Are You Afraid to Pray Big Prayers? Nothing Is Impossible for God

By Barbara Rainey | May 23, 2022 | 4 Comments

Can you imagine what it was like for Mary, an adolescent engaged to Joseph, to be greeted by the angel Gabriel? And then, to be told she would conceive a child who would be the Son of God? She had to be stunned, in shock. I’m surprised she was even able to ask Gabriel, “How […]

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Unanswered Prayer: When God Doesn’t “Come Through” As You Expected, Then What?

By Barbara Rainey | May 16, 2022 | 7 Comments

Sometimes I wake up in the morning feeling sad and unsettled. I ask myself, “How do I have joy when it seems that so much is unresolved and unrestored in my life, my relationships, my world?” Do you know that feeling? Have you thought about the disciples and the weight of their unanswered prayers when […]

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Rushed Prayers: Treating God Like He’s a Vending Machine

By Barbara Rainey | May 9, 2022 | 2 Comments

Note from Barbara: Recently I wrote about the amazing access to God’s presence that we can enjoy because of Jesus’ death and Resurrection. If you missed it, you can find it here. As I’ve continued thinking about this, I’ve discovered I might know a little of what constant access might feel like for God. As […]

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Praying for Those Who May Be Difficult to Love

By Barbara Rainey | May 2, 2022 | 3 Comments

Note from Barbara: This is the second of six blog posts on prayer between now and June. (You can read the first here.) I have loved reading old prayers since the days of my mothering when I discovered the prayers of saints like Susanna Wesley. Each blog post will feature one of these prayers from […]

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Friends & Family April 2022

By Barbara Rainey | April 29, 2022 | 0 Comments

To my friends far and wide: Christ is risen!! The best news of this month and of all time. Here’s a photo of a cross our 83-year-old neighbor built for us out of our old deck boards. We finally cemented it in the ground last fall and I have loved seeing it every day out […]

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