Ann Voskamp's Blog, page 58

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.

on repeat this week: Better

[excerpted from our little Facebook family … come join us each day?]

yeah, if we’re being honest here, the work gave us a bit of grief today,
and maybe the kids gave us some grief, Lord,
and yeah, maybe we’ll be bold enough and just say it out loud: we grieve a bit about how the day turned out, and how life’s turned out, and how we’ve lost people we love, lost some dreams, lost hope of real change — in us, in our people, in the way things have gone.

It’s okay to be brave & say that here: The worst grief is a hidden grief that cannot speak.
And You, Lord, You cup our chin right now, steady us with this deep love:
“As a mother comforts her child, so I will comfort you.
I’ll convert your weeping, lavishing comfort, invading your grief with joy.” (Isa.66:12,Jer.31:14MSG)

It’s okay — it’s really okay. The grief is simply proof that you’re invested in living & loving.
Grief is the guaranteed price we pay for love.

And in the grief & paying that price, there’s this enfolding comfort —
of knowing we are spending our lives on the best things.

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.

guest post by Sam Allberry

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Published on August 07, 2021 04:37

The Good News you Need to Know About Your Body

I first met Sam Allberry three years ago in Dallas and have remained grateful for his pastoral tender-heartedness and biblical faithfulness, to me personally and to so many others. Sam always seeks to embody the goodness of Jesus and to help all of us taste of it in every area of life. This post, and the new book related to it, shows us Sam as the insightful and gentle pastor, encouraging the body-shamed and insecure to look again to Christ. It’s a grace to welcome Sam to the farm’s front porch today…

“I need prayer –– this is going to be a tough day.”

It’s not what you expect to hear from a friend you know is on vacation in a beautiful part of the world and about to spend said day at the beach. But the text wasn’t sarcasm. It wasn’t rubbing in the fact he was in paradise. It was genuine.

The follow-up messages showed why. He was indeed heading to the beach (one of the top beaches in the world). He was indeed heading there with good friends. What was the issue?

“He was feeling acutely self-conscious, and it was causing significant anxiety.”

He knew he’d have to take his top off, and he hated his body.

This friend is not particularly overweight. But by his own admission he’s not especially toned either. He also has some minor disfiguring on his abdomen from a sloppy operation a decade or so earlier. In contrast (so he said), he was with two friends who could easily pass as models and had the physique to prove it.

He was feeling acutely self-conscious, and it was causing significant anxiety.

Many think that body image issues are mainly faced by women, but this is to spectacularly miss the mark. I’ve been teaching on and studying what the Bible says about our bodies for around 5 years now.

Whenever guys ask what sort of things I cover in my book about this, and I mention that one of the many issues is body image, it’s not uncommon for them to look over their shoulder and then in hushed tones open up about some of their own particular insecurities. It might be some aspect of their appearance, or the shape and proportions of their body, or some sense that they do not measure up to what a man is supposed to look like. Many have shared very personal and painful stories of having been mocked because of their physical appearance.

Underlying all these experiences is one powerful idea: that there is a particular standard for how male or female bodies are meant to look. The further you are from that standard, the worse you should feel about yourself; the closer to are to that standard, the better you can feel about yourself.

Spring-time adverts admonish us to start getting our “beach body” ready for the summer. We’re encouraged to feel inadequate if we don’t have a flat stomach and toned physique.

“When it comes to our bodies, we’re all followers.”

All of which is to say, when it comes to our bodies, we’re all followers. Someone is determining how we feel about the way we look. Someone is the functional master of our physical selves. They might be running a Hollywood studio or a Madison Avenue fashion house. They might be the primary ringleader of our social circle. They might be a member of our family.

But whoever it is, it is someone. All of us have a master when it comes to our bodies.

Which is why the gospel is such good news. That might seem tautologous to say –– gospel means “good news” after all. But the fact is, the gospel is not just good news in some abstract or remote sense. It is good news for every aspect of life. And it is good news specifically for our bodies.

“The gospel is not just good news in some abstract or remote sense. It is good news for every aspect of life. And it is good news specifically for our bodies.“

The reason for this is encapsulated by Paul in this brief but potent statement:

Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies. (1 Cor. 6:19-20, NIV)

We may be familiar with the idea that our bodies are a temple of the Holy Spirit. But we may be less familiar with the idea that immediately follows it –– our bodies do not belong to us. We have been bought. We are owned. We are not our own. Our bodies are now for someone, someone else. We have a new master.

In any other context this would be horrific. (It is hard to talk of having been bought and being owned and not think of the horrors victims of human trafficking have had to endure.) But in this context they are liberating. It could not be better.

This is what my anxious friend needs to hear as he heads to the beach. This is what he needs to know as he nervously contemplates taking off his t-shirt. As a Christian, he now belongs to Christ. His body now belongs to Jesus. And Jesus is a far kinder master of our bodies than any alternative.

“If our bodies belong to Jesus, then the only one who needs to be pleased with our bodies is Jesus.”

If our bodies belong to Jesus, then the only one who needs to be pleased with our bodies is Jesus.

We find in Him a much more humane approach to our bodies. His apostle, Paul, urges us:

Offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. (Romans 12:1, NIV)

The body that is pleasing to Jesus is not necessarily one that would adorn a billboard advertisement by a highway or turn heads at the beach. It is a body consecrated to Jesus –– given over to Him, to be fully used in His service.

It doesn’t need to be good enough for the cover of a fitness magazine to please Him. It just needs to be given to Him as part of our whole-life worship. There is no one more worthy of this than Jesus, and no one more good to us.

So next time my friend anticipates a day at the beach, he doesn’t ultimately need to think about whether his body pleases the culture around us.

If it doesn’t (and let’s be honest, most of ours don’t), that’s OK. What others think about it is not the issue.

They didn’t give up their own bodies on a cross to redeem it so that their own spirit could now dwell within it.

Jesus did. It was His good pleasure to.

We have been bought by Him at the infinite price of His own life. And as we look to Him and continue to endeavour to put Him first, Jesus has no buyer’s remorse.

For nearly twenty years Sam Allberry has served the church as a pastor, apologist, speaker and writer. Sam has served at various churches and ministries in his home UK and is in the process of moving to Nashville, Tennessee to join the staff of Immanuel Church Nashville. Sam has also recently been appointed to serve as a Canon Theologian for the Anglican Church in North America. He is the author of acclaimed books such as 7 Myths About Singleness, Why Does God Care Who I Sleep With? and Is God Anti-Gay?

