Dear friend: What if you’re on the verge of a breakthrough?

The last few years have been a struggle, to say the least. You’ve found yourself hardly able to keep up with life’s changes, losses, and grief in your varying circumstances. Not to mention you’ve allowed the heaviness of the world to weigh you down.

Today, you notice the darkness lifting and you’re seeing small cracks of light again. You feel the warmth on your face, the smell of fresh-brewed coffee, and tightly embrace your son’s neck before school. You even caught yourself laughing at something silly again.

You feel a change in the tide. You can’t quite put your finger on it, but you know God is telling you to keep going forward- don’t get stuck in your past. He’s revealing it to you through people, songs, your kids, and opportunities. You can’t ignore it.

The other day I watched the waves on the gulf coast more intently than I normally do. Just as they reached their peak, in a matter of seconds they fell crashing onto the shore – steaming and bubbling. I was entranced waiting for the next round to roll in.

We all fall and crash at some point like the waves of the sea. We can’t stay on top forever. And these last few years have taught us more than those peaks ever could. The difficult, painful, gut-wrenching times have stretched and pulled our faith muscles like nothing else. The trials have caused us to doubt and question everything we are, everything our friends are, and even who God is.

The darkness has also taught us the beauty of time and being thankful for what’s most important in our lives. We’ve learned God is still good when life is not.

Yes, my friend, you’ve endured a lot, but what if now’s the time for your breakthrough? What if now’s the time to really start living again and not striving so hard to please others? What if now’s the time to take the next step toward your future? What if now’s the time to surrender everything and let Jesus heal you?

Don’t ignore the signs. Your breakthrough is now.

Love,

Samantha

Samantha Krieger is wife to Jeremiah and mama to 2 boys & 2 girls- 13 and under. She loves iced coffee, TJ Maxx, and mascara. She’s the author of Quiet Time: A 30-day Devotional Retreat for Moms in the Trenches. Her work has been featured on the Today Show online, For the Family, Love What Matters, and Cafe Mom. She writes from Florida’s gulf coast and enjoys connecting with readers on her personal blog, Facebook and Instagram.

4 Ways to Prioritize Your Spouse Above Your Schedule … and Even Your Kids

A few years ago, a woman in my discipleship group at church pulled me aside after our time together and shared some wisdom I’ll never forget.

She had two teenagers and was on the brink of a divorce. Her family was falling apart and she blamed the dissolved relationship on her own choices. In our group time I told how my husband and I were getting away for the weekend to focus on our marriage, but I was nervous about leaving the kids behind. She encouraged me not to worry about it.

“Samantha, get away with him. Don’t put the kids’ schedules first,” she said. “I did that all our marriage with sports and all they had going on. I kept myself busy at the cost of my marriage. I wish we’d taken time for each other, but we didn’t. I eventually had an affair. I regret all of it.”

My eyes grew wide thinking about my kids still in diapers. Tears welled up in her eyes as she brushed her strawberry blonde hair away from her face.

I could sense the ache and pain in her heart. I prayed for her, that God would restore their family.

Years have passed since that evening…

CONTINUE READING the rest of the article on FamilyLife.com.

How to Restore the Brokenness in Your Marriage – from TheCourage.com

This week, I’m excited to be writing over on The Courage – a new digital destination meant to inspire, give hope, and call people to something better, especially in the areas of faith, family, and culture (founded by Kirk Cameron). It’s an honor to be a regular contributor and I hope you’ll check out the site and “like” them on social media. I think you’ll love what they’re doing!

One of my favorite parts on HGTV’s “Fixer Upper” is when Chip and Joanna walk to the back of a garage, shed, or attic of the house they’re working on and discover something useful to implement into the remodel. What looks like an old pile of wood, happens to be a stack of doors that once provided privacy in the home.

Once Chip and Joanna decide to use the doors and refinish the glass, it might be used on an indoor cabinet or in the front windows of the home. The doorknobs are even used as creative design elements. Reclaiming what appears to be old, good-for-nothing junk is as natural as breathing for them. Nothing is wasted. They restore and renew what most people would readily abandon.

In their years of experience working on fixer uppers, they know you don’t ignore the cast-offs. You figure out their potential and how they can be made effective again.

In marriage, when the going gets tough, we can be tempted to throw the marriage away like those cast-offs... CONTINUE READING on TheCourage.com

Trust, Truth & Sexual Purity in Your Marriage

“What words come to your mind when you think of trust?”

I asked my husband while we were driving down the road the other day. I told him how I wanted to write my next article on trust.

While he thought about the question for a little bit, I chimed in: “Because you know, marriages fail or succeed based on trust. What’s the point of being married if you can’t trust the other person?”…

Today, I’m talking honestly about sexual sin and healing in marriage. Continue reading over on StartMarriageRight.com and feel welcome to share your thoughts.

Baby girl’s very first gift

I first found out about Ashleigh Slater through a great webzine for young women called Ungrind, which she is the editor for. Over the past few years, the articles on Ungrind have been a warm cup of coffee for my soul and I love the ministry Ashleigh has through it.

Several months ago Ashleigh miscarried her fourth baby girl Noah. Her husband wrote about their loss here on Boundless. Noah was due right around the time our baby girl is due. Ashleigh’s loss really opened my eyes to just how precious life is and Who is ultimately in control.

As part of Ashleigh’s healing process, she made this beautiful quilt for baby girl Krieger. This quilt is so special because of the story behind it all. Because of the hands that made it. And I was so surprised and overjoyed to found out last week that Ashleigh is expecting again!

Thank you Ashleigh- this quilt will be one of our most treasured gifts in our family for years to come. You’re continually in our thoughts and prayers.