Ann Voskamp's Blog, page 54
November 20, 2021
Only the Good Stuff: MultivitaMins For Your Weekend [11.20.21]
Happy, happy, happy weekend!
Let’s not let the everyday routines numb us to the miracle of living every day! Some real, down in the bones JOY to celebrate today! Links & stories 100% guaranteed to make you smile a mile wide & believe like crazy in a Good God redeeming everything. Never, ever give up…there really is hope, even for us.
Serving up only the Good Stuff for you & your people right here:
… the way our son Levi sees the beauty of our Father’s world, awakens and moves…
moving into the weekend with awe
… how to watch this and not be in absolute awe of God?
…yes, our theology is best expressed in our hospitality
Cradle to the Cross Wreath — a 25 candle hole wooden wreath for every day of Advent till Christmas, with the silhouette of Mary on the Donkey, making her way to Bethlehem — keep company with Jesus,
anticipating the Light of His coming!
This and so much more at The Keeping Company
… we all get to choose: “Still the good part.” ❤️
📹 : masakathryn on Instagram
ain’t it true? There’s always a way to bring joy! #BETHEGIFT
and there’s always a way to be a neighbour like this! #BETHEGIFT
(Credit 📹 : dom685 on TikTok)
…The Farmer senses my words more than he hears them. He knows that I don’t for one hot second mean the window. I can’t look away from our son bent and busted over that tractor steering wheel.
A blog from this week…go here to read more
When I was at the Dove Awards a few weeks ago, for the nomination of our song, “A Woman” — and we sat there in the audience and watched this performance live — I teared up. I mean. The children dancing at the end? Felt like an actual glimpse of heaven — my heart kinda EXPLODED!
Books for Soul Healing:
Joy is actually possible, right where you are.
Take the dare to discover: Life is not an emergency…Life is a GIFT. Life is too short to do anything but truly savor it — to count all the ways you truly loved.
What if Brokenness is the Path into the Abundant Life?
You don’t have to be afraid of broken things — because Christ is redeeming everything.
There’s no other authentic way forward — but a broken way — right into a profoundly abundant life.
Journey into a deeply meaningful life with this devotional and take sixty steps from heart-weary brokenness to Christ-focused abundance. The Way of Abundance — is the way forward every heart needs.
Be the Gift is a tender invitation into the next step of deeper transformation, less stress, more joy and abundantly more peace & purpose. You only get one life to love well…to Be The Gift.
That’s all for this weekend, friends.
Go slow. Be God-struck. Grant grace. Live Truth.
Give Thanks. Love well. Re – joy, re- joy, ‘re- joys’ again
Share Whatever Is Good.
November 19, 2021
The First Songs of Christmas
Few writers can communicate the wonder of God’s Word as deeply as Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth. Her love for Scripture is evident—and infectious. As the Advent season draws near, I want to experience it with fresh awe, don’t you? Nancy’s new devotional, The First Songs of Christmas is an invitation to open our Bibles and remember that we have something to sing about. What a joy to welcome Nancy to the farm’s front porch today…
guest post by Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth
And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.” (Luke 2:10)
The Roman establishment had a version of what it considered “good news.” When its officials proclaimed the great deeds of the Roman emperor Augustus, they often used a Greek term as part of the inscription: euangelion (yoo-ang-GHEL-ee-on), which is translated gospel or good news.
And it was good news—for Augustus and his cronies. Good news for Rome and its citizens.
“But the birth of Jesus Christ is not good news just for some people. Nor is it good news only for those in pleasant, desirable circumstances. “
But when God proclaimed “good news” by angelic messenger to a band of shepherds up the road a piece from Bethlehem, it was news that mattered to “all the people,” not only those who belonged to a certain ethnicity or class or political persuasion. Compared to what filtered down to the masses from the Roman propaganda mill, the news of Jesus’ birth was a gospel entirely different—a difference maker for people who hadn’t heard any real “good news” in a really long time.
Like the shepherds, for instance. Shepherding was low on the totem pole of desirable vocations. These men gutted out their hard labors each day with little payback to cheer them or to provide much hope for the future.
Shepherds were relatively anonymous. Their names don’t even appear in the Bible’s inspired telling of the Christmas account. They had no power or influence—poor and uneducated, unskilled for most other kinds of work that might have earned them a chance to climb from the bottom rungs of the social ladder.
“The song of the angel is good news that eclipses and overshadows whatever else is happening in your life right now.”
And that wasn’t all. When people would go to offer their sacrifices in observance of God’s instructions for obtaining forgiveness for sins, shepherds weren’t usually able to attend. They were always keeping an eye on the sheep. And because they couldn’t often celebrate these Sabbath’s they were regarded as outcasts in Israel, ceremonially unclean.
And the truth is, all people can fit that job description. Maybe one of those people at this particular holiday time is you. I realize, as the holiday season approaches, that not every home is bursting with joy and excitement.
As exhilarating as the Christmas season can feel at certain life stages, it can also land with a seasonally enhanced thud of pain, grief, and loneliness when you find yourself dealing with hard things.
But the birth of Jesus Christ is not good news just for some people. Nor is it good news only for those in pleasant, desirable circumstances. The song of the angel is good news that eclipses and overshadows whatever else is happening in your life right now. It’s what “all the people” need, for all the things that threaten to deprive us of joy.
Any other kind of good news is only temporary, subject to being upended by bad news and always open to someone else’s interpretation. But this Advent season, stand amazed with the shepherds at news that’s good for everyone, able to counter even the worst case of disappointment or despair.
Write down as many examples of blessing from the good news of Jesus’ coming into the world as you can think of. Keep adding to your list throughout the week, finding your joy in His gospel this Christmas.
Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth has touched the lives of millions of women through Revive Our Hearts and the True Woman movement, calling them to heart revival and biblical womanhood. Her love for Christ and His Word is infectious, and permeates her online outreaches, conference messages, books, and two daily nationally syndicated radio programs—Revive Our Hearts and Seeking Him.
She has authored twenty-two books, including Lies Women Believe and the Truth That Sets Them Free, Seeking Him (coauthored), Adorned: Living Out the Beauty of the Gospel Together, and You Can Trust God to Write Your Story (coauthored with her husband). Her books have sold more than five million copies and are reaching the hearts of women around the world. Nancy and her husband, Robert, live in Michigan. Discover more from Nancy at ReviveOurHearts.com.
Focus on the greatness, glory, and goodness of God this season with Nancy’s new 31-day Advent devotional, The First Songs of Christmas.
[ Our humble thanks to Moody for their partnership in today’s devotion ]
November 18, 2021
When Things Don’t Make Sense: The Law Of the White Horse That’s Turned Countless Hard Days Around
When that window shattered into 7 billion pieces, a sliver stuck my heart and maybe a sliver is all we ever have?
I have only thought of that window and what the Farmer said literally a hundred times since it happened — and how we as a family have all returned to the story countless times, as this moment that forever changed how we see the world and everything that happens in it.
It wasn’t so much that our farm boy had turned the tractor too sharp in the middle of wheat harvest, how many harvests ago.