Sam’s latest book, What God Has To Say About Our Bodies, relentlessly shows the ways in which Jesus is good news for our bodies. Sam opens up the consoling and encouraging message of the Bible, along with examples and applications drawn from many years of pastoral work in this area.

This is pastoral theology that is both practical and heart-warming, showing how our bodies are now not defined by what we have done with them, or what others have done to them, but by what Christ has done for them.

breathtaking views to wake you to the wonder of our world

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Published on August 02, 2021 04:06

Only the Good Stuff: Multivitamins For Your Weekend [07.31.21]

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:

Photo by Casey Horner on Unsplash

what if animals were round?

oh my heart: 5-year-old fighting cancer uses sticky note art to make friends through hospital window

can you even?!? love, love, love everything about this story!

From Eric Liddell to Allyson Felix: Why Faithful Fans Are Drawn to Olympians

Christian athletes testify to the gospel in competition and beyond

she’s showing us how to cook sweat tea today… come along!

Don’t Miss the “Best Meteor Shower of the Year” According to NASA (!!)

Dad of 7 Shares Creative Hacks for Parents with Multiple Babies… couldn’t stop watching!

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inspiring stories…

cheering loudly! students stepping up and doing great things!

cheering for kids doing good things: teen raises $12K to get homeless veterans off the streets

‘Shelters don’t provide the safe and caring environment that our warriors deserve’

you’ve got to meet her…this young scientist is forging extraordinary new roads

Born out of the pandemic – best job they ever had

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A post shared by Good News Movement (@goodnews_movement)

maybe this is how it’s really supposed to be…

#BeTheGift #TheBrokenWay

Well, hello August!

“Whatever you do, do everything…*giving thanks” Col. 3:1

God’s will is for us to give thanks in all things…because this is how God knows we can live through anything.

All the research concludes that if you write down just 3 things you’re grateful for every day, you increase your happiness by 25%! Who doesn’t want that?! And giving thanks in all things is a God-command for our joy. Let’s do it!

Take the Joy Dare (3 prompts a day to find 3 gifts) – and hang it on the fridge for the whole family to take the #JOYDARE too! Scavenger hunt for God’s glory!
.
Print the month of August Joy Dare, and the entire year of Joy Dares, right here:

And pick up a copy of the new 10th anniversary edition of One Thousand Gifts, and count all the ways He loves you, & fall in love with Him all over again! AND, when you do, you get an entire FREE Joy Tool Kit which includes 5 exclusive printables: a “How to Always Find Joy” Frameable, a Daily Joy Map & Planner, a Family Gratitude Gift Jar kit, a 12-Month Joy Calendar, and a Daily Joy Compass. Click here to learn how you can get yours today!

found this fascinating: A sense of direction…Finding your way without GPS

how to really see where you are

How a Helpful Guy Saves Local Sea Turtles From Unnecessary Suffering

the love of a stranger was the start of something big

glory, glory, glory

ponder and then share with a friend: Let God Fight Your Battles

Resource: Wooden prayer hands from The Keeping Company

Post of the week from these parts here:

I don’t know where I was when the conviction struck me so hard it stung for days, the ultimate reason why I fail to pray…but this has revolutionized the way I pray:

If You’re Really Desperate for God to Hear Your Prayers For Real

every word of this is just so good…There is power in Your name…words to encourage you

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.

on repeat this week: The Gospel

[excerpted from our little Facebook family … come join us each day?]

Losses leave a wake
that wakes you
to the meaningfulness of what was,
& why it deeply mattered,
& what message you want to live now.

It takes uncommon courage to believe:
Losses take but losses give.
Every loss gives you
space for something else.

You bravely have to ask — what else?

Because:
No emptiness ever stays empty.
Empty places always fill.

And we choose what fills the empty places: anger, bitterness, distractions, hardness — or hope & dreams & love & legacy & more life.

Losses are only wasted if we don’t let them give us what they long to give us:
More love, more grace, more gratitude, more wisdom, more Jesus.

It takes uncommon courage to ask:

How might this emptiness be filled with more that’s fulfilling?

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.

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Published on July 31, 2021 05:31

If You’re Really Desperate for God to Hear Your Prayers For Real

“True, whole prayer — is nothing but love,” writes St. Augustine.

It’s a tender question: Is the only reason we don’t truly pray, is because we don’t truly love?

If one’s not praying regularly, is it only because something else is regularly loved more than God?

“The only reason we fail to pray, is because we’ve made an idol out of self. The only thing that prevents me from praying more — is me.”

I don’t know where I was when the conviction struck me so hard it stung for days: The only reason we fail to pray, is because we’ve made an idol out of self. The only thing that prevents me from praying more — is me.

Look in the mirror, in my calendar, in my own heart and confess, I’ve had to painfully face: It’s my own inflated sense of self-importance, the elevation of my plans, my work, of my agenda, that keeps me from prayer-communion. That’s called idol worship. It’s a striking thing of deep conviction to realize: I don’t pray enough because I’m practicing idol worship.

But what else is it when I too often have something else that comes first, or one more thing to do, or anything else that’s more distracting, appealing, satisfying instead of stopping my work to still my heart and speak words back to the very Word from whence I came?

Resource: Wooden prayer hands from The Keeping Company

“My prayer life reflects my theology — or my idolatry.“

The truth I came to sit with is: My prayer life reflects my theology — or my idolatry.

Unless we make time to genuinely pray — our other priorities betray what we genuinely think of Jesus. The extent of prayer in one’s life is a direct function of whether something else has been set up as more important than God.

I began to whisper it gently to my soul: Do not work so hard for Christ, that you make no time to pray to Christ. He is the lifeblood of all work, all joy, all hope, all being, all communion.

I began to slowly turn and learn: When I choose to still in prayer is when I know that He’s God… and I am not.

When I bow, idols topple.

“When I choose to still in prayer is when I know that He’s God… and I am not.”

When we, as a family, began to embrace a daily rhythm of prayer, by gathering in a circle in our kitchen as the sun came up, and bowing our heads in prayer first thing, before any of us did anything else. The house of our Lord is a house of prayer — and we realize that prayer is the only way we can keep ours standing. Each morning, we pray honestly, vulnerably, we pray through tears, we pray His Word, we pray each one of us around the circle, we pray first thing, we pray our hearts to the One who gave us a new heart. This is what we began to do: We returned to our first love.

We discovered: Prayer is not what we do before we begin our work. Prayer is our life’s work.

Prayer becomes what we live when we want to get hold of God, not just get a hold of what we want. And real prayer isn’t about changing God’s mind, but about finding God’s heart, and letting His heart change our minds.

