Lessons from a Zoomie Dog

,

1 Peter 5:7 — Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.

Well, you probably know by now that I have a Bernedoodle named Porsche.

And let me tell you—she has exactly two speeds: sleeping (because she has absolutely no responsibilities in life) or running through the house like she just drank three energy drinks.

The other night she got the zoomies.

She was racing in circles, sliding across my hardwood floors, and bouncing off the couch like gravity was optional.

I just sat there laughing.

Because Porsche doesn’t have a schedule to manage. She isn’t stressing over bills or replaying yesterday’s conversations. She’s not worried about tomorrow.

She’s simply enjoying the moment.

And somewhere between childhood and adulthood, I think many of us forget how to do that.

Life gets serious.

We get married. Bills show up. Kids arrive…and then one day they move out. Responsibilities pile higher, and before we know it, we’re carrying worries we were never meant to carry.

Watching Porsche race around the house reminded me of something.

She isn’t dragging yesterday behind her or trying to control tomorrow.

She’s free because she isn’t carrying the weight of the world.

God never asked His children to carry that weight either.

Instead, He lovingly invites us: “Give all your worries and cares to God, for He cares about you.”

What a beautiful promise.

Not only does He tell us to give Him our worries—He tells us why.

Because He cares.

He cares about the burden keeping you awake.

He cares about the decision you’re trying to make.

He cares about the thing you’ve been quietly carrying by yourself.

Friend, when you release what was never yours to carry, you make room to rest in the care of the One who never stops carrying you.

So maybe today, take a deep breath.

Give God one worry you’ve been holding onto.

Laugh a little.

Look for His goodness.

And remember…

Joy grows where trust begins.

 

A MOMENT TO REFLECT

  • What worry have you been carrying that God is inviting you to give to Him today?
  • How does knowing that God cares about you personally make it easier to trust Him with your burdens?
  • What is one simple way you can choose joy today instead of dwelling on tomorrow’s worries?

 

/by

Peace In Your Piled-Up Day

,

Psalm 55:22 — Cast your burden on the Lord, and He will sustain you; He will never permit the righteous to be moved.

Oh, you know those days where you’re functioning…but barely?

Maybe that’s today for you.

You’re showing up. You’re answering the messages. You’re doing what needs to be done. But inside, you feel heavier than anyone knows.

The truth is, some burdens don’t announce themselves.

They accumulate quietly…stress, pressure, responsibility, worry, disappointment.

Little by little, the weight builds until one day you’re carrying more than you were ever meant to.

If that’s where you are today, I want you to hear this clearly:

God never asked you to carry it all by yourself.

Scripture invites us to cast our burdens on the Lord. Why? Because He’s the One strong enough to carry what we can’t.

And notice the promise. God doesn’t say every burden will disappear overnight.

He says, “I will sustain you.”

That’s a different kind of promise.

It means strength for today. Grace for the next step. Peace that steadies you even before your circumstances change.

You may not have the words for everything you’re feeling, but you don’t need perfect words to come to God.

He already knows.

Bring Him your prayers, your tears, your questions…even your silence.

Nothing you place in His hands is too heavy for Him.

So before you move on to the next task today, pause for just a moment.

Hand Him one thing you’ve been carrying.

Take a deep breath.

You’re not failing because you feel the weight.

You’re human.

And God is still holding you.

When you release what was never yours to carry alone, you make room to experience the peace only He can give.

 

A MOMENT TO REFLECT

  • What burden have you been carrying that God is inviting you to place in His hands today?
  • How does God’s promise to sustain you encourage you, even if your circumstances haven’t changed yet?
  • What is one practical way you can pause today and intentionally give your worries to the Lord?
/by

Holding on Through Heartbreak

,

Matthew 26:39 — He went on a little farther and bowed with his face to the ground, praying, “My Father! If it is possible, let this cup of suffering be taken away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.”

Have you ever noticed how some of the strongest people carry hurts nobody else knows about?

Maybe it’s a job that didn’t work out. A dream that slipped away. A prayer that got a different answer than the one you hoped for.

I was thinking about that when I heard the story behind Hillary Scott’s song “Thy Will.” After losing a baby through miscarriage, she found herself in a place no parent wants to be. The pain in her heart must have been so excruciating. The questions were real. Out of that heartbreak came a song that wasn’t just music—it was a prayer. The cry of someone carrying a burden she desperately wished could be lifted.

It reminds me of another prayer offered in a garden long ago. On the night before the cross, Jesus Himself prayed, “Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me.” He knew the suffering that lay ahead, yet He surrendered Himself completely to the Father’s will.

Moment’s like these remind me that faith isn’t pretending the pain is small; it’s trusting God when the pain is big.