And it wasn’t that he’d backed the tractor into the auger of the wagon hitched behind him.
It wasn’t even so much that the steel auger had slammed into the full window of the tractor — exploding the glass into a torrent of shards all over our boy, the tractor cab, across the yard.
It was the way I saw our boy turn his face, turn away from the sharp edge of the moment.
I can still see it now, how many years later — the way he turned to hide what was slipping down all salty and stinging wet, our boy more broken than any pane of glass.
The farm boy had swept a million shards of glass off his lap.
Brushed those stinging tears away with the back of his hand.
And then I watched the farm boy drive the tractor back out to the field, back to the Farmer in the combine, back to fill up with his next load of wheat.
How did he know? That even when we’re broken, we battle onward, all the fixing coming in the moving forward.
When the Farmer looks up from the combine steering wheel to his boy in the shattered tractor, he nods quiet. The farm boy turns his eyes away.
Sometimes it’s hard to look love square in the eye and accept how you’re accepted. Is this why we too often turn from God?I crawled up in the combine cab, sat down beside the Farmer. The Farmer hits the button and the combine auger begins to unload into the farm boy’s wagon.
“What do we do?” I hardly murmur it above the roar of the combine, my hands twisted and wrung in my lap.
The Farmer senses my words more than he hears them. He knows that I don’t for one hot second mean the window. I can’t look away from our son bent and busted over that tractor steering wheel.
“You know how it is, Ann…” The Farmer glances over at the wagon, our son driving alongside of us, and then back to the wheat he’s combining.
“From where we stand, we can’t see whether it’s something’s good or bad. All we can see is that God’s sovereign and He is always good, working all things for good.”
The wheat’s bowed before the combine, willing.
“The window’s gone and the tractor cab dented and sure, we can think about how shook up and heartsick our boy is, and we can think about the cost… but how do we know if this is really a bad thing?” The Farmer’s speaking quiet, focused on the wheat heads laying down before the combine.
“You know that story you told me years ago — the story of the white horse? Well — I think this is another White Horse Hour.”
I had written down that story of the White Horse when I had first heard it from Max Lucado, an old story from South America, written out a version of it, what I remembered of it:
How a white stallion had rode into the paddocks of an old man and all the villagers had congratulated him on such good fortune.
And the old man had only offered this: “Is it a curse or a blessing? All we can see is a sliver. Who can see what will come next?”
When the white horse ran off, the townsfolk were convinced the white stallion had been a curse. The old man lived surrendered and satisfied in the will of God alone: “I cannot see as He sees.”
And when the horse returned with a dozen more horses, the townsfolk declared it a blessing, yet the old man said only, “It is as He wills and I give thanks for His will.”
Then the man’s only son broke his leg when thrown from the white stallion. The town folk all bemoaned the bad fortune of that white stallion. And the old man had only offered, “We’ll see. We’ll see. It is as He wills and I give thanks for His will.”
When a draft for a war took all the young men off to battle but the son with the broken leg, the villagers all proclaimed the good fortune of that white horse. And the old man said but this,
“We see only a sliver of the sum. We cannot see how the bad might be good. God is sovereign and He is good and He sees and work all things together for good.”Hasn’t that been the lie right since our Genesis beginning – that we can see?
When we ate from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, Satan hissed then that we’d know what is good and evil — that we’d really see.
But the father of lies, he’d duped us in the whole nine yards. Though we ate of that tree we did not become like God.
We have no knowledge of good and evil apart from God. Our heart optics are not omniscient.
How can I really see if a seeming disaster or dilemma, is actually dire?
How do we know if what looks like its the worst might be for our best, how do we know if what looks all wrong could turn things all right, how do we know if what seems wrong isn’t actually part of writing a redemptive story?
My focus need only be on Him, to only faithfully see His Word, to wholly obey.
Therein is the tree of life.
The Farmer slows towards the end of the field. Turns off the combine auger.
The farm boy nods to his dad through that hole where there used to be a window. The window that broke — but who are we to see?
The son pulls the now full wagon toward the grain bin and the unloading of his load.
“Yes – it’s just a White Horse Hour.” The Farmer turns on the headland, pulls back into the field.
He looks up at the farm boy headed towards the bin.
“We may have taken a boy to the field. But I think we may be bringing home a man. God’s only up to good work.”
I had reached over and lay my hand on the knee of the Farmer’s work worn wranglers. Say it quiet. “All we can see is Christ – and in Him all is always grace.”
And now, how many harvest years later, those two words of the parable, “White Horse,” have become part of the dialect of our family, part of our vernacular, a shorthand phrase of surrender, of acknowledging that we are not God Most High on the throne, so we don’t have the perspective to know.
If there’s:
An accident? White Horse.
A disappointment? White Horse.
A seeming failure? White Horse.
Everything going wrong? White Horse.
All of our hours on this side of heaven are White Horse hours, until, someday heaven will be “standing open and there was …. a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True” Revelation 19:11.
Only the Rider of the White Horse, the One who is Faithful and True, can faithfully know how things truly are.
Only the One who is riding the White Horse, who comes riding in to rescue and restore us, knows the full story and how He is working all things to re-story us.
I don’t have to be able to see if something is good or bad, I just have to keep seeing how God is always good and we are always loved.
And I remember how I had turned that day and in the combine’s rear view mirror, how I could see it, a few stalks of wheat standing there, and I see just what we always have, what we can always only see —
Just a sliver, a sliver of the sum, swaying behind us there in a whisper of wind.
Pick up our story of The Broken Way and how to live and love in a brokenhearted world. This one’s for all of us who have felt our hearts break a bit…
This one’s for the brave and the busted and the real and dreamers and the sufferers and the believers.
This one’s for those who dare to take The Broken Way… into abundance
November 15, 2021
When You’re Wrestling to Find Real Rest
Jami Amerine was, like most of us, exhausted. Wrung out, wheels spinning, stuck in a perpetual existence of feeling like she never was good enough. She knew better. She was a soul-saved believer and Jesus Christ follower, yet His promise of rest still eluded her grasp. All that changed as she began to discover what it meant to change her mind and heart to be in tune with God. Jami is a sassy, funny, authentic, encouraging friend and master word weaver as well as a speaker, artist, wife, and mom. Her journey to rest started years ago, and now she’s sharing her experience and insight with you and with me. . .inviting us to experience real, God-filled rest. It’s a grace to welcome Jami to the farm’s front porch today…
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28 (NIV)
The store clerk ran screaming, “Stop! Shoplifter! Shoplifter!”
My eyes darted about the parking lot in search of a thief. A huge man, decked out in cowboy garb, grabbed my arm. He was enormous, at least six foot five. His belly bulged over a hideous, dictionary-sized belt buckle I am certain he did not earn in a rodeo.
In dazed confusion, I yelped, “Take your hands off me!”
At that point in my life, every mistake and misfortune reminded me of how badly I stank at my Christian walk.
He spat stale tobacco chaw and barked, “You’re going back inside to pay for that apple juice, missy!”
