Fear Fighting: Are you a People Pleaser?
Today I’m excited to share a guest post from my friend, Kelly Balarie of Purposeful Faith. This is launch week Kelly’s book Fear Fighting: Awakening Courage to Overcome Your Fears. I’ve been reading Kelly’s blog for several years, and it’s such fun to help with the launch of her book. I’ve had my own struggles with fighting fear, so I’ve been looking forward to the release of this book.
Here’s Kelly Balarie:
God told me to pray with all my heart. So, I did. I don’t think they liked it very much.
I think they had thoughts about it. Opinions. Perspectives. Perceptions.
Ouch!
What do you do when God prompts your heart, but man judges it? They may not say it. They may not whisper it. They may not even admit it, but somehow you know, under the cover of their Christian guise it brews. What do you do with that?
This is what I’ve been considering. Do I take care of man or do I take care to follow God’s lead?
There’s risk, big risk, in following God. Moving outside norms, beyond bounds or having an air of “different” can feel like a punishment waiting to happen. It can feel like you’re letting people down. It can feel like their charge over you marks you condemned.
Even more, the fear of being judged, ostracized or talked about behind your back – is real. It is really real. Even worse, in some cases, it is likely to happen. Add that to the enemy, who spits out ugly words, like: “Bad child, you are messing things up and stirring up problems,” and, at this point, you can be thrown into the sea of doubt, in a split-second.
Still, I want to do what is right by God, don’t you? I want to live for Him – first. I want to answer to Him – above all. I want to be like Christ – in every way.
God knows, I want to be brave. I think he sees my heart. So, like a gracious father, He leads me, his child, to truth; He brings me to these words:
Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ. Gal. 1:10
I can either with the approval of man. It’s fleeting and tiring.
Or, I can win the approval of God. It’s enduring and up building.
I can either please people. It’s short-lived and peace-depleting.
Or, I can serve Christ. It’s long-lasting and peace-giving.
What man gives today, is gone tomorrow. What you put in to satiating him, is eaten up by his desires for more – the next day. However, the will of God, does not waver. It does not grow old. It does not change course. It has a destination. There, lives joy, His glory and grand purpose.
Will we push into it? We can’t do it if we are sitting on man’s lap and eating up the delight of his face of approval. Jesus didn’t get a face of approval on the cross. His on-fire pursuit of doing God’s appeared nuts to man. It appeared worthy of their highest condemnation.
Still, Jesus didn’t change course. He stood fast to his belief in what his Father had called him to. He walked the road assigned to him, anyway.
- What road do you need to walk anyway?
- What person’s demands do you need to release?
- What calling of love do you need to pursue?
Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me. Jo. 12:26
[tweetthis twitter_handles=”via @kellybalarie” hidden_hashtags=”#FearFighting #overcomefear”]Overcoming the fear of pleasing people is worth the fight![/tweetthis]
About the book, Fear Fighting, Awakening the Courage to Overcome Your Fears:
Author and Speaker, Kelly Balarie didn’t always fight fear – for a large part of her life, she was controlled by it. Yet, in her book, Fear Fighting: Awakening Courage to Overcome Your Fears, with God, Kelly charts a new course. Join Kelly, on the journey to go and grow with Christ’s bravery, the Spirit’s counsel and God’s unending love that squelches fear. This book reads like a love letter from God, while offering practical heart-calming prayers, anxiety-reducing tips, and courage-building decrees that will transform your day.
About Kelly Balarie:
Kelly is both a Cheerleader of Faith and a Fighter of Fear. She leans on the power of God, rests on the shoulder of Christ, and discovers how to glow in the dark places of life. Get all Kelly’s blog posts by email or visit her on her blog, Purposeful Faith. You can also find a variety of resources for your fight against fear at http://www.fearfightingbook.com/.
Best of the Blog for 2016
Here we are, closing out the year with a look at what’s new and what’s popular on the blog this year. As we stand on the brink of a new year, reviewing what we’ve accomplished, learned, and enjoyed is a good practice. The end of a year is a time to celebrate gains and learn from struggles. For me, looking back helps me to renew focus and vision for the new year. Join me for a look at the most popular posts this year.
