tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-87431499965578047122024-03-13T04:39:55.142-07:00Off the Beaten PathAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17899163256691121556noreply@blogger.comBlogger649125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8743149996557804712.post-28260327206424178422015-11-17T14:47:00.000-08:002015-11-17T14:47:08.780-08:00I Have a New Web Site!!!Well I'm taking a new path today. For a couple of months now I've had a wonderful, smart web designer creating me a new look at a new address. Talented Erin Ulrich is taking Off the Beaten Path Ministries to kayharms.com!!
You'll notice that my new site still contains a blog, but it's not necessarily the featured element. I decided I needed to feature my books and speaking potential instead. ButAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17899163256691121556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8743149996557804712.post-35982154019475313282015-11-12T14:30:00.000-08:002015-11-12T14:35:15.487-08:00Overwhelmed by the Pieces? - Healing Words from Genesis
I have a friend who creates unique and lovely jewelry. I was at her house recently to pick up a necklace she had designed for me when I noticed a large tub full of assorted beads sitting on her dining room table. It appeared that every single tiny piece was different from the others. The colors and shapes were noticeably beautiful, but truthfully the collection looked like chaos to me.
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17899163256691121556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8743149996557804712.post-85998042277723667482015-11-11T05:00:00.000-08:002015-11-11T05:00:04.797-08:00Healing Words - A New Blog Series
In the beginning...well, just after the beginning...the world broke. We broke it. And we were broken, too.
Ever since then we've experienced the pain and grief and ache of sick, deformed, malfunctioning and broken...bodies, relationships, families, minds, hearts, spirits, churches, dreams, etc.
But the good news is that even before He formed the earth and laid it on its foundations, God put Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17899163256691121556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8743149996557804712.post-393897778977640102015-10-26T11:54:00.002-07:002015-10-26T12:22:25.739-07:00Why It's Time to Change the QuestionI've stared at this blank page for a long time trying to figure out how I could paint the picture without including details, but I can't. And so I won't.
You see once again I found myself asking "Why?" The rest of the question isn't really significant, I suppose. The beginning is what we all have in common. We've all asked "Why...?"
Do you think it's okay to ask God why? I do. David certainly Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17899163256691121556noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8743149996557804712.post-29525458703374758512015-10-21T11:54:00.001-07:002015-10-21T11:54:46.291-07:00When I Look at You I See God!Can you imagine someone telling you that when they look in your face it's like looking at the face of God? Well it happened. And it can happen again. You might be surprised at how.
Here's the final of my three videos about Genesis 33:1-11. I hope you'll join me. (If you haven't watched session 1 or session 2, you might want to watch those first.)
If this video series has spoken to you, I Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17899163256691121556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8743149996557804712.post-82764618793323947032015-10-19T04:00:00.000-07:002015-10-19T04:00:04.548-07:00Want to Know the Key to a Healed Heart?Do feel like you've lost too much to ever forgive the one who hurt you? Oh friend, let me share this amazing key to healing with you! It's right there in Genesis 33:1-11 and I'd love the opportunity to tell you about it.
But if you haven't watched the first video in this 3-part series, I suggest you start here. Then come back and watch this video.
So grab your Bible, turn to Genesis 33 and hit Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17899163256691121556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8743149996557804712.post-35407597901981011132015-10-14T15:36:00.000-07:002015-10-14T15:36:19.077-07:00It's a Vlog Post!!! A Vlog Series, in Fact!After I read Genesis 33 for the humpteen billionth time this morning something new caught my eye. In fact, several something news caught my eye. And I was so full of stuff I wanted to share with you that I thought it best to pull out the video camera and talk it out rather than type it out.
Today I'm posting the first of three videos on Genesis 33:1-11. I'm offering some insights on forgiveness Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17899163256691121556noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8743149996557804712.post-48410718849341407212015-10-12T17:34:00.000-07:002015-10-12T17:34:25.804-07:00How to Spice Things Up with the Love of Your Life
Even the sweetest of relationships can occasionally grow stale. But we eagerly invest in that which we cherish. So today I'd like to offer you a few tips - that I've tried, tested and found to be worthwhile - for bringing renewed passion and delight to your most important relationship.