It took me entirely too long to recognize I was the shoplifter.
As the brute dragged me across the parking lot, the pimple-faced clerk in a polyester smock dialed his phone. “I’m callin’ the police, hold her!”
Drenched in humiliation, I would now have to explain to the police I wasn’t really shoplifting. I was just exhausted.
I knew I would now have to go to confession and explain my apple juice heist.
With my teaching job at the university, a kindergartener, a hearing-disabled three-year-old, a nonsleeping two-year-old, a side hustle managing our house-building business, and nausea chasing me from a surprise pregnancy, I had neither slept nor kept any food down in a month of Sundays. Paying for apple juice had slipped my mind.
Things that did not slip my mind were the heavy burden of “have-tos.” Those I had memorized.
I knew I would now have to go to confession and explain my apple juice heist. Granted, I didn’t really shoplift apple juice. But at that point in my life, every mistake and misfortune reminded me of how badly I stank at my Christian walk.
Furthermore, I was stuck in the belief that God was trying to teach me something. And my lanta, He seemed like a mean and nasty teacher. As I drove home with paid-for apple juice in the seat next to me, I sobbed and begged the ruthless God of my head, a tyrant born of my own beliefs, for mercy. That was immediately followed by the rote, out-loud formation of prayer-like words that chastised my existence.
“I should be more aware. I am such a ditz! I know I’m just awful! I know you are embarrassed by me. I don’t know how I will ever pull it together!” I hiccup-sobbed my orthodox finale: “I am so sorry. Please, please. . . don’t punish me. Amen.” Then I performed the sign of the cross over myself seven times just to be safe.
Like sands through the hourglass, so were the days of my life.
To say I was tired, well, that would be an understatement.
Are you bone tired? Does your mind feel foggy and your soul fatigued? I get it.
But might I suggest that more than sleepless nights and busy schedules, the source of exhaustion has more to do with our deep-seated beliefs and our mindset based on those well-intended beliefs?
And fear.
Fear is the ultimate thief of real rest.
But there is more freedom to be found.
More rest.
More to taste and see.
More tenderness, mercy, and guidance.
More abundance, peace, and joy.
More everything.
There is a connection between our body, mind, and soul. God created each of us in a beautiful, intricate design (Psalm 139:13–18). So, when we experience rest in one of these areas, it impacts the others, and the opposite is true as well.
When our minds feel defeated and we live a restless existence, that is what we see and experience.
But God’s Word tells us that we can choose to put on love, and this choice makes all the difference in our body, mind, and soul.
It’s a journey of God-discovery and self-discovery. I promise you, true rest makes all the difference.
When we are clothed in love, fear won’t dictate how we experience the world.
Colossians 3:14–16 (NLT) says, “Above all, clothe yourselves with love. . . . And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful. Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives.”
Here is my prayer for you today, sweet sister in Christ:
Father, help me to put on love, allow peace to flood my heart, and fill my spirit with praise and gratefulness because I am in touch with the One who writes redemption, restoration, and new life into my story.
Please align my thoughts to the Truth of Your Word, Father. For then I know I can experience true rest in You. “You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you!” Isaiah 26:3 (NLT) Amen.
Are you ready to exchange exhaustion and stress for God’s great blessing of rest, friend?
It’s a journey. . .one that takes time and patience.
I’m on this road every day. . .walking down the pathway, hand in hand with Jesus.
It’s a journey of God-discovery and self-discovery. I promise you, true rest makes all the difference.
Jami Amerine and her husband, Justin, live in Houston, Texas, and have six children. She holds a Master’s of Education in Counseling & Human Development. Jami and Justin are advocates for foster care and adoption.
If you’re overwhelmed and exhausted. . .
If you’ve ever thought that all you need to do is try harder. . .
If you’ve ever felt unappreciated or overlooked. . .
If you’ve found Jesus or you’re still searching. . .
Your Heavenly Father Invites You to Rest, Girl.
In her new book Rest, Girl, Jami Amerine shares God’s overwhelming grace and peace in an inside-out journey to true, life-sustaining rest. While the world is steeped in stress and worries, her teaching offers a priceless opportunity to walk in faith to experience the overwhelming blessing of a mind, spirit, and body at rest. Jami will lead you on a humorous, engaging and life-altering journey from restrictions and unrealistic expectations to the unconditional love of the Father.
[ Our humble thanks to Barbour Book for their partnership in today’s devotion ]
November 13, 2021
3 Meaningful Advent Traditions for Your Family (and how they make a difference)
Did I ever dream of this day? When the farm’s front porch and this space here – would welcome one of our own children to tell a bit of their own story? Our little boys, the future men – have become men, growing up right here, story after story, year after year, and I literally could not be more excited to hear our oldest son, Caleb, share a bit more of his story, catch his vision of how this Christmas could be more meaningful, and (heart flip!!!) even catch a glimpse of where God has unexpectedly taken his story. This weekend – a one-time, very special edition of “Only The Good Stuff” — multivitamins for your soul, straight from our son! It is with unabashed, wild joy that I welcome our son, Caleb, to the farm’s front porch!
Guest post by Caleb Voskamp
I grew up taking care of animals.
When I was four, I started bundling up and trundling out to the barn, to help feed our pigs and sweep up after they were done.
I grew up helping with the animals on the farm, and caring for animals of my own (which included a goat, a hamster, some chickens, many dogs, and even now a llama and some sheep).
The promise of future productivity, of little animals growing large, and of how these animals might help support families is one of the most fulfilling things I’ve ever experienced.
Perhaps equally as fulfilling, was discovering how to create real and tangible handcrafts that became new traditions for families to keep closer company with Christ day in and day, in their everyday life.
When I was 14 (almost 12 whole years ago now – how is that possible?), on winter evenings, after barn chores and school were finished for the day, I designed and carefully cut out a wooden advent calendar with 24 candle holders, lovingly sanding it and finishing it with linseed oil, so we could count down the days of Advent, keeping company with Christ from Cradle to the Cross – from Advent through Lent.
And I was able to share that 24 day candle Advent wreath with other Keeping-Company-With-Jesus with families all over the world, who have joined our family each Christmas in this deeply meaningful and beautiful tradition which captures the essence of Christmas – making room for Christ, anticipating daily moving closer toward Bethlehem and the birth of the holy Child who comes to literally rescue us and the whole world.
Cradle to the Cross Wreath — a 25 candle hole wooden wreath for every day of Advent till Christmas, with the silhouette of Mary on the Donkey, making her way to Bethlehem — keep company with Jesus, anticipating the Light of His coming! 
Cradle to Cross Wreath — that comes with sections to expand to a 40 candle hole wreath for Lent, with the wooden silhouette of Jesus carrying the Cross to Calvary. 
Cross to Cradle Wreath with the Messiah Manger — a deeply meaningful, beautiful Advent tradition for families, and to give as gifts! As a homeschooler through high school, I eventually enrolled in online classes studying classical art and literature – where I met this brilliant young girl whom I fell head over heels for.
I wink and confess: I wasn’t really on her radar…but more about that later on in this story.