Somewhere in the middle of her grief, Hillary stopped trying to carry it all herself and placed it in God’s hands. Out of that surrender came a song. And through Jesus’ surrender came our salvation.

So if you’re carrying something heavy today, don’t carry it alone. Bring it honestly before God. Tell Him exactly what hurts. Jesus showed us that surrender isn’t pretending everything is okay—it is trusting the Father even when your heart is breaking.

And as you take the next step, remember this: the same Father who strengthened Jesus in the garden is still faithful to walk with you today.

 

A MOMENT TO REFLECT

  • What burden have you been trying to carry on your own instead of bringing honestly to God?
  • What does Jesus’ prayer in Gethsemane teach you about trusting God even when His answer is different from what you hoped?
  • What would it look like to surrender your situation to God’s will one step at a time today?

 

L Y R I C S

I’m so confused
I know I heard You loud and clear
So I followed through
Somehow I ended up here
I don’t wanna think
I may never understand
That my broken heart is a part of Your plan
When I try to pray, all I’ve got is hurt
And these four words

Thy will be done
Thy will be done
Thy will be done

I know You’re good
But this don’t feel good right now
And I know you think
Of things I could never think about
It’s hard to count it all joy
Distracted by the noise
Just tryna make sense
Of all Your promises
Sometimes I gotta stop
Remember that You’re God
And I am not
So

Thy will be done
Thy will be done
Thy will be done like a child on my knees, all that comes to me is
Thy will be done
Thy will be done
Thy will

I know You see me
I know You hear me, Lord
Your plans are for me
Goodness You have in store
I know You hear me
I know You see me, Lord
Your plans are for me
Goodness You have in store

So, Thy will be done
Thy will be done
Thy will be done like a child on my knees, all that comes to me is
Thy will be done
Thy will be done
Thy will be done
I know You see me
I know You hear me
Lord

Songwriters: Bernie Herms / Emily Lynn Weisband / Hillary Scott

/by

Where Sorrow Meets the Savior

,

Isaiah 53:3 — He was despised and rejected— a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief. We turned our backs on him and looked the other way. He was despised, and we did not care.

She could barely make out the American flag on her porch through the tears streaming down her face.

Fifteen years after her husband was killed in the Iraq War, some mornings the red, white, and blue still blurred together outside her window as grief washed over her all over again.

She wasn’t alone. A faithful church community sat beside her in the silence. A skilled therapist helped her navigate the waves of sorrow. Friends from the neighborhood pickleball court made her laugh on the better days.

But when the house grew quiet, one truth remained:

He was gone.

Loss has a way of reminding us that there are some wounds nothing in this world can fully heal. No amount of success, security, or distraction can fill the empty chair at the table or erase the ache of someone deeply loved.

That’s why the hope of Jesus matters so much.

He isn’t distant from suffering.

Scripture calls Him “a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief.” Jesus entered our broken world and experienced rejection, loss, and unimaginable pain. He understands grief because He chose to walk through it Himself.

The Savior who carried sorrow is the Savior who carries us.

He meets people in quiet rooms and tear-filled mornings. He walks with us through loss, not around it. His presence doesn’t erase our grief overnight, but it reminds us we never carry it alone.

And because of His resurrection, grief is never the end of the story.

One day, sorrow will give way to joy, death will be swallowed up forever, and every tear will be wiped away.

Until then, our hope isn’t found in pretending the pain is gone.

It’s found in the One who is still with us in the middle of it.

So if loss still feels heavy today, bring it to Jesus.

The One who knows grief best is still carrying people through it.

 

A MOMENT TO REFLECT

  • What grief or loss have you been carrying that you need to bring honestly before Jesus today?
  • How does knowing that Jesus is “acquainted with deepest grief” change the way you think about your own pain?
  • Where have you experienced God’s presence sustaining you, even if your circumstances haven’t changed?
/by

Secure Even When Scared

,

Deuteronomy 31:6 — Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.

I recently stepped way out of my comfort zone. I let my 14-year-old nephew talk me into doing a ropes course. You know, the kind with obstacles suspended high in the trees—tightropes, swinging bridges, and shaky ladders that seem much farther off the ground once you’re standing on them.

You’re secured in a harness the entire time, always clipped to a safety cable that’s designed to keep you from falling. But your brain doesn’t care about that. Your brain is convinced you’re about to plummet to your death.

Even my nephew came to one section and said, “I can’t do it.”

I smiled and said, “Yes, you can. You can’t fall. That harness has you safe and secure.”

But there was no convincing his fear.

So I reassured him again. “Just focus on taking one step at a time. Put one foot in front of the other. Don’t listen to the fear.”

