The Living by Design Blog
The Bible is packed with the spiritual nourishment your soul craves. Our aim is to provide resources to help you break it down into bite-sized pieces that are easy to digest. Articles on the Living by Design Blog are packed with heart-focused content, practical solutions for real life, and Bible-based training. Since launching this blog in 2014, we’ve featured more than 100 guest contributors. If you’d like to submit an article for consideration, please review our submission guidelines.
Article By: Sarah Koontz, Founder of Living by Design Ministries A 2002 study by the Southern Baptist Convention’s Family life Council found 88% of the children in evangelical homes leave church at the age of 18. Eighty-eight percent. Of those who leave, only 60 percent will ever return. Scary, right?!? This
A Guest Post* I’m sitting on the dry grass in front of the coop. The green flecks of spring are beginning to grow though the dead fall grass still lingering. Green life, reaching for the nourishment of spring sun. Kristopher always loved watching the chickens for some reason. Here, now,
Article By: Sarah Koontz, Founder of Living by Design Ministries I’ve been waiting ten years for this. That’s 3,650 days. 87,600 hours. More than 5,000,000 minutes. Waiting. Dreaming. Counting down…. But it’s finally arrived. A deliciously memorable motherhood milestone….. After years and years of “you must be within arm’s length” and “high-alert, don’t-look-away,
“Mommy, this was the best day ever,” my 8-year old daughter announced in between bites of frozen custard. It was our very first day of summer break, and we were making the most of it. After an impromptu playdate at the park with two of my best friends and their
A Guest Post by Gleniece Lytle There are many things we do, as moms, to keep our homes running smoothly and our families fed, clean, and content. That is part of what gives us joy and purpose. But what mom doesn’t crave those quiet, uninterrupted moments? Those chocolate-melting-in-your-mouth-with-your-eyes-closed moments. Those
Article by: Sarah Koontz, Founder of Living by Design Ministries Do you remember what Glinda the Good said to Dorothy at the end of Wizard of Oz? Dorothy was begging Glinda to help her get back home and Glinda’s reply was, “You don’t need to be helped any longer. You’ve
Article by: Sarah Koontz, Founder of Living by Design Ministries I’m not quite sure when I fell in love with my husband. It took forever, yet happened in the blink of an eye. Or something like that. We had been good friends for about a year before I allowed myself to
Article by: Sarah Koontz, Founder of Living by Design Ministries Why do humans complicate things so? Take babies, for example. They truly are the simplest of creatures. Eat. Sleep. Poop. REPEAT. That’s all they do! Yet I’ll never forget all the “must-have” gadgets cluttering my exceedingly small nursery when my
Article by: Sarah Koontz, Founder of Living by Design Ministries I press the button to end our call and brace myself for the tsunami of emotions that rush over me after a tense conversation with my mom. Disappointment. Sadness. Regret. Hopelessness. I had prepared the words beforehand; rehearsed them over and over
A Guest Post by Melody Quinn It’s not the memories of what I have done that plague me. It’s the memories of what I haven’t done. The conversations I haven’t had. The people I haven’t helped. The dreams I haven’t pursued. I didn’t know J.J. well, but I could tell that
Article by: Sarah Koontz, Founder of Living by Design Ministries Today I’m spilling my all-time, number-one, best-of-the-best secret to cultivating enduring friendships. But first, a confession… I am the only person I know who managed to get all the way through college without one single enduring friendship. Not. A. One.
Article by: Sarah Koontz, Founder of Living by Design Ministries With Easter just around the corner, I’ve been pondering the significance of the cross. Everything I am and everything I stand for is connected to the cross of Jesus Christ. His death gives me life; His resurrection gives me hope. I am
Article by: Sarah Koontz, Founder of Living by Design Ministries Photography by Kristi Foreman My husband and I are opposites. I am outspoken, he is reserved. I am a dreamer, he is realistic. I am driven, he is laid-back. I’ll never forget the friction these differences triggered early in our
Article by: Sarah Koontz,Founder of Living by Design Ministries I love it when my “everyday romantic” surprises me with flowers. This time the blooms are a refreshing mixture of vibrant tulips. I create a hodgepodge of floral arrangements – mason jars overflowing with inspiration – to set around my house
Article by: Sarah Koontz, Founder of Living by Design Ministries I ask you to think of today’s post as a duet—two distinct voices harmonizing within a melodious freedom message. I compiled a selection of my favorite quotes from Rebekah Lyons’ new book, You Are Free, and wove them into my own
Article by: Sarah Koontz, Founder of Living by Design Ministries The book of Psalms is my favorite place to go when I need a quick pick-me-up, but I rarely spend much time digging beneath the surface, searching for the treasure within. The sheer length of Psalm 119 has always deterred
Article by: Sarah Koontz, Founder of Living by Design Ministries Be still, my soul: the Lord is on thy side.Bear patiently the cross of grief or pain.Leave to thy God to order and provide;In every change, He faithful will remain. My weary soul longs for this elusive stillness, nourishment, provision.
Article by: Sarah Koontz, Founder of Living by Design Ministries A few months ago I discovered my youngest daughter’s love language {insert enthusiastic and unapologetic momstyle dance moves here}. This, my friends, is a huge victory in my little corner of the universe. My little 8-year-old miss is strong-willed, sassy,
Article by: Sarah Koontz, Founder of Living by Design Ministries For the rest of your life, people will be trying to find words to describe you, to sum you up, and to categorize you. Humans label things, it’s what they do. And if you are not careful, you will start
Article by: Sarah Koontz, Founder of Living by Design Ministries After a devastating miscarriage and a season of unexpected infertility, I was finally a mother. In spite of the joy I felt, I could not shake the feeling that something was missing in my life. The beautiful burden of motherhood
Article by: Sarah Koontz, Founder of Living by Design Ministries Until recently, I would have never referred to myself as a “creative” or an “artist.” Why not, you ask? It’s simple really. My hands cannot create the beauty my eye longs for. My children’s stick figure drawings tower over my
An Interview with Cru’s Kate Maxey | Written by Sarah Koontz For the last few years, my husband and I have been supporting a ministry called Cru (formerly Campus Crusade for Christ). Cru was established in 1951 by Bill and Vonette Bright and is actively ministering in more than 191
Article by: Sarah Koontz, Founder of Living by Design Ministries Clutter is both my constant companion (I have 2 grade school kids!) and a threat to my peace of mind. I am always looking for new ways to control the clutter in my home, and this Pre-Christmas Purge has been
Early this year, I stumbled upon a woman’s prayer group at my church. My motives for joining them were not rooted in a desire to pray, but rather a desire to spend time with a friend who was temporarily leading the group. But one prayer session with those ladies, and
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