Category:
The Hard Stuff
Lenten Winter
Lenten Winter Spring Yes, I know. We did get a few more inches of snow last night. But it’s a spring snow. It’s light and fluffy – not your typical slushy spring snow, I’ll admit – but it’s quiet as cotton to walk on. Gone is the winter crunch I love so much. I don’t…
Doubt
Sometimes I doubt it all very much. If Christianity were real, why don’t we act more like Christians? If there is only one faith, why are there so many factions? If there is only one truth, why aren’t even the most fundamentals agreed upon? Yet even as I lash out in angry questions, an irony…
Anger Management
Philippians 4:8 is one of my favorite verses in the Bible. Someday I am going to write an eloquent post elucidating my reasons why. But not today. Today, I am irrationally angry. I have no idea why, but I find when I stop to consider it that I can come up with a whole host…
Going Through
I had a screen saver on my computer in college that rotated through inspirational quotes. I don’t recall exactly where I got it. I think my roommate received it from someplace; maybe it came with a bookstore promotion. That part doesn’t really matter. What matters is there was one particular quote that always resonated with…
Emotional Trust
Sometimes I wonder: If I have faith in God, why do I still feel afraid or angry or overwhelmed… or all three? Shouldn’t faith mitigate all these negative emotions? My impulse is to think of such emotions as bad, as though my faith must be weak if I am scared or sad. But when I look…
I Am
Sometimes I have trouble believing in God. It can happen suddenly, in one of those horrendous moments that leave me questioning: if God is in control of everything, then why did he let this happen? If he is a loving and personal God, then how could he let this happen? But more often than not,…
Obedience
I recently volunteered at a canine obedience trial. Some dogs and handlers make it look so easy! They move around the ring at the judge’s command, the dog’s head never moving more than an inch from the handler’s side. And yet, the biggest test of obedience often comes not during the intricate heelwork, but during…
Vacation
I gleaned a bit of wisdom recently from one of those “Take This Quiz” articles stamped in the midst of a check-out line tabloid. The quiz wanted me to guess when the greatest benefit of a vacation was realized. Before? During? Immediately after? Having recently returned from a vacation, I can tell you the answer…
Word Shower
Have you ever been walking along the road on a blistering summer day and been overtaken quite suddenly by a cloudburst of rain? There is hardly a cloud in the sky big enough to dictate a rain shower, but here it is, giant drops of rain splashing down all around you, barely strong enough to…
Leave It
One of the first commands I ever taught my puppy was “Leave it!” Like a toddler’s newfound use of the word “no,” “Leave it!” quickly became an echoing refrain. Leave the garbage, leave my shoes, leave the cord to my cell phone… It wasn’t long before she knew what it meant. Acting accordingly, however, was…
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Meet Janet!
Janet Beagle, PhD is the founder of The Mustard Patch. She divides her time between the Midwest and New England, and if she’s not writing, she’s probably out hiking with her 2-and 4-footed friends.