Is this why God urges us to pray without ceasing? We need to pray without ceasing — because it’s the only way to live in communion. Without prayer, how can our life and His will have anything in common? Without prayer — we have no fellowship, no relationship, no worship.

“Real prayer isn’t about changing God’s mind, but about finding God’s heart, and letting His heart change our minds.”

But when we choose to enter a life of prayer, He enters into our thoughts, takes captive every thought because we are most captivated with Him, Him having first place in our hearts and hours and priorities — and the conversation never ends, and we have our heart’s real desire — communion with Christ.

“I know of no better thermometer to your spiritual temperature than this: the measure of the intensity of your prayer,” writes Charles Spurgeon.

And the relief is? None of us pray alone.

Though you think no one is praying with you, the Ultimate One is praying for you.

The One who breathes stars breathes prayers for you, the One whose words spoke the world into being uses priceless words over your being, the One who made time, lives beyond time, controls all of time, uses all of His time to pray for you, because you are priceless to Him.

Jesus is praying right now that the Spirit comforts you, strengthens you, anoints you with fresh oil of brave joy. Jesus is seeing us through, carrying us through, praying us through. And when we’re struggling to pray, it’s Jesus Himself Who prays for all we’re struggling with. There are arms that won’t let you go, there are plans that won’t abandon you, there are prayers that won’t fail you.

Jesus won’t get off His knees until you are in His arms.

Nothing makes you more fiercely brave than knowing Jesus is fiercely praying for you.

Hard times don’t need to understand what God’s doing — like they need to know God’s standing with us, that He’s kneeling in prayer for us at all times.

“Hard times don’t need to understand what God’s doing — like they need to know God’s standing with us, that He’s kneeling in prayer for us at all times.”

The Word-formed, Scriptural prayers of Jodie Berdnt have led me into our Abba Father’s hearts on some of my very hardest days. When my spirit didn’t know how to find words, the pages of Jodie’s prayer books find the Word itself, giving His own words to us, that we may pray them back to the Word Himself.

Jodie’s become a prayer companion for me, the gripping, Word-saturated pages of her prayer books reaching over and gripping my hand and holding me like a lifeline, tied to the heart of God. Books from Jodie’s series of Praying Scripture has become the gift I give for all occasions — because there is no greater gift than praying on all occasions, without ceasing.

And there is nothing we need more than to learn how to become a prayer warrior— instead of a panicked worrier. Worry is just the facade of taking action — when prayer really is.

When I think how prayer is always our most real work, our most meaningful act, I remember again the story of Abba Paul, that desert monk who wove baskets and prayers. And while other monks lived close enough to cities to sell their handiwork in the markets, Abba Paul lived such a distance that the cost of transportation would exceed any profits from selling the baskets.

Nonetheless, each day he collected palm fronds and worked as faithfully as if basket making were his primary means of support. And come the end of the year, when his cave overflowed with long months of toil, he took torch to the work of his hands and the flames devoured and rose higher and cackled long into the night. Then, come morning, the heat died away, satiated. And Abba Paul stood in the long quiet and the wind blew away the ashes of all his work.

“Prayer is not what we do before we work, nor is prayer what we do instead of our work. Prayer is our life’s work.”

It is not the products of our days that will matter in the end, but the prayers of our days. Prayer is not what we do before we work, nor is prayer what we do instead of our work. Prayer is our life’s work.

Because by and large the work of our hands, the to-lists, the plotting across planners, while all needful acts of service, these acts will become ash in wind. “[O]n the judgment day, fire will reveal what kind of work each builder has done. The fire will show if a person’s work has any value. If the work survives, that builder will receive a reward. But if the work is burned up, the builder will suffer great loss. The builder will be saved, but like someone barely escaping through a wall of flames” (1 Cor. 3:13-15).

What survives fire? Our places of work won’t. Neither will the actual work of our hands. Abba Paul’s baskets didn’t. But what was wove into the baskets did — the prayers. Ora et Labora — work and pray — but what is everything: weave prayers through all the work.

The prayers we weave into the matching of socks, the stirring of oatmeal, the washing of floors, the coming and going and all the moments of our work, these survive fire.

“Prayer is our coming home.”

Turn these pages, and return to your first love — for prayer is nothing but love for Love Himself.

We were loved to life by the Word, by Him kneeling close and kissing us to life with His warm breath, and when our words return to Him in prayer, we are returning home.

Prayer is our coming home.

We become whole — when our breath becomes prayer.

These carefully handcrafted wooden hands from The Keeping Company are a one of a kind way to display reminders of words of hope, or reminders for prayer. We hope these wooden hands provide a daily reminder of Christ’s encouragement and the power of prayer when displayed on a desk, bookshelf, or bedside table.

Taking you on a 31-day journey rooted in Christ’s words in John 15, Praying the Scriptures for Your Life will help you find guidance and peace as you pray through life’s trickiest issues, from relationships to finances to what to do with the pain of unanswered prayer. Discover how Scripture can be experienced, not just read!

In one of His last conversations with His disciples, Jesus urged His followers to “remain” in Him. But what does it mean to remain in Christ in our daily lives? In Praying the Scriptures for Your Life, popular Bible teacher Jodie Berndt invites you to experience deeper intimacy with Christ as you allow his words from John 15 to transform your perspective as well as your prayers.

Praying the Scriptures for Your Life is the latest addition to the bestselling Praying the Scriptures series. With short, easy-to-read chapters, the book invites you to read, reflect, and respond as you pray the Scriptures over every area of your life. Discover the peace that comes from abiding in Christ as you sink deep into his Word.

she captures our world in the most beautiful ways…

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Published on July 28, 2021 09:06

Only the Good Stuff: Multivitamins For Your Weekend [07.24.21]

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:

Jessica Walker

come along for a long quiet walk?

because we all need a friend

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A post shared by akela.world (@akela.world)

They sold everything they owned, converted an old truck, and travel the world together (come check their gorgeous adventure pics!)

kinda the best… fireflies putting on the best show for us

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A post shared by Juli Wilson (@itsjuliwilson)

her words of faith bring tears…

amazed: Drone photographer created an aerial timelapse video showing a flock of 1,000–1,700 sheep being herded across the rural landscape of Yokneam in Israel

He’s 2 years old. She’s about to turn 100. They’ve formed a friendship across a backyard fence you have to see…

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smiling through tears…you too?

Man Honors His Farmworker Parents in Special Way After Graduating Medical School

“My graduation from medical school was one small step for me, one giant leap for fam-kind. It’s as much, if not more, a victory lap for them as it is for me. And I couldn’t be prouder of them.”

share with a friend…God is with you in the valley – you are never, ever alone

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A post shared by @ayhaneren27kk

can you even?!?

