I’ve read the Christmas story in the Gospels for years. In fact every January, I begin my Daily Bible with the telling of the birth of Jesus in the book of Matthew. But this year, this beautiful December, I’m reading it with a new hunger and in utter awe. What the Lord is reveling to me is creating a love for this story like I’ve never experience prior to now. It’s peace. It’s wonder. It’s revelation. It’s JESUS!!! Reading the passage in Matthew chapter one, I stopped, transfixed on verse 21. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins. — Matthew 1:21 NIV COME ON!!! My soul stirs just reading the words. Yet, in my NIV Bible, the paper kind, which if you don’t have a paper Bible. Get one. Read from it... Continue reading

Joseph & Jesus I’ve been reading the Christmas story in the Gospels the past two weeks. My time in the Word has been utterly revelatory. Father, God has been speaking to me in His kind voice and uncovering treasures of the Christmas story that I didn’t even know were there. Such was the post from Friday about Zechariah. After having my mind blow up over Zechariah, God led me to read through the first chapter of Matthew. That’s when my eyes were drawn over and over to this heading: Joseph Accepts Jesus as His Son On the surface, nothing is noteworthy to most. However, for me. I was drawn over and over to the implications of this heading and then the passage that followed. And that’s because, in my Healing Prayer sessions, over and over again, I pray with believers to restore their voice. So much of human misery is... Continue reading

Hello My Friends here on Lynndonovan.org. I've been absent from here. Hope to be more active. But today, I feel led to post a Facebook Live video that I originally shared on my online ministry page, Spiritually Unequal Marraige. The tools that I share are powerful and they work. I... Continue reading

While reading the Christmas story in the book of Luke on Monday, I pondered Zechariah’s story. The Holy Spirit began to speak to me about Zechariah’s angelic encounter, his response, and the significance and similarity in many believers lives today. Let’s read it together and then I will share the revelation that could very well change the course of your life this very day. Let us recall that Zechariah was the High Priest serving in the Temple, in the Holies of holy. He and his wife Elizabeth were devoted to the Lord, however, they lived in shame as they were childless. Childlessness was considered a curse in ancient Biblical times. In Luke, chapter one, Zechariah received great honor when chosen to burn incense in the Temple. While ministering to God behind the curtain the angel, Gabriel, appeared before him and said, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been... Continue reading

SUMites, I’m so excited for Christmas this year. I went extra crazy decorating the house. Take a look. Within me remains a wide-eye small girl who still marvels at the wonder and whimsy of this season. I miss the snow so much this time of year. So much so, that I created a snowscape outside of my front door. My daughter, Caitie, who is freezing in Indiana is longing for the warm afternoons of southern California. I love the decorations on the tree, each tell a story of a season of our life. I love the packages and the lights. I love to wear Christmas apparel and have laughed out loud at the crazy, and weird, ugly Christmas sweaters. There are tiny miracles all about us if we take time to notice. In fact, just this past week Mike asked me what church service we would be attending on Christmas... Continue reading

Hello SUM Nation: I just wonder…… Can you perhaps come to understand the unique and special blessings of the unequally yoked? I bet someone just read this and rolled their eyes? Anybody??? As a woman who has walked this journey now for more than two decades, I truly understand how very difficult it can be. I have lived through the pain, rejection, fear and confusion. I know that some days it can take everything we have to hold on to hope. Yet as a veteran, I have come to realize the unique and beautiful blessings of this journey of faith. We, the SUMites, have learned to pray. We have gained great faith as well. And our hope in Jesus soars above so many others who are of faith. During this season of miracles, take a minute to reflect on what gifts and goodness have been born out of your difficult... Continue reading

From our archives, articles which remain relevant for the spiritually mismatched marriage. This post is part III in this series. Click on Part I and Part II to read the precursors to this article. This was originally posted on April 20, 2012. ***** Unequally Yoked and the Atheist Blogs A few months ago I was emailing back and forth to a friend of mine whose husband is a reader of atheist blogs. She was in such pain and in a quandary as to how to cope. Now I don’t pretend to have all the answers for each individual situation. I can only share what has worked in my life and marriage. Let me say that I love this young mom and wife. She is in the midst of fiery battles daily and is yet living for Jesus under tremendous persecution from her own spouse. And to add to the dynamics... Continue reading

