While researching mornings recently, I became obsessed with studying the morning rituals of historical figures, entrepreneurs, inventors, politicians, and artists. There’s a collective fascination with how successful people start their day, and how those first hours can affect a day, even a life.

I wanted to determine if it would be possible to duplicate their results by adhering to their rituals. 

Mindset of Choosing

What I discovered was something far simpler—and far more important—than I would have imagined. Many of the people I studied had adopted what I’ll call a “mindset of choosing.” They chose to believe that good was possible every morning. They chose to believe that good work could be done for the betterment of the world. For those of faith, they chose to believe that God had good plans for their lives, every morning. And they chose to believe that each new day offered a fresh start.

Take, for instance, Benjamin Franklin. His morning routine is perhaps the earliest recorded morning routine in US history—the beginning of the American obsession with doing mornings right. Franklin’s morning routine was less about structured habits and more about adopting this mindset of choosing.

Have you ever felt this way?

“I don’t really like my husband very much. He’s not . . . He doesn’t . . . He always . . .”

Or: “We just don’t seem to have fun anymore . . . Our marriage feels boring. I feel stuck. I don’t know what to do.”

If we are really honest, we must admit that we have all felt like this at different seasons!

HOWEVER

I need to realize that my husband probably feels the same way about me from time to time.

Perhaps it’s time to enliven our relationship.

Here are 8 ideas that might help put the spark back into your marriage:

1. Recognize that you are both sinful people.

Our default viewpoint is most likely something like: It’s your job to make me happy, to meet my needs.

Most often, we don’t even realize we are operating with this in mind. We must realize that no one person can make us happy, fulfill all our needs. It’s too easy to look to another person to meet needs that we should be looking first to God to meet.

It was a cold day in March of 2020 when I made a choice that would change my life. 

Shortly after the abuse had started, I emailed a local counseling center to book a session. 

That afternoon in March, I headed to a therapy session, dropping my girls off at my mom’s house on the way. I had been seeing my therapist, Heather, for a month now. I had done therapy before, but had never felt like it helped.

Determined to Make a Change

This time, I was determined that it would be different.

That day in March when I arrived and took a seat in the armchair, she looked at me and asked directly, “So, do you want me to ask you questions about your marriage, or do you think you can share on your own?”

Here we were. I knew why I was avoiding the topic.

I took a deep breath and began. I shared about my fear of his anger and how it had kept me silent all these years. My hands and voice shook as I told her about how he had been coming in at night when I was asleep and touching my body in ways I wasn’t comfortable with. 

When I finished, only five minutes remained in my session.

Heartbreak and rejection run deep. But God’s grace meets you there — and his power is being made perfect in your weakness, not despite it.

Sources of Heartbreak

I imagine you clicked on this blog post because you know a thing or two about heartbreak and disappointment. You know what it feels like to be left out, looked over, forgotten, or rejected. You know the sadness and shame that often come with realizing painful and perplexing patterns in your life. You know what it’s like for your heart to cry out into the void, Love me, choose me, see me, know me.

Maybe for you that cry is about true friendship. 

Or maybe that cry is about love or marriage.

Maybe for you, that cry is about the relationship you never had with your parents. 

Or maybe that cry is about a world you dream of being in. Like the arts. Or athletics. Or ministry.

The pain of heartbreak and rejection can carve deep grooves into how we see ourselves, what we believe is still possible, and what we think we deserve.

Give the gift of Jesus this Easter. Easter is the perfect time to share the hope and love found in Jesus’s sacrifice. Whether someone is young or old, new to faith or growing deeper in it, a meaningful book can open the door to powerful conversations.

Let this year be about sharing God’s loving sacrifice. We have collected 10 reads to inspire, encourage, and point hearts toward the Gospel. There is something uniquely tender about placing the right words in someone’s hands at the right moment. A book that points to the Gospel doesn’t just fill an afternoon — it has the potential to change a heart, spark a question, or quietly water a seed that’s been waiting for rain. That’s the kind of gift Easter calls us toward.

This year, instead of baskets full of things that fade, consider giving something that points to the everlasting life made possible through the resurrection of Christ. Whether you’re shopping for a curious child, a weary mama, a friend walking through doubt, or someone you’ve been praying for, there is something on this list for them.

Explore the list and find the perfect book to gift, or to enjoy yourself, as we celebrate the sacrifice that paid it all.