This 9-year-old child genius with Asperger’s—has a higher IQ than Einstein and dreams of becoming an astronaut. Before turning 10, she has already graduated high school, is pursuing two engineering degrees in Mexico, and has been invited to study at her dream school—the University of Arizona.

She also uses her platform to inspire other children on the autism spectrum to follow their dreams!

breathtaking wonder we can easily overlook

Few events in nature can rival the extraordinary life cycle of a butterfly. This stunning transformation from a slow, earth-bound caterpillar to a magnificent flying insect is the epitome of mystery and wonder.

Thank you, The John 10:10 Project

… classic loveliness in our Fair Trade store, Grace Crafted Home:

Best gift idea?! Using this Cake Stand here on the farm! This beautiful Mahogany wood tray cake stand is perfect for displaying a birthday cake or any other treat of your choice. Hand-carved, sanded, smoothed, and finished with food-safe beeswax, this cake stand is ideal! You could keep it on your kitchen counter for everyday use too — displaying muffins, cookies, or other goodies! A enjoy your new kitchen staple! ⁠

This cake stand is sustainably harvested wood handmade in Peten, Guatemala.

Every piece in our Grace Crafted Home collection is Fair Trade and brings dignity to the artisans who created them.

Your home and life can tell a story — that’s changing the story of the world.

(100% of all funds not only empowers artisans around the world, but also partners with Mercy House Global to support several homes for young women and their babies in crisis pregnancies in the slums of Nairobi, Kenya)

Craft a home that embodies your values: classic beauty, heirloom quality, fair trade — Grace all around

yes: We Need (Good) Church Stories

a story 23 years in the making… tears at his perseverance

Never, ever, give up

oh my heart: Where I Do My Homework: 8 Pictures of Tenacious Students

Beyond grateful for the life saving work of Compassion International

this story is fascinating – and really makes you think

maybe we all just want to be fiercely listened to

Leaning into the stories & the wonder & the making with you, Chip and Joanna Gaines!

Giddy ecstatic, undone, about the vision of Magnolia Network & Chip and Joanna, and – we’ve never even had a TV, ever, or cable or anything of the like, but I’ve never been so excited to watch a network anything quite like this, ever!

Because what is this really about? It’s creating culture. These dreamers and makers and artists are like the first gardeners, back in Eden, cultivating deep good to produce real lasting yield. Stand ovation till my hands heart – keep co-cultivating with our Maker to make GOOD, life-giving culture!

Every now and then… thank you, Beth Moore

Post of the week from these parts here:

I dare say absolutely nothing matters more than this — & this has been flat-out changing my life in ways I never would have expected:

How to Hear from God: If You Want a Daily Encounter With God

come along for the most extraordinary views…glory

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.

on repeat this week: Joy of the Lord

[excerpted from our little Facebook family … come join us each day?]

Slow down and breathe today.

Let the goodness and mercy that follows you every. single. day. of. your. life. — no. matter. what. — why not slow down and see how the goodness catches up to you?

God longs to travel with you today —

“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life…” Psalm 23:6

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.

ESV Journaling Bible, Interleaved

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Published on July 24, 2021 05:47

How to Hear from God: If You Want a Daily Encounter With God

To be raw honest, I have fallen deeper than I have ever known.

Honestly, I didn’t expect it to go quite like this.

But we just have breathed through all of this whole season. What’s going like anybody thought it would?

“God is a communicative being.”

Sure, the news and social media streams are all screaming first thing, day after day, trying to prove who’s telling the truth about the real state of things, trying to convince which way is right through a myriad of messes.

Sure, we’ve got personal pain, unspoken broken, that’s only been exacerbated a thousandfold during a global pandemic and devastating lockdowns.

And, in the middle of everything, like Jonathan Edwards said: God is a communicative being.

Levi Voskamp

“There is nothing like knowing that the Communicative God wants to communicate with you.”

God is a Communicative Being who never stops communicating Truth to a world that is in a brutal daily communication war to decide truth.

There is nothing like knowing that the Communicative God wants to communicate with you.

God’s Word to you is never a passing word or line — God’s Word is your very lifeline. In tumultuous times, there is only one voice that can calm seas.

When the sun comes to the window every morning, it comes on fire with a message it can’t contain:

The One who is the Word wants to have a word with you.

“Apathy for God’s Word leads to atrophy of a soul.”

To neglect the only Voice that calms waves is to invite internal chaos. One day, either this world is going to blow apart, or your own world is going to blow apart, and the only way you’re going survive is if you’ve set time apart to let God’s Spirit blow in.

Apathy for God’s Word leads to atrophy of a soul.

Knowing God’s Word is the only way to know your own face. Who we are is only found in the home of Him.

The One who spoke you into being is a Communicative Being who longs to keep speaking to you.

“The One who spoke you into being is a Communicative Being who longs to keep speaking to you.”

And in a world that’s gone mad and growing madder, I find myself stumbling out of bed each morning and falling hard for Him and all His Words.

When the world is all stirred up, a soul can be stirred up to meet with God.

All the mainstream news and social streams can anticipate facing off— and a soul can keep anticipating facing God.

I reach for my Bible first — because if you don’t reach for your first love first, nothing’s going to turn out in the end.

When life spins a bit wild — the best thing to do is fall wildly in love with the Author of Life, who is the author of your Life, and let Him write you a love story, your love story.

Levi Voskamp

How I Fall Deeper in Love with the Communicative God 1. Pine after the heart of God:

Want the One who wants you more than anyone else. I have found this true, especially at the bottom of all kinds of unspoken broken: God is never an obligation, but always worthy of anticipation. Time with God isn’t an action on some to-do list but an act of Love with Someone.

“Want the One who wants you more than anyone else.”

God isn’t a duty when you are attracted to His beauty.

I can not help it, because this has been my story:

Fall in love with the One who erases all of your falls.

Pine after the One who hung on a tree for you, the only One who ever loved you to death and back to the realest life.

2. Peer into the heart of God:

You fall in love by peering into the eyes of someone.

“When life spins a bit wild — the best thing to do is fall wildly in love with the Author of Life, who is the author of your Life, and let Him write you a love story, your love story.”

When you look into God’s Word, you are looking God in the eye. Peer into the Word like you are looking long into the eyes of God, like you are longing for God.

Read His Word with intentionality instead of randomly: begin to read through the Gospels, work your way through the Epistles, or read one book of Scripture five times through. Highlight themes, repeating words, phrases that connect your heart to His. Trace His face by tracing lines, underlining lines. Study His face, His heart, memorize His eyes.