Last Tuesday as I zipped my travel bag closed and was about to drive to the airport, my iPhone buzzed. Your flight has been delayed. Your new departure time is…… My mind screamed… We will miss our connection. I scrambled about on the internet. There were no other flights available. Reality came crashing in. Tomorrow was one of the busiest travel days of the year. Nothing available tomorrow either. Everything was booked. I sat in the chair in my bedroom and a reluctant memory of 30 years prior came rolling back into my mind. This same scenario was playing out all over again. A much-anticipated trip home, to Colorado, for the holidays. Cancelled and my joy ruined, and gloom overtook my heart. I truly didn’t know how to process the deep grief of my unmet expectations, dreams and hopes. I realized that thirty years ago, I was visited by a... Continue reading

SUMites, As millions of us take time to give thanks to the Lord this week, I thought it would be so cool to share a scripture verse. Share a verse that you are thankful for and how the verse impacted your life. Who knows, perhaps your verse will help someone else. So this thanksgiving I'm thankful for: For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. — 2 Timothy 1:7 I can’t count the number of times as a young mom, something would scare me in the middle of the night. I would sit upright and speak this verse out-loud over and over until fear left! I’m so thankful for the powerful Word of the Lord. SHARE YOUR VERSE IN THE COMMENTS! Happy Thanksgiving. I love you, SUMite Family! Be Blessed, Lynn Continue reading

Every year I share a wonderful tradition that I began when my daughter was little, A Tablecloth of thanks. I’m reprinting the story today for all the new readers. It’s never too late to begin a tradition of faith. And this one is perfect for believers and our pre-believers as well. Have a blessed Thanksgiving. I am so very thankful for all of you. Hugs, Lynn ----- Tablecloth of Thanks Many of you know that I am married to an unbeliever. This past May we celebrated 15 years of marriage. Our unequally yoked marriage has had its challenges to say the least. Over the years, however, our ingenious God has maneuvered us through many touchy issues. Our disparity becomes more apparent during the holidays. Giving thanks to our Lord in November is a treasured time for me. I name my blessings one-by-one in prayer, thanking God for His lavish abundance... Continue reading

SUMite Nation: Sorry for the radio silence. I’ve been balancing three speaking engagements this past week and I have laryngitis. Yesterday afternoon I was going to cancel my talk: Maintaining Your Healing Following Prayer. But at 2 pm, (the meeting began at 4) the Lord said, “Get up and I will heal you as you are speaking.” WOW! Suddenly I was filled with energy. Jumped in the shower and gave a powerful talk, equipping believers with tools to walk further into their healing. I was able to speak clearly and then prayed with several and watched God release His love and fire!!! It was awesome. ----- I want to let you know that the Lord said that I should hold off with the SUMite Summit registration until January. He said the momentum will be lost in the busy of the Holidays. Following our community fast on January 14th, I will... Continue reading

SUMite Nation: Tomorrow in America many will go to the polls to vote. Please pray for our nation because the potential for rage, distrust, destruction, and lawlessness looms high. (These are all demonic principalities, by the way.) Our local friends who know Mike and I, always joke around election time that we cancel out each other’s votes. I might be a bit more conservative and Mike is far and away, liberal. Ya, just another area in our lives where we are mismatched. I know I’m not alone in this kind of a mismatch. So, for those of us who are trying to avoid arguments over candidates, issues, and government in general, I bless you today with peace. Be the peace maker. I know that many marriages on Tuesday will feel additional strain because the political climate is volatile and highly charged. I know for me, I MUST press into the... Continue reading

