Sally Clarkson's Blog, page 39

Win a Virtual Tea With Sally

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Hello, my wonderful friends!

I am sitting in the Phoenix airport, missed my plane to Denver because of delays, and hoping to be home by midnight—what an adventure travel is. I recorded my podcast in a noisy airport, the quietest place I could find. But I am excited to tell you about a Zoom Teatime I will be hosting. Hope you can hear it well enough!

How patient and generous you are to support me at yet one more launch of a book into the world. Your messages and encouragement has meant the world to me. You always keep me going! I think you will love Teatime Discipleship, with so many beautiful photos, recipes, prayers, journal places, and inspiring stories. It was so fun to do an adult “picture book.” I know you have so many choices of ways to invest your time and interest, so your support means a lot to this introvert! Thanks so much for all of your love and support. Celebrate with me for the next couple of days. We shall have fun.

A Virtual Giveaway!

I have the best audience in the world, soooo, I will be doing a Zoom Teatime Party Giveaway. I would love to chat with you and your friends and talk about life, answer questions, and just be friends.

To enter the giveaway on Instagram or Facebook,

Like the post associated with the giveaway

Make sure you’re following me

Tag 2 friends in the comments and use #teatimediscipleshipbook in your comment

As a bonus, you can add why you would like to win a virtual tea time with me—that would be fun to know, but not necessary.

I also want to send a tea basket full of goodies to you and your friends when you celebrate tea with me. We shall have so much fun. Enter as many times as you want and we will pick a winner on Wednesday of this week. You may meet me by yourself for tea if you win or bring on your friends.

My book officially comes out tomorrow, April 18th. I would love it if you would tell your friends and celebrate with me. As you know, discipleship and mentorship is a commitment I have made for a lifetime and this is at the heart of this book.

Thanks from my heart! More on my podcast today!

Get your copy of Teatime Discipleship today. Blessings and blessings to you this week.

Teatime Discipleship: Sharing Faith One Cup at a Time By Clarkson, Sally Buy on Amazon

Tea Time Tuesday: God's View of Hospitality

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Tea Time Tuesday

“The heart of hospitality is about creating space for someone to feel seen and heard and loved. It's about declaring your table a safe zone, a place of warmth and nourishment.”

Shawna Nyquist

This morning I am sitting sipping in my Colorado home, praying for you, my friends. Life is made up of many “stretching” days. I was remembering one today and it set me to praying for you.

Crawling out of bed one morning, I was already weary and in deep need of my morning brew. As I walked from my bedroom to the kitchen, tension grew. Clay was concerned about our finances. Pressure! 

One of my teens was teary-eyed about a circumstance with a friend. More pressure. The other teen was grumpy. My third child was particularly loud, chasing the dog. My little one kept tapping on my leg to ask me to sit with her in her closet to play "beanie babies." This, before I had my first sip. I was spent to my toes. A little cloud began forming around my heart. I wondered if anything I did mattered. Many times I felt discouraged along the way. Have you ever felt that way?

My friend invited me to her house to meet her for a cup of tea. I entered her home, she had candles lit, music playing, a small cinnamon bun and a cup of tea waiting for me. I didn't know I needed kindness and sympathy. It was like a soothing balm to my sore heart. After an hour of pouring out my heart and being loved back, hope slowly filled my heart. She saved my emotional life that day and helped me to keep going. 

Teatime Discipleship is about the hospitality one friend offers another, to link arms, to say, "I am here for you" in a world that is draining and isolating. This week, could you offer "just one cup" to someone in need of encouragement and in doing so, you have done it unto Jesus.

More on today’s podcast:

Music: Horizon is acoustic piano Gabriel Saban

How many times are meals mentioned in scripture? How many times did Jesus eat with someone? 

God's heart for biblical hospitality. 

Get your copy of Teatime Discipleship!

Teatime Discipleship: Sharing Faith One Cup at a Time By Clarkson, Sally Buy on Amazon

Mentoring with Grace

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From the very beginning of their time together, Jesus called his disciples to a life apart from the crowd. He called them to great purpose, meaning, promising to make them “fishers of men.” Even before that, He called them into relationship with Himself. He extended the grace of His fellowship, His companionship, His love, His instruction. He was patient, encouraging, loving, forgiving. His relationship with them was built on a foundation of intimate friendship. He gave them the gift of Himself. Then He asked them to pass along that gift to the world.

We see this more clearly as Jesus' relationship with the disciples progressed. He wanted them to be His representatives on earth, to tell everyone the gospel of the kingdom of his Father. But He wanted them to do it through His strength, grace, given in love—not through their own force or legalism.

