This Week’s New Articles

Answer to the travel picture on Home Page: Pacuare River in Costa Rica

“And the LORD will continually guide you, And satisfy your desire in scorched places, And give strength to your bones; And you will be like a watered garden…” -Isaiah 58:11

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I think it’s so easy to neglect the deep care our souls need.

In the busyness of life, with constant distractions and to-do lists, our heart connection with Jesus can be pushed aside.

But our relationship with Him is the most precious relationship in all the world.

He is our Life. He is our Truth. He is our Healer. He is our Savior. He is our Lord. He is our Counselor. He is the medicine our hearts need.

He is, I Am.

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This year, I’ve had several loved ones die, and I haven’t made time to grieve properly.

In the same breath, I saw revival. Several of my Bible students had amazing encounters with God in class. I witnessed students crying, embracing one another, bowing their heads in prayer, and reaching out to touch Jesus. One student described seeing Jesus as a majestic lion with a mane of fire, warm golden eyes, and big, white, comforting wings. This same student later received physical healing. The anointing of God was so strong.

Despite this, there’s been the familiar nagging of the spirit of the enemy coming against my tender and sacred dreams. He has sought to sow seeds of doubt and hopelessness that the dreams I believe God has promised me will never come true.

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This season has been full of paradoxes: joy, revelation, fear, doubt, brokenness, blessings, grief, breakthrough, and chronic struggles.

Through it all, Jesus has invited me to trust in Him. Sometimes I find myself running so fast that it feels like Jesus must run up to me and tap me on the shoulder to get my attention. A week ago, Jesus revealed to me the underlying source of my running:

I’m running to keep up a façade of perfection. I’m running from the broken places of wounding that have been buried for years in my soul (which is a real detriment because the enemy has used these hidden places to keep me in perpetual pain). I’m running from secret insecurities and fears that I just don’t want to deal with because it feels too hard for me to fix.

So, I’ve been running.

But Jesus is called our Forerunner (Hebrews 6:20).

He has already run the ultimate race for us. He ran and won the prize of eternal life. And He frequently reminds me that eternal life isn’t just for Heaven. It’s the life of God that He provided for us through His death and resurrection, which the Bible describes as righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit (Romans 14:17).

Running to me represents striving. I never want to be in a place of striving because Jesus is our Prince of Peace.

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“I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.” -John 14:27

Are you striving in any area of your life?

Are there any places of unrest in your soul?

I pray Jesus will tap you on the shoulder and draw you ever deeper into his heart until his peace becomes as common as your breathing. I pray you will experience the love of the Father in a way that fills your life with fullness, joy, blessings, comfort, hope, and everything good Jesus paid for you to have. His heart toward you is good. He has a special place in His heart for you.

Author Bio:

Ashley Thompson is a thankful daughter of God, wife, mother of three girls, best-selling author, Bible teacher, certified life coach, former prayer minister, worship dancer, and artist with a passion for Jesus and those He loves! She has authored four books: His Liberating Flame, Visions of Celestial Love, Romantic Rendezvous for the Soul, and Fallen Coins. Her newest novel, The Sacred Wooing: Experiencing the Bridegroom Love of Jesus, is set for publication this year. 

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In 2024, I received an unexpected message from Amy Walsh, asking whether I would like to be part of a multi-author project. The series takes place in the 1920s and 1930s, and each novella must mention a tea shop, Mrs. Canfield’s Cookery Book (published in 1916), and a fairy tale from the works of Hans Christian Andersen. I hesitated and prayed about it. Could I meet the deadline? What should I write about?

Yet as I pondered, the fragments of an idea took shape. I was drawn to the notion of a young woman—her past a mystery, a telltale birthmark casting a shadow over her sense of worth—forging her way in a hostile world. The themes suggested by the series all came together: tea as a symbol of hospitality and entrepreneurship, Mrs. Canfield’s Cookery Book as a tether to both tradition and reinvention, and Hans Christian Andersen’s The Nightingale, a fairy tale about longing, beauty, and grace.

Bolstered by this vision, I said yes. As I wrote, I learned a lot about the Chinese Exclusion Act in the US and Canada and about how courageous souls dared to believe in a kinder, more loving future.

I hope you’ll join me and the rest of the Apron Strings Tea Tales authors for an enchanting journey through history, heartache, and faith.

Note: Zenith of Tea will be released in March 2026 (special $2.99 pre-order at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GNNFT2XM; watch the teaser video at https://youtu.be/uA22giijcf0),

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Every spring, many cultures celebrate important festivals. For Chinese people, Lunar New Year, also known as the Spring Festival, is the most joyful day of the year. Families prepare for the coming year in many ways: through food, clothing, decorations, music, and more. In some parts of Asia, traveling back to one’s hometown for the New Year is a major annual event and is seen as a responsibility to one’s family and clan.

In Minnesota, some Asian communities—such as Thai, Vietnamese, Cambodian, Laotian, and Hmong—have their own distinct New Year traditions. Supermarkets become livelier than usual, selling special holiday goods and festive foods. Since the lunar calendar is based on the position of the moon, the date of Lunar New Year falls on a different day each year according to the Western calendar.

Western mainline Christian churches (including Protestants and Catholics) follow their own liturgical calendar. The date for commemorating Jesus’ resurrection involves calculations related to the movements of the moon and the earth, so it doesn’t fall on the same day each year. Counting back forty days from Easter (excluding Sundays) leads to Lent, which begins on Ash Wednesday. Traditionally, the church encourages Christians during Lent to engage in self-examination and repentance, to reduce material pleasures and rich foods, and to practice a simpler way of living.

In American society today, not many people pay close attention to the Christian liturgical calendar. Instead, other cultural holidays, such as Valentine’s Day on February 14, have been widely embraced. Not only young people celebrate this day, Valentine’s Day has almost become a “Caring Day”. You can send anyone you love or care about flowers or candy, regardless of the relationship.

As a Chinese Christian living in the United States, I sometimes have mixed feelings about following multiple cultural traditions. This year, Lent happens to overlap with the Lunar New Year celebration. Should it be a time of joyful feasting to celebrate the New Year, or a quiet season of repentance and fasting? Several years ago, Ash Wednesday and Valentine’s Day fell on the same day, and I also felt torn. In the end, it depends on the occasion and friends and family members around us..

Romans 14:5 says, “One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike… Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord.” At that time, Christians were navigating the influence of both Jewish and Greek cultures, each with its own festivals. The passage clearly refers to certain special religious or cultural days. To “observe a day” meant following particular customs about food and activities on that day, identifying with a broader cultural practice. For some believers, certain days were especially meaningful and worth commemorating. For others, regardless of cultural background, every day was the same and required no special adjustment. Scripture teaches both ways of living are acceptable. The important thing is to make sure that Jesus is Lord of my life, and that every decision is made in obedience to His teaching and for His pleasure. When there is no specific guideline, we may rely on the prompting of the Holy Spirit in our hearts to make the right choices.

Beyond religious and cultural festivals, there are also personal “special days” within families: someone’s birthday, the anniversary of a death, a wedding anniversary, the anniversary of being cancer-free, retirement, and so on. Many days in life that stir up emotions may overlap with public holidays, leaving us with mixed feelings. Actually, emotions are neither right nor wrong. As long as we acknowledge them honestly and express them in appropriate ways, mixed feelings need not clash. Instead, they can enrich our lives.