Grasp God. Simply spend time reading and re-read and re-read the passage from the living Spirit Book like you are reading the eyes of God, listening for God to speak.

Peer into the heart of God because God gives us time, how can we not give Him back some time, any time?

Sleepless nights with young children, season of being stretched? Leave a Bible flat open always by the coffee maker. Every time you brew a cup, quaff back the realest draft of Living Water. With each literal cup you stir: Steep in His Word.

Make the soundtrack of His heart, the soundtrack of your life: Listen to His word with apps like this and this while you get ready for the day every day, every time you get in the car, every time you work out, tying the Word in audio to something in your routine, to tie your heart to His.

3. Personalize the heart of God:

When you personalize God’s Word, you see it’s a Word personally for you.

In the margins of the journaling Bible, or in a separate journal, personalize the Scripture reading from the morning. Write the verses, the text back to yourself, using your name, writing from the perspective and heart of God.

Listen to the movement of the Spirit through His Word. Listen for the heartbeat of God for you through the Word.

“Write the Scripture reading back to you like it’s a love letter from God — because it is.”

Write the Scripture reading back to you like it’s a love letter from God — because it is.

The practice of personalizing Scripture is a practice of entering into His presence, the practice of tuning the heart to hear God speaking personally to you through Scripture, of dialoguing with God through His infallible, living Word.

The practice of personalizing Scripture moves reading God’s Word from a cerebral, intellectual practice, to a deeply intimate practice of heart communion.

Personalizing Scripture lets you be personally intimate with God.

And when you personally know God’s intimate heart for you — this is what ultimately changes your heart.

Levi Voskamp4. Present your heart to God:

Presenting all of yourself to God is the gift your soul wants most.

Presenting your honest heart in lament, in worship, in prayer, in confession, in repentance, in vulnerability to God gives the soul the gift of communion with God — what every human being was made for.

“Unless we genuinely present all of ourselves to God, we won’t experience God genuinely present to us.”

After pining after the heart of God, peering into the heart of God, personalizing the heart of God, the act of fully presenting your whole heart to God through worship music, through vulnerably journaling, through honest prayer journalling, praying Scripture back to God — this transforms the present moment.

Unless we are wholly present to God with all of ourselves — our lament, our worship, our hopes, our confessions, our heartbreak — we can’t receive the present of wholeness.

Unless we genuinely present all of ourselves to God, we won’t experience God genuinely present to us.

The only way to intimacy is through the door of vulnerability.

5. Participate with the heart of God:

God’s invitation is always participation in God’s work.

“God’s invitation is always participation in God’s work.”

The Triune God is a relationship of participation. Each member of the Godhead lives in fulfilling, self-giving relationship with each other, participating fully in the sacrificial life of each other.

And God’s invitation to every human being is a life of participation in the God’s work. Linger and listen long to the heart beat of God:

How is God inviting you from your holy experience in His Word, in presenting prayer — to participate with Him in His holy work in the world?

Where is He inviting you to participate in the sufferings of Christ, to participate in His redemptive work in your world, participate in ushering in shalom and the Kingdom of God around you, how is He inviting you to participate in following His narrow way especially today?

“God communicates to us that we might participate with Him.”

Ironically, truly observant Christ-followers move from cheap, sideline observations to costly, sacrificial participation.

Only conclude your time of encounter with God after counting how you will make even one degree of movement toward participating more with God.

God communicates to us that we might participate with Him.

And it’s in participating in the Triune God’s heart that we feel the recalibrating of our own.

Early in the morning, first thing, there’s this turning on of my lamp and this sacred encounter with God:

Pining after the heart of God,
Peering into the heart of God,
Personalizing the heart of God,
Presenting the whole heart to God… and then
Participating in the heart of God
As this ignites a passion in the heart
for the passion of the Christ.

“The way to counter the fury of a world burning down, is to get down on your knees and light your own heart on fire.”

There is no more fulfilling way to begin the day because I can testify: Short-change time with God and its your own joy that falls short.

Especially when the world is on fire, what it direly needs is more hearts on fire for God’s — because you fight fire with fire.

The way to counter all the madness is to encounter all God’s goodness.

The way to counter all this heartache, is to encounter the heart of God.

The way to counter the fury of a world burning down, is to get down on your knees and light your own heart on fire.

When your heart is breaking, only the sweet balm that comes from breaking open His word can bring healing to your wounds.

I linger long under lamplight with His Love letter open like a light in my hands, kindling me.

Though my hands are holding His Word, there’s enough light for me to see:

Encounter God and you can count on the arms of God carrying you through.

(Warning: Only Use if You Want Dramatic Change in your God Relationship) The God-Encounter Resources that Have Been Utterly Life-Changing For Me:

The Message Scribe Bible

Prayer: Experiencing Awe and Intimacy with God

The Songs of Jesus: A Year of Daily Devotions in the Psalms

A Diary of Private Prayer

Common Prayer

Streams in the Desert

Valley of Vision

The Power of a Praying Parent, prayer cards

Praying the Scriptures for Your Adult Children

Pens for Bible highlighting

Psalms of a Laywoman

Powerful Prayers for Your Daughter

Powerful Prayers for Your Son

101 Prayers for My Daughter

101 Prayers for My Son

I could sit with her photos for hours…glory soak

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Published on July 21, 2021 07:00

Only the Good Stuff: Multivitamins For Your Weekend [07.17.21]

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:

lucybee985 / Glacier National Park

lucybee985 / Whitefish, Montana

because we all need a friend…

we’re usually watching her cook for us… but today she’s behind the camera capturing her world and sharing some good words

small wonders of the insect world… who can teach us a few surprising things

so much LOVE: these golden retrievers went to Surfside to comfort first responders

“We try not to say anything, we let the dog be the bridge for those people to grieve the loss, whatever they’re feeling.”

the power of kindness… and the humility to gracefully accept it

A DECADE of letter writing and life change and now YOU’RE invited to be part of the story!

The book of Acts shows how God fulfilled His ancient promises to restore His blessing to all the nations through the offspring of Abraham: Jesus of Nazareth. In this video, we’ll explore how Jesus and the Spirit renew the people of Israel and prepare them to announce good news to the nations.

thank you, Bible Project

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never, ever give up

we circled ’round this one! come along for a virtual tour of a hidden beach on the Sea of Galilee

… classic loveliness in our Fair Trade store, Grace Crafted Home:

Best gift idea?! Using these Cream Tassel Pillow Covers here on the farm…

This woven cotton throw pillow cover is lightweight, neutral in color, and a beautiful accent in your home. Made by women in Korah, a community outside of one of the largest dumps in Ethiopia, this pillow cover tells the story of resilience and empowerment. By purchasing this pillow cover, you are providing dignified work for a woman across the globe. Coordinating throw blanket also available.

