By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer In the 1980s, during rodeo’s off-season, my husband worked with the Race Track Chaplaincy of America, serving as a chaplain five years at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Arkansas. He also spent one race meet at Aksarben (now dismantled) in Omaha, Nebraska, and one …
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer “If God can make everything new again, in spite of the hard, painful parts, then we should let Him.” Sounds like an obviously simple concept, right? Simple, perhaps, but not easy. There’s a difference. The quote is from my latest book, An Unexpected Redemption, …
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer What would you take if you had five minutes to evacuate your home? When I was a newspaper reporter, I covered a lot of bad news. This photo is of one event I showed up for, arriving moments before flames roared through the front …
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer Last week I thought I was having problems with my computer. It wasn’t doing what I depend on it to do, as in downloading and uploading files – things I can’t explain in techy terms but desperately need. Basically, I knew enough to know …
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer Have you ever blown it? Not just miss a beat, but miss the whole boat? Think you’re humming right along, focused in, on target, and then—wham? This picture of Linger Rodeo Company’s saddle bronc horse, Curly Wolf, circa 1980s, drives home my point. Curly …
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer When Jesus died on the cross, He paid the sacrificial price for our sins. He bought us back, so to speak, making things right between God and us. It was enough. But He did more. He got up from the dead and stepped out …
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer Crucifixion wasn’t what the fans and followers of Jesus expected when they heralded his arrival in Jerusalem for Passover a couple thousand years ago. We Westerners refer to that day as Palm Sunday. No, those first-century Jews were shouting “Hosanna!” (Oh, save!) They thought …
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer Tomorrow is the first day of spring – the season of rebirth, renewal, and resurrection. Of all the seasons, I believe it is the closest to God’s initial creation. The very first thing the Bible says about God is that He created. These words …
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer One morning last week as I read Matthew 14, I was struck by the approachableness and positivity of Jesus. Loosely paraphrased, here’s what I saw: Setting: Small inland sea at night, high wind, boat full of weary men sent ahead of their leader to …
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer “I don’t do nothing well.” No doubt you bunched your shoulders and cringed when you read that sentence. The double negative scratches our linguistic sensibilities like fingernails on Styrofoam. Does the sentence mean the speaker can’t do anything well? Or does the speaker fail …
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer I was just nine years old. Just along for the ride. Just sitting in a folding chair in the middle of a football stadium on a starry night with thousands of people who had come to hear Evangelist Billy Graham. Honestly, I don’t remember …
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer The first time my California Cowboy visited Greeley, Colorado, his nose told him he’d never live there. Lots of feed lots in that part of the country. “That’s the smell of money,” an old timer said. “You’ll get used to it.” He did. So …
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer Conversation hearts – fun, right? How do I love thee? Let me count the misaligned ways that I can’t even read. These colorful little confectioneries exemplify what has happened to a once tender expression of affection and remind me why I’m not a fan …
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer My granddaughter helped me bring in firewood one evening, using a cloth shopping bag to carry her load. “I can’t carry the big pieces like you,” she said. “That’s okay,” I told her. “It’s the little pieces that heat up the fire.” Those little …
@davalynnspencer Today I’ve asked busy mother and award-winning suspense author Theresa Lynn Hall to share some words of encouragement with us. You can find more information about Theresa and her latest book below. ~ My life has always been filled with kids—even before I had my own. …