From the very beginning, when I was just a young kid of 14, The Keeping Company has been a “not-just-for-profit” company. We began by using a portion of sales to support sponsored children through Compassion International, and then we fully supported a Compassion maternity centre in Haiti and more than 20 some mothers and their babies, which I visited in person with my Mom when I was 16 years old.
The Christmas Advent wreath was not only lighting a way for families to keep closer company with Jesus through Advent, so they didn’t miss Him come Christmas morning —- the wreath was also bringing light to some of the most vulnerable around the world so they knew how Jesus, through our support, was keeping company with them.
Fast forward a few years, and I reconnected with and – by the wild grace of God – started dating the girl from high school, the wonderful Colorado mountain girl — who was now at Harvard University in Boston, studying Art History.
Not long after we started dating, she helped provide design feedback for a wooden crafted manger that this crazy Canadian boy had designed, and I continued tinkering away at different ways to create artistic, meaningful ways to celebrate Advent, and help people Keep Company with Christ all over the world — soon also sharing the Clinging Cross, a beautifully polished wooden cross sourced from Bethlehem, to provide tangible, holdable comfort to those in times of grieving, suffering, prayer, and simply sitting still, being with Jesus.
The Messiah Manger — can be set anywhere through the house, in a child’s bedroom, a perfect Christmas gift, and also fits to be the centerpiece of the Cradle to the Cross Advent to Lent Wreath. 
Clinging Cross – a wooden cross, sourced in Bethlehem, to hold in hand in quiet times, at any time, to remind us to live cruciform, to live given unto our Lord and King! 
The Light Gift -a new family read aloud about how to make room, and make way for the Coming King, and be the Light of Christ this Advent!
The Messiah Manger — with its exquisite wooden removable star, that you can tuck and pass around the house with intentional acts of kindness all through Advent, because we give kindness to each other, we are being light for the Coming King! And then set the star back over the Messiah Manger by Christmas Eve! 
Clinging Cross — with its accompanying two-sided prayer card, when you want to pray or give the gift of prayer 
The Light Gift – a story about a little girl and her lamb and the Coming King who is the Lamb of God, with hiding hedgehogs in every hand-painted printed spread for little ones to look for! As my relationship with the Colorado-homeschool-mountain-girl-now-a-Harvard-graduate grew more serious, she helped dream up and write a children’s story to accompany the Messiah Manger, the story of The Light Gift and Leora, a story of life-changing giving that families can mirror in their new family tradition of the Messiah Manger.
The Light Gift — with the Messiah Manger that ushers in a new family Christmas tradition! 
The Light Gift — a deeply moving story, that has become a family favorite – a new Christmas read aloud tradition! As the Colorado girl went on to finish up her masters in Art and Museum Studies in New York, she served at a church in NYC where the family ministry coordinator’s little daughter so loved The Light Gift she asked for it to be read every single night of Advent, and well into the new year! And just this week, a kind teacher bought a copy for every one of the students at her school…150 books! Lives and families changed this Christmas with this new We are so excited to be blessing so many children and families!
Last year, with the support of countless families around the world who shared the resources here at The Keeping Company, we were able to support and fill 23 farmyards and stables around the world, through Compassion International, impacting countless families and changing whole communities – so, through all of us, they know Christ is keeping company with them!
Families kept company with Jesus every day with their candle Advent wreaths as part of their meaningful Christmas tradition – and then lit more of the waiting world aflame with hope of Christ!
And this year? Not only did we find artisan woodworkers to carve wooden hands in Indonesia, a constant reminder of prayer, hope, and the joy of living open handed and cruciform, but also?
Yep, the wild grace of God: The wonderful Colorado homeschooled mountain girl and I got married!
Wooden Prayer Hands — a visual to keep with your Bible, to live with hands wide open, a perfect place to tuck a prayer, a photo of someone you’re upholding in prayer, or all of these included handpainted prints 
The Wooden Hands — a deeply moving visual to live cruciform and surrendered, hands open to God, receiving what He gives, offering back to Him everything given 
Wooden Hands — for the corner of your desk, with each of these hand painted prints 
The Clinging Cross — with accompanying prayer card, and it’s hand painted printed frame, the perfect small gift of prayer And together, she and I have had the newly-wed joy of working together, writing together, dreaming together, to bring you a beautiful 25 Day Advent Devotional, studying the names of Jesus, with each day’s devotional accompanied by a deeply classical art selection – all as a FREE BONUS to accompany the new redesigned 25 Day Advent wreath, so that it can be used not only for Advent and Lent – but it also now has a 10 day candle section to be used to count down with anticipation toward birthdays and anniversaries!
Cross to Cradle Wreath — light a candle and move it forward for every day of Advent, while also moving Mary on the Donkey, closer to Bethlehem… and the waiting Messiah Manger and it’s exquisite star over the manger
The Cradle to the Cross Wreath — is now newly designed so it can do a candle countdown of 10 days to anticipate a birthday! An anniversary! Someone coming home! Extend a celebration for a count down of 10 days! 
The Cradle to the Cross Wreath – with the included wooden silhouettes of Mary on a Donkey and Christ carrying the Cross to Calvary, both engraved with Scripture reference to focus our hearts on staying in the Story of God. 
Cradle to the Cross Wreath — with the Messiah Manger and it’s exquisite star over the mangerWhile families supported us at the Keeping Company, we were able to support and fill 23 farmyards and stables last year, through Compassion. This year, we are dreaming of filling 75 farmyards and stables with you… because sometimes, you dream big.
With your support, we are already at 21 farmyards and stables this year, and together, we can do it, we can fill 75 farmyards, filling 75 communities with hope this Christmas! What a gift, to get to be a gift!
If you are looking for a gift for family or friend, we cannot recommend to you with more joy and excitement,
~ our illustrated book: The Light Gift,
~ and it’s accompanying heirloom the Messiah Manger,
~ or the family heirloom of the Cradle-to-Cross Wreath,
~ or any of our other beautiful handcrafted items.
The Cradle to the Cross Wreath – to light a candle each day of both Advent and Lent, with an accompanying wooden silhouette of both Mary on a Donkey, journeying to Bethlehem, and Christ carrying the Cross to Calvary. 
The Cradle to the Cross Wreath — an Advent to Lent Wreath, that is designed now with 25 holes, for a candle each day, expanding to 40 holes for Lent, and contacting to holes to set out countdown to birthdays now! 
The Light Gift — a new traditional family read aloud for every Christmas 
The Light Gift — a new family tradition to BE THE LIGHT, BE THE GIFT, all as a gift for our coming King! Thank you, from the bottom of our hearts, for joining this Canadian farm boy and his Colorado girl, who love crafting meaningful art — creating beautiful heirloom traditions for families to keep company with Christ, and giving new hope for families in need around the world.
And as we curl up on the couch here together, watching the sheep from our windows, the puppies in our laps, surrounded by the stories of the animals we grew up with and the heirlooms created and yet to be imagined, it is our joy to wish you and yours:
The happiest, warmest, and most joyful, Christ-focused Christmas.