As mothers, we are called to take this lesson of grace to heart. Like Jesus, we are to draw our children to a life apart from the rest of the crowd. Each of us is designed by God to whisper His words to the hearts of our children so they will feel the call of God in their own lives to become “fishers of men.” Yet, we must always remember that our children will never be perfect. Each of them needs for us, like Jesus, to extend to him or her the gift of constant love, grace, and forgiveness as they grow little by little. And we can only do this by relying continually on the grace of our own relationship with the Lord.

Since the beginning of our ministry, Clay and I have felt a passion to teach, inspire, and encourage parents over the world to understand their biblically significant role, the importance of mentoring their children to know and love Christ. It is the intent of our books, conferences, and podcasts. We could never have done it without the most wonderful team of like-minded people who companion us in this task. Many of our co-workers are spread over the world. Many are in cyberspace and our membership. I am grateful to God for each of you who shares these messages. Today, my national team shares their passion about our message, our commitment, what we have learned along the way. May you be encouraged.

Teatime Discipleship: Sharing Faith One Cup at a Time By Clarkson, Sally

Tea Time Tuesday: A Simple Little Tea Time

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Sometimes a girl needs a little spoiling. Just a fun, special tea time with a dear friend can pick me up! Like the Dowager Countess can say, “Well, there is nothing else to be done. Let’s have tea.”

You never know when the Lord might have a little miracle up His sleeve. Last Thursday, I was a little tired, a little bit blue for some reason—probably because I have had a lot of work lately, and I want to have some days to play.

Out of the blue, I went to Clay's office (he is in the basement—I am on the main floor). I asked him to go to coffee with me at a local joint just to get out for a while. We casually went together. When I was grabbing my coffee, a lovely woman came up to me and asked, "Are you Sally Clarkson?" Of course, I said yes. And she told me her story. 

She had wanted to meet me someday and had prayed. She had just arrived that day on a plane in Denver—an hour from my home. Met by her sister and mother who picked her up, then they proceeded to drive south towards New Mexico—the highway that came through my Monument town.

She said, "I knew you lived in Monument, so we prayed that I would meet you and run into you. We randomly picked out this coffee shop of many and. hoped for the best! And here you are!"

Wow! What a mysterious, wonderful answer to her prayer. Her name was Lauren—what fun. I was happy to be an answer to someone’s prayer on a normal Thursday morning. This and more stories on today’s Tea Time Tuesday podcast episode.

Provence and the artists from there, my Easter menu, a music suggestion, and pondering about my wonderful Jesus are all on my podcast today. I hope you are encouraged.

Teatime Discipleship is coming out soon! Woohoo! I hope it will bless you to your toes.

Cultivating Peace in the Trenches of Motherhood

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Right in the middle of Jesus loving, teaching, encouraging, training his disciples, they embark on crossing the familiar lake where they have lived all of their lives. Suddenly a life-threatening storm overtakes them.

What could Jesus possibly be thinking? Does he want to lose all of his disciples at once? Is he trying to discourage them? After all, they gave their whole lives to follow Him. Really, now this? Is this any way to treat those who are following you? Sometimes the "whaps" on our lives feel personal, invasive, like too much.

Have you ever felt that way? The reality of being in the trenches of motherhood can seem too much at times: I have cooked and washed dishes. I have lost years of sleep. I have loved, served, given. Does it matter? Now, this? Another storm? Another problem? The relentlessness of life is about to drown me.

"Do you not care that we are perishing, Lord?" This is the question that we, like the disciples, have on our hearts. Just when we have the ideals of our lives in place, we have defined what the Kingdom of home is, and we determine to commit to creating our homes as a place where the life of Christ will flourish, storms and battles begin to overtake us. We feel that we may be overcome: “I can’t create space for ‘Teatime Discipleship.’ It is frivolous. I can’t add one more ideal!”

My contention is that if you want to last through the battles, not give up hope, you cannot ignore your need for regular refreshment, rest to maintain peace.

Weariness & discouragement signifies you are engaged in the battle. These are signs of exhaustion, not success or failure. How you respond will determine the outcome. Often, people have said, "Well, I am glad Sally has ideals, but that is not what my life looks like. I don't even know how to get there."

My life was a constant swirl of ideals, reality, grace and storm, walking in faith, & railing against heaven.

Lyndsey Mimnagh, #treehouseschoolhouse, joins me today today to find some answers to bring peace to the trenches of life. And be encouraged in the trenches through Teatime Discipleship. Order your copy today.

