preparing for storms

Praising, Trusting and Following God

/ Christine Maynor / Leave a comment

Thank you for subscribing-may these words bring a quiet moment of peace and reflection to your day.

My Daily Musings-October 3rd, 2026

“Faith is when you praise God in the storm, you trust Him in the valley, and you follow Him in the dark.” – Corrie ten Boom

I want to break apart each part of this quote. First, “faith is when you praise God in the storm.” Some days it is hard to praise God when the storms of my life are raging around me. Sometimes it’s hard to keep my head above the water. The clouds start to gather around me and I begin to feel discouraged about my trials. Then I feel like I might give in to the gathering darkness. But then I get through that hard day. The sun comes out the next morning and there is hope again. I feel like it’s a lot easier to praise God after the worst of the storm has passed than it is when the storm is raging around me. But as long as I keep going and reaching out to my Heavenly Father in prayer, I will survive.

Second, faith is when “you trust Him in the valley.” That sounds easier than praising Him in the storm. The valleys are the easier days when my health isn’t as bad as it is on the hardest days and I can get more done. It doesn’t mean that those days aren’t hard as well, but maybe it’s just easier on those days to trust in my Heavenly Father. We are never free from trials in this life. We all have something hard we are going through. Trusting our Heavenly Father every day, not just on the easier days, makes life more bearable and enjoyable.

Finally, faith is when “you follow Him in the dark.” When we feel the darkness start to creep into our souls, we need someone to follow so we can see the light again. Who better to follow than our loving Heavenly Father? He can see the whole path ahead when we can only see a small portion of it. But it’s hard when we are discouraged and hurting to reach out to Him for help. But I feel like that’s the only way to survive, especially on the dark days and nights of life.

What helps you keep your faith when you’re going through a particularly difficult season of life? Have you ever experienced a time when looking back helped you see God’s presence in the middle of a storm?

Love’s Strong Cord

/ Christine Maynor / Leave a comment

Thank you for subscribing-may these words bring a quiet moment of peace and reflection to your day.

Backstory: Over the last few weeks, my Mom and I have been memorizing the lyrics of the hymn, Standing on the Promises. There were a couple of parts that really stuck out to me. In the third verse, it tells us that we are “bound to Him eternally by love’s strong cord.” This made me think that because of what Jesus suffered for us, He created a cord of love that binds us to Him, one that is so strong that it can withstand anything and never break. The fourth verse says, “Resting in my Savior as my all in all.” This means to me that we can rest in Jesus when we are weary and discouraged because we don’t have to carry our burdens alone.

Love’s Strong Cord

Jesus suffered so we don’t have to suffer alone,
Even though we may feel like it, we are never on our own.
His love binds us to Him with a strong cord,
One that nothing can break because He is our Lord.

On days when the clouds and darkness inside
Grow heavy in our soul, Jesus will be by our side.
Even when the light inside us feels dim,
He is the light we need and we can always count on Him.

Even when others let us down,
Jesus is there so we don’t need to frown.
His love will see us through any storm,
And when we feel cold inside, He will help us feel warm.

When our burdens feel too heavy to bear,
We can trust that Jesus will always be there.
Even when we can’t take one more step forward,
He will help us carry our burdens onward.

So, if you feel like your back might break
From the weight, Jesus will be there for your sake.
You can always count on Him to help you,
And His love will see you through.

The Takeaway: Our Savior, Jesus Christ, suffered for us so that we don’t have to bear our burdens alone. He binds us to Him with a strong cord of love, which cannot be broken by anything. We can trust Him completely to be there for us whenever we need Him. When the weight of our burdens seems too heavy to bear, we can count on Jesus to help us carry what we cannot carry on our own.

Watch the YouTube Short of me reading part of the poem here:https://www.youtube.com/shorts/3io0lvYjac0

Watch the YouTube Short of me singing part of the hymn here:https://www.youtube.com/shorts/7fbuFXAt9XM

What does it mean to you to be “bound to Him eternally by love’s strong cord”? How have you felt Christ’s love holding you close to Him during a difficult or discouraging time?