Discover Fresh Faith
Words to encourage your heart, strengthen your soul, and ignite your faith. Check out this post for an overview of the blog vision and structure. Here you’ll find a break down of the three main categories with links to specific articles.
For the past six years, Ginger’s Corner: Where the Spiritual Meets the Practical has been the tag line for this blog. It’s time for a fresh change.
Fresh Vision
Living out what we believe, trusting God in all our moments brings joy to our lives. In Christ, the power of Holy Spirit is present every day. Every. Single. One.
Let the spiritual meet the practical in your life, keeping faith fresh for today. Love God, embrace truth, and enjoy life–three simple ways to find fresh faith.
Why Fresh Faith?
God invites us to experience fresh faith, right where the spiritual meets the practical in our lives. Celebrate life with holy habits that make a difference for today and for eternity. God invites us all to discover anew the joy of fresh faith.
Most Popular Blog Posts from 2016
Strategies and Scriptures to Combat Negative Thinking: With Free eBook
Negative thinking will not go away on its own. Toxic thoughts will not straighten up and decide to play nice. Let unattended, our thoughts will run rampant with complaints, fears, criticisms, envy, bitterness… Take your pick–there’s plenty to choose from.
Cleaning our mental closets doesn’t come easy. Try these strategies to stop negative thinking. Just a warning: this is NOT a one-time thing.
Combat negative thinking with these practical strategies:
- Awareness is the first step to making better choices with our thoughts, words, and actions. Think about what you’re thinking about.
- When negative thoughts bombard your mind, choose to reject toxic thinking.
- Bring your thoughts under the control of the Holy Spirit.
- Pray like crazy. Ask God to help you think in ways that honor him, others, and yourself.
- Memorize a few key verses to replace toxic thoughts with gratitude and truth.
14 Things I’d Say to My Younger Self About Being a Mom
-parenting
- You can do this. You don’t have to be an expert to begin the parenting journey. You will learn and grow far more than you can imagine at this moment. You can do lot’s of mommy things and you have wisdom in your heart. You are stronger than you know.(Philippians 4:13).
- Trust God to grow you into the best parent you can be. Parenting isn’t just for raising children–it is also for growing up parents. Never forget that God has entrusted you with children and will help you where you struggle if you will seek Him diligently (Proverbs 3:5-6).
- Pray every day. Pray for your children, for your parenting, and your marriage daily. Ask the Holy Spirit to help you pray and give you wisdom (Philippians 4:6-7).
- Teach your children to love God and live by His word. No one can teach your children the blessing of following God like you can. Keep His words in your heart and in your conversation. Read them Bible stories and point out God’s faithfulness in the little things each day (Deuteronomy 6:6-7).
- Be willing to wait. Today is not the end of the story. Some days and phases seem to inch along. Your baby will sleep through the night someday. The days of tantrums will pass. There will come a day when your child no will longer cling to your leg or grab hold of your shirt with messy hands. All the hard things will pass as you both grow through them. Be willing to wait and let nurture, time, and wisdom do it’s job. Some days may seem long, but the years are short. (Galatians 6:9)
Reflections of a Reluctant List Maker
-humor
The power of THE LIST.
My mother’s list had power.
Pop-Eye ate spinach, Superman had a cape, and my mother moved mountains with THE LIST.
Do I hear an “Amen” from the compulsive list makers in the house?
The wonder of THE LIST.
Like many children watching the strange ways of adults, I simply didn’t understand the value of keeping a list.
I was often frustrated with my mother’s sacred LIST. “I’m never going to drive my kids nuts, forcing them to put every detail on a list,” I foolishly vowed in my teen years. “When I leave this house, that is going to be the end of THE LIST!”
I wish I hadn’t said that. Hence the reflections of a reluctant list maker.
Do You Have Spiritual ADD?
Do you have spiritual ADD? Spiritual Attention Deficit Disorder?
Distractions often keep us from focusing on God. Our minds wander. We wonder why our relationship with God feels distant.
For so long, I thought time with God had to be a certain way with a specific time and formula. It had to be quiet, with everything else stopped and put away. Too often, that quiet didn’t come.
- And I felt guilty.
