by Emily Wierenga | Nov 2, 2012 | belief, brennan manning, children, elizabeth esther, fear, grace, homeschooling, Jesus, motherhood, ragamuffin gospel, spiritual warfare
it’s been a hard couple of weeks for me, friends. it’s hard for me to step out of my comfort zone and talk about what i believe. what i truly, deep down, feel convicted about, but i’m 32 years old. Jesus started his ministry at 30, and died at... by Emily Wierenga | Oct 31, 2012 | children, church, deliverance, demons, dress-up, evil, exorcism, God, goodness, halloween, pastor, satan
(post by Elizabeth at Just Following Jesus)My husband, who is a pastor, had just left for a conference out of state when I got the call. It was someone who attended our church, asking “the pastor” to please come. They said their loved one was... by Emily Wierenga | Oct 29, 2012 | a year of biblical womanhood, bible, biblical, feminism, gender issues, gender roles, God, grace, rachel held evans, wild goose festival, womanhood
From the moment I met Rachel Held Evans at the Wild Goose Festival this summer, surrounded by throngs of believers from all ethnicities and sexual orientations and denominations, she redefined for me what it meant to be a feminist. Because she didn’t look the way I... by Emily Wierenga | Oct 27, 2012 | a deeper family, a deeper story, feminism, gender issues, gender roles, identity, response, womanhood
Warning: This post is not to answer all of your questions. It is not to provide a universal equation. It is not to defend feminism or complementarianism or anything else. It is to share my story.Up until a few months ago I had stretched ears, a piercing in my chin,... by Emily Wierenga | Oct 24, 2012 | birth, book, boy, daughter, eating disorders, family, father, girl, imperfect prose on thursdays, mother, skinny, sons
Maybe it’s one of the reasons I whisper hallelujah each time I find a boy in my womb growing long and limber, although I know eating disorders are just as real for them, 25 per cent real in fact, and we just don’t realize it. That men sometimes hide in toilet bowls... by Emily Wierenga | Oct 23, 2012 | a deeper family, a deeper story, female, feminism, gender issues, Jesus, males, men, ministry, rachel held evans, womanhood, women pastors
what grieves me most is the thought of not seeking the truth, and please understand, that’s all i’m striving for. i’m not trying to be political or controversial or anti-cultural.i’ve realized recently, since having more and more disordered eaters and their families... by Emily Wierenga | Oct 21, 2012 | adoption, agency, anorexic, brothers, burnout, christian, family, foster care, foster children, mercy, weight
we’ve taken turns quitting over the past nine months, since taking these boys in, last february. and it’s been a ripping at the seams, of our finely hemmed lives. but with the ripping there comes mending. and we’ve found it in the mercy of each... by Emily Wierenga | Oct 19, 2012 | basement, five minute fridays, flooding, house, lisa-jo baker, look, materialism, poor, poverty, renovations, rich
three months ago, our basement flooded. the neighbors’ sewer water seeped into our carpets and all of our bedrooms, minus kasher’s, were destroyed, and the family room as well. it was concrete and no furniture for three months, and all of the kids resigned... by Emily Wierenga | Oct 17, 2012 | anorexia, attention, boy, brother, bulimia, chasing silhouettes, duane scott, eating disorders, family, giveaway, imperfect prose on thursdays, starvation
(guest post by duane scott)He’s not a tall boy, I notice, and so thin. Almost sickly. His arms look like a boy half his age. We’re in Canada at a boy’s retreat and my heart goes out to him so I look him square with empathy because I’m ready to hear his story, whatever... by Emily Wierenga | Oct 15, 2012 | beauty, children, girl, grace, husband, kindness, love, marriage, mirror, motherhood, self-love, sin, wine, womanhood
the other night we had pudding. or rather, it had us, all covered and sticky and delicious, and we wondered about insisting on spoons. but then we remembered that sometimes grace feels like fingers covered in dessert.and i’m learning this for myself, as a...