Author: Sara Lynn Payne

Thoughtful Reads: The Weight of Glory

/ Sara Lynn Payne / 14 Comments

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UG The Weight of Glory

I’m so excited to announce a new series! The first Monday of every month I’m going to post about one of my favorite books that has been impactful for me. These aren’t really book reviews per se because I simply want to share things that have been instrumental in shaping my thinking and walk with Christ. What I love about some of my favorite books is that it isn’t just what the book says, it is the way that it gets me thinking which is what I want to share with you. The very best books are inspiring and challenging and I find myself returning to them like old friends.

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Helping Without Hurting

/ Sara Lynn Payne / 44 Comments

UG Charleston47

I went to the grocery store and as I was leaving, there was a bottleneck of people trying to get out the door. As I trooped through trying to avoid nailing some poor soul in the Achilles tendon with my cart, I realized what the problem was: a woman was blocking half the walkway directing shoppers out. The big rug wasn’t lying completely flat and there was a bump since the edge was folded under. The lady had decided that this was a safety hazard and was telling everyone to watch their step while trying to direct traffic around the mat. She was saying she had called one of the employees to rectify the situation.

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The Beginnings of Community

/ Sara Lynn Payne / 30 Comments

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UG Sisters 1

The barista came over to me and said, “Just to let you know, we’ll be closing in a few minutes.”

I looked up in shock at the clock. It had been two hours already that my dear friend and I had sat engrossed in conversation. It felt like we had just started talking too!

I had so needed that time to connect with my friend; she’s one of those rare people who I can talk about anything with and somehow, the conversation always ends up coming back to God and is incredibly uplifting and inspiring. I walk away feeling encouraged in my faith.

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It Takes a Village

/ Sara Lynn Payne / 8 Comments

UG Blue Sky Building

I’ve been really encouraged lately: a bunch of my friends have approached me saying they are considering foster care and want to ask some questions. I’m thrilled since it means a couple of things.

The first thing is that it means more kids are potentially going to find some great homes with some wonderful people to help cushion them in a terrible time. I wish I could take them all in, but the reality is that I can’t. We are simply one family and this is one of those cases where it truly “takes a village”.

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More Than We Can Handle

/ Sara Lynn Payne / 11 Comments

UG Broken Lukey

We had an incident this week that involved an attempt to throw a five-pound hand weight up to the top bunk bed. I now have one very remorseful son with bad aim and another extremely forgiving son with a broken foot. To be completely honest, I am actually surprised that we’ve made it this long before having a broken bone. Having three boys means injuries are par for the course.

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Just a Little Scared

/ Sara Lynn Payne / 1 Comment

UG Ready to Jump

When I was a little kid, I loved to swim. Before I swam competitively though, there was a certain amount of fear mixed in. My parents did a good job of teaching me to have a healthy fear and respect water. I had a near drowning experience that made me realize the fine line between fun and danger (just so you know, it is never a good idea to fall asleep while hanging on the pool wall during your swim lessons as a 4 year old).

Some fear is healthy. Living in fear is not nor is the absence of fear.

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Distractions

/ Sara Lynn Payne / 4 Comments

UG 3 Boys on Trail

This week has been interesting. I’ve written before how life is never dull with three boys, but the saga continues. (click here for the previous hilarity)

I have decided that having a two-year old boy share a room with an infant is not really the best of ideas. Jackson loves to sing. The problem with this is that his singing precludes sleeping: his own and that of my foster daughter.

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By the Numbers

/ Sara Lynn Payne / 7 Comments

UG Tree Trunk

I’m so excited to be doing the first regular post here! I’ve been ecstatic to have Uncommon Grace up and running after the official launch last week. I’ve put a lot of effort into getting this site “right” and by this I mean editing the old posts I decided to bring over from my old site, redoing and editing my photography, and agonizing over my word choice for the pages. I spent a lot of time on it and I had begun to feel like I poured my heart and soul into it.

But, I can’t really do that. More on that in a second.

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