When I Have to Say Thank You
I am overwhelmed at the support that you all have given me since 9 Thoughts That Can Change Your Marriage was released last week.I’m thrilled that hundreds of you bought it on the 18th and really boosted my Amazon ranking (thank you!). And most of all I’m thrilled with the emails and reviews I’ve received from those who have read it.
It’s hard when you write a book. You’re so close to it for so long that it becomes almost boring–you wonder if you said anything original at all. So when people post instagram pics with certain sentences underlined–I almost get goosebumps!
And I know that this week was a crazy week, and a hard week for many of you, with the whole Ashley Madison story. For many of you, who have reached out to me, it brought back memories of discovering your husband’s porn use. I’m sorry for your pain. I really am. I hope some of what I wrote this week helped.
But first, here are the biggest posts from this week, in case you missed some:
What’s #1 at To Love, Honor and Vacuum
#1 New Post on the Blog: On Sexual Double Lives, Josh Duggar, and Finding Peace
#1 on the Blog: Top 10 Ways to Initiate Sex
#1 on Facebook: 10 Ways to Save Money
#1 on Pinterest: Stocking Stuffers for Your Husband (it’s not even Christmas yet and this post is already big! Bookmark it for later)
Thank you to those who bought 9 Thoughts That Can Change Your Marriage
Launch week is always nerve wracking. Will anyone buy it? Will anyone notice it?
So I just want to say thank you to those of you who did!
I am blown away by all the reviews on Amazon, but I just wanted to post this one. I think I know who may have written it–I think it may be a long time blog reader–but I don’t know, because the woman I’m thinking of is Australian, and I think she would have spelt “favourite” with a “u” (like I do). So maybe I’m wrong. But whoever it is, thank you! (And to all the rest of you who left reviews, I appreciate you so much, too! I know I’m going to get some bad feedback on this one because I do challenge the conventional wisdom, so the more reviews we get early that are positive, the better!)
And, as always, if you haven’t bought it yet–please do! If you like this blog, it encapsulates my whole philosophy in one book. And it’s easy to share a book with others, too–much easier than saying, “go read her whole blog”.
(and in answer to the questions about the prizes, prizes 1 and 3-5 have been contacted and awarded, but we never heard back from our email to the person who won me taking them out to dinner. So I’m going to pick another winner today and let them know! Once we have confirmation from all 5 winners I’ll announce them here).
A Word About Anna Duggar
After writing about Josh Duggar and the Ashley Madison scandal, I was seeing so many comments saying, “she should just leave him.” It’s not that I disagree–I honestly don’t know what she should do. But I did post this on Facebook, and it seemed to resonate with many of you, so I thought I’d post it here, too.
I just feel the need to comment one more time on Anna Duggar. So many people are saying, “she should leave the (insert bad word here)”. And I certainly have some sympathy. And so many are saying about Josh: “He only apologized because he got caught; that’s not real repentance.” That may very well be true. But it also may not. I have spoken to so many porn users and those having affairs who were so relieved when it finally came to light because the stress of living a double life was too much. The truth is we don’t know what’s going on in that family; we DO KNOW that unless Josh is completely honest with God, himself, and his family about both the porn use/affairs and the molestation there is no healing and there is no hope for the marriage. And we know that, should Anna choose to leave, she certainly has grounds and God will be with her. But other than that, we don’t know. But I will say this: many people ARE glad to be found out. And for many people on this blog, the discovery, while horrible, was the beginning of healing. If you’re walking in a dark part of your marriage, just remember: sometimes the time that is darkest is actually the beginning of the journey home.
Sometimes the time that seems darkest is actually the beginning of the journey home.
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This is the funniest video ever.
And I’m not just saying that because I’m their mother!
Here are my daughters, right after they had their wisdom teeth out. Let’s just say that Rebecca, my super serious, studious daughter, had a little bit of a reaction to that anaesthetic:
I’ve Been Through Quite the Journey with Prayer this Summer
I’ve been wrestling with the question “how do you hear God”, and for the first time in my life, over the last six months, I’ve had such specific and dramatic answers to questions that it’s quite amazing. Sometimes we hear, “you can only grow in your faith through suffering”. I do think that suffering is a tool God uses, but I haven’t been suffering. I’ve just decided that I want more of Him. And I’ve been changing some of my daily routines, and it’s been awesome.
But as I’m praying and reading more, some quotes from some books are standing out to me. And I thought I’d share this one about “holy habits”.
I’m reading Mark Buchanan’s Your God Is Too Safe, and he makes this point: no one expects to be able to pick up a violin and play like a maestro without any practice. No one expects to be able to paint well without practice. But, he says:
We honestly think that we ourselves and those around us should be proficient with spiritual power, moving and acting with agility and endurance, wisdom and purity, able to conquer long-established habits of sloth and rebelliousness, simply on the basis of our desire and effort and sincerity…
We have to train for the spiritual life…
Holy habits are that: the disciplines, the routines by which we stay alive and focused on Him. At first we choose them and carry them out; after a while they are part of who we are. And they carry us.
Holy habits–prayer, Bible reading, worship, church attendance–these are all crucial if we want more of God’s power in our lives.
I shared yesterday how I’ve been taking prayer walks everyday now that my daughter is leaving home. She won’t be there to take walks with anymore. And I’m finding that time of intense prayer with God so necessary now.
Don’t Forget to Enter to Win the $100 Visa Card!
You can do so on this post right here, brought to you via Lean Cuisine.
And on Instagram…
A photo posted by Sheila Gregoire (@sheilagregoire) on Aug 27, 2015 at 8:16am PDT
Have a great weekend, everyone! I’ll be packing Katie up to take her to college. Think of me!
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