You’re family is the the kind who doesn’t want to miss Jesus this Christmas!
Join us this Advent in beginning live-changing traditions; experience the joy of giving, and keep close and intentional company with Christ from the Cradle, to the Cross.
The Keeping Company is a “not-just-for-profit” — a portion of all proceeds from all Keeping Company heirlooms goes to fill stables and farmyards around the world with Compassion International, filling the hearts of families in need with hope.
Together, we can experience the joy and hope of God’s Greatest Gift, and share His light and love with the world!
November 12, 2021
Who is God really — and how the next generation can know
One of the reasons I’m always so encouraged by what Mark Batterson writes, is that he has a way to inspire readers in every area of life, including reminding ourselves of the blessings we have, the blessing we are, and how we can use that truth to make a difference in other people’s live. His second children’s book, co-written with his daughter Summer Batterson Dailey, reminds both our children and our adult hearts that we are a blessing and can bless any we encounter. In honour of Children’s Books Week, it’s a grace to welcome Mark to the farm’s front porch today….
What is the first thing God did after creating us in His image?
“Then God BLESSED them,” Genesis 1:28.
Before original sin, there was original blessing! That sequence is significant. In fact, it absolutely alters the way we relate to God. If we get that sequence wrong, the entire algorithm is off. Why? If we doubt original blessing, we second-guess the goodness of God, and we relate to God for all the wrong reasons.
“God has blessings in categories you cannot even conceive of.”
“What comes to mind when you think about God,” said A.W. Tozer, “is the most important thing about you.” That begs the question, what comes to mind when you think about God? Is He smiling or is He frowning? Are His arms open and outstretched? Is He trying to catch us doing things wrong or doing things right?
In other words, what is God’s posture toward us? From the beginning, God’s posture has been one of blessing.
Blessing is God’s most ancient instinct. It’s who He is. It’s what He does. God won’t bless pride or greed or laziness. He loves us too much to do that. We certainly have to position ourselves for His blessing, but of this I’m sure: God wants to bless us beyond our ability to ask or imagine.
Some of us have a hard time believing that and I’ll tell you why. If you feel cursed rather than blessed by your family of origin, it’s very hard to conceive of a good God whose deepest desire is to bless us. If that’s true, if that’s you, you need to rediscover the God of original blessing! God has blessings in categories you cannot even conceive of.
Blessing is God’s most ancient instinct, which means that blessing is our oldest memory as a human race. It’s also our deepest longing! Remember Esau? His brother, Jacob, stole his blessing, stole his birthright. Esau cried out to his father: “Bless me—me too, my father.” Genesis 27:34 We long for blessing, just like Esau. It is our heart cry!
As a parent, one of my primary responsibilities is to bless my children. How? It starts with unconditional love. I don’t love my kids because of what they do. They are my flesh and blood. I can’t not love them!
“The biggest blessing is you. It’s blessing others with your time, your talent, your treasure.”
One way we mirror the heart of our Heavenly Father is by pronouncing blessings on them. Remember the baptism of Jesus? “This is my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased.” When was the last time you spoke those words over a son, over a daughter?
I have a prayer of blessing that I have prayed over my children thousands of time: “May you grow in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and with man.” Luke 2:52
My job as a parent is to pass along a generational blessing to my children, but that’s just the beginning when it comes to blessing. I live by a little maxim: FLIP THE BLESSING. When Lora and I receive a blessing, we take inventory. Then we try to bless others in the same way we’ve been blessed. If you give me a gift card, I’m going to return the favor to someone else! Why? “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” Acts 20:35
Few things are more than fun that flipping the blessing. It turns blessing into a game. And here is a lesson I’ve learned: you cannot out give God. When you flip the blessing, it opens the floodgates of blessing! That is a lesson I want my kids to learn at an early age. Yes, sharing is caring. But it goes beyond material things. The biggest blessing is you. It’s blessing others with your time, your talent, your treasure.
As Christ followers, we lead with blessing. And it’s not just when others bless us. Jesus taught us to love our enemies, pray for those who persecute us, and bless those who curse us. In other words, flip the blessing even when you feel like flipping the bird. Why? That’s how we shift the atmosphere. That’s how we stand in the gap as peace makers, grace givers, and tone setters.
And it starts in the home. It starts with our children. As parents, we have a sacred responsibility to bless our children. But it doesn’t end there. Even children are meant to be conduits of blessing!
If you’ll open your eyes to the joys all around,
So many blessings wait to be found.
Then look in the mirror.
What do you see?
You are the blessing!
I hope you’ll agree.
Mark Batterson serves as lead pastor of National Community Church in Washington, DC. NCC also owns and operates Ebenezers Coffeehouse, The Miracle Theatre, and the DC Dream Center. Mark holds a doctor of ministry degree from Regent University and is the New York Times bestselling author of 17 books, including Win the Day, Chase the Lion, and Whisper.
Mark’s newest children’s book, The Blessing of You, is co-written with his daughter Summer and helps young children recognize signs of God’s generosity and goodness in their everyday lives and encourages them to pass on those blessings by being their own wonderful, God-created selves.
[ Our humble thanks to Waterbrook for their partnership in today’s devotion ]
November 8, 2021
When your dreams come true. And when they don’t
Annie and I have been friends for years and if there is one thing she is dependable for, it is fun. And she loves my kids. Annie is one of those women who has friends in multiple generations, and she loves it that way. Here are some of her thoughts on what it is like to invest in children, no matter your own life place. It’s a grace to welcome Annie to the farm’s front porch today…
I dreamed of two things when I was a little girl.
I wanted to be a wife and a mother.
I wanted to be a school teacher.
My third grade teacher was extraordinary, and I walked out of that classroom knowing that’s exactly what I wanted to do with my life, too. And I never strayed. When I was in 8th grade, I read Christy by Catherine Marshall, a fictional retelling of a young school teacher in rural Appalachia. If I wasn’t singularly focused before that, it sealed my plans. Teach children every day.
Lots of years and college classes later, I cried twice on my first day as a fifth grade teacher. I cried at the end of the day because suddenly I was very overwhelmed in this classroom that was my own. I was 23. They were all 10. The age gap was not wide enough that they couldn’t smell my fear. They knew I was overwhelmed too.
And I cried in the morning because I couldn’t believe I was really here. After decades pointed in one direction, I was now a teacher.
Five years later, I changed careers. It’s a longer story than we have space for here, but the dream I had always had came and went.
My dream of being a teacher came true, and then it was gone.
My other dream, to be a wife and a mom, hasn’t come true yet.
So here I sit in my fourth decade on this planet, my life looking so significantly different than I pictured, no children in my home or in my classroom. This is not what I pictured.
But over the last few years, my friends started having children. I didn’t realize that when my best friends started having kids, they were giving me a whole new generation of best friends. I call them my miniBFFs.
And I am part of the parenting village of these friends.
“In a way that only God could orchestrate, my dreams ARE coming true.”
I am mothering. I am teaching.