First of all, I suggest you meet the lover of your soul consistently where He can always be found: in His Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17899163256691121556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8743149996557804712.post-89021949380785272842015-10-06T11:05:00.002-07:002015-10-06T11:18:35.217-07:00I Cried Most Every Day. You, Too?I'm not sure exactly what I was doing a year ago today, but I'm almost certain the day included some tears. I know I probably cried tears of hurt and loss a year ago today because I cried most every day for about a year.
Following a significant change in an important relationship, my emotions weighed heavy and elicited tears daily for about a year. And I grew weary of hurting and crying and Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17899163256691121556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8743149996557804712.post-40218309378024386352015-08-31T04:00:00.000-07:002015-08-31T04:00:06.438-07:00Is It Time to Clean Out a Family Closet?Just around the corner from my home office lurks a dark place where I rarely venture. I look the other way when I pass the door on my way to the bathroom multiple times each day. And I keep that door shut unless I absolutely must retrieve something from behind it.
It's a closet. And it desperately needs to be cleaned out.
Many of us choose to stuff things in closets when we don't know what Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17899163256691121556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8743149996557804712.post-67069602268688847142015-08-15T21:07:00.000-07:002015-08-15T21:07:30.852-07:00I'd Like to Introduce You to...JosephWe have a great Redeemer. When we feel that all is lost, all is broken...we have a Savior who restores, heals and redeems that which was lost.
This Bible study, Joseph - Keeping a Soft Heart in a Hard Place, is a gift of redemption for me. It is my "pain turned platform." It is the good that God worked from "all things" - the good, the bad, the ugly - as He worked His plan for my life. It is a Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17899163256691121556noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8743149996557804712.post-33288706037704978352015-08-06T03:00:00.000-07:002015-08-28T17:27:38.377-07:00Why I Saw a Counselor...and you might want to, tooI'm a pastor's wife, a Bible study leader of 25 years and a Bible study author. But, like everyone else, I need a little help now and then.
About a year ago I saw a Christian therapist for about two months. She was wonderfully helpful. I considered asking her to be my new best friend, but I didn't want to creep her out. So I refrained. But, like a kind and attentive friend, Heather leaned in, Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17899163256691121556noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8743149996557804712.post-69749839718959751612015-08-03T03:00:00.000-07:002015-08-03T03:00:08.496-07:006 Ways to Make This Move Easier on Your Soul - 6You've made the move, you've said hello and you've run into a few snags. But that's ok, because you anticipated that not everything would run like clockwork, right? Now there's one more thing I'd like you to do:
Plant yourself.
Even if you're only going to be a nurse in that hospital for two years before your next assignment. Even if you're only going to be in graduate school for one year. Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17899163256691121556noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8743149996557804712.post-83209984705288978522015-06-25T10:52:00.000-07:002015-06-25T10:52:18.346-07:006 Ways to Make This Move Easier on Your Soul - 5
When you move to a new place...please say hello.
I'll admit: I've enjoyed a pass on this one. For each of my past four moves I've had hundreds of people waiting at my destination to say hello to me. Granted, most of those hundreds of people cared to do little more than say hello. Not everyone at each of the churches my husband has pastored really cared to go beyond hello and get to know my Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17899163256691121556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8743149996557804712.post-37541068874055289322015-06-22T15:43:00.001-07:002015-06-22T15:43:32.918-07:006 Ways to Make this Move Easier on Your Soul - 4It's funny how the little things matter so much more when you can no longer lay your hands on them. Mayonnaise was mayonnaise to me until I looked with dismay at the grocery display and found no Hellman's. Of course, when I finally got my breathing back to normal and the room stopped spinning, I noticed that the Best mayonnaise jar looked awfully similar to the Hellman's jar I had been familiar Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17899163256691121556noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8743149996557804712.post-88733689932410460292015-06-16T10:57:00.000-07:002015-06-16T10:57:44.029-07:006 Ways to Make this Move Easier on Your Soul - 3
Know That Things Will Change;
God Will Not
With breathless enthusiasm my daughter recounted her experience of swinging through the air. She's a camp counselor at Cannon Beach Christian Conference Center again this year, but she's working with older kids. Since she worked with preschoolers last year she never had the opportunity to "fly through the air" on the giant swing of the Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17899163256691121556noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8743149996557804712.post-70834933612835911742015-06-05T04:00:00.000-07:002015-06-05T04:00:05.497-07:006 Ways to Make This Move Easier on Your Soul - Part 2
We had spent well over a hundred dollars on sequins and tulle sewn onto a tiny little leotard. Sure, we'd be taking the purple, frothy costume with us when we moved, but Abby would miss the recital for which we'd purchased the get-up. This little Rockin' Robin wouldn't be rockin' with all the other little robins that she had finally begun to enjoy tumbling and tapping her feet and pointing herAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17899163256691121556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8743149996557804712.post-73262045589626147102015-06-03T04:00:00.000-07:002015-06-03T04:00:04.977-07:00Moving? - 6 Ways to Make This Move Easier on Your Soul
I'm not moving. Whew! That's a relief.
