Kyria

If I Could Change the Past ...

Funny how something as ordinary as a high school yearbook can change a relationship. That fateful day, a warm breeze blew as my daughter Emily walked in the front door carrying her high school yearbook. I was pleased that Emily was having a positive high school experience in the small, agricultural Missouri town where we'd moved with my husband, Steve, Emily's stepfather.

Emily and I sat at the kitchen ...

Related Topics: forgiveness, Parenting, Wisdom in, Redemption, Self-centeredness, Self-control, Words

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Desperate Housewives?

I stumbled upon it during a recent fit of channeling surfing, brought on by the unexpected delight of actually having sole possession of the remote control. There she was, this so-called housewife—slick lips pouty with invitation (I'm guessing for all the hunky plumbers headed her way), elegantly upswept hair, silky bathrobe and (this was the kicker) no kids in sight. That was also the tip-off: ...

Related Topics: Housekeeping, Housework, Humor

Lessons from Jane Austen

"Badly done, Bethany! Badly done!" I glared at my 16-year-old daughter who'd just made the dreaded mistake of asking for me to pay for yet another tank of gas in her car for the third time in two weeks.

She rolled her eyes, "Emma, right? Mom, would you stop quoting Jane Austen and let me know if you'll pay for the gas so my friends and I can go to Six Flags or not?"

I knew I'd help with gas so that ...

Related Topics: Encouragement, parenting, Stewardship

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Our Dream Home

We did it. We'd finally "arrived." We'd achieved "the American dream." After 12 years of marriage my husband and I pulled the moving truck into the drive of what we believed would be the last place we'd live. Four bedrooms, two and a half baths, a pool, and a yard the size of a small city wrapped in a six-foot fence was finally ours. We painted, re-carpeted, remodeled, and perfected our new home. ...

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Hospitality for Introverts

I don't have the gift of hospitality. I first truly understood that when I was at my friend Mary's house along with a woman who was in campus ministry. This woman told us of an Indian student who needed housing. As she was telling us this girl's situation, I was saying to God, I don't want to have her live with us, but if that's what you want, I'm listening. But every fiber of my body was resisting ...

Related Topics: Anxiety, Appearances, Caring, Cheerfulness, Home, Self-confidence, Service, Shyness, Welcoming

Hospitality for the Domestically Challenged

What do you do if you want to practice the spiritual discipline of hospitality, but feel as though you or your house is never clean enough, good enough, fill-in-the-blank enough? Kyria met with three women (Carla Barnhill, from Minnesota; Tricia Goyer, from Arkansas; and Caryn Rivadeneira, from Illinois) to find out how they practice hospitality and what it really means to them—in the midst ...

Related Topics: Anxiety, Appearances, Caring, Cheerfulness, Home, Self-confidence, Service, Shyness, Welcoming

Timing Is Everything

People used to feel sorry for Rich and me because of our work schedules. Now they're envious.

If only they knew.

While we dated and when we were first married, I was working a normal eight-to-five office job. Meanwhile, Rich worked 4 p.m. until midnight or later, but with Saturdays and Sundays off, although our weekends didn't start until he awoke around noon. And that was the extent of our time together: ...

Related Topics: Companionship, Compromise, Conflict resolution, Time management

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Safe at Home for Christmas

It may not be conventional, but my holiday decorating includes a treasured picture of home plate over my fireplace. Perhaps you don't think of baseball after the World Series, and certainly not at Christmas, but for me it's a year-round source of inspiration.

The large black and white photograph is a reminder of what's important during the holidays. For me, it symbolizes a beautiful revelation that ...

Related Topics: Christmas, In-laws, priorities

Downscaling Christmas

Start close to home

Get on your knees with your family, and covenant with God to simplify your life. Determine to glorify and worship your external Lord rather than the holiday myth of overworking yourself into exhaustion for a "perfect" Christmas season.

Ask family members which traditions they most want to continue, and ask them to give something in exchange. If your daughter craves homemade cookies, ...

Related Topics: Burnout, Busyness, Christmas, Rest

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The Words that Changed My Life

Elisabeth![*] John needs to be changed again." My mother-in-law's voice filtered through my fog of exhausted sleep.

For the fourth time that night, Agnes and I tackled the foul mess in my father-in-law's bed. John was a large man and cleaning him, changing his diaper and bedding, was difficult. It took all my strength to roll him from side to side, holding him in position with one hand while washing ...