Teatime Discipleship: Sharing Faith One Cup at a Time By Clarkson, Sally Buy on Amazon

Tea Time Tuesday: Aging Gracefully and With Vision

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"Wisdom belongs to the aged, and understanding to the old,"

says Job 12:12

Tea Time Tuesday

Life is a long-distance run, a marathon. When I was young, I did not realize that the legacy of my life would be over a lifetime, faithfulness through so many decades of seasons. Single years where I wondered if I would be married. Early marriage and babies that I had never been prepared for and didn’t know what to expect. The golden years of childhood, the hormones and pushing back of teen years as children strain towards adulthood, self-actualizing of young adults and straining towards finding footing in a problematic, expensive, and challenging world, grandchildren. Add to this, moves, hospitalizations, church splits, great joys, and family intimacy that makes us all “Clarksons” in the most satisfying ways. Faith stretched, marriage partnership learned over time—soooo much.

Today, I will open what scripture says about aging graciously, living faithfully through all seasons. If you have a vision for being steadfast into old age, you have an intrinsic strength to make it through all the years and seasons. Ponder your life through all the seasons, friends, and know you are living your story you will tell to generations.

Last week, many asked me to show you my travel kit with my tin can. You can see in my photo. Tea, teacup, sugar, spoon, chocolates, and a scarf for decorating the table.

A lot to share with you today. Food! A hero to emulate, some goals to make, and little tidbits from my life.

I hope you enjoy my podcast. Be sure to order your copy of Tea Time Discipleship—it is like a warm, cozy tea time Tuesday with me over stories, recipes, and Biblical encouragement.

My tea quote:

“A great idea should always be left to steep like loose tea leaves in a teapot for a while to make sure that the tea will be strong enough and the idea truly is a great one.” -Phoebe Stone

How can one steep ideas, form an excellent self over time?

Teatime Discipleship: Sharing Faith One Cup at a Time By Clarkson, Sally Buy on Amazon

Building a Legacy of Faith Takes Relentless Forbearance

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“The giants of faith all had one thing in common: neither victory or success, but passion.”

-Phillip Yancy

I couldn’t put my finger on it. There was something deep inside that changed. I felt supported, strengthened, hopeful.

As it happens, I decided spur of the moment last week to visit a dear friend of mine who encouraged me in life, my faith, and served me tea and love over years. She gave me courage to keep going forward in my walk of faith. Phyllis is her name. She is 83 and still, she talks of the Lord, His love, His preciousness.

As I was sitting with her, a knock came to her front door. A dear friend of both of us walked in unexpectedly. We 3 had not been together for years. It was Linda, our mutual friend, who served God for 60 years, about to celebrate her 80th birthday. All of us had lived in Vienna.

Phyllis’s husband directed the ministry to communist countries in Europe for 15 years for the Navigators, a real hero of faith. She served by his side, taught, hosted literally hundreds of people in her home.

Jody, Linda’s husband, was the head of Biblical Education by Extension, a movement of 150 people who traveled into Communist countries to train believers to become pastors to start churches. I had known them for decades. Linda wrote books, spoke, discipled, hosted. Somehow seeing them together, remembering what they had done, quietly, with little worldly notice, that they sacrificed, how they still cultivated love and passion for God, went deep into my soul. It lifted me up. I was in the company of spiritual giants. Their faithfulness through many hard years gave me courage.

I remembered the verse:

“Therefore, my beloved brothers & sisters, be firm, immovable, always excelling in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.” (I Cor. 15:58)

Life is a marathon. Keep your legacy going. My friends, never give up, never give in. Your labor is not in vain. You matter. Stay steadfast. God sees you, He cares for your life. I pray you and I may be firm, and immovable now during this time in history. I could see how much the faith, and faithfulness of my friends mattered.

Godly friends sustain, hold us!

May you and I be that to one another. Praying for you today. Enjoy my new podcast episode and be sure to order your copy of Teatime Discipleship.

Teatime Discipleship: Sharing Faith One Cup at a Time By Clarkson, Sally Buy on Amazon

What Does It Mean To Make Disciples?

“Go into the world and make disciples of all nations.”

Matthew 28: 19

“When He saw the crowds, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then He said to His disciples, "The harvest is plentiful, the workers are few."

Matthew 9

What does it mean to make disciples? It was my primary goal with my children. Disciplemaking is drawing others to become followers of Christ, to pass on a love for their God, to teach them His ways, to show them His purposes, to guide them in wisdom. 

Many women have told me they wish someone would disciple them—mentor them with wisdom through their seasons of life, help them, give wisdom. 

Where have all the disciplers gone? Those who could come alongside and help, give comfort and sympathy through the hard passages of life, those who can lead us closer to God and to know how to grow spiritually intimate with Him?

Jesus is a God who has had compassion for his beloved children through all generations. He sees that they are harassed, helpless, lost, lonely. It seems a fitting definition of many at this time in history—living harassed by life, by news, by finances, pressures. And feeling helpless to know what to do. 

