God Can Allow Evil is a part of a quote I read in Dr. Michael Messina’s book Death, Disease, Disaster, and Despicable Evil, and I’m pondering it with you today.

For Lent 2025, I’ll be writing new blog posts every day. I’m writing for just five unedited minutes on a quote of the day to deepen our faith in this Lenten season.

Day 34 of Lent 2025 – April 7

I read this book because Dr. Messina reached out directly to me and asked me to read and review it. I have to admit, it’s not an easy read at all. It directly takes on the problem of good vs. evil which has caused many debates for centuries. Yet I found it to be brutally refreshing in that it doesn’t sugarcoat the hard truths of faith.

Dr. Messina is no stranger to death, disease, disaster, and despicable evil. His father died a tragic death from suicide. In his training to become a Christian psychologist and counselor, he has been exposed to the worst sides of humanity. Also, even though he’s in his 40s like I am, he has been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, which is a slowly debilitating disease that has no cure. With all that suffering in his life, I was more than willing to listen to his stories.

Though Dr. Messina is a former pastor with a compassionate heart, he does not share any Christian platitudes in this book. That’s why I find it refreshing because I’ve heard overly simplified words of “comfort” from well-meaning Christians my whole life. Those words never cut it for me. As I was exposed to the hard truths in this book, I had to come to terms with them in my own life.

I wish I could be transparently honest and list the excruciating traumas in my life. But because evil people still try to stir up dissent against me, I’ll spare you the detailed play-by-play. Suffice it to say I’ve been through a harrowing divorce, endured intense betrayal in multiple relationships, faced high-level spiritual warfare right in my face, and dealt with a stalker in the past three years. That’s why this book was hard for me to read because I’m still processing the trauma. Yet it was what I needed to read, like a bad-tasting medicine to help me heal.

God Can Allow Evil

Dr. Messina spends much time describing this nuanced truth in his book. I’ll do my best to pull some quotes for more context. Yet I encourage you to get a copy of the book to dig in deep. Here are some other quotes to ponder, along with today’s quote.

• Letting this truth sink in, that God has the ultimate, decisive control of all evil tragedies, will help us in our emotional healing when we consider that this sovereign God loves us (Romans 8:39), is for us (Romans 8:31), and works all things together for our good (Romans 8:28).
• God is constantly at work in our lives, shaping us into who he wants us to be. And that shaping is often painful.
• Sometimes God allows suffering in our life so we will change our price tags. The world holds great value when things are going well, and heaven is kind of meh. When things aren’t going great here, the value of here goes down and we see heaven as the greater reward.
• The Western diet of comfortability simply does not have the capacity to bring repentance, sanctification, and glorification in the Christian life.
• Experiencing God in tragedy is perhaps the best way to grow deeper in your relationship to him.
• Taking God off the causal hook in tragedy does not help us; rather, it produces more emotional distress, especially anxiety. If God is not the ultimate cause of tragedy, then who is…I would rather take my chances with God, who loves me and has my best interests in mind…We can rest in the knowledge that neither disease nor disaster happens outside God’s will, which is always good and perfect, even when it doesn’t seem that way.

I first read this book months ago, and quite frankly, I felt angry because the trauma was so fresh at the time. Now that I’ve had some time to heal, I can assent to these truths with both my head and my heart. They are hard truths to accept but necessary ones. That’s why I can be thankful for this book because when the next severe storms in my life occur, I now have a healthier cognitive pathway to process them.

Get your copy of Dr. Messina’s book HERE.

Join me again tomorrow for another reflection on a different quote.

Find all my additional resources for Lent on this page.

Are You Looking for a Book Launch Manager or Virtual Assistant?

If you’re launching a book in 2025 or beyond, be sure to book a call with me HERE to discuss your book launch. I’ve had over 50 clients since 2022, and I’d love to speak with you soon. I’m also taking on new VA clients. You can learn more and book a call with me on THIS PAGE.

If you liked this post, I would appreciate your shares on social media!

Also, if you make a purchase from any of the links on this post, I receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support!

I send my weekly newsletter Tea on Tuesdays at 3:00 p.m. Central time every Tuesday.  I write an exclusive devotion for you each week that I share with you first.

To receive the newsletter, please subscribe below. I can’t wait to share personally with you each week!

