Lizzie Bassford

• It takes a church: How I learned that caring for the poor needs a community

  Over the last 20 years I have become increasingly aware that it takes a whole Christian community to love and care for the poor.

• Why I don't care about putting on a perfect Christmas

  There is nothing wrong with excelling at hospitality and there is certainly nothing wrong with opening up our lives to share with others in need.

• Finding my true identity: What motherhood taught me about God

  One of the hardest yet most shaping times of life has been the season of being at home with little ones.

• Living waters: Why we need to pray for God to fill us to overflowing

  The gospel is for every day, not just the day we were saved, because all the time God is saying, come to me.

• Are parents getting it right in teaching children the faith?

  I've often heard it said that many Christian parents expect the church's Sunday school or youth group to be the main teacher of faith in their child's life.

• 'Practise hospitality': The gospel witness of a home where people can be real

  I've found myself caring a little bit less about the state of my house and a little bit more about the state of my heart.

• Mustn't grumble: We're meant to be shining like stars

  Life is hard. Suffering is a daily reality. Yet the God of the Universe promises that he is with us and one day he will return and all pain and suffering will end.

• The lying voices of the enemy – and how to tell a different story

  It's normally the middle of the night when the enemy's lies shout loudest in my ear.

• Grace: It's for suffering Christians, not super-heroes

  Last week I heard someone suggest that if they were to ever get a tattoo it would say, 'Grace given to me, for others.'

• Steve's story: The cost of loving the lonely

  Having burnt his bridges with any family years ago, he now lived alone and had few friends. But Steve was my friend and I cared deeply for him

• Growing children in faith: How to read Scripture as a family

  Last week I met an inspirational lady who survived a prison camp because of the way she clung to the truths she had memorised from Scripture.

• Hannah: How the prophet Samuel's mother is a model for parents today

  The task of parenting our children well can seem overwhelming at times.