In a way that only God could orchestrate, my dreams ARE coming true. They look nothing like I thought they would, and I grieve that sometimes. Of course I do. To pretend like there isn’t loss in these dreams is to be dishonest with myself (and with you).
My friends and I talk a lot about the YES AND of life. We try to limit the use of the word BUT in our conversations, and invite YES AND instead. So YES, I grieve the dreams in my life that don’t look the way I thought they would, AND God has exceeded my expectations of what I thought life could look like.
I am mothering. I am teaching.
I think we can see our dreams come true when we broaden our definitions and embrace our disappointments.
The kids in our village call me AnnieDowns. We have multiple Annies who are mothering in our crew, so I get nicknames! The other one I get is Crazy Annie because, as you can imagine, I’m the wildest of the bunch. I’m the one who loves talking about fun the most.
“If I start by having fun with them, suddenly a conversation about something really significant will start up.”
No one is surprised by this. Fun matters to me. I am known for it.
But fun, to me, especially when I’m talking to children, is just a vehicle. If I start by having fun with them, suddenly a conversation about something really significant will start up.
A few families and I were at the park a few weeks ago. Every Tuesday we gather at the farmers market to grab a few things and eat dinner from a food truck. A couple of the little girls and I walked over to the playground, and what started as a few minutes on the swing, transitioned to a conversation about something that happened in school that day- a bullying story, a frustrating story, a painful story.
But something about pushing them on the swings, playing together, made a way for this conversation between two kids and me that may not have happened otherwise. I listened to their feelings, I believed them, and we talked about what should happen tomorrow because this had happened today.
I am mothering. I am teaching.
I read books to kids a lot. In fact, it was possibly my favorite part of being a classroom educator. I loved to read aloud to the students, process the books that we read, and pay attention to the illustrations.
I read books to the children in our community.
I read books to the children in my classroom.
My first children’s book, What Sounds Fun To You?, released and I got to read it aloud at the same farmers market. I stood there, just beside the playground, just past the row of food trucks, as the children gathered at my feet. I started reading the pages, and I had a catch in my throat.
I used to do this in my classroom, and in that moment, I thought about all the kids I had taught over the years and realized that fifteen years after I left the classroom, now all those children who are now adults, can hold this book I wrote and read it aloud too. I thought of them all and how I miss those days.
And there I was, in the farmers market, teaching.
In the crowd were many of my close little friends, my miniBFFs, and that made tears come to my eyes too. Because there were the children whose lives I get to be a mothering voice in, sitting there listening to me read the book I wrote, the first one I’ve ever written for friends of that age.
And there I was, in the farmers market, mothering.
YES AND.
YES, my life does not look the way I thought it would, AND I am getting the chance to teach and mother through the words in What Sounds Fun To You? and I deeply thank God for it.
Annie F. Downs is a New York Times bestselling author, sought-after speaker, and successful podcast host based in Nashville, Tennessee. Engaging and honest, she makes readers and listeners alike feel as if they’ve been long-time friends. Founder of the That Sounds Fun Network—which includes her aptly named flagship show, That Sounds Fun—and author of multiple bestselling books like That Sounds Fun, 100 Days to Brave and Remember God, Annie shoots straight and doesn’t shy away from the tough topics. But she always finds her way back to the truth that God is good and that life is a gift.
No one knows how to have fun like kids do. But sometimes, even kids can use some fresh ideas for finding the fun in their lives. Fun is everywhere, and with this charmingly illustrated children’s book, Annie wants to help children ages 3 to 8 find it in What Sounds Fun to You?
Can it be found in science experiments, at the farmer’s market, or in the kitchen? Yes!
Can it be found on rainy days and starlit nights? You bet!
Can it be found with friends or parents or even annoying little brothers? Of course!
[ Our humble thanks to Revell for their partnership in today’s devotion ]
November 5, 2021
How to Trust God When Your Prayers Go Unanswered
Kristen Clark never imagined that the first decade of her marriage would include 3 miscarriages, dozens of doctor visits, and the diagnosis of unexplained infertility. Coming from a large family herself, she assumed having kids would be easy. But year after year she stared down at a negative pregnancy test. To this day, her life has not turned out the way she imagined. But she hasn’t lost hope. She documents her journey throughout the pages of her new book, Not Part of the Plan, where she beautifully says,“The valleys have been hard, but through it all God has helped me see that true happiness doesn’t come from getting the life I always dreamed of, but from trusting God with the life He has for me, and then believing that His plans truly are good.” As you wrestle with your own unfulfilled longings and unanswered prayers, Kristen wants you to know that you’re not alone. God sees your tears and wants to lead you to a place of true hope. I think you’ll find immense encouragement through her journey as you navigate the twists and turns of your own story. It’s a grace to welcome Kristen to the farm’s front porch today…
Standing in my bathroom on a warm April afternoon, I held the most unexpected news in my hands. I was pregnant. Against all odds, I had conceived again. After two miscarriages early in my marriage, I wondered if I would ever see those double blue lines. For six years I prayed for a baby. I was hopeful. But as each year slowly ticked by, my diagnosis of unexplained infertility loomed like a mysterious fog that wouldn’t lift.
But here I was.
I wanted to embrace the joy of this miraculous news, but I was deeply afraid to celebrate. I silently prayed, Please, God. Protect this little life inside of me.
The weeks slowly continued to tick by. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Then I hit week eleven. I began to experience some light bleeding.
I scheduled an extra appointment with my doctor to check things out. My heart was torn between fear and hope as I walked into her office. Please, God. Please.
“The waiting forces us to look in the mirror and acknowledge that we’re not in control. “
My doctor greeted me warmly and reassured me that everything was probably fine. As she conducted the ultrasound, her demeanor suddenly changed. She got quiet as she observed the screen. Then, without looking at me, she softly said, “I’m so sorry, honey, but there’s no longer a heartbeat.”
Her words stabbed me in the chest. Lying on my back, I stared at the ceiling in silence, gripping my husband’s hand. Silent tears streamed down my face. I had no words to speak. All I could do was cry.
My dreams, longings, and hopes of motherhood came crashing down around me, again.
As I types these words today, I still have yet to experience a healthy pregnancy. As I’ve wrestled with my own unfulfilled longings to get pregnant, I’ve asked God why so many times. I’ve cried and wondered why God would give this good gift to other women but not to me. I’ve prayed fervently and sincerely, wondering why God wasn’t answering my prayers. Why wasn’t He giving me what I so desperately wanted—especially something that He calls a good thing?
Unfulfilled longings are painfully hard to deal with. But I don’t have to tell you that. You’ve been there too. You’ve wrestled with your own unfulfilled longings and unanswered prayers. Maybe even right now. Just like me, you’ve poured out your heart to God.
God, please bring me a Godly husband.
God, please restore my broken marriage.
God, please heal my loved one who’s sick.
God, please open the door for a better job.
God, please give me a baby.
God, please help my friend to know you as their Savior.
God, please mend this strained relationship with my in-laws.
There’s that moment when we all feel desperate. We’re done waiting, and we just want what we want. We want to take control to make it happen. We’re weary and exhausted and wonder if God has completely forgotten us.
