazine, redemption, synchroblog
Father, forgive me, for I have sinned. For the month of October I decided I was done. We took these boys in last February and their mom had until now to get on medication, to get her ducks in a row, and there are no ducks and I’m done with grace. I’m done with... by Emily Wierenga | Dec 7, 2012 | a light shining, book giveaway, books, dancing priest, fiction, glynn young, God, literature, novels, prayer, reading, writing
(Guest post by Glynn Young) I’m learning what fiction can do for people, and I’m learning it from people who read fiction.I was on an airplane in 2002, flying to San Francisco for a conference. The in-flight movies weren’t terribly appealing, and so I was... by Emily Wierenga | Dec 5, 2012 | depression, faith, foster care, humility, imperfect prose on thursdays, Jesus, mary the mother of Jesus, motherhood, sadness, she loves magazine, virgin mary
As of this month I have no one. My nanny, a girl of 18 who’s been coming since we took the boys in, has moved. Trent has started coaching, so the hours are long in the bleak of winter dark and the kids are so small that I bundle them all up in snow-pants and toques... by Emily Wierenga | Dec 3, 2012 | children, darkness, dreams, Jesus, monsters, nightmares, parenting, prayer, satan, spiritual warfare
the green bunny is normally enough. sometimes aiden lets me wash it so it’s nice and soft but most of the time he carries it everywhere, my three year-old, while his brother carries a brown bear.but lately the bunny’s lost its power, and i’ve been... by Emily Wierenga | Nov 30, 2012 | author, famous, God, humility, identity, news anchor, spotlight, the high calling, TV
(photo by JustinaGibson.com)“Why do you want to be on TV?”We were walking home from Mount Carmel Bible School, along the same stretch of asphalt we walked every day and he was a farm-boy from Neerlandia, a small Dutch community with three reformed churches. And he... by Emily Wierenga | Nov 28, 2012 | church, gospel, human, hypocrisy, imperfect prose on thursdays, integrity, Jesus, lies, love, pastors, priest, sin
The Last Supper by e. wierenga (http://www.etsy.com/shop/canvaschild) Church wasn’t safe for me growing up. It was a place where we all had to pretend to be something we weren’t. On the drive home each Sunday, we would all be so cranky and tired, Dad would often have... by Emily Wierenga | Nov 27, 2012 | anorexia, brain cancer, christianity, church, dad, hypocrisy, Jesus, ministry, mum, parenthood, pastor's daughter, redemption, sermons, servanthood
Me descending the church steps on the right; my dad, shaking people’s hands on the left.I can still picture the van we drove, rusted and worn at the edges kind of like our family, and sometimes we drove half the morning’s hours to church because my parents...