Every piece in our Grace Crafted Home collection is Fair Trade and brings dignity to the artisans who created them.

Your home and life can tell a story — that’s changing the story of the world.

(100% of all funds not only empowers artisans around the world, but also partners with Mercy House Global to support several homes for young women and their babies in crisis pregnancies in the slums of Nairobi, Kenya)

Craft a home that embodies your values: classic beauty, heirloom quality, fair trade — Grace all around

thank you, Joni Eareckson Tada… always speaking truth

this pizzeria owner wanted to show his appreciation for his employees, and thanks to the community, he was able to overdeliver

“It’s a family…find a place where you feel purpose and you won’t feel like you’re meaningless — you’ll feel right where you’re supposed to be.”

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there’s so much good here that I keep thinking about…

cheering loudly: Hundreds offer to donate cars to mechanic who fixes them for those in need

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A post shared by Jackie Hill Perry (@jackiehillperry)

don’t miss this power-packed minute and a half… so good

‘Maybe Tomorrow’

How to Overcome Procrastination

encouragement to start your day so good

how to make prayer a priority in your life… and why

tears… an act of kindness: tailor-made

Post of the week from these parts here:

…yeah, there isn’t one of us who hasn’t had a brutally hard journey — so after a year of all kinds of losses — what’a your literal, practical plan to heal?

This is what actually works & is genuinely life-changing, a researched & proven fact — and it’s been really healing me:

How to Heal & Find a Way Through Loss (A Journey: Part 1)

yes: He Believes in You! one to share with a friend

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.

on repeat this week: Goodness of God

[excerpted from our little Facebook family … come join us each day?]

The ache of life heals when we are awed by God.

Wherever the ache of life meets more of the awe of God, we are more healed.
More than any other emotion, what heals us is the awe of God.

And what is awe really but the glory of God?
That’s what the research undeniably indicates: God’s glory undeniably HEALS us.
Our story finds healing where we’re awed by God’s glory.

If you want to heal more of the losses in your life, make it your way of life to get outside every day to hear what God means to tell you: “The heavens are telling the glory of God” [Psalm 19:1].

That means? That means God sings close over us with spread of sky, God stuns and awes with painted sunrises, God unravels stress with His choreographic dance of stars, God enfolds us everywhere in surround sound: “Glory, glory, glory, I am glory and I fill everything with glory so why fill with worry?”

When the heart is full of trouble, step outside to see that the whole earth isn’t only full of trouble, but ultimately is full of His glory.

Step outside and watch the Maker of clouds overhead, lift the clouds within.

He who breaks the clouds can heal our heartbreak, and the Maker of a million stars can heal every kind of broken heart.

The river winds on and unknots a tangle of worries, and the grasses surrender and bend in the wind so they don’t break, and “God is a sun that never sets… As the air surrounds you, even so does the mercy of your Lord,” writes Charles Spurgeon, and there is time to look out, to look up, to breathe glory deep into the lungs, and to feel it happen: more healing written into our wounds and our losses.

The way to navigate loss is to lose all that distracts from the glory of God.

Glory heals and beauty binds up and awe awakens us to God here, right here.

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.

In both studies, says Anderson, awe was the only element that predicted whether people would feel less stressed and more “healed.”

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Published on July 17, 2021 04:24

How to Heal & Find a Way Through Loss (A Journey: Part 1)

I think it started to happen somewhere in the middle of these tenders days of blink-emerging out into the light after more than a year of lockdowns and a chain of key losses, while I was sitting out in our back pasture, between the woods and the river, sitting there watching my little flock of shorn sheep grow back into themselves.

“Everyone has to find a way to heal.”

I think it was sometime around then that I found myself feeling along what it means to heal after all the losses, after what we’ve all been through.

True, many of us lost some beautiful souls this year — and jobs and security and work-life balance and peace of mind and how many plans and dreams and hopes, and there isn’t one of us who hasn’t had a brutally hard journey, but true, too, this is always the way of life out here on third rock from the sun, and everyone has to find a way to heal.

“Wherever the ache of life meets more of the awe of God, we are more healed.”

That’s what I started to tentatively draw, my own map toward healing, as I walked through the sheep pasture, through the reaching limbs of the woods, and down by the song of the river going on and on, as I kept returning to that research, where they “tracked 124 veterans and underserved youth” — people finding a way to navigate life and loss and hurt and all the hard of being human — and they were taken “on either one-day or four-day whitewater rafting trips. Participants filled out diaries at the end of each day on their experiences and emotional responses, and we followed up with surveys on each of the participants a week later. We wanted to track six emotions: awe, amusement, contentment, gratitude, joy and pride.

The second study employed a similar number of subjects, but focused on the role nature played in affecting emotion on a daily basis rather than pegging it to a rare but exhilarating experience such as a whitewater rafting trip. Subjects kept diaries on their quotidian routines, noting the degree of “nature” they experienced (from walking or hiking in a park) and their resultant emotional states.

“Our story finds healing where we’re awed by God’s glory.”

That.

The ache of life heals when we are awed by God.

That: Wherever the ache of life meets more of the awe of God, we are more healed. More than any other emotion, what heals us is the awe of God.

And what is awe really but the glory of God?

“It is the glory of God that is part of gloriously healing us.”

That’s what the research undeniably indicates: God’s glory undeniably HEALS us.

Our story finds healing where we’re awed by God’s glory.

“In a study looking at the link between nature and cancer, people who took two long walks in nature over two consecutive days had an increase in their cancer-fighting cells, known as NK cells, of 50 percent, and an increase in the activity of these cells by 56 percent. In addition, the activity levels of the cells remained high for a month. These studies highlight the numerous ways that simply getting outdoors will benefit us psychologically and physically.”

That is what orients through life: It is the glory of God that is part of gloriously healing us.

“… going for a 40-minute walk in a cedar forest lowers the level of cortisol, a stress hormone, as well as blood pressure and supports the immune system more than a similar 40-minute walk indoors in a lab.”

So this is what I’ve done this, especially in the battering seasons, the lockdown seasons, the loss seasons, the anxious, unsure seasons. I’ve made it part of my daily spiritual rhythms, my daily way of life, to not let the day pass by without me getting outside for a long walk in His glory.

The Japanese have this term for getting out into nature: “forest bathing.”

“Adoration of God’s glory short circuits rumination of our problems.”

But Believers can have a way of life, a way of being in the world, what I call: “Glory Soaking.”