- I felt lacking and displeasing to God.
- I felt like a spiritual failure, as if God was depending on me to do everything just so.
I teach Sunday school for teens. Most of them read the Bible on their phones. Nothing wrong with that, but it’s so easy to begin with a good intention of focusing on God. And then just a quick look at texts, email, or FB messages. It is not only teens that struggle to develop spiritual concentration.
Quite possibly, we are the most distracted generation with all of our instant news, technology, gadgets, schedules, and activities. And it is even worse for our children who have cut their teeth on texting and social media.
Distractions hinder our ability to relate to God.
How many times have we sat down to pray and read Scripture only to have the duties of the day barge in with “Don’t forget to do this…and that… oh and this—better stop and do this one right now.” What if we begin to understand that prayer is part of being present with Christ?
Maybe we try to get up early to spend time with God and find ourselves drifting back to sleep. Can you relate?
When You Are Desperate to Be Forgiven
-spiritual encouragement
She’s a woman with a past ruined with hard living and bad choices. She can’t remember the last time she could walk down the street free from the weight of shame. When was the last time life was good and hope seemed real?
When did she become desperate for forgiveness?
Hanging her head, she tries to slip by unseen. Women stand outside houses chattering about their children as the hot sun beats down. She feels even more alone.
She walks faster as the women notice her. She’d run if she could, just to avoid the pain of facing what she’s become. She is notorious, a wicked sinner—probably the worst in town. Fingers point as pleasant talk turns harsh with snide comments. Over the sound of the breeze, she can hear the condemning gossipers listing off her latest sins.
They’re not saying anything worse than she says to herself.
How can she find forgiveness to start over, when she can’t even forgive herself?
If hopeless was an ocean, she’d be drowning.
Recommend GingerHarrington.com to your friends by sharing this post on social media. We often find our favorite resources from word-of-mouth recommendations of friends. Thanks so much for sharing!
[tweetthis]I’m keeping faith fresh with the Best of the Blog 2016 from GingerHarrington.com.[/tweetthis]
Three Simple Ways to Keep Faith Fresh This Christmas
We want to keep Christ the center of Christmas, but it can be hard to keep faith fresh at Christmas. Distracted and busy, it’s all too easy to lose sight of the reason we celebrate Christmas. We look for simple ways to keep faith fresh at Christmas.
December days can whip up a massive case of the busys.
Parties to attend, people to see, gifts to buy, cards to send, cookies to bake… Festive can easily turn into frantic.
Somewhere in the muddle of all the need-to-do’s, have-to-do’s, and want-to-do’s, we find ourselves feeling disconnected and distant from the very Savior we celebrate.
Keep the Holy in Your Holiday
Every year, we say, “This year will be different,” thinking greater organization will create more time to relish the wonder of an infinite God entering our world as an infant.
However, as much as we love all of the festivity Christmas brings, we need more than plan to stay focused on Christ and keep the chaos under control.
We need a change of heart. [tweetthis hidden_hashtags=”#Christmasideas”]Three simple ways to keep faith fresh this Christmas can add new life to your holiday.[/tweetthis]
Three Simple Ways to Keep Faith Fresh This Christmas
Together, let’s ask God to refresh our hearts. We can keep our attention on the holy, rather than squeeze devotion into any left over moments. Time doesn’t come in leftovers, particularly this time of year.
Finding balance begins with setting priorities and evaluating expectations.
1. Invite God’s presence each day this Advent season.
What if we all begin each day with an invitation, even before we’re out of bed? “Father, I invite you into this day. Keep my heart grounded and my steps in line with you today. In all the things I do today, help me to follow your leadership.”
During busy December days, it’s tempting to forgo time spent with God. December can be a good time to change your devotional routine, inviting something fresh. Try one of these quick ideas to keep your time with God focused and fresh this Christmas.
Take the Worship Challenge for short devotions to inspire a worshipful heart.
Try a One Thing Journal. Read a passage and write down one thing to reflect on. Short can be deep if we reflect on that one thing through out the day.
Read Psalms and focus on worshipping Christ as you read. Look for ways to praise and rejoice.
Give the gift of prayer. Read a short passage of Scripture and pray one of the verses for one person each day.