Then I reminded him of something even bigger than the obstacle in front of him: he wasn’t up there alone. I’d prayed for him before we ever climbed, and I knew God was with us.

I said, “That harness is holding you. And more importantly, God is with you. Just take the next step.”

And he did.

Watching him take that next step made me think about all the scary and uncertain things we face in life. We stand at the edge of a diagnosis, a difficult decision, a loss, or a new calling, and our minds immediately imagine all the ways we could fall.

But what if we remembered we’re held by Someone stronger than our fear?

Just like that harness never let go of my nephew, God never lets go of us. He says, “Be strong and courageous.” He promises, “I will never leave you or forsake you.”

So whatever is in front of you today, don’t let fear make the decision. Take the next step. Courage isn’t the absence of fear—it’s choosing to trust the One who’s holding you.

Because you’re not walking alone.

 

A MOMENT TO REFLECT

  • What “ropes course” are you facing right now that feels intimidating or uncertain?
  • How does God’s promise to never leave or forsake you change the way you view that situation?
  • What is one courageous next step you can take today, trusting that God is with you?
/by

Sweating But Still Smiling

,

Psalm 16:11 — You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

Okay, it’s officially that time of year in Louisiana where you walk outside and immediately feel like somebody wrapped you in a hot, wet blanket. Like… why is the air sweating?

That’s how it feels.

I saw some people online sharing ways to beat the heat. Cold towels, frozen drinks, staying inside from noon until—I don’t know—September. Honestly, I think some of us are one electric bill away from moving directly into the freezer aisle at Walmart.

I would be.

But you know what I love? No matter how miserable the heat gets, we all still seem to find joy.

Kids running through sprinklers. Snow cones dripping down your arm. Porch conversations after the sun finally goes down a little bit. Somebody grilling even though it’s 104 degrees for absolutely no reason.

And maybe that’s because joy was never waiting for perfect conditions.

Friend, life gets uncomfortable sometimes. Heavy. Exhausting, really. We spend so much time wishing things were easier, cooler, lighter…different.

But I’ve noticed that some of life’s sweetest moments don’t happen when everything is comfortable.

They happen when we become aware that God is right there with us in the middle of it.

It’s almost like the more we stay aware of His presence, the easier it becomes to notice His goodness. Not because life suddenly gets easier, but because His presence changes us. Scripture says, “In your presence there is fullness of joy.”

That’s the kind of joy that isn’t dependent on the weather, your circumstances, or whether everything is going your way.

His presence has a way of filling ordinary moments with something extraordinary.

So if you’re melting today, try not to miss the good thing right in front of you.

Don’t just look for relief.

Look for Him.

You might discover that the joy you’ve been searching for was already closer than you thought.

A MOMENT TO REFLECT

  • Where have you been waiting for your circumstances to improve before choosing joy?
  • How have you experienced God’s presence bringing peace or joy during a difficult season?
  • What’s one ordinary moment today where you can intentionally slow down and become more aware of God’s presence?
/by

Heart Change Happens Here

,

John 3:3 — Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God.”

It’s funny when I think about that conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus.

Nicodemus asked Jesus, “So how does someone get born again? Can a grown man really enter his mother’s womb and be born a second time?”

What a question.

But the more I think about it, the more I realize Nicodemus was looking in the wrong direction. He was thinking about starting life over on the outside, while Jesus was talking about something much deeper.

Following Jesus isn’t about getting a fresh start from the outside in.

It’s about receiving a brand-new heart from the inside out.

Listen, it doesn’t have to be all bells and whistles or some dramatic testimony.

You don’t have to wait until you’ve cleaned yourself up. You don’t have to become “good enough” before you come to Jesus.

Bring Him the mistakes. Bring Him the shame. Bring Him the sin you wish you could undo. Bring Him the questions you still don’t have answers for.

Jesus doesn’t tell you to fix yourself first.

He simply invites you to come.

Grace meets you exactly where you are, but it loves you too much to leave you there.

He forgives you, changes you, and gives you strength you never had on your own. He begins healing what sin has broken and shaping you into the person He created you to be.

That’s what being born again really means. It’s not becoming a better version of the old you.

It’s allowing God to make you into someone new.

So, if you’ve been waiting until you have it all together, stop waiting.

Bring the mess. Bring the shame. Bring the questions. Bring your heart.

Surrender it all to Jesus, trust Him with it, and let Him begin the work that only He can do.

 

A MOMENT TO REFLECT

  • Is there anything you’ve been trying to fix before bringing it to Jesus?
  • What does it mean to you that Jesus changes us from the inside out rather than simply helping us improve ourselves?
  • What is one area of your life where you need to trust God to make you new instead of relying on your own strength?
/by