Reading the Bible when life is hard
Longer pieces on the passages people reach for when they are worn out, grieving, anxious or afraid, and on what those passages actually say in context.
Bible Verses for Estranged Family: Grief for Someone Still Living, What “Honor” Meant, and the Families Who Parted
Estranged from a parent, a grown child, a brother or a sister? Psalm 34:18 for the dates that used to be family days, what honor meant, and families in Scripture who parted.
How to Get Closer to God When You Feel Distant: Bible Verses and Ways to Pray
What to do when God feels far away: Psalm 13 to pray as it stands, practices from several traditions, and help if everything is flat.
Bible Verses for Nurses: For the Shift and the Drive Home
After a hard shift: Isaiah 40:11 for the drive home, the carers Scripture names, what nursing codes say about praying with patients, and words for Nurses Day.
Bible Verses for Healing After Divorce: The Long Aftermath, Malachi 2 in Its Setting, and a Church to Go Back To
Months or years after a divorce: Psalm 34:18 for the hard days, Isaiah 54, Malachi 2 in its setting, and a gentle way back to church.
Bible Verses for the Empty Nest: When the Last Child Leaves Home
The youngest has gone and the house is quiet. Psalm 25:16-17 for the first evenings, Hannah's little robe, Rebekah's ten more days, and words to bless a grown child.
Psalms for Anxiety: Psalms 56, 63 and 143 Read Whole, and How People Have Prayed Them
Three whole psalms to read aloud when anxious: Psalm 56 for fear, Psalm 63 for the hours awake, Psalm 143 for being worn down.
Who in the Bible Grieved: David, Jacob, Naomi, Rizpah, Jesus at the Tomb, and the Others, Person by Person
The people in Scripture who grieved, grouped by whom they lost, with the passage to read for each and Psalm 34:18 to read beside it.
Bible Verses for Losing a Job, and What to Pray the Week After
Laid off or fired? Romans 15:13 to pray tonight, written prayers for the week after, and the first practical steps with money.
How Long Should You Grieve, According to the Bible? The Days It Records, the Days Families Keep, and Your Own
Still grieving months or years on? Where the Bible's seven, thirty and seventy days come from, the days families keep, and Psalm 34:18.