Walking the Race Together

/ Christine Maynor / 1 Comment

Thank you for subscribing-may these words bring a quiet moment of peace and reflection to your day.

Backstory:
I recently heard an idea that touched my heart. Sometimes we wonder if we are enough or if we will ever measure up to who Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ want us to become. We may see the distance between our imperfect selves and our perfect Savior and feel discouraged. But what if Jesus isn't standing far away at the finish line waiting for us to catch up? What if He is already beside us, walking with us through every step of our journey? As I have faced health challenges and difficult uphill climbs in my own life, I have found comfort in the thought that the Savior is not only cheering me on but helping me carry the burdens that sometimes feel too heavy to bear alone. 

Walking the Race Together

Imagine that you are walking by yourself in the race of life,
Some days the road seems so long and full of strife. 
On those hard days, you might feel like you are walking alone,
Because no one knows your struggles and you suffer on your own.

Then you have days when you wonder if you will ever measure up
Because you are so flawed and you need someone to fill your faith cup.
You are constantly walking up a steep mountain incline 
Because your burdens weigh you down and your hopes start to decline.

If you are in the midst of health challenges that no one can figure out,
And your mind starts to wonder and your faith starts to doubt.
You are so tired of constantly being misunderstood by your fellowmen
And you wonder if you can make it through one more day over again.

If you ever feel this way, just know that your worries and cares are known
By the One who can ease your burdens so you don’t have to carry them on your own.
He will help you up your steep mountain peak when you feel weak,
And He will provide the peace and the comfort you seek.

Just lean on your Savior’s capable shoulders when you need to,
And in this race called life, He will always walk right beside you.
He will cheer you on every step of the way
Because He loves you more than you could ever say.

The Takeaway: No matter how slow our progress may seem, Jesus Christ does not ask us to walk life's path alone. He walks beside us, strengthens us when we are weary, and carries us when we cannot go on by ourselves. We do not have to be perfect today. We simply need to keep walking with Him, one step at a time. 

Watch my YouTube short on this topic here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X0Fjk9DGsjI

Tethered Through the Storm

/ Christine Maynor / 1 Comment

Thank you for subscribing-may these words bring a quiet moment of peace and reflection to your day.

My Daily Musings-May 28th, 2026

Yesterday I stood outside with my little dog while the wind whipped around us. I remember feeling grateful that she was tethered to me with her leash because at only 29 pounds, the gusts felt strong enough to carry her away. Being connected to someone stronger made her safer in the storm.

Later, I thought about how much I need to be tethered to my Savior when the winds of life begin to blow. Trials come. Floods rise. Fear, grief, illness, and uncertainty beat against us. But when our faith is anchored in Christ, we do not have to face those storms alone. He becomes the strength we lean on when our own strength is gone.

What are we tethering ourselves to when life feels unsteady? Are we building our foundation firmly enough that when the winds come, we remain connected to the One who can withstand it all?

I am grateful that no storm is stronger than the Savior. If we stay close to Him, He will help us stand.

Hope Beyond the Hard Days

/ Christine Maynor / Leave a comment

Thank you for subscribing-may these words bring a quiet moment of peace and reflection to your day.

My Daily Musings- May 25th, 2026

“Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope in the Lord.” — Psalm 31:24

Life was never meant to be easy. We all face struggles, discouragement, heartbreak, and days when we wonder how we can keep going. But maybe that is part of why hope and faith matter so much. If life were easy all the time, would we learn to lean on Christ the way we do in our hardest moments?

I love that this scripture first tells us to have courage. Sometimes courage is not doing something big or dramatic. Sometimes courage is simply getting up another day, saying another prayer, or continuing to trust God when life feels heavy. And when we keep going, Christ strengthens our hearts.

Have you ever noticed how even after the darkest night, the sun still rises? In the same way, because of Jesus Christ, hope rises too. The clouds may not clear immediately, but through Him we can trust that better days will come. What would happen if we chose to believe that hope is still there, even on our hardest days?

Because of Him, we can find the strength and courage to keep going one day at a time.