When I posted this image from Pinterest's “quotes” board to my Facebook page, I got responses like, “So true,” “Forget the working full-time part!” and “Hey! I think I'm being taking advantage of.” It got a ton of “likes” and was shared numerous times. And I'm certain it's because most women can relate to being pulled in so many different directions that giving our families the option to choose the top two things they can't live without doesn't seem like such a bad idea.

Each April 4th I mourn a man I never knew, wondering what would have been had his life not been cut short by assassination. Martin Luther King, Jr., reverend, civil rights icon, and practitioner of non-violent protest, was gunned down at Memphis’ Lorraine Hotel in 1968. The then 38-year-old had made an indelible mark on the ethos, conscience, and better graces of America. Like so many figures of that time, he paid the cost of change with his life.

MLK Jr. is no Jesus. He’s not my Savior, but he has so profoundly affected the quality of my life because of the battles he chose to fight. I could not be educated, married, or employed in the same way had he and countless others not tirelessly and bravely fought for civil rights.

By J. Lee Grady

The election of the new pope is a prophetic slap in the face for our egotistical excess.

I’m not Catholic, and I’ve never completely understood Catholics’ preoccupation with Vatican politics. But I’ve been watching the Vatican closely since last month when Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina became the 266th pope and instantly got two million followers—and counting—on Twitter.

Why is this man so popular? That’s easy to understand. He’s humble. He cooks for himself. He chose to live in a small apartment in Buenos Aires instead of the archbishop’s palace. When he was the leader of Argentina’s Catholics, he took el micro—the city bus—to get around. He took the bus again after his election in Rome.

So many of us give up easily out of fear of the two-lettered word NO. Opportunities, promotions, increase, respect, and more have slipped away from us because of the surge of discouragement within us when the word “no” slips into our ears. For those who are conscious of their authority to trample the word “no” under their confident feet, even the sky is not their limit.

By Jason McFarland

The Grand Canyon didn’t used to be a canyon.

That’s when you say, “Uh, what does that have to do with pornography?”

Have you ever been to the Grand Canyon? As you hike along the red rim of one of the natural world’s seven wonders, peer down into the depths. Don’t get too close, just look. Can you see it? That teeny, tiny blue ribbon? That’s the Colorado River.

That little bit of water carved one of the largest canyons in the world.

See where I’m going with this?

“Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13).

Someone I loved once gave me two matching elephants from India for my birthday. They were studded with small colored mirrors and jewels. I loved the giver of the gift deeply—and often liked to look at the elephants as an old married couple that one day we might be.

That one day never came.

One night, driven to let go of the giver of the gift and the pain of my lost dream, I laid the elephants on the altar of my kitchen counter. I needed an outlet for the anger--and grief, if I’m honest--so I slammed a hammer down on the “girl” elephant. Bits of mirrors and jewels flew and skittered across the counter, but the “body” of the girl elephant remained intact—brown and solid like packed earth. Again I pounded it. More beads and mirrors split and scattered, but the body withstood the blows.

Dear Mrs. Happy:

Do you think it is wrong for a man who is married to consider having himself altered (through castration)? The reason I asked was I was walking with my wife on the road and was talking to her maybe about increasing the number of times we are intimate per week—which, at this stage, is anywhere from once a week, to once every two weeks, to once every three weeks and has been up to three months! She told me that if I wanted to have sex more than we do that I should have married someone else, because “I am tired.” This just about killed me inside, because that leaves me absolutely nowhere to turn! I am so sick of how I feel inside that I don't know what to do. I never thought I could feel depressed, but I do. I would love to hear your solution!

--A reader

I love the month of March. It is the manifestation of all the preparation and colorful rebirth of nature--plants, leaves, flowers, and grass. It shows that nature’s preparation for spring is never in vain. In recent times, I’ve been thinking a lot about the process and reward of preparation and what the words “good luck” have to do with it.

Although there are many Biblical analogies I can refer to, I’ll stick with my two favorites. Was it luck that delivered Esther into the king’s presence and heart? Did Saul of Tarsus automatically become anointed and fearless after he encountered Jesus on the way to Damascus? If we look at the answers to these questions, we will see that good luck had nothing to do with their fate.

“Mmmmm…” That is the sound of Mrs. Happy yawning on a Saturday morning. After a week of hard work and general sleep deprivation, she looks forward to sleeping in a few minutes. Oh, and visiting Mr. Happy. Or Mr. Happy visiting her. However it goes. And everyone is happy in the end, if you know what I mean.

See, Mr. and Mrs. Happy have settled comfortably into marriage, including a relaxed and thoroughly satisfying sex life. It took a while to get there, and Mrs. Happy recently reflected on what a normal sex life looks like in a Christ-centered marriage. Normal is:

Many times I find myself wondering what the word “love” means. Does it really hold no record of wrongs even if you’re constantly afflicted by mental anguish and scorned with disrespect? Is it really unconditional selflessness that encourages you to forgive your offender 70 times seven even if they grieve your spirit beyond comprehension? Is there really love at first sight, or is love an emotion that develops with time and friendship? Last, is it true that love is blind and marriage is the eye opener?