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 article was inspired by a message […]
Is the Christian Life REALLY the Best Life? Read More »
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, I’m reminded of him. This
When You Feel All Alone in Your Grief Read More »
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 first child arrived. Boppies, Diaper
How to Pray the UNcomplicated Way Read More »
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 in my mind. But I
Beauty for Ashes: How God Redeemed My Mother-Daughter Story Read More »
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 he was suffering. The slope
Biblical Encouragement for the Anxious Christian Woman Read More »
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. Oh, there were a few
My #1 Secret for Cultivating Enduring Friendships {+Never Unfriended Book Review} Read More »
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. How, Lord?How can I be
Top 7 Reasons to Study Psalm 119 + Free Online Bible Study Read More »
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 to define yourself by the
The Price We Pay for the Labels We Wear + Video Read More »
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 own and I can almost
3 Questions to Help You Discover What You were Created to Create Read More »
Article by: Sarah Koontz, Founder of Living by Design Ministries I moved away from home when I was 17, searching for something more than my small town could provide. I traveled the globe for three years, from the outback of Australia to the mountains of British Columbia, in pursuit of my purpose. So when I
Your Ultimate Purpose is Already Inscribed on Your Heart Read More »