Do you feel like this? Do you know anyone who feels like this?

Jesus asks us, His children, his committed followers, to be the ones who would give his love, show compassion, teach his ways, and give leadership to those who long for help. 

Discipleship has been what my life has been about for almost 50 years, to come alongside those who are yearning for friendship, help, a way forward in their Christian life, because He is my Lord and love. 

Women tell me all the time that it is rare to find someone to mentor them. 

This is why I wrote this Teatime Discipleship. It is why I do podcasts, blog posts, and speak at conferences. Because I want to please the heart of Jesus and help fulfill his calling on earth, and I love helping women. 

If you want to learn more about discipleship, mentoring your children, growing in Christ, helping others, finding spiritual friends, then I think you will be encouraged by Teatime Discipleship. Order your copy today.

Teatime Discipleship: Sharing Faith One Cup at a Time By Clarkson, Sally Buy on Amazon

Tea Time Tuesday: Cuddle Your Tea Pot

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Tea Time Tuesday: Cuddle Your Tea Pot

“Making tea is a ritual that stops the world from falling in on you.”

-Jonathan Stroud, author

Don't we all need the world to go away for just a few? So, take time today for a cuppa and close the world out in your mind and breathe in peace. 

Isn’t this the cutest, this loving, cuddly teapot? After my last Monday play time with my grandkids—sticker books, playground, legos, puzzles, and picking flowers in my garden—we all snuggled down on the couch for a little tea time. Then sheepishly, Sarah announced that they had picked out something for me: "Queenie, here's a little friendly soft teapot to stay with you while you are gone when you miss us." Don’t you love it?

Today, I have been pondering friendship, travel, the marathon of mothering, and an amazing accomplishment we celebrated this week—a new doctor in our midst.

A question for you: if you could travel anywhere, where would you go and what would you do? Leave a comment.

I have always wanted to go on a river cruise so you could unpack, drift down the river by castles and have someone feed you, or a trip to Provence for delicious food, a cooking class and walks in the beautiful hills—you? 

So much more on Tea Time Tuesday today. Hope you enjoy it.

Teatime Discipleship is about the secrets of building community. Building long-term intimate friendship in a lonely world for all who feel isolated. Making time for your emotional and spiritual needs by creating rhythms and rituals of relationship. A peek into the secret nooks and crannies of my own home where I befriended my children. Recipes for special times. I hope this book will refresh you, bring light to your day, and give affirmation to you as a woman.

Ending on thoughts of friendship today—and some C. S. Lewis stories. Plus his view of friendship: “Life has no better gift to give than friendship.”

Celebrate my newest book with me and order your own copy of Teatime Discipleship.

Teatime Discipleship: Sharing Faith One Cup at a Time By Clarkson, Sally Buy on Amazon

Light Outshines the Darkness

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“Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”

Matthew 5: 16

The battle is still raging.

Many of you precious ones are heartbroken, discouraged, alone, and deep into the battle of faith. I understand. I am praying for you. I wrestled with my faith over years, but in doing so, I came to a deeper understanding of this fallen world, the nature of evil, that God’s light was stronger than the darkness, that we are all heading to a kingdom that cannot be shaken. It is not “bad” to doubt, it is the pathway to understanding. And of course, as was in the garden, Satan is there to whisper lies. My children doubted but eventually became strong in their faith, too. And I walked beside them with love and encouragement because I understood.

One means of reaching their hearts, though, was by creating a beautiful life where they could better imagine God’s goodness, His love, His justice.

Why did I sacrifice my time, make space to develop deep friendships? Create a beautiful place for all to dwell? Cook delicious meals, light candles each night, and play music all day long? Why late-night back scratches, reading literally hundreds of books about heroes, courage, sacrifice and love? Why the daily devotions, the bedtime prayers? The hundreds of tea times and talks and comfort given over endless stages of life for countless hours?

Because beauty, love, serving, encouraging, living out my faith in all the mundane moments of my days was my defense against the darkness, my defiance to the world’s lies and fears. It gave them scope to believe in God’s goodness, to hope for his justice in a broken place, to believe and wait for His redemption.

Recently, my granddaughter awakened very early, just before sunrise and wanted to go to “our special place” to have our tea time together. I lit the candles, made tea.

As I was doing so, she actually said softly, “Queenie, You are a light-maker in the dark this morning.”

My friends, go be a light-maker where you are.

Be sure to get your copy of Tea Time Discipleship and be inspired to be a light-maker in your world.

Teatime Discipleship: Sharing Faith One Cup at a Time By Clarkson, Sally Buy on Amazon