Shelley Cruze with Husband and Son By SUMite, Shelley Cruz I was raised in a wonderful Christian home but walked away from God as a teenager because I thought that I was missing out on all the fun in life. I married, started my career, bought a home with my husband and had two babies. After 12 years of living for myself, I finally realized that the “fun” and all the other things I used to fill the void were leaving me feeling empty. I knew what I was missing was a relationship with Jesus and in 1996, I rededicated my life to Him. I wanted my children to know Jesus and began to teach them and brought them to church with me. I longed for my husband to know Christ, so I began praying for him. Soon after, he began coming to church with me, but it became quickly... Continue reading

by Niki Hathorn Hello SUMite friends! I have some wonderful news today. When I met my husband in our early twenties, we were both believers but not even close to walking with Jesus. Fast forward to my early thirties, we were married, and I was pregnant with our first child. It was at that time when Jesus finally got hold of me. I found a church to attend, started reading my Bible, I became involved in community with some wonderful ladies, and really began to grow. My husband would participate once in a while - when convenient for him, but I wasn't seeing much change in his life. In fact, debauchery and anger seemed to take over any joy that he had. It's been a long and difficult road. In August, I went to bed on a Sunday night and fell asleep telling Jesus that I didn't think I could... Continue reading

Originally posted: October 30, 2014, But remains Powerfully Relevant for HALLOWEEN. Greetings, I have some thoughts about Halloween. Halloween was always one of the highlights of my year as a child. I mean really. Come on. Free candy…. It’s a day to pretend you are someone else, costumes, parties, bobbing for apples, being scared (but not really). I know that there is disagreement about how believers should handle this day. I’m not going to judge. You need to follow the Holy Spirit as He directs your heart for your family. But today I want to share a prayer God has placed heavily on my spirit and with power. Because after the kids are home sorting their candy, after the paint is washed from their faces and the jack-o-lanterns have long burned out, there is a reality. There is a very real enemy of God and His people. And on this... Continue reading

by Lori Skipper Psalm 139 NLT Too often, we as believers, do not realize our value or our worth. We forget that God is with us ALL the time. We feel we were a mistake. Psalm 139 breaks down our value and our worth for us. This powerful Scripture also reinforces that we are not nor were we a mistake; regardless of what others may have said to or about us. The One that matters the most has told us we are NOT a mistake. When we sin or make a mistake, we spend so much wasted time beating ourselves up and trying to make up for the wrong we’ve done. But, Psalm 139 verse 1, 4, 5, 16 & 17 assures us that our Father already KNEW what we were going to say or what we were going to do, before we said or did it! I’m certainly not... Continue reading

Now for something completely different. You know, I have discovered a secret to a happy marriage. Well at least it applies to the Donovan Clan. Feed the man. I’ve learned to cook. I didn’t know much more than spaghetti when we married. But I find cooking is one of the creative expressions I enjoy, a gift from God. So today, I’m delighting in the beauty and abundance of Autumn. I want to share what’s going on in the kitchen. From my Pomegranate tree out back: Roasted Veggies with pomegranate: A Pioneer Woman Recipe Served with Salmon with a mustard and brown sugar glaze. I forgot the poms in this pic... Oopie. Grin. But it turned out great! Yum and eee. I was pulling the seeds out of the shell, when all of a sudden a spider was crawling across the cutting board. Eeeeek! Love you SUMite Nation! Hugs, Lynn Fill... Continue reading

Please listen to this short video. Then PRAY! Continue reading

Monday’s article elicited quite a response. I received some amazing emails. And my dear friends, God is in the business of healing. Today, I want to share what I have learned about the spiritual realm and sex. I’m going to discus only a small portion of my knowledge in this area as our sexuality, sexual practices and beliefs regarding sex have a vast affect on our lives. But today, I want to talk about the union of sex in the spiritual realm. And as you read this post, PLEASE, DO NOT go into condemnation. This post is your spiritual warfare and your freedom. Once you have awareness, your victory is at hand!!! Hallelujah! ----- I wonder if you have taken note of the explicit warnings about sex in the Bible? But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or... Continue reading