2. Let go of perfectionism of a perfect holiday.
As women, we often approach Christmas with a high level of responsibility, feeling like it is all on us to create the perfect holiday for our families. Please tell me I’m not the only one who has felt this…
When our children were small, I remember staying up late and feeling the push to do it all. Decorating, baking, gift-making, wrapping, activities, service projects, devotions, crafts….
You name it, we did it.
We have many wonderful memories and I don’t regret all of that. I’m just acknowledging perfectionism, that desire to create constant picture-perfect moments can be exhausting. The more perfectionism drives my daily goals, the less time I have to focus on faith during Christmas. Have you felt the pressure of your own expectations to make sure Christmas is a special time for everyone?
This is a time of year when good can distract us from best.
Take time to prayerfully plan for what is most important for your family this Christmas. Schedule the most important things so you make time for them.
Invite God into your planning, seeking His wisdom for a pace that will work for you and your family this year.
Examine your expectations of what Christmas should be like, and be willing to let go of that “perfect holiday” mindset.
3. Don’t do it all yourself.
Involve your family in planning and preparing for activities, meals, and celebrations. Establish a “work together” tradition. This simple idea will free up time for sacred traditions as well as fun activities.
Time spent together in preparations can provide some great moments. Whenever my kids help me cook, we have good conversations. There’s something about working side-by-side that can get kids talking.
Your kids can add a different twist and new ideas to your Christmas preparations. Our family usually sends a family picture with our Christmas card. Some years, taking that family Christmas card photo involved a lot of stress and strife of wiggly kids and unwilling teens.
After taking the “pretty” Christmas card picture, the one where everyone is smiling and looking at the camera, we let the kids loose for fun pictures. The results created some hilarious moments.
Draw family names for mystery gifts of service each week in December. Try to guess who had your name.
Designate a daily “helper elf” to help you do some of the extra tasks at Christmas. Let the helper elf have a special privilege makes it fun. You can even get an elf hat at a party supply store to make it extra fun for younger kids.
Staying focused on Christ and keeping a sane schedule keeps faith fresh during the Advent season. There are many ways to celebrate Christmas that add meaning and worship to your holiday. Inviting God into each day, letting go of perfectionism, and sharing responsibilities are three simple concepts to add faith and vitality to your Christmas this year.
How do you keep faith fresh at Christmas?
Merry Christmas, Friend!
Be sure to download my Christmas gifts for you– a free Christmas devotional and free chapter from Holy in the Moment!
Get a Free Christmas Devotional from Ginger.
Hope to Light Your World
Light shines joy and love throughout the Christmas season, but it is also the power of God at work overcoming the darkness. Has the pace of life threatened to eclipse the true light of Christmas, as worshipping the Christ-child becomes one of many loved traditions of the season? Bask in the light of Christ this Christmas with a selection of devotions to inspire light and hope in your heart. Enjoy this free gift to inspire your heart this Christmas.
Free Chapter with a Christmas Miracle
Read the story of a Christmas miracle I experienced in the first chapter of my award-winning book, Holy in the Moment. You’ll read a poignant story from one challenging Christmas in my life at the end of the first chapter. Read the story of what happened here. Give the gift of holy this Christmas–Holy in the Moment makes a wonderful gift to encourage faith in a practical way. Learn more about the book here.
Download your free chapter here.
More Christmas Posts to Enjoy
Enjoy a collection of my Christmas posts and series over the years. I’ve put them all in one place to make it easy to find inspiring content. Some are humorous and others devotional, so enjoy! Click here to go to this post.
Coming Home: Finding Joy When You’re Waiting for Your Children
I am waiting for my daughter to come home.
It is the waiting that has counted days. It is the waiting that comes with letting go of children. This year, God has taught me how to find joy in the waiting.
Last January, my girl, a winsome, huge-hearted girl boarded a plane. Only 20, she left for Australia to serve as a missionary with YWAM. When she left, a year felt like forever to this mamma’s heart.
In the early of that January morning, God put these words in my heart:
Be still and be in this moment. Know that I am your God–your helper and strength. I am your source and your blessing.
Open your hands–to let go as well as to receive.