“Beginnings are mysterious things: part breath, part hope, part fumble, part grace. 
Roots are perhaps the most humble of God’s creations on earth.
They require neither acknowledgment nor praise.
Their reward is reaped when the living stand upon them 
and reach for the fruit the roots made possible. “ 
-Alicia Britt Chole

“… you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, ‘Abba! Father!” The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God.
Romans 8:15-16

A Nighttime Visit

Early in John’s account of Jesus’ life, a wealthy and powerful leader in the Jewish community entered the story. Nicodemus seemed mildly curious about this unconventional teacher. Clearly concerned about being seen with Him, Nicodemus arranged to meet Jesus under cover of darkness, in secret.

Bolstered by an impressive academic resume, Nicodemus met Jesus to test Him, to assess the validity of what he’d heard. As the one who initiated the meeting, he began the conversation with a safe statement of praise to give himself the advantage: “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him” (John 3:2).

“Don’t waste your life!” was the convicting quote by John Piper that I scribbled down on scrap paper and plastered on my refrigerator where my tired eyeballs would see it during my busiest years of parenting.

As a mom of many young children, I wanted to live faithfully for Christ and make Him known. I didn’t want to give my life to trivial things, so I posted reminders to myself that I couldn’t miss and wouldn’t forget in the warp and weft of daily living.

That was over 20 years ago, and though the children have grown and our family has expanded to include in-laws and 9 beautiful grandchildren, I‘ve learned that in every season of life, we are still faced with choices about how we will spend our days. As women who want to lean into faithfulness to the Lord and His purpose for our lives, I find that many of the women I speak to are evaluating how much time we spend on our phones.

The Subtle Danger of the Scroll

In many ways, our phone is an all-in-one marvel. It acts as our mailbox, map, camera, calendar, dictionary, encyclopedia, bookbag, Bible, personal assistant, weatherman, television, radio, and more.

Award-winning novelist Heidi Chiavaroli brings Lent to vivid life with stories of those who encounter our savior in the pages of Scripture. Today, at the beginning of Lent, we put ourselves in the shoes of those among the very first to meet Jesus – the shepherds.

A Shepherd’s Story

The lamb squirms in his arms and he remembers the first time he’d helped birth a lamb. The first time he’d wrapped a precious, pure animal in swaddling cloths. That day, his eight-­year-­old brother, Benesh, had begged to join him. Although Rani had agreed, he resented Benesh’s company.

But all that was forgotten when the ewe had brought forth a spotless lamb.

Though Benesh despised being alone in the fields, Rani handed him his rod and staff, instructing his brother to stay with the sheep. He had not waited for Benesh’s agreement before rushing toward the city to find his father.

At the city gates, Rani heard Benesh calling after him. He silently cursed his brother for leaving the sheep. As always, though, his brother followed him. When Rani ducked around the chariot of the imperial family to escape Benesh, he had not expected his small brother to follow.

It was half an hour past my bedtime; I should have been cozy in bed, fast asleep. But here I was, pacing around my kitchen—­again—­my attention fixated on the box of granola bars in the pantry.

I know I shouldn’t eat one.

More pacing.

It’s not on my plan.

I paced some more.

But it has chocolate chips!

By the time I entered my staring contest with that granola bar, I’d already spent hours ruminating on everything the enemy wanted me to believe.

I’ve already blown it.

It’s too late to make a different choice.

I might as well eat the granola bar and try to do better tomorrow.

I was stuck, and I couldn’t see a way out. Maybe you feel that way too.

How We Get Stuck

The truth is, I wasn’t able to keep following all the diet rules for long. I broke those laws every single day. 

Do it “right” or don’t do it at all, my Diet Dictator demanded.

Explore 7 meaningful reads for Lent to deepen your faith, renew your focus, and draw closer to Jesus during the 40-day journey to Easter.

As we step into another season of Lent, it’s the perfect time to step back from the noise of the world and reflect on Jesus’s ultimate sacrifice. This sacred season invites us to renew our commitment to faith and deepen our understanding of God’s forgiveness. What better way to do that than by opening a few meaningful reads for Lent?  

This season isn’t about striving harder or doing more. It’s about drawing closer. It’s about setting aside the things that compete for our attention so we can listen more closely to the voice of the One who calls us by name. It’s a time to lay down our burdens, our fears, and even our expectations, and sit again at the feet of Jesus.

One of the most meaningful ways to walk through Lent is by filling our minds and hearts with words that point us back to Him. Thoughtful, Christ-centered reading can become a daily meeting place with God—an anchor in the middle of busy days and full schedules.