Let Me Be Your Mirror is a part of a quote I read in the book Growing a Joyful Heart, and I’m pondering it with you today.

For Lent 2025, I’ll be writing new blog posts every day. I’m writing for just five unedited minutes on a quote of the day to deepen our faith in this Lenten season.

Day 33 of Lent 2025 – April 6

Pam Farrel is my good friend, and I always learn good lessons from her writing. This book on joy is just what I needed when I read it in 2023.

Let Me Be Your Mirror

The quote from the book that still sticks with me today is this one from her husband Bill. Here it is in context of a time Pam was struggling with doubt and lack of self-worth.

“Bill, fearful that I would spiral into depression, shot up a prayer to God for wisdom.

He came over, wrapped his arms around me, and said,

‘Let me be your mirror.

If you need to know how beautiful and godly you are, come see me and I will tell you.

From this moment on, let me be your mirror.'”

This is a beautiful picture of marital love, yet I think it has even broader application.

Let’s Be Each Other’s Mirrors

What if we decided to be others’ mirrors of encouragement?

For at least half of my life, I struggled with a low self-image due to bullying, criticism, and emotional abuse. I treasured the times when others spoke encouraging words to me. It took a long time for those messages to penetrate deep enough to make a difference. Yet I’m grateful for all the kindness of friends, teachers, pastors, and even strangers who decided to be mirrors of encouragement to me in my youth, early adulthood, and adulthood.

What if you told someone who is struggling that you will be their mirror? It reminds me of the movie The Help, in which the African American nanny Aibileen constantly spoke words of encouragement to the little white girl whom she dearly loved. The little girl’s own mother withheld love, but Aibileen freely offered it by serving as the little girl’s mirror of encouragement.

Let’s be each other’s mirrors. Determine that you will speak words of encouragement to inspire joy in people rather than tearing them down with criticism. You might be planting seeds for them that will grow into fruit many years later, just like people did for me when I was young.

There are many other encouraging devotions in this book on various topics. Get your copy of Growing a Joyful Heart HERE.

Join me again tomorrow for another reflection on a different quote.

Find all my additional resources for Lent on this page.

Are You Looking for a Book Launch Manager or Virtual Assistant?

If you’re launching a book in 2025 or beyond, be sure to book a call with me HERE to discuss your book launch. I’ve had over 50 clients since 2022, and I’d love to speak with you soon. I’m also taking on new VA clients. You can learn more and book a call with me on THIS PAGE.

If you liked this post, I would appreciate your shares on social media!

Also, if you make a purchase from any of the links on this post, I receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support!

I send my weekly newsletter Tea on Tuesdays at 3:00 p.m. Central time every Tuesday.  I write an exclusive devotion for you each week that I share with you first.

To receive the newsletter, please subscribe below. I can’t wait to share personally with you each week!

Accept the mystery is a part of a quote I read in Julie Sunne’s book Sometimes I Forget, and I’m pondering it with you today.

For Lent 2025, I’ll be writing new blog posts every day. I’m writing for just five unedited minutes on a quote of the day to deepen our faith in this Lenten season.

Day 32 of Lent 2025 – April 5

My writing friend Julie Sunne was kind enough to send me a copy of her book when it was first published. It’s all about God’s unchanging attributes in short devotional format. I have to admit, it was too painful for me to read at the time she sent it to me. My head was on board, but my heart was hurting as my relationship with God was suffering at the time. However, I’m glad to say that I’ve healed enough to read it now, and I’m gleaning good truths from it.

I’m sharing today’s quote from the chapter God Is Sovereign. This is a truth that has long comforted me about God. Yet my belief was put through a refining fire when Julie first sent me her book. I never stopped believing it. But it was hard to apply to crushing trauma that seemed so custom-fitted to me.

Sometimes Things Seem Unfair

Julie addresses this in another chapter named God Is Simple with these words that affirm so many of our feelings:

“Sometimes it seems God isn’t very caring or understanding. Sometimes things seem unfair. If all things flow through God’s sphere of influence before they get to us, why doesn’t He make them better…Was God punishing me for something? Was He ignoring my needs, or didn’t He care?”

That’s exactly how I felt when I received this book. It was just too painful to think of God being loving, kind, compassionate, etc. I knew those things to be unquestionably true with my whole mind. Yet my heart was in retreat from being so severely traumatized.

