As someone who has spent a lifetime in the world of Christian ministry, I understand some of the criticism regarding The Shack’s theology. It’s that same lifetime in Christian ministry that prompted me to make this short video to offer a different perspective on the novel — not because it stands as a complete iteration of the […]

I wasn’t prepared for the email I received from a friend yesterday, after I’d written about a minor health setback in my recovery from the surgery and cancer diagnosis that turned my world upside down. The email said, “I am not your counselor, your mentor or your doctor — but perhaps God is trying to slow you […]

[Prefer viewing to reading? Scroll to bottom for a brief video supplement to this post.] I am a single woman. It’s not an affliction and it certainly isn’t a curse. It’s a relational status, one that seems to cause a bit of discomfort among married peers who wonder whether condolences or congratulations are in order. It’s hard […]

This is the first time I’ve shared someone else’s content on this blog, but it’s good and useful enough to warrant an exception. As faithful as many churches and supporters are with praying for their missionaries, MKs often get lumped in with the parents, yet the way these children and teens experience living “between worlds” […]

  [UPDATE: As a result of the mastectomy on December 6th, three previously undetected, active tumors were found in both breasts. A year later, I posted He Faithful Will Remain, my thoughts as I looked back on twelve months of unexpected fear and miraculous peace.]   Mastectomy. I’ve been practicing saying the word out loud. […]

[This article also exists in podcast form. You can listen to it on Pondering Purple, HERE.] Someone asked me, recently, why there is such an emphasis on grief and loss in my speaking on MK topics. Muki, one of the participants in a reentry retreat this summer, said it best: “I feel like grief has […]

  Let me be blunt. I am so tired of hearing the following statements spoken to hurting, broken and disillusioned people. Everything happens for a reason. God will work it out for good. God doesn’t give you more than you can handle. He gives and takes away. He has a purpose for your pain. More […]

They lived and died by the tens of thousands for their faith, yet few of us really know who the Huguenots were. Were it not for the research I conducted for my novel, The Space Between Words, they’d be little more to me than interesting footnotes in the annals of Christian history. Yet in startling […]

I’ve written about healthy transitions before, but haven’t gotten into the specific areas that can be utterly perplexing to many MKs and TCKs. I am convinced more than ever that Global Nomads need Cultural Mentors to help them with transitioning back to their passport culture. If you’re in the Global Nomad camp, I encourage you […]

Please note: This article is about a Third Culture Kids’ relationships with individual Americans (the people), not about our views of America (the geo-political power) and its Washingtonian shenanigans. I address those in this separate post. If someone had asked me, when I returned to the States for college, what I liked about this country, […]