by Shannon Popkin | Aug 12, 2021 | Comparison
A scandalous scene was unfolding at Simon the Pharisee’s dinner party. A prostitute had crept in and was crouched, weeping at the feet of Jesus. As her tears mingled with her emptied-out perfume, making trickles in his dirty feet, she wiped them with her hair and...
by Shannon Popkin | Aug 10, 2021 | Control Girl, Parenting, Teens
The day we launched our first college student, I woke up in the hotel room with a pit in my stomach. This day is not about you! I reminded myself, and quietly began planning the photos I wanted to take, the quiet moment of prayer we’d have in her dorm room, and...
by Shannon Popkin | Jul 20, 2021 | Comparison, Compassion
When I pulled in the driveway the other day, my son inhaled quickly then expressed immediate disappointment. “I thought I saw my Amazon box on the front porch…” “Was it that table?” I asked, knowingly. A couple of weeks ago, I spray...
by Shannon Popkin | Jul 17, 2021 | Uncategorized
This question changed everything for me: What would you do from your platform if you were there to serve? The metaphor of “platform” is that it’s lifted up so that you might be seen and heard. And it’s true that many people step onto a platform...
by Shannon Popkin | Jun 19, 2021 | Kids' Perspective, Parenting, Roles
There’s something in a boy that is magically drawn to the concept of manhood. It’s in his DNA. Instinctively he knows that manhood is what he was made for. With shoulders back and muscles flexed, he embraces the challenge of becoming a man. He dreams of...
by Shannon Popkin | Jun 9, 2021 | Church, Community
“In isolation we wilt. In community we grow.” Does your life reflect the truth of this statement? When Beckie (right) received my last “Live like it’s true!” email, she was convicted by my thought on “one-anothering”. She...
by Shannon Popkin | May 29, 2021 | Comparison
I heard about a woman who was determined to get in 20,000 steps per day as part of a challenge. So she joined a walking club, but she had to change her stride to match the rest of the group. Now, however, she’s having a hard time walking at all because of the...
by Shannon Popkin | Mar 16, 2021 | Comparison, Uncategorized
Once when Jesus was teaching, a man called out from the crowd, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me” (Luke 12:13). It wasn’t the time or place, and Jesus told him so. Then he turned to the crowd and said, “Watch out! Be...
by Shannon Popkin | Mar 6, 2021 | Comparison, Most Popular
This post first appeared on TriciaGoyer.com. Thanks so much, Tricia, for sharing this post! I came running home after school, crying so hard I could barely talk. My mom dropped everything, and through my hiccupping sniffles, I told her my third-grade woes. It had been...
by Shannon Popkin | Feb 13, 2021 | Comparison, Uncategorized
There’s a lot of pressure on Valentine’s Day. It feels like the whole world is going on some elaborate date, drinking in the beautiful romance of true love. Especially when you’re NOT doing any of those things. Many of us have this nagging question...