Accept the Mystery

Let’s return to the chapter from which today’s quote is drawn and look at it in context:

“Whatever difficult situation we face, the God of the universe is in charge of it. Whether large issues or seemingly small ones, He knows what’s going on, and He has a plan. As the Sovereign, He is allowing the hardship in this season for a reason. We may not understand, but when we accept the mystery of the Divine Supreme Being, believing He has control over all and is never caught off guard, we can choose trust over worry. We can look into our unexpected situation with expectancy for how He will use it in our lives – remembering He’s guiding it all.”

Julie shares with honesty about the huge trials she’s faced. Many are related to being a mom of a child with special needs. She is no stranger to what feels unfair or unjust. That’s why I respect and appreciate her testimonies in these devotions.

Trusting God with Hope

At the end of the book, she tells about going to a national park with her husband on their honeymoon. They saw charred ground from a recent forest fire. Even though they were both scientists who knew the earth would recover from disasters, the loss shook them.

However, decades later, she returned with her husband and children to the same area in Yellowstone. This is what she saw:

“Instead of charred earth, stretched a sea of green grass broken up by the purple, yellow, white, and red of various flowers. Lodgepole pines reached for the sky, while strawberries and huckleberries dotted the undergrowth, begging to be eaten. Life had sprouted from the ashes. It’s a testament to the goodness of a God who controls the universe – a God who transforms the endings we want into the glorious beginnings we need. Trust Him for your new beginning.”

I’m glad I am in a place now where I can accept the mystery. I can trust God over worry and hope for a new beginning after the traumas I’ve faced. I’m grateful Julie painted this beautiful picture of hope in her book while remaining honest about suffering.

Get your copy of Sometimes I Forget HERE.

Join me again tomorrow for another reflection on a different quote.

Find all my additional resources for Lent on this page.

Are You Looking for a Book Launch Manager or Virtual Assistant?

If you’re launching a book in 2025 or beyond, be sure to book a call with me HERE to discuss your book launch. I’ve had over 50 clients since 2022, and I’d love to speak with you soon. I’m also taking on new VA clients. You can learn more and book a call with me on THIS PAGE.

If you liked this post, I would appreciate your shares on social media!

Also, if you make a purchase from any of the links on this post, I receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support!

I send my weekly newsletter Tea on Tuesdays at 3:00 p.m. Central time every Tuesday.  I write an exclusive devotion for you each week that I share with you first.

To receive the newsletter, please subscribe below. I can’t wait to share personally with you each week!

Break any stronghold in your life is a part of a quote I read in Barb Roose’s book Stronger Than Stress, and I’m pondering it with you today.

For Lent 2025, I’ll be writing new blog posts every day. I’m writing for just five unedited minutes on a quote of the day to deepen our faith in this Lenten season.

Day 31 of Lent 2025 – April 4

I purchased this book last year and I’m just now getting around to reading it. The timing is perfect as I resume full-time freelance work, which can be stressful because my income is not guaranteed.

This week my stress has been triggered over and over. I spent almost a whole day trying to get a file to load, but then had to start from scratch in a different program. In that stressful period, I questioned my own abilities to perform well. This was unnecessary because the problem was with the operating system, not me. However, because my autonomic nervous system was flooded, I attacked myself – that’s my normal setting due to years of emotional abuse.

Renouncing the Spirit of Chronic Stress

I picked up Barb’s book from my big stack of to-read books last night. This quote hit me in the heart. As I recently wrote, my pastor talked about the stronghold of despair in his sermon, which I never considered to be a stronghold in my life. Now Barb points out that chronic stress can be a stronghold too. I’m glad she did, because now I can pray more intelligently about it. My pastor said he started renouncing the spirit of despair in his life, and I will do that too – as well as the spirit of chronic stress.

I am a true-blue overachiever. It’s part of my DNA as an Enneagram 1 and a firstborn, and also as a gifted student. But my natural high achievement style has also been exacerbated by other factors. These factors include being a child of divorce since age 4 who was doing all the homeowner tasks I do now by age 10. I was  I’m starting to realize just how much those heavy burdens at a very young age are still impacting me now in my work and personal life.