I began this year opening my hands to hold onto God rather than cling to what I cannot keep. In a way, this is hoarding the past and this was a time for something new.
Discovering joy in waiting.
One spring day I am at the sink washing dishes and missing my girl. She’s been gone for months, but still so many left to go. Letting go of our children is a brave act.
Lord, how do I do this when I miss her so much?
Focus on what you are gaining rather than on what you are missing. Insight, clear and strong, and I know I am hearing God speak in my thoughts, right in the middle of the ache and the missing.
Let your missing turn to praise for what I am doing in her life.
There at the altar of an ordinary sink, hands wet and warm-soapy, I lay down the heaviness. My heart fills with joy as I remember the wonder of God at work.
Brave and bold, she walks in the slums of Manilla and the dusty roads of desolate Outback communities. She is learning to know God for herself. God is teaching her to pray with faith that heals broken hearts and has restored hearing to deaf ears. She has learned to give of herself in the mundane and the miraculous.
As I remember conversations where she tells stories of what God is doing, the ache fills with joy. Looking at the glass in my hand, empty and ready to be washed, I see my heart, choosing the holy in the longing, ready to be filled.
Holding the glass under the faucet, I sense joy rise, making room in my heart for the wonder of a loving God molding and shaping my child into a woman after His heart.
Shifting my perspective has opened my heart to receive joy.
Moving the glass under the faucet’s flow, I discover that choosing to praise places me under the flow of living water. It is real joy, not a look-on-the-bright-side forced joy. It is not trying to be joyful– you know when you should feel joy, try to feel joy…you go through the motions, but it doesn’t quite come?
Joy cannot be manufactured.
Joy is received.
Sunlight streams into the kitchen as the sun emerges from behind a passing cloud. This joy is deep, requiring an inhale of my soul to take it all in. All the emotion and the longing is still there, an emptiness being filled with wonder of the love of God. A holy exchange is taking place.
One I didn’t earn by doing it right.
Like the glass in my hand, I simply opened my heart and invited Jesus into what I was feeling. Open before him, I am filled with joy like water, washing away the ache of missing.
Let your missing turn your heart to praise. For in your missing I am working.
Then I know.
God is teaching me how to wait.
This is one of the keys to the waiting and the missing. [tweetthis]Laying it down, inviting the Spirit in, choosing to praise are the sacred actions of a heart ready to receive.[/tweetthis]
In the months that pass, many times the missing rises up swift and strong. And the choosing comes fast–turning to praise.
Releasing to thank.
Opening for joy.
[tweetthis hidden_hashtags=”#waiting #lettinggoofchildren #joy”]It is in praise that joy comes.[/tweetthis]
She’s coming home for Christmas. Three weeks. It’s getting real as I put fresh sheets on a bed that’s going to be slept in soon. I smooth away every wrinkle. As I dust the dresser, covered with a year’s layer of dust, I am wiping away time, the passing of days, weeks, and months.
Tears start to fall, leaking out of my heart, warm and waiting and tender.
Tears I have set aside not because I am strong, but because I am grateful.
Just now, my phone chimes with a text. She is checked in and waiting to board.
Now my heart is full with the joy of anticipation.
She’s coming home and I’m finding joy in the waiting.
Are you waiting for something or someone in your life? What has God taught you in the waiting?
.Linking with these fabulous communities of bloggers: #TellHisStory, #ThreeWordWednesday
On Multi-Tasking and Other Domestic Disasters
Keepin’ it fresh with a little humor. We’re stepping back in time…
When your day starts like this…
“I don’t have any clean underwear, Mommy!” 15 minutes until the bus comes. Rushing to the dryer, I open the door only to discover that I forgot to turn on the dryer when I changed the load.
Who does that?
Apparently, I do.
Pulling a pair of Cinderella panties out of the dryer, I rush back to my daughter’s room with an unfortunate choice—dirty or damp?
Not much of a choice.
Amid grumbling and complaining, she just happens to remember a clean pair still in her overnight bag from this weekend’s sleepover. Problem solved.
Five minutes until the bus.
This is not the way I wanted to start my day.