Daily Glory Soaks cleanse the mind so the heart can fill with thanks.

“Our tendency to brood, referred to by cognitive scientists as “morbid rumination,” often makes us focus on the negative aspects of our lives and can lead to anxiety and depression. Scientist and researcher Bratman and his colleagues found that the participants who walked in the quieter, wooded portion of a campus had lower activity in the brooding portion of their brains.”

“… nature walkers showed cognitive benefits including an increase in working memory performance, “decreased anxiety, rumination, and negative affect, and preservation of positive affect.”

Adoration of God’s glory short circuits rumination of our problems.

If you want to heal more of the losses in your life, make it your way of life to get outside every day to hear what God means to tell you: “The heavens are telling the glory of God” [Psalm 19:1].

That means? That means God sings close over us with spread of sky, God stuns and awes with painted sunrises, God unravels stress with His choreographic dance of stars, God enfolds us everywhere in surround sound: “Glory, glory, glory, I am glory and I fill everything with glory so why fill with worry?”

When the heart is full of trouble, step outside to see that the whole earth isn’t only full of trouble, but ultimately is full of His glory.

“The way to navigate loss is to lose all that distracts from the glory of God.”

Step outside and watch the Maker of clouds overhead, lift the clouds within.

He who breaks the clouds can heal our heartbreak, and the Maker of a million stars can heal every kind of broken heart.

The river winds on and unknots a tangle of worries, and the grasses surrender and bend in the wind so they don’t break, and “God is a sun that never sets… As the air surrounds you, even so does the mercy of your Lord,” writes Charles Spurgeon, and there is time to look out, to look up, to breathe glory deep into the lungs, and to feel it happen: more healing written into our wounds and our losses.

The way to navigate loss is to lose all that distracts from the glory of God.

Glory heals and beauty binds up and awe awakens us to God here, right here.

And I sit out in green pastures with our flock of sheep while the soul feeds on His glory and heals under a sky of boundless love.

The answer to anxiety is the adoration of Christ… and my story of just that: One Thousand Gifts and the 60 DAY DEVOTIONAL with 1000 numbered lines to count your #1000gifts: One Thousand Gifts Devotional: Reflecting on Finding Everyday Graces.

Pick up a copy of the new 10th anniversary edition of One Thousand Gifts, and count all the ways He loves you, & fall in love with Him all over again!

AND, when you do, you get an entire FREE Joy Tool Kit which includes 5 exclusive printables: a “How to Always Find Joy” Frameable, a Daily Joy Map & Planner, a Family Gratitude Gift Jar kit, a 12-Month Joy Calendar, and a Daily Joy Compass. Learn how you can get yours today!

how she captures our world? takes my breath away every time

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Published on July 14, 2021 08:56

Only the Good Stuff: Multivitamins For Your Weekend [07.10.21]

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:

Esther Havens Mann

It was supposed to be a ‘quiet little cafe’ in Maine. It turned into this!

fascinated by these upcycling projects! 50 Times People Showed How They Remade Things Instead Of Throwing Them Away

from old jeans to new rugs, fans into new lights and so much more! what can we go do with what we already have?!

tears at this timeless love story…

Finalists of the Astronomy Photographer of the Year Contest Bring Us Exceptional Views of the Stars

any favorites?!

cheering loudly! Meet The First African American Winner Of The Scripps National Spelling Bee… and she’s not stopping there!

This, this, THIS! who can we go help today?!

#BeTheGift #TheBrokenWay

Medical Miracle: Firefighter’s new life… 5 years after historic face transplant

“It’s in God’s hands…”

find the way home…

Thank you, The John 10:10 Project

Our favorite farmhouse #FreeTrade Resource: The Grace Crafted Home

… classic loveliness in our Fair Trade store, Grace Crafted Home:

Best gift idea?! Using this Pedestrial Trivet here on the farm…crafted from Mahogany wood, sustainably harvested, handmade in Peten, Guatemala.

Itza Wood is a social venture in San Andres, Peten Guatemala handcrafting quality furnishing and wood wares out of sustainable and locally sourced tropical woods. They believe products should not only be made well but should also do good and empower people.

Every piece in our Grace Crafted Home collection is Fair Trade and brings dignity to the artisans who created them.

Your home and life can tell a story — that’s changing the story of the world.

(100% of all funds not only empowers artisans around the world, but also partners with Mercy House Global to support several homes for young women and their babies in crisis pregnancies in the slums of Nairobi, Kenya)

Craft a home that embodies your values: classic beauty, heirloom quality, fair trade — Grace all around

what a team! how Navy Seals and scientists are working together to do this:

hard stop right here: “I don’t think about stopping”: at 96?! She’s devoted her retirement years to helping children

“We were going to not be the great white saviors coming in and saving them from this destructive practice. But we would train them to save their sisters, to liberate their sisters…”

“I Couldn’t Get Out of Bed”

Lisa Harper shares how she dealt with a difficult season of depression. Join the conversation as Dr. Robyn Wilkerson, Elaine Fisher, Allison Allen, and Karen Harmon join Lisa Harper to discuss how you can move forward in life when it feels like everything is holding you back.

Friendship Through a Faith Crisis

Lessons in Counseling Others

oh my heart: WHAT a message here…it’s all about perspective

never, ever give up

you’ve got to meet her! From a Wheelchair to the Rodeo…

glory, glory, glory

what’s not to love here?!? 11 Quotes From Children Who Are Part-Time Comedians

Beyond grateful for the life saving work of Compassion International

just so beautiful: Praise forever to the King of Kings…

Well, hello JULY!

“Whatever you do, do everything…*giving thanks” Col. 3:1

God’s will is for us to give thanks in all things…because this is how God knows we can live through anything.

All the research concludes that if you write down just 3 things you’re grateful for every day, you increase your happiness by 25%! Who doesn’t want that?! And giving thanks in all things is a God-command for our joy. Let’s do it!

Take the Joy Dare (3 prompts a day to find 3 gifts) – and hang it on the fridge for the whole family to take the #JOYDARE too! Scavenger hunt for God’s glory!
.
Print the month of July Joy Dare, and the entire year of Joy Dares, right here:

And pick up a copy of the new 10th anniversary edition of One Thousand Gifts, and count all the ways He loves you, & fall in love with Him all over again! AND, when you do, you get an entire FREE Joy Tool Kit which includes 5 exclusive printables: a “How to Always Find Joy” Frameable, a Daily Joy Map & Planner, a Family Gratitude Gift Jar kit, a 12-Month Joy Calendar, and a Daily Joy Compass. Learn how you can get yours today!

