As a young child living in the Midwest, I have vivid memories of being woken up in the middle of the night by my parents during storms. My mom, the parent usually tasked with waking us kids up while my dad watched the weather, would gently shake us and tell us to grab our pillows and blankets and come lay in the hallway. My siblings and I would typically sprawl out in the hallway, arguing over who got what area of space. When we were young, we would instantly fall back asleep. On a few occasions, when the storm was severe enough, we would move into the bathroom, pile into the bathtub and wait out the storm.

We read today a portion of a sermon from Concordia Pulpit Resources that focuses on the reading from Acts.

I’m a big believer in grace.

I believe I’m saved by grace alone and you’re saved by grace alone, through Jesus Christ. It’s a openhanded free and beautiful gift from our Savior willing to sacrifice everything for us. He values our face and our voice so much that He wants to spend eternity with both. He’d rather lose His life than lose us forever.

Some of the best aspects of summer fall right in line with healthy living.

Crisp, juicy watermelon.

Running through the sprinkler.

Digging in the garden.

Bible journaling is a thing right now. Instagram is filled with photos of people strategically placing their margin drawings alongside their coffee cup and a vase of flowers.

We read an excerpt from A History of Western Christianity as we commemorate Constantine and his mother, Helena, today.

As we celebrate the day of Pentecost, we turn to the reading from Acts and read a devotion from The Pentecost Story: Arch Books.

One of our favorite things about where my husband, two dogs, and I live is our close proximity to the beautiful badlands of North Dakota. On the occasional free weekend, the four of us enjoy venturing out onto some public land and getting a good hike in. Since our first trip out, I have learned what to expect. However, that first trip was a learning curve for me.

I have found myself using the term fearless lately to describe the women in my life. Most days I am privileged to hear women’s stories. Men have great stories too, but today I would like to celebrate the fearlessness of women in particular. I hear wide and varied stories:

We dig into the Epistle today, specifically verses 14 and 15, which emphasize that our confidence in prayer comes from the surety of Christ’s promise for our salvation. Our devotion is from Teach Us to Pray.