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2022 Beach Lesson
So after years of hearing from the Lord when I’m at the beach (just click the “Beach Lessons” category for evidence!), I don’t always hear “new” things, but sometimes I hear old things in a new way. This year that happened. I heard something I know, but with a fresh visual. It came to me in a variety of ways: through a couple of books I was reading, and by watching the shoreline. Life has had lots of twists and turns this year, mostly unexpected ones. Some painful. Some just a nuisance. But even as I’ve waited for resolution and healing, I’ve known that God was in control and had…
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Sharing Great Small Group Leader Blogs
I want to share with you two great posts from LifeWay to help you as a small group leader. Next week I will share a “beach lesson” from our vacation. 1 Leading Well/Questions Good Leaders Ask from LifeWay Women. If you lead a small group of any kind, you will find this article helpful. 2 4 Ways to Arrange Your Small Group Bible Study Room from LifeWay Research. Sounds easy to figure out, but read this with your purpose in mind and see if your normal set up supports that purpose. Banner photo by Sincerely Media on Unsplash
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My Soul’s Longing
Something occurred to me recently regarding why I want others to know Jesus and why my heart for discipleship has been a calling now for about 40 years or so. Because it was quite a few years between my salvation and the first time someone personally discipled me and showed me how to grow in Christ, I do not want that to be the story for other new believers. Some days, even during difficult seasons, my time with the Lord just causes my soul to soar and all I can think is, “I so want others to experience this satisfying joy.” A joy that transcends earthly concerns and pain. The…
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Treasures
I started this train of thought last week in When It Makes No Sense. Today, I want to share 7 follow up treasures He has given me, and how I am getting those insights. I do not like waiting for answers…just ask my former co-workers! I’m just not good at waiting. And right now…waiting is where I am. But in the waiting, the Lord ALWAYS shows up. These things occurred (and this time I was listening!) in a weeks time. And even though resolution has not yet appeared, He has shown up, every single day! 1 I read the phrase “don’t hurry through the heartache” alongside Romans 8:28, “We know…
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When It Makes No Sense
It was one of those days. I’d been dealing with something heavy on my heart. Something that just isn’t how things should be. This led me to look at others and wonder why my situation couldn’t be fixed like their situations seem to be. This day, as He does often, God spoke in various ways as I spent time with Him on my deck. I started with the song, Sovereign Over Us, one I listen to especially when I just need the reminder of His sovereignty over EVERYTHING. Take a listen. My Bible reading then took me to John 21 and the conversation Jesus had with Peter, after He told…
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The Cost of Leadership Part 8
Please start with the first 7 posts in this series if you haven’t already. This is the final segment. Cost 5: the cost of giving ministry away. As some point, the Lord will ask us to leave behind a place of ministry we have led. He may ask us to serve differently, or He may call us home to eternity. The question is, what do we leave behind? We must ask the question now: have I invested well so that God’s work continues even after I am no longer around? Our job it to obey and serve the best we can, then step away when He directs us to do…
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The Cost of Leadership Part 7
Please start with the first 6 posts in this series if you haven’t already. The seventh aspect in the cost of going deeper is battles. Followers of Christ have an adversary, and his name is Satan. His desire is to keep us from knowing, serving, and trusting Christ as we walk with Him. At times we will carry scars from the battles with him. Ultimately Christ has won the war, but this side of heaven the enemy still has influence on earth that we will face continually. It may come through painful relationships, failure, criticism from others, health…any number of situations in which we face spiritual warfare. Even when we…
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The Cost of Leadership Part 6
Please start with the first 5 posts in this series if you haven’t already. The fifth aspect of the cost of going deep is prayer, and the time it takes to pray. Deeper for me was when our daughter walked away from our family for 8 years. And God called my husband and me to continue walking and serving faithfully when the waves we had to cross got even bigger. We continued to pray for years that the Lord would bring her back, keep her safe and draw her to Himself. Sometimes as we serve and lead, God does not answer for a long time. But He is at work even…
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The Cost of Leadership Part 5
Please start with the first 4 posts in this series if you haven’t already. The second aspect in the cost of going deep involves laying down our fears through our faith in Him. For me, the deep, was when He first called me to speak in front of my church. If you know me, you’ve heard me say, I’d never be a public speaker. Deeper was when the Lord called me to LifeWay to continue serving out the call to disciple women, this time training church leaders across the country how to effectively develop ministries for women that help them grow deep! Laying down fear takes courage. Just look through…
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The Cost of Leadership Part 4
Please start with the first 3 posts in this series if you haven’t already. Cost 4: the cost of going deep. Although similar to cost 3, this is specifically talking about depth in our relationship with Christ. Just a heads up, I won’t finish cost 4 in one post, but will share 8 aspects of this cost. Hebrews 6:1-2 reminds us to leave the elementary things, let go of shallowness, and go on to maturity. We are warned to be careful not to become lazy in our spiritual life. Therefore, let us leave the elementary teaching about Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance…