Though I’m a reluctant list maker, have a mental tally of all the tasks that to be done this morning. “How can I multi-task all this?” I wonder aloud. “Get the next load of laundry going, battle the dirty dishes, then get to the other tasks on the list…”
Sha-bam, sounds good, doesn’t it?
Don’t be fooled. It’s just not that easy.
Me and my good intentions.
I enter the house motivated with a foolproof plan for accomplishing too many tasks at once. If Martha Stewart can do it, then surely I can too.
With good intentions, I work fast, determined to multi-task—something that often causes me great frustration. Although many are gifted multi-taskers, I just seem to leave things half done with a trail of broken items behind me.
Today, however, is going to be different. I’m sure of it.
Multi-tasking seems to be working.
The last task for the kitchen is mopping the floor. Soapy water sloshes as I wring out the mop. Back and forth I swipe the mop across the floor, mentally moving on to the next chore.
The floor sparkles with the help of Mr. Clean. In my industrious plan, I overlook the small, but oh-so-important detail of taking the dog, who’s left a yellow trail across the floor.
He gives me the woeful look that says, “Not my fault.” Another go with the mop…
Ready to continue on my productive mission, I begin vacuuming the living room. Plugging the vacuum into the outlet on the kitchen counter, I fail to notice a full container of Vanilla Coffee Creamer. It only takes a few seconds of vacuuming before the movement of the cord has knocked over the creamer, spilling the sugary white liquid.
All over the stove.
I’m trying to not say bad things.
Gritting my teeth and muttering under my breath, I wipe up the creamer, take the stove apart, and wipe it down with yet another round of Mr. Clean.
Cleaning the stove was NOT ON MY LIST.
Then I mop the floor…again.
Mr. Clean is getting quite the workout this morning.
Domestic disasters.
Twisted in knots and feeling aggravated, I stop to play with the dog. His antics never fail to make me laugh as I toss his favorite squeaky mini-soccer ball. Misfiring, the little ball hits my cup of coffee.
I’ll never understand how a 2-inch plastic ball can move a ceramic coffee cup, but it can.
Right off the table.
The cup crashes onto the tile floor below, shattering into pieces. Stunned at the sheer disaster of my multi-tasking, I just stare at the splattered coffee.
I can hardly contain myself as frustration rages. Another mess to clean up, and I’m mopping the same floor for a forth time in two hours—not to mention wiping down the walls and a few spots on the ceiling.
Clearly, multi-tasking is not working for me today.
I wish I could say I’m making this up…but the struggle is real, folks. So what’s a gal to do when you find yourself wanting to rip the wall paper down with your fingernails? It’s not like having a hissy fit is destined to become the next Olympic sport.
There’s no glory in loosing your sanity because attempts to multi-task turn into a disaster. Right?
Feeling more than a little defeated, I wonder how other people make multi-tasking look so easy. What’s wrong with me? Is it a natural klutziness or some organizational malfunction that derails my good intentions?
My mood plummets into a full-scale pity party. Too often, frustration or impatience are an open door for unwanted attitudes, words, actions. Ready to address invitations for my pity party, I grumble to myself, “What possible purpose is there in the frustration of multi-tasking?” Wasted energy and emotion for sure—or is it?
As multi-tasking backfires, I begrudgingly admit that just maybe, frustration can have some useful purposes…on rare occasions.
Details matter.
Frustration creates a need for patience and forces me to solve problems. Sometimes you have to make a few mistakes to get it right.
Considering my multi-tasking and other domestic disasters, I realize that rushing through tasks made it easy for me to miss details. Little things like turning on the dryer, remembering to take the dog out, and realizing the coffee cup is placed too close to the edge of the table.
Multi-tasking has some inherent problems, and learning to work methodically and pay attention to detail is a must for doing multiple things at once. Maybe I’ve equated multi-tasking with beating the clock.
[tweetthis hidden_hashtags=”#householdhumor #multi-tasking”]Faster isn’t necessarily better and multi-tasking is more about focus than speed.[/tweetthis]
A few little domestic disasters can ruin a good day if you let them. So let’s not let them…
Here’s to overcoming the dangers of multi-tasking and other domestic disasters.
How do you handle this kind of day? How many times have you had to mop the same floor in one day?
