A miracle is going to happen to you — here’s where you’ll find it

It was my junior year of college and I didn’t have the money I needed to pay off my tuition for the fall semester. I was a couple hundred dollars short and there was no Plan B. Believe it or not, I had no student loans. I was fortunate enough to have a scholarship that covered half of my tuition. And thanks to going to a state university, the bill was low enough that I could make the payments by working 25 hours a week as an errand runner at the hospital. Somehow, though, I hadn’t saved enough money to…

If you’ve got a calling, there’s one thing you should keep in mind

April 9, 2019April 9, 2019 Categories: Trusting GodTags: dreams · faith · suffering · Trusting God

On January 1, 2018, things were not looking good for the new year. My dad died on December 30. I was also in the middle of a months’ long treatment for a chronic illness, and the treatment had left me with ongoing physical symptoms and mood changes. With all of this swirling around me, my demanding job felt 10 times harder. It was too much. If you had asked me to list my top 25 goals for the year, “writing a book” wouldn’t have been one of them — not by a long shot. I didn’t have the time, the will,…

An unexpected answer when I asked God to end suffering in my life

February 3, 2019August 3, 2019 Categories: Trusting GodTags: faith · grace · suffering · waiting

I know someone who’s trapped in a dead-end job right now. He’s been there for years and he’s trying to make the best of it, but realistically, his resume is probably far too stale for him to get a different job for which he’s qualified. I know a woman who has an ongoing chronic condition that doctors can’t fix. You’d never know it if you met her — the embarrassing symptoms, the limitations. She longs for some medical breakthrough that will fix the problem, but there’s little hope for that and for whatever reason, God hasn’t healed her.

The one good thing that happened during my worst Christmas ever

December 15, 2018 Categories: MarriageTags: Christmas · faith · gratitude · suffering

“Honey, I’m not feeling well,” I said as my stomach began churning after Christmas Eve dinner at my sister’s house. Three hours later, I was slumped over a toilet, feeling the full effect of a merciless virus.

I tried to help two hostages escape terrorists — I was surprised to find that it helped

September 29, 2018October 17, 2018 Categories: PrayerTags: faith · prayer · suffering

I stared at the TV and fought back tears while watching an interview with American missionaries Gracia and Martin Burnham, who were haggard, filthy and appeared to be disoriented.

If you think God looks at you and sees ugliness, think again

September 8, 2018October 17, 2018 Categories: Growing PainsTags: faith · grace · love · sin

One day when I was in my 20s, I was struggling with a lot of guilt and shame because I felt like the only thing God ever saw about me was my sin and brokenness. God must’ve told my mother. I came into the dining room where my mom was and she said, “Joshua, look at that angel up there on the shelf,” and then she pointed to a ceramic angel behind me.

This what God may be doing with your unanswered prayers

August 4, 2018August 12, 2018 Categories: Trusting GodTags: faith · waiting

I wanted the job. I wanted it badly. And a few weeks after making it to the final round of interviews, I learned that I had just missed the cut. I called my friend Shon to share the bad news. “Is the door totally shut?” he asked.

My baby nephew was dying and his mother’s response was unforgettable

July 14, 2018July 14, 2018 Categories: Miracles · UncategorizedTags: faith · miracles · prayer · waiting

My seven-month-old nephew Canaan was dying and nobody knew it, including his doctor, who had misdiagnosed his digestive issues. The real issue was Hirschsprung’s disease, one of the leading causes of death for kids like Canaan, who has Down Syndrome.

The terrifying moment my daughter thought she was going to drown

February 1, 2018 Categories: ParenthoodTags: faith · fear · parenthood

I stood in the shallow end of the swimming pool waiting for my sobbing 5-year-old daughter to jump in. This had been going on for almost 15 minutes. “I’m scared,” she cried.

Don’t be afraid to ask God for a miracle

November 27, 2017November 27, 2017 Categories: Miracles · UncategorizedTags: faith · kids · miracles

Today is the 15th birthday of a young man named Canaan Rogers. This birthday was not supposed to happen. When Canaan, my nephew, was seven months old, he nearly died because of a doctor’s misdiagnosis of a serious illness. By the time the doctors figured out what was really going on, it was too late. Canaan was all but gone.

Facing Thanksgiving in the midst of loss

November 23, 2017November 27, 2017 Categories: Trusting GodTags: faith · gratitude · healing

I have a friend who will have an empty seat at his Thanksgiving table this year. That seat belonged to his father, who died recently. A few days ago, a doctor told another friend that his dad probably wouldn’t live to see Thanksgiving next year. I have yet another friend who was in a car accident and is in the hospital with serious injuries right now. He will be having Thanksgiving there.

You ought to know this about my wife

November 17, 2017November 18, 2017 Categories: Marriage · UncategorizedTags: faith · marriage · parenthood

“This year, we need a break,” said my wife, Raquel, at the beginning of 2017. Each year since we’ve gotten married, there’s been some huge stress that has shaken up our lives. I know we all go through those times, but knowing that doesn’t make them any easier — it certainly hasn’t for us.

What did Jesus say about natural disasters?

September 10, 2017 Categories: Trusting GodTags: death · faith · grace

Several years ago in my hometown, a man was driving down the highway with his wife when a tree fell down across the highway, landed right on the cab of their pickup truck, and killed them both. Later that week, I was in a church service in which the pastor referenced the freak accident and said, “Do you think that kind of thing happened by accident? There’s no way.”

One baptism was enough for me

August 11, 2017August 11, 2017 Categories: Trusting GodTags: faith

I wasn't exactly sure what I was doing when, at nine years old, I was baptized by my father in a river – and I'm OK with that. There are people who think nine years old is premature for a person to be baptized. I'm actually surprised my parents didn't have me do it sooner.

Being Grateful When God Makes No Sense

June 14, 2017June 14, 2017 Categories: Trusting GodTags: doubt · faith · healing · prayer · waiting

“Gross.” That’s typically not the word I think of when contemplating a miracle Jesus performed, but there’s one exception.

Joshua Rogers

Finding God in the Ordinary

Tag: faith