But I have moved. And I both loved and hated every move. Moving is hard.
I moved from my parents' home to a college dorm.
I moved again from my parents' home...to a sweet little apartment shared with my new husband...900 miles away from my parents!
I moved from an apartment to a spacious and lovely parsonage...back in my home state :)
I moved from Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17899163256691121556noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8743149996557804712.post-87370740256230648332015-06-01T09:47:00.000-07:002015-06-01T09:47:15.458-07:00Longing for an Invitation?"No one ever invites me to do anything." I lay in bed last night and said those words to my husband. For probably the 127th time in our marriage. Bless his heart. He takes me seriously every time I pour out that lament, even though he surely knows it isn't true.
People do invite me to do things. I'm having lunch with a dear friend today because she suggested we get together this week. And just Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17899163256691121556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8743149996557804712.post-87270417222542076132015-05-21T12:37:00.001-07:002015-05-21T12:37:26.628-07:00Embracing This New SeasonToday is the last day I will hear the children laughing and shouting at one another. The balls that bounce into the air and the jump ropes that swish the ground and the whistle that signals the children to come running to the big glass doors will all be put away for a few months.
It's the last day of school.
Every weekday morning during the school year I savor the sounds that waft through myAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17899163256691121556noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8743149996557804712.post-68676241108189496362015-05-20T17:18:00.000-07:002015-05-21T10:35:44.177-07:00Guess What... I Have a Board!Today I stepped out on a limb and did two things I rarely do. I wonder if you shake in your fuzzy socks as much as I do at the thought of sharing your dreams with others. And would you rather throw up than ask for help with making those dreams come true?
Dreams are personal...and scary...and iffy. Dreams are...well they're dreams. You don't know whether to claim them as promises from God or to Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17899163256691121556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8743149996557804712.post-88296171369300039862015-05-12T10:58:00.002-07:002015-05-12T11:02:41.813-07:00Has Life Knocked You Down?
Sometimes life knocks us down...knocks the air out of our lungs and the wind out of our sails. But we can get back up. Hope gets us back up.
For I hope in Thee, O Lord;
Thou wilt answer, O Lord my God.
- Psalm 38:15
God is gracious to fill us with hope that fortifies us, steadies us, strengthens our resolve.
Hope fills our lungs with peace and our sails with joy. Hope brightens the Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17899163256691121556noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8743149996557804712.post-1104877170066424992015-05-08T08:40:00.000-07:002015-05-08T08:40:05.304-07:00You're Not Being Punished
She had plans...good intentions. When we met at the beginning of the week her face was bright and hopeful. Her words were determined and sure.
But now as we sipped our sodas in my car at Sonic, she seemed deflated and...ashamed.
"It almost sounds as if you're ashamed of yourself," I offered carefully.
She put her drink cup in her lap, stirred the straw around nervously and admitted, "I am."Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17899163256691121556noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8743149996557804712.post-44473473259363024992015-03-26T11:59:00.000-07:002015-03-26T11:59:37.427-07:00When Your Child Breaks Her Ankle...or other catastropheAbby, I'm not posting about your broken ankle...or the surgery you had a week later...or the terrible effect the pain meds had on you...or the emotional roller coaster we've all been on for the past two weeks. That's not what this post is about. It's not about you.
It's about me -- the caretaker.
My 21-year-old daughter Abby did indeed break her ankle during a production of Othello two weeksAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17899163256691121556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8743149996557804712.post-6314230932772892822015-03-17T09:17:00.004-07:002015-03-17T09:17:40.994-07:00Are You the Most Excellent?I had monitored the situation pretty well for months. So I knew what to expect. Except there was always the exception. There was always that one classs in which I was riding the fence. And when I received that little brown envelop with a dozen signatures in my mom's fluid handwriting on the front, I'd pull out the worn card inside and my eyes would go right to that one class.
"A". That's whatAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17899163256691121556noreply@blogger.com1