Happy to join with these communities: Coffee For Your Heart and #TellHisStory.
Thanksgiving is More Than a Holiday: A Moment for Gratitude
So much more than a holiday, thanksgiving refreshes the soul.
Feel like you’ve been gasping for air?
Bound tight by busy days, have you been breathing shallow with lungs half-full and heart half-empty?
[tweetthis hidden_hashtags=”#gratitude #thanksgiving #Iamgrateful”]Gratitude is air for the soul and life for the spirit.[/tweetthis]
It’s so easy to be consumed with never-ending duties of the day, giving our energy to others. We run hard, giving our best to God, family, home, work, and whatever else is on our list.
Take a moment to fill your heart with the grace of gratitude.
Thank you! Everything in me says “Thank you!”
Angels listen as I sing my thanks.
I kneel in worship facing your holy temple
and say it again: “Thank you!”
Thank you for your love,
thank you for your faithfulness;
Most holy is your name,
most holy is your Word.
The moment I called out, you stepped in;
you made my life large with strength. Psalm 138: 1-3 MSG
Hallelujah! I give thanks to God with everything I’ve got— Wherever good people gather, and in the congregation. God’s works are so great, worth A lifetime of study—endless enjoyment! Splendor and beauty mark his craft; His generosity never gives out. His miracles are his memorial— This God of Grace, this God of Love. Psalm 111 MSG
Gratitude is life to the soul.
And let your living spill over into thanksgiving. Colossians 2:7 MSG
Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe… Hebrews 12:28 NASB
So much more that a holiday, thanksgiving is a way of living.
A Practical Prayer Plan for Your Community and Book Giveaway
Ever felt overwhelmed and disorganized in praying for others? We have the “want-to” in praying for people in our communities, but regular focused prayer for the needs of others can be challenging.
From time to time, I have been sharing new books that I think my readers will enjoy. One of the joys of community with other authors is finding new books that my readers might not discover in the many books available today. There’s an opportunity to win a free copy of the book at the end of this post.
A Fresh Way to Pray for Your Community
Today, I’m pleased to share a guest post from my friend, Amelia Rhodes. When chatting about writing projects, she told me about a her new book, Pray A to Z: A Practical Guide to Pray for Your Community. When Amelia talks about this book, her eyes light up and passion radiates from her smile. In seconds, she had me interested in reading the book, and I thought you might feel the same.
Here’s Amelia Rhodes:
This scene has played out over and over in my life. Quite possibly you’ve lived this too:
A friend or family member texts or calls you with troubling news. A cancer diagnosis. A high risk pregnancy. Discovery of an addiction. A marriage falling apart.
The news always ends with a request.
“Will you please pray for us?”
Two years ago, after answering “Yes, of course, I’ll pray” over and over, I realized how often I failed to follow through on that promise long-term. I’d pray on the spot, and in the coming days as the situation came to mind. Then weeks would pass, and I’d realized I hadn’t prayed much for my friends’ requests.
My prayer list kept growing, and I felt overwhelmed by the number of deep needs around me. Sometimes, I didn’t even know where to begin and would blanket pray, “God, please just help them all!”
I wanted to pray more purposefully, but I didn’t know where to start. I asked God to help me find a way to be more disciplined in praying for the needs in my community.
One afternoon as I prayed, a thought came to me. I knew so many people going through the adoption process and a number struggling with cancer. I wondered, what if I prayed by topic? What if I came up with an A to Z list of prayer requests?
As I prayed from A to Z, I no longer felt overwhelmed. I even found myself praying for more people and situations than ever before. As I placed each need where it belonged–on our Heavenly Father’s strong shoulders–I experienced a peace and lightness in prayer that I hadn’t known in a long time.
As we bring our communities’ deepest needs to the Father, we bring God’s light into the darkest corners.
And our communities need His light now more than ever before.
[tweetthis twitter_handles=”via@amrhodes”]Will you join me in praying for your community? Together, we can shine a whole lot of light.[/tweetthis]
Pray A to Z: A Practical Guide to Pray for Your Community features 5 topics for each letter. Three of those are prayers of petition, and two are prayers of praise. Each topic has a verse, a prompt, and a short prayer to get you started.