Do Angels Walk Among Us Today? // Let’s Ask Pastor John Piper

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.

on repeat this week: The Truth I’m Standing On…

[excerpted from our little Facebook family … come join us each day?]

I know it’s hard to know how it’s all going to work out…this week, this season, that problem, these kids, that situation. What if you didn’t need to know what was coming ahead of you, as much as needed to lean on Him who is behind you?

“For anyone out there who doesn’t know where you’re going, anyone groping in the dark,Here’s what: Trust in God. Lean on your God!” Is.50:10MSG

We want clarity; God wants us to come closer. Come closer to God who’s got it: Lean on His Love, Rely on His strength.

Sometimes we want greater clarity when what we need is deeper trust.

Life is always clearer when you press closer to Him
& see your life through the sheer love of God.

Whatever problem lies ahead of you doesn’t compare to the power of the Person behind you.

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.

At age 70, Yankees fan gets to live out her dream of being a bat girl

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Published on July 10, 2021 04:48

Only the Good Stuff: Multivitamins For Your Weekend [07.03.21]

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:

Ginny Sheller

too beautiful not to share with you…exhale deeply as you rest and restore this weekend

woah! Man builds an entire village for his little outdoor friend

stories like these?! never, ever get old…love love love this one

come along for a quiet visit? and a glimpse into a life on a tiny Scottish Island in the Outer Hebrides. Last Autumn they spent an entire month living and working on Vatersay, a tiny island of 90 people, a 5 hour boat journey from the Scottish mainland

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what’s not to love here? had to share…

how about some Red Eyed Gravy?!

because she’d kinda the best

Six decades after the team said no, Gwen McLoughlin served as a bat girl for her beloved New York Yankees

“You know when they say dreams come true? This is it…”

oh, these words…Scars in Heaven

What is the Neurocycle, and how can it combat grief, burnout and stress?

Communication pathologist and cognitive neuroscientist Dr Caroline Leaf explains how this method works

Believe Who God Says You Are

Our favorite farmhouse #FreeTrade Resource: set of 3 Ceramic Bowls

… classic loveliness in our Fair Trade store, Grace Crafted Home:

using these ceramic nesting bowls every day here on the farm…they are as sweet as the soul that made them. Always have the perfect bowl with this set of three nesting bowls. Every piece in our Grace Crafted Home collection is Fair Trade and brings dignity to the artisans who created them. The art of making clay pottery is as old as human civilization. This age-old tradition of making clay pottery still exists in Nepal. Despite all the influences of modernization and development, the potters of Kathmandu Valley still find their livelihood on their potter’s wheels.

Your home and life can tell a story — that’s changing the story of the world.

(100% of all funds not only empowers artisans around the world, but partners with Mercy House Global to support several homes for young women and their babies in crisis pregnancies in the slums of Nairobi, Kenya)

Craft a home that embodies your values: classic beauty, heirloom quality, fair trade — Grace all around

reunions like these? tears every time

To All Who Feel Empty

An Invitation to the Bored and Disappointed

glory, glory, glory

Well, hello JULY!

“Whatever you do, do everything…*giving thanks” Col. 3:1

God’s will is for us to give thanks in all things…because this is how God knows we can live through anything.

All the research concludes that if you write down just 3 things you’re grateful for every day, you increase your happiness by 25%! Who doesn’t want that?! And giving thanks in all things is a God-command for our joy. Let’s do it!

Take the Joy Dare (3 prompts a day to find 3 gifts) – and hang it on the fridge for the whole family to take the #JOYDARE too! Scavenger hunt for God’s glory!
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Print the month of July Joy Dare, and the entire year of Joy Dares, right here:

And pick up a copy of the new 10th anniversary edition of One Thousand Gifts, and count all the ways He loves you, & fall in love with Him all over again! AND, when you do, you get an entire FREE Joy Tool Kit which includes 5 exclusive printables: a “How to Always Find Joy” Frameable, a Daily Joy Map & Planner, a Family Gratitude Gift Jar kit, a 12-Month Joy Calendar, and a Daily Joy Compass. Learn how you can get yours today!

full stop: powerful teaching from Francis Chan for every one of us…

Dysfunction to Dynasty – Ch. 6: Reed Robertson shares his deeply personal story…

Instagram: @historycoolkids

In this short video, Holocaust survivor Gerda Weissmann Klein and her husband, Kurt Klein, share their experiences of liberation and meeting for the first time.

because someone may need these words today: Trusting God in the Darkness

You Already Have What You Need, Now Let God Work

she can preach! thank you for these words of truth, Priscilla Shirer

One Surprising Reason for Pain // Ask Pastor John Piper

Why Abel Never Lost Hope During His Cancer Battle

Beyond grateful for the life saving work of Compassion International

Psalm 148 is a call for the whole cosmos to praise God. In the climactic conclusion of Psalm 148, we read that Israel should praise God because He has raised a horn for them. But what’s the deal with this horn? And why is God lifting it up? In this video, we explore how Psalm 148 fits into the overall story of the book of Psalms—the story of God’s promise to raise up a king who will bring victory to Israel and rescue the world.

Thank you, BibleProject

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.

on repeat this week: His Name is Jesus

[excerpted from our little Facebook family … come join us each day?]

The world will say they will love you if you are beautiful—but the truth is you are beautiful because you are already loved.

Because He who is Love loves you unconditionally.

Please hear me, Girl: The world has enough women who know how to do their hair. It needs women who know how to do hard and holy things.

The world has enough women who live a masked insecurity. It needs more women who live a brave vulnerability.

The world has enough women who are trying to do it all—spending everything they’ve got to be found in the crowd. It needs more who are doing the only thing that is necessary—spending time at His feet, being found and known by Him.

We need more women who would rather be beautifully sacrificial than perfectly artificial.

Don’t let Hollywood define it; let the pages of Truth define it: Romance is a long sacrifice.

Say that quiet to yourself at the mirror, over the stove, over the toilet bowls, and let your soul feel the caress of God who knows: Romance is a long sacrifice.

And then it will happen to you, like it happens to all the women who are soul beautiful and loved:

For a beautiful countenance—count blessings.
For beautiful lips—only speak words that make souls stronger.
To carry yourself with poise—carry each other’s burden.
For the most beautiful shape—simply live with one hand receiving all as gift, and other hand giving away the gifts. You becoming the shape of a gift—
Becoming the shape of a Cross.
Go ahead, Girl, run your hands wild through your hair and smile unashamed and be at peace in the fullness of you and pour your beauty out like an alabaster perfume:

Beauty doesn’t live in your skin.
Beauty lives in the lining of your heart.