Learning from Paul about Stress

Barb frames her book around the apostle Paul’s life. He was a natural high achiever, just like me. However, she points out that though Paul endured many stressful situations and wrote honestly about them, he still experienced God’s peace in spite of them. He was extremely productive without letting work rule his life. I’m looking forward to learning more from Barb as I continue reading this book, and applying the examples from Paul’s life to my own.

Are you dealing with chronic stress like I am? Get your copy of Stronger Than Stress HERE.

Join me again tomorrow for another reflection on a different quote.

Find all my additional resources for Lent on this page.

Are You Looking for a Book Launch Manager or Virtual Assistant?

If you’re launching a book in 2025 or beyond, be sure to book a call with me HERE to discuss your book launch. I’ve had over 50 clients since 2022, and I’d love to speak with you soon. I’m also taking on new VA clients. You can learn more and book a call with me on THIS PAGE.

If you liked this post, I would appreciate your shares on social media!

Also, if you make a purchase from any of the links on this post, I receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support!

I send my weekly newsletter Tea on Tuesdays at 3:00 p.m. Central time every Tuesday.  I write an exclusive devotion for you each week that I share with you first.

To receive the newsletter, please subscribe below. I can’t wait to share personally with you each week!

You cannot change what you do not confront is a part of a quote I read in Craig Groeschel’s book Winning the War in Your Mind, and I’m pondering it with you today.

For Lent 2025, I’ll be writing new blog posts every day. I’m writing for just five unedited minutes on a quote of the day to deepen our faith in this Lenten season.

Day 30 of Lent 2025 – April 3

Winning the War in Your Mind is a powerful book to help you change your thoughts, which shape your life. I like Craig Groeschel’s writing because it is clear, concise, and ringing with truth. It’s also filled with humor and humility, which make the lessons even more meaningful. You can see my Lenten post about another one of his books HERE.

In the past three years, I have battled depression, which is a battle in the mind. I know that’s where all our battles begin, and it’s where Satan can whisper lies to us. Though I’ve written two books on transforming your thought life, I needed to confront lies I believed that the enemy planted. Lies like “things are never going to get better for me,” or “the shoe is always going to fall,” which are rooted in a lifetime of abuse. I had to confront the underlying traumas to change my thought life, as recommended in THIS BOOK.

You Cannot Change What You Do Not Confront

This journey of greater self-awareness in my thought life is an important part of my healing process. In a support group I joined through my church, we learned to name our emotions out loud. This practice of naming my emotions is helping me gain self-awareness. Now when a thought life problem develops, I name the emotion I’m feeling before God. It helps to say, “God, the reason I’m thinking this is because I’m lonely right now.” The feeling can be changed based on the moment. Just acknowledging it before God out loud helps decrease the negative feeling’s power. After I confess my feeling, I renew my trust in God with an audible statement. In this way, I’m winning the war because I’m not ignoring the battle going on in my mind.

Craig’s book is a powerful tool for gaining self-awareness of your thought life problems. I think it’s a good read along with my book, which is a tool to point you toward specific scriptures to help you fight back in specific areas of struggle. In fact, I know my publisher gave me a contract for my book the same year Craig’s book was published, because the topic of “thought life” was what the Holy Spirit wanted readers to focus on that year, along with this popular book too.

More quotes from Winning the War in Your Mind:

• A lie believed as truth will affect your life as if it were true.
• Who you are today is a result of your thoughts in the past. Who you become in the future will reflect what you think about today.
• The battle for your life is won or lost in your mind. Your thoughts will control you, so you have to control your thoughts.

Get your copy of Winning the War in Your Mind HERE.

Join me again tomorrow for another reflection on a different quote.

Find all my additional resources for Lent on this page.

Are You Looking for a Book Launch Manager or Virtual Assistant?

If you’re launching a book in 2025 or beyond, be sure to book a call with me HERE to discuss your book launch. I’ve had over 50 clients since 2022, and I’d love to speak with you soon. I’m also taking on new VA clients. You can learn more and book a call with me on THIS PAGE.

If you liked this post, I would appreciate your shares on social media!

Also, if you make a purchase from any of the links on this post, I receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support!

I send my weekly newsletter Tea on Tuesdays at 3:00 p.m. Central time every Tuesday.  I write an exclusive devotion for you each week that I share with you first.

To receive the newsletter, please subscribe below. I can’t wait to share personally with you each week!