Friend, I’ve been there time and time again. It’s so hard. But here’s something I want you to consider. Maybe God is answering your prayers, He’s just not giving you the answer you desire. I used to think that God wasn’t answering my prayers when I didn’t get pregnant. But over the past decade God has helped me to see that He was answering my prayers all along. He just wasn’t saying “yes.”
It took me a while to catch on, but I eventually realized that God answers prayers in one of three ways:
He says “yes” and gives me what I prayed for.He says “no” and closes the door in that area.He says “wait” and wants me to patiently wait for an answer down the road.Out of those three options, I think the hardest one is “wait.”
You see, God cares deeply about our prayers and unfulfilled longings, but He is graciously calling us to pursue something better.
But here’s the truth. God knows the waiting is hard for us as humans. He knows it’s challenging for us. Ultimately, though, He knows it’s good for us. The waiting causes us to come face-to-face with our own inability to do anything about it. The waiting forces us to look in the mirror and acknowledge that we’re not in control. As I share in my book, Not Part of the Plan, “God knows that our greatest need isn’t to get what we want out of life but to get more God into our life.” And if we’re totally honest with ourselves, one of the best ways for us to see our need for Him is through the lens of our unfulfilled longings.”
You see, God cares deeply about our prayers and unfulfilled longings, but He is graciously calling us to pursue something better. Something more satisfying. Something eternal. He is calling us to find our true hope in Him alone. Our relationship with God is the deepest and truest need of our heart. It’s the only thing that can bring genuine satisfaction to our soul. Yes, our desires are great, but they shouldn’t be our greatest desire. Our Heavenly Father is lovingly and graciously pushing us toward true and lasting hope.
As women of faith, God is helping us see that our greatest need isn’t to get what we want, but to know Him more fully and to love Him more deeply. We will find peace in the midst of our desperate longings when we entrust them to our Heavenly Father. When we open our hands in surrender, and give our burdens to the One who holds all things together, we find peace. And we do this by faith.
By faith we trust that His timing is better than our own.
By faith we choose to believe that God knows best.
By faith we entrust our future to God and rest in His plan.
By faith we hold on to the promise that if we never get the things we’ve prayed for, God will still be enough.
Sister, there is so much God wants to do in your life during the waiting. There is so much wisdom to be gained in the wanting. I don’t know what’s weighing on your heart today, but I do know this: by faith, you can choose to put your trust in the one true God who is with you in the midst of your circumstances. Whether or not God ever gives you the longings of your heart, you can find lasting peace and fulfillment right now. Let’s run to the loving arms of our Savior together.
Kristen Clark is the author of five book, host of the popular podcast, The Girl Defined Show, and founder of Girl Defined Ministries. In a world that continues to shift further away from God’s design, she is passionate about linking arms with modern women and helping them discover God’s radical and beautiful design for femininity. Her first book, Girl Defined: Discovering God’s Radical Design for Beauty, Femininity and Identity continues to resonate with women all around the world.
Her most recent book, Not Part of the Plan: Trusting God with the Twists and Turns of Your Story helps you know how to trust God right now thrive in your own story. In Not Part of the Plan, Kristen and co-author Bethany Beal open up their lives in the most raw and relatable way, sharing their own journeys through unexpected seasons of infertility, singleness, loss, and heartbreak. But in the midst of it all, they’ve learned that true hope doesn’t come from getting the life you always dreamed of but from trusting God with the life He has for you and believing that His plans truly are good.
[ Our humble thanks to Baker for their partnership in today’s devotion ]
November 4, 2021
When Gratitude & Thanksgiving Seem Too Hard Because Life is Hard & Grief is Real
“What if that November 2nd hadn’t been part of our story ?” I hardly dared ask my Mama when I remembered & sat with her today.
What if little Aimee hadn’t toddled out across the farmyard after our cat, what if the oblivious truck driver had seen her before he struck her, what if Mama and I hadn’t been standing at the kitchen sink, right there at the window, witnessing, helpless, when her little body fell under the wheel?
I will never forget how Mama screamed that long ago morning, or how Mama whispered it to me this morning:
“Everything, our whole lives, would have been different…
But God’s kindness to us, our whole lives, has always been the same.”
Though the fig tree and the birthday candles won’t blossom again, though there are graves and no breathing warm breath back into lifeless bodies we love & long to hold, though there are waiting shoes and places at the table that will always sit empty, yet:
Our God is more than only good, He is always, always, always kind.
He’s etched the curve of our names into His skin, He’s enfolded around us like the mother-love of a wing, He’s hidden us up in the deep chambers of His heart & our God is literally in it with us.
“Everything, our whole lives would have been different…But God’s kindness to us, our whole lives, has always been the same..”
Literally: Our God feels with us.
Though there isn’t one of of us who wouldn’t change our stories, every single one of us is breathed into being by the Word, and we are more than cells and water, we are made of Story and Word, & He is our Author & the Word only writes stories with all kinds of lines for love & hope in the end.
Though our story don’t seem to make sense, the Word makes all things right, makes all things new, makes all the heartbreaking things untrue.
When I ask Mama if, on a day that holds such memories, if I can take her for a cup of coffee, she smiles softly:
“ So kind. So grateful. Just — thank you for remembering.”
If the Last Supper we are to remember, was eucharistic, a place of thanks for our Lord, can we remember to drink the cup He gives & still somehow taste the kindness of His grace?
This is hard and holy and the wholest way to be human. Yet, I didn’t know for years, for how many years and grief after Aimee, that if you really want to get to joy, there is only one road that will really get you there: thanksgiving.
I also didn’t know: Thanksgiving comes the Hebrew word “yadah” — which is to say YADAH, YADAH, YADAH— means to give thanks, give thanks, give thanks. Especially through the hard and the heartbreak.
“Give thanks (yadah) to the Lord for his loving-kindness is everlasting.” (2 Chr 20:21).
It is true:
We can always give thanks, because our tears won’t last forever, but His love will.
“If we have truly known God’s heart for us, how can we not raise our hands in thanksgiving to Him?”
And for how many years did I not know that yadah literally means: “to acknowledge, to know what is true” — to know & acknowledge the goodness of God that is always true.
Even when we kneel at graves, when we wipe tears, when remember the days that broke our hearts — and yet:
“Oh that men would praise (yadah) the Lord for His goodness” (Ps 107:15).
And yet, in the midst of heartache, to realize that related to the word yadah (thank), is the Hebrew word yada— which means “to know,” but to actually know intimately, like Adam knew (yada) Eve (Genesis 4:1)… like Moses asks to know God: “Please show me now your ways, that I may know (yada) you in order to find favor in your sight.” (Exodus 33:13).
And both of these related words, YADAH and YADA come from the word YAD — the Hebrew word for hand.
Which is to say what I keep returning to, especially on the hardest days, what the realest truth is:
If our hand has stretched out to know God —
our hands will stretch up to thank God.
If our hands have ever intimately known the face of God, the kindness of God, we cannot help but ultimately raise our hands in thanksgiving to God.
