Sometimes unanswered prayers are painful. There doesn't seem to be any apparent good that can come from some situations. So many people were praying--and it wasn't asking for a miracle. Just freedom from complications.

A kind gentleman explained that I was the only passenger needing to catch my particular connecting flight and the timing may be pretty tight so they were offering me a much later flight that would go through Chicago. My luggage, however, would still go to Denver and I'd catch up with it, hopefully, in Minneapolis. Because these were final flights for the evening, if I missed my connecting flight I would be in Denver overnight, likely trying to sleep in the airport. I was in no hurry to make this decision and had many questions. The kind gentleman even brought out a map of the Denver airport so we could…

You may not be a mom reading this. You may not even be a woman. (Thanks for reading anyway!) But something I know about all of us is that it is easy to look back at things we've attempted to do well in the past and wishing we could have done it better. Or done it differently.

It's funny that the word "transition" also makes me think of the difficulty transitions are for students and teachers in the classroom setting. Transitioning from one activity to the next, or one place to another, is when most behavior problems would break out. The transitions are what teachers must prepare for and establish routines for and for which they should have an arsenal of tricks on the ready. Anytime we don't exactly know what is next, chaos can ensue. I'm feeling a little bit of that.

Let's live out this life of dichotomy being lights in the darkness. Don't let your flame burn out and don't let it cause destruction instead of peace and calmness. Just like bugs to a light, I hope our lights will draw others and that they can experience the warmth of God's love just because they are near us.

After a recent update on my iPhone, some of my contacts' names were separated from their cell phone numbers. It drove me nuts! I don't know people's numbers and had to respond to countless text messages with "I'm sorry…Who is this?" Names are important.

As part of our welcome we were given nametags with names for us in Kiswahili. My husband's nametag said, "Gitonga" which means "the rich one" and mine said, "Nyawira" which means "hardworking one". I guess I'm supposed to work hard to make my husband rich. :)

Did the title confuse you? No, I'm not into horoscopes or astrology. My faith in Jesus Christ eliminates the need to rely on such things. I'm referring to signs, wall hangings, notes and posters that are around you and in your space.

I had a meltdown this week. It's been a while since I had one, so that's good. I used to joke that I schedule them quarterly. It would happen during my teaching years when all the pressure from my job, along with household responsibilities and my desire to be more involved with ministry and family just overwhelmed me and I'd lose it. My poor husband would witness an episode of emotional weakness that likely had him wondering if it was time to call a professional.

My husband and I have belonged to a small gym near our home for many years now. Of course, the main reason for going there is to try to stay active and keep in shape. But over the years it has become a place where I know many people and I've even made some close friends. It is at this gym that I have been working on the art of friendship-making.