A couple of days ago an interesting article popped up in one of my online feeds. “Couple Takes A Year Off From Marriage” Ya, I had to do it. So, I popped over for a read. After 17 years of marriage, the article begins…. Basically, this woman is board. She asks her husband to agree to a year-long open marriage. He agrees and they establish a few hard and fast rules. M-F they live separate lives, her in an apartment. They reunite for the weekend. They practice safe sex and don’t date mutual friends and finally, no serious relationships. BTW, they both broke all the rules. A year later she returns home. Of course, the marriage is OVER. He dated a friend and was in a serious relationship. And his wife, well she was more confused about everything than before. So, I decided to ask Mike’s opinion about all of... Continue reading

Ya, so, I've struggled for a couple of hours tying to decide what to write about..... (BIG sigh) My writer is broken today. So, below is the video from Ask Me Anything from Wednesday's Facebook Live. The Questions: How do you handle husband's objection to church Maintaining Hope What seeps from the Television Put in your earphones and listen while cleaning or cooking dinner. :) My friends, when I was a young wife and mother, Dr. Dobson's daily radio programs were life-blood to my sanity and hope. I love Dr. Dobson and pray for him continually. Below are some links to great articles on marriage. I love you all. Women Have Needs That Men Do Not Comprehend Men and Women Have Different Needs The Ways Men Need Their Wives Stay tuned for details about our SUMMIT!! And if you have decided that you can't attend, don't listen to that voice... Continue reading

Hello Gang, I've been on the road since last Tuesday. I will finally arrive home tomorrow. I have been at Open Heavens and I hope to be returning with fresh fervor and many stories of God's goodness. Today, I want to let you know that I've nearly secured a place for a spring SUMite Summit. So, save the date, April 5-6th. I would like to have a reception at my house on Friday evening. A Meet-n-Greet for all SUMites. Then on Saturday I have a room reserved for us at a local Christian school. So we can host a crowd. It is my intention to bless each of you. Lay hands upon you and pray for your marriage, healing and to release you into a greater intimacy and giftings of the Kingdom. Who wants more of that? All that I have I want to pass along to you. Expect to... Continue reading

Redeeming Prince of Peace A word, harshly spoken. The altering of what once was. The pain of loss collies with the demand of unwanted change. Regret knocks upon the heart. Remorse follows close on the heals as the hope of restoration dims with the silence of unanswered pleas to be heard, be forgiven. Beloved, I am here. I am your comfort in the pain. Bring the rejection before me. Place upon the alter, injustice and robbery of your peace. I gently collect your tears, each a glimmer of a rend heart. I am present to walk with you as you face your fears. My Beloved, you were never intended to defeat this dragon named offence and its blackguard, bitterness. I stand in the gap of your gaping wound to shelter your innocence and bear the blows of grief in your pain. I am Jesus. My intentions toward you are eternally... Continue reading

My SUMite sisters and brothers. Are you weary? Are you tired of shouting down the demonic realm that surrounds to destroy you and your family? Are your prayers altering only momentary change? Rise up and receive the gift of God, The Eagle. God is surrounded by eagles in His throne room. Let’s take note of what they offer. Their faces looked like this: Each of the four had the face of a human being, and on the right side each had the face of a lion, and on the left the face of an ox; each also had the face of an eagle. — Ezekiel 1:10 But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. — Isaiah 40: 31 Eagles soar for two reasons: To climb above... Continue reading

Hello SUM Nation, On Monday I posted a question. See below. Today, I’ll share my perspective. Hugs, Lynn Anne M. wrote: Answering questions about the eternal fate of unsaved family members to your children, knowing that your words may be repeated to those family members. It's walking a line of truth, comfort and diplomacy. Anne, it IS walking a line of truth, comfort and diplomacy. So true. Let me share how I view my pre-believer spouse. HOPE. I will never surrender hope that God will reach my husband. I’m so utterly convinced that God will answer my 26 years of prayers, that there is no other option for me. In fact, I’m nearly convinced that the prayer Mike prayed with Joe on the driveway in front of our house, sealed the deal. (I share this story in Winning Him Without Words) I won’t know for sure until glory, but the... Continue reading