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All My (Author) Friends Are Dead – A Reflection and Update
First of all, if you got the reference from this post’s title, let’s be friends; we clearly went to junior high in the same era. Alright, moving on. Last month, I received some long-awaited and long-prayed-for news. When I opened the fateful email, I ran screaming across the house to tell Billy. “Crsweryawfurrmuncnterct!!!” He thought…
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Christmas Letter – 2023
I am terrible at keeping track of people’s addresses, and this is the worst time of year for me to add another to-do, so consider this post my digital Christmas letter. Do you like the photo I chose? Billy and I have had another lovely year of long runs, strong coffee, good books, and more…
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Reading Roundup: My Favorite Books from 2023
I set a GoodReads goal of reading 60 books this year. Admittedly, I chose this number because I knew I could hit it and wanted that victory. Thanks to unexpectedly starting school again, I ended up reading 82 books (and counting). My reading habits are eclectic, to say the least. From sci-fi to Christian living,…
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12 Ways Your Headphones Are Changing You
I recently read 12 Ways Your Phone is Changing You by Tony Reinke, which was a scary read not because it contained monsters or spooks but because it cut to the heart of certain realities–namely, that our smartphones are changing us far more than we would like to admit. This made me consider what other…
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Marvelous (A Song Based on Psalm 139)
On Saturday, I helped a friend lead musical worship for a women’s event. The morning was centered around testimonies, with at least one woman quoting Psalm 139. As I picked out the songs for the morning, I remembered that somewhere in the depths of my old laptop was a song I wrote based on this…
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Publication Update: The Sacrifice
Nine years ago, I began a story—a story that kept me up at night, that made me sick to my stomach, that sent me down weird Google rabbit holes. It is a story that I could not forget and have revisited every year since. It is, I believe, a necessary story. I am pleased to…
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Not a Laser, a Light: Reflecting on Encouragement
I live in the neighborhood all Midwestern dads reminisce about. Every morning, kids march past my house and up a hill to the elementary school. In the afternoon, they traipse back, climbing through my yard, which is also uphill. They don’t know it yet, but someday they’ll boast to their kids, “When I was your…
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Of The Making of Much Content There is No End: Reflecting on Ecclesiastes and Instagram
My Instagram feed is filled with “marketing experts” offering advice on producing endless content to build up a personal brand. But, why? These self-proclaimed “experts” have built massive followings of people who are desperate to gain followings…but for what? We have created a culture of people who are eager to be famous just for the…
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7 Similarities Between Christian Encouragement and Spirit-filled Singing
As I’ve plunged into the deep end of exegesis and research this week, I’ve found even more similarities between encouragement and singing than I expected. These are not fully developed premises, but I hope these basic points and scripture citations inspire you to dive in for yourself. Encouragement and singing are both:1. Characteristic of God…
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A Few Lessons from Pruning My Grape Vines
When we first moved to Iowa, we were met with tremendous fruitfulness—and not just spiritually! Upon moving into our home, we found a young apple tree, a mature cherry tree, and two lush grapevines. I was enchanted. Having grown up in Phoenix, I was used to planting ill-fated gardens each year only to watch my…
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Dressed in Splendeur Podcast
Anyone who knows me knows that I am always thinking ahead. I journal because, if I don’t, I forget to look back and give thanks for the wonderful things God has done in my life. My recent conversation with Lydia Summer of SPLENDEUR Magazine and Podcast was a much-needed time of reflecting on God’s goodness.…
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Johnny Depp v. Amber Heard v. Dietrich Bonhoeffer: “Hate Watching” and Our Cult of Self-Justification
Yesterday night I flipped on the TV (mistake number one) to see that a recap of the Johnny Depp v. Amber Heard trial is already—barely a year later—available for streaming. Not only is it available, it is currently the top trending series on Netflix. I couldn’t help reading the description: Revisit the explosive trial that…
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Ryanne Molinari 