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Doubt…or Trust?

/ Dora Hiers / 16 Comments

“Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Mt 28:16-17 NIV

Jesus had warned his disciples all that would happen surrounding his crucifixion. They’d been hanging around with him for three years and had witnessed countless miracles, so many they weren’t all recorded in the Bible (Jn 21:25). You’d think that they would have believed him, right?

Not. 

Everything happened exactly as Jesus predicted. One of his own disciples turned him over to the authorities in exchange for trinkets of silver. Jesus was beaten, whipped, and then nailed to a cross until his last breath. A heavy stone was rolled across the entry to where his broken body lay, and guards were posted outside the tomb. 

All events he’d told them about ahead of time, happened exactly as he’d said. To the last detail.

When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted.


Seriously? The disciples doubted?

Men that had followed Jesus around for three years? Soaking in his words, watching him perform miracles, witnessing the compassion in his eyes as he looked upon his children? 

Doubt. 

What a nasty, five letter word that sometimes slithers in to my life. Whether it’s in my marriage, my writing, my faith…

Why do I struggle with it so?

Because doubt is a lie of the enemy, an all out frontal attack by the devil to rob us of joy, of peace that passes understanding. The enemy tosses out those tiny nuggets of doubt, and if we let allow them to take root, they blossom into full-fledged fear.


The disciples doubted even after they’d had a chance to see Jesus, to touch the holes in his hands, to hear his voice. Peter doubted after he’d stepped out of the boat and he looked down at the waves crashing around his feet. Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?” Mt 14:31 NIV

I can sometimes picture him, with an outstretched arm, glancing down at me with warm eyes, full of compassion, and in a loving voice, saying, “Oh, Dora, where’s your faith? Why must you doubt?”

God promised that He’d always be with me. Why rob myself of joy and peace by doubting? I choose trust over doubt. 

Do you struggle with doubt? Which will you choose?
Doubt or trust?

http://www.linkytools.com/thumbnail_linky_include.aspx?id=204557A to Z blog hop at Patterings.

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Conferences…or routine?

/ Dora Hiers / 20 Comments

August is all about conferences in our family. As a fire chief, hubby attends two conferences, and they’re both in August. The first is a regional conference, always in Raleigh, and the second’s an international one held in different cities across the US. This week we’re in Raleigh; next week, Chicago.

I enjoy traveling, but I confess I tend to be more of a “routine” kinda gal.
I mean, really. Raleigh and Chicago offer some spectacular sights, but what can beat the view from our back deck?

And hotel coffee doesn’t compare to the strong brew I make at home.
This week we were able to bring along our baby, but next week, we’ll have to leave him at home. He’s skiddish about getting in an elevator. I can’t imagine how he’d be after being forced into the belly of a plane. 

I’ll miss the big baby next week.


And my writing?

Usually, I write from my office every day. No music. No distractions. No noise. Just the way I like it. But that means conferences stretch my comfort zone, 
take me out of my normal writing environment. 
Which means my word count comes to a screeching halt.

So, every August I’m faced with a difficult decision.
Conferences…or routine?
Traveling with hubby or staying at home to write?

Hmmm…not a no-brainer for me. I choose him.

What about you? 
What brings you out of your comfort zone? 
Are you a routine kinda person or do you like to shake things up?
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http://www.linkytools.com/thumbnail_linky_include.aspx?id=204556 A to Z blog hop at Patterings.

Spring Cleaning

/ Dora Hiers / 4 Comments

Did a little spring cleaning on my blog this week. It was kinda reminding me of the linen closet upstairs. You know…the one where you open the doors gingerly, afraid towels or spare pillows will come tumbling out. So you open the door, tug out what you need, and slam it shut, hoping all the clutter stays put because it’s too overwhelming, too time-consuming, to think about cleaning.

Not that my blog was messy or cluttered. I just felt the urge to spruce it up a bit, rearrange and redesign, but that takes time. And motivation. 

I confess I wasn’t blessed with an artistic design gene, and truthfully, I’ve been slightly timid and a little fearful about changing my blog too much. What happens if I can’t fix it or worse, if I lose everything?

Well, no more fear and trepidation. I backed up my template and set about finding ways to spruce it up, to give it a new feel. Shabby Blogs, Cutest Blog on the Block and My Favourite Things Blog offer some great tutorials and free stuff like backgrounds, headers and buttons. 

Now that I know there’s help out there should I mess up, I think I’ll change it up a bit more often. Look around. See what you think. Like the new look?

And, no, the linen closet still looks like that. One of these days…