Ultimately: To know God is to thank God.
“When Christ gives us a cup to drink, how can we do anything less than He did for us, anything less than take it, and drink even our cup of ache down with thanks?”
Which means, even though we lament and weep:
If we aren’t daily thanking God — have we ever really known God?
If we have truly known God’s heart for us, how can we not raise our hands in thanksgiving to Him?
If we take time to truly know and notice the grace of God in our days, how can we not acknowledge God with our daily thanksgiving?
At the beginning of November, as I sit with Mama and the memory of Aimee, I wonder:
What could be a better way to begin the holidays — the holy-days — than daily thanking God, because how could we do anything less when we truly know a kind and holy God?
So I begin November by offering to pick Mama up for coffee, so neither of us ache alone — and I dare to pick up a pen and still count gifts, more than a dozen gifts every day through till the end of the year to count 1000 gifts and finish the year strong, to fiercely defy the dark and testify with my thanksgiving: “Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; For His lovingkindness endures forever…”
The dark November clouds begin to roll in, heavy with rain. Mama whispers, “Thank you for sitting a bit here with me….” And I nod, smile.
When Christ gives us a cup to drink, how can we do anything less than He did for us, anything less than take it, and drink even our cup of ache down with thanks?
Drink even our cup of ache down with thanks.
And in this remembering, this remembering to give thanks, our broken hearts are re-membered.
How do we drink our cup of ache with thanks?
How do we find tender healing & gentle joy in the midst of our deepest heartbreaks?
How do we raise our hands to God in thanks — when our hearts are crushed, ashes in the wind?
How do we raise our hands to God in thanks — when our hearts are crushed, ashes in the wind?
What if in these days before the holidays — the holy-days — you found a way to defy the dark and testify to the goodness of a good and holy God?
This is my story, this is my song — thanking my Saviour all the day long has radically changed my life in ways I once thought impossible. Counting all the ways He loved me — showed me who I could ultimately count on….
Dare you to live fully — even, especially, right here…
November 1, 2021
A Stranger’s Gift: Their One Simple Act
Kathy Howard is a treasure hunter. She hunts for the creamiest chocolate and richest coffee. She searches for cherished stories of faith that still impact hearts. And, she digs deep into God’s Word, mining His eternal truths for herself and to share with others. Many in our culture today view the Bible as an antique to be displayed on a shelf or as a collection of old ideas that need an update. Instead Kathy encourages us to embrace the Bible as God’s timeless truth on which to build our lives. It’s a grace to welcome Kathy to the farm’s front porch today…
In mid-nineteenth century England, an illiterate orphan didn’t have much hope. But no one thought to mention that to John Monkhouse.
Born in London in 1841, his parents died when John was still a small boy. Although legally under the care of his older, married sister, John spent more time roaming the city than he spent in his sister’s home.
He played on the streets and hung around in the alleys where men gathered to gamble. He scrutinized the gamblers, fascinated by their games of chance. Could this be what the future held for young John?
“God used one simple act – a gift from a stranger – as the foundation for a family’s rich legacy of faith.”
One day, a stranger changed the trajectory of John’s life when he gave him a heavy, black Bible. John used that Bible to teach himself how to read and God used that Bible to bring John into a saving relationship with Jesus. From that time on, John centered his life on God and His purposes.
At sixteen, John married his fifteen-year-old sweetheart, Elizabeth. In 1871, the family immigrated to the US and John settled his family in Shreveport, Louisiana. John was smart and industrious. He started businesses and bought land.
But John also longed to serve God. He joyfully studied the Bible to learn how to build his life and his family on God’s principles. He opened his home to strangers, donated land for a new church, and faithfully told others about God and His great blessings.
God used one simple act – a gift from a stranger – as the foundation for a family’s rich legacy of faith.
Generations of believers, humble church leaders, and even a local church grew on that foundation.
Joy Prouty
“We never know how God might use one small gift, one seemingly insignificant step of obedience.”
The Monkhouse legacy of faith also touched my own family. John’s grandson Jimmy Monkhouse became a spiritual mentor to my father. Mr. Monkhouse modeled devotion to God’s Word and equipped my dad for church leadership.
My dad treasured his friendship and considered him a spiritual father. I personally remember Mr. Monkhouse as a godly man that constantly exhibited God’s grace and extended it to others.
We never know how God might use one small gift, one seemingly insignificant step of obedience.
We don’t even know his name, but the stranger’s gift to John Monkhouse fostered faith in generations to come, positively influenced an entire community, and helped shape my family.
Stories like this one – of families and their history of faith – fascinate me.
I particularly love stories of my own ancestors. I want to know where they came from, how they lived, and what they were like. Their stories help me understand how I got to be “me.” Maybe you feel the same way.
“While we can’t believe for any of our loved ones, we can teach them about our great God and create an atmosphere in our homes where trust in Him can flourish.”
The Bible places great value on knowing our family history, specifically our faith roots. The stories of those who have come before us can strengthen and encourage our faith today. Like the young pastor Timothy experienced in his own family, as we live intentionally for God, we lay a foundation of faith for those who come after us.
I remember your genuine faith, for you share the faith that first filled your grandmother Lois and your mother, Eunice. And I know that same faith continues strong in you. 2 Timothy 1:5, NLT
When our three children were growing up, my husband and I worked to encourage their faith. In hindsight, I see some gaps in our discipling. We could have been more purposeful in some areas.
Looking toward the future, I want to take advantage of every opportunity God gives us with our grandchildren, to constantly tell them about God and His love for them.
Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up. Deuteronomy 6:7, NLT
“We can tell our own faith stories, share God’s Word, and point them to Jesus.”
What legacy do you want to leave your children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren? For other members of your extended family?
The most valuable heirloom we can pass down is a legacy of faith.
While we can’t believe for any of our loved ones, we can teach them about our great God and create an atmosphere in our homes where trust in Him can flourish.
We can tell our own faith stories, share God’s Word, and point them to Jesus.
Today we’re reading our ancestors’ stories. Tomorrow, our descendants will be reading our stories. What kind of legacy will we leave?
I could have no greater joy than to hear that my children are following the truth. 3 John 1:4, NLT
May it be so, Lord.
A former “cultural Christian,” Kathy Howard now has a passion for God’s Word that’s contagious. With more than 30 years of experience, Kathy has taught in dozens of states, internationally, and in a wide range of venues including multi-church conferences and large online events. She has a Masters of Christian Education from the Canadian Southern Baptist Seminary. Kathy is the author of 10 books, including the new, unique devotional Heirloom: Living and Leaving a Legacy of Faith. She writes for multiple online magazines and devotional sites.
Heirloom: Living and Leaving a Legacy of Faith tells stories of the past that will impact our faith today. These 52 heart-felt reflections reveal the seeds of our faith―seeds that sprouted and took root, growing through the centuries to today. Heirloom weaves these stories of faith and family history with Scripture, beautiful artwork, and ancestry research tips and techniques.
[ Our humble thanks to Tyndale for their partnership in today’s devotion ]
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