Words of Hope: The World Will Know

I have moved to Spokane three times in my life. It has the largest urban waterfall of any North American city—such an incredible place to live! My parents lived in many different towns, Fairbanks, Moscow, Anacortes, Tulsa, San Bernadino,...

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Words of Hope: Refuse Being Tragic (RBT)

Dad and Jay love the phrase POSP, which was an acronym for “P—on Self Pity.” My grandmother was very British, and I don’t love the P--- word. My acronym to get out of self-pity is to say I refuse...

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Words of Hope: Secret Sauce

One of the best skills Dad gave our family was the family meeting. Before an event, this meeting time was crucial to outline the expectations of the family and each other. Dad knew unfulfilled expectations were one of the...

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Words of Hope: Eyes That See the Need

Dad and I often wondered why people work and live together without knowing each other. This distance creates a supreme sense of loneliness. Proximity without intimacy. Habitation without a home. Dad made loving relationships one of his highest priorities....

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Words of Hope: Love Wins

One of my favorite lines in scripture says—“Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart.” It’s located in two passages; Dad and I memorized Psalm 20 and Psalm 37. Dad and I...

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Words of Hope: Acquainted with Grief

We are approaching the one-year anniversary of my Dad’s death. I can feel the sorrow rising in me. I am quick to tears; my bones feel heavy, and my sleep is more troubled. As I was meditating on this,...

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Words of Hope: Stiff Necks

Dad and I liked to take a sermon or scripture and understand it as well as we could. He would pass out blank pages with pens or crayons and ask us to delve deep into what scripture was saying...

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Words of Hope: Sing Until the Miracle Comes

I keep a few old gratitude journals on my desk that I review from time to time. Today I read about an overnight trip my daughter Ari took with her class six years ago. She had been homesick for...

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Words of Hope: Repair

Dad and I had many conversations about the attraction to cut-off relationships by not speaking to someone or vilifying others, a tendency to build up resentment. A situation recently arose between a few people I know. I became the...

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Words of Hope: Giving Hope

I heard from two people last week that Dad's "Words of Hope" book brought people comfort. One person gave the book to a family who lost a teenage son to suicide. Another person gave the book to a friend...

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