Pray A to Z can be used in many ways, including your personal quiet time, as a part of a small prayer group, during family devotions or in Sunday school classes. You can pray all the way through one letter each day, completing the entire alphabet in a month, or simply lift up one topic per day, or utilize any other order or schedule that suits your needs at the time. I’ve often camped out on one topic when there’s been something heavy on my heart.
My hope and prayer is that this book will help you experience a renewed excitement about prayer and enjoy a closer relationship with God. I also pray God will open your eyes to the struggles others are facing and show you how you can be His hands and feet of love to your community.
Amelia Rhodes lives in Michigan with her husband and two children. Amelia encourages women to discover who they are in Christ and to deepen their relationships with each other. She is the author of Pray A to Z: A Practical Guide to Pray for Your Community (Worthy Inspired, 2016) and Isn’t it Time for a Coffee Break? Doing life together in an all-about-me kind of world. Her writing has also been featured in Chicken Soup for the Soul, The Upper Room, and GEMS’ Girls Clubs.
Connect with her online at www.ameliarhodes.com
Twitter: @amrhodes
Facebook: @ameliarhodeswriter
Instagram: @ameliamrhodes
Why Fresh Faith?
We’ve all said this familiar cliche’ too many times, “How time flies!” Right? I said it just this afternoon when thinking about how fast time has flown since my husband retired from the Marine Corps three years ago.
Time for a fresh vision.
Six years ago when I began this blog it was 2010. I still had three children at home. Life was busy and the mom taxi rolled multiple times a day. We were still an active-duty military family stationed in Okinawa, Japan.
We moved back to the States and one by one, children left home for places near and far. 2016 marks the year of our Great Kid Migration. In January, one child traveled to Australia for two years of mission work with YWAM.
Next our son borrowed our mini-van, moving himself to graduate school 10 hours away.
In August, our baby girl headed to college. There was excitement in this mama’s heart because I’m grateful and super proud of all my kids, but there was also a little grief.
Transitions bring new growth.
For the first time in 23 years–nearly half my life–there are no children’s voices filling our home. Sure, I’ll always be a mom, but it’s different. As college drop-off day approached, I wondered how the transition would go. There was this kind of a squishy, unknown question of what’s next. I’m sure many feel this way when kids grow up and leave the nest. However, we’ve been a military family for half my life, bringing a different dynamic to the equation.
24 years of adventures and transitions. With every move, we left friends, and familiar places behind. When you live a transitory life, family becomes your constant. Somehow, after all the moves, it was disconcerting to be the one staying as my children moved away.
To my emotional barometer, it felt like an ending.
We’ve all faced transitions, big and small, as moments sift and sway in the seasons of our lives. But here’s a truth to keep faith fresh:
[tweetthis hidden_hashtags=”#freshfaith #transitions #newbeginnings”]Every transition marks an ending and a ushers a new beginning. [/tweetthis]
This is a new season, part of God’s holy plan and purpose.
As the house empties, the Spirit speaks fresh words to my hungry soul. This is not only is it time for something new for my kids, but it is also a new time for me.
Now is a time for something fresh because God is doing a new thing. For months God has been hinting, beckoning me beyond the present and into to future. This is a time for fresh vision as God refines the focus and heart of the words I write. Imagination awakens as God reaches in with holy hands, stirring what has settled.
God invites us to experience fresh faith, right where the spiritual meets the practical in our lives.
Celebrate life with holy habits that make a difference for today and for eternity.
God invites us all to discover anew the joy of fresh waters. To even write these words requires faith, for the insecurities of my flesh whisper, what if you can’t deliver the content of this vision?
[tweetthis]When God births vision into our hearts, He asks us to step forward with fresh faith and trust him with the results.[/tweetthis]
He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’” -John 7:38 NASB
Simple ways to keep faith fresh:
Seek God first.
Invite the Holy Spirit into every day.
Believe that no matter what, God is good.
Choose holiness.
Experience Jesus in the midst of busy days.
Be nice to yourself. (really!)
Be kind to others.
Ask God show you how to find balance.
Receive and express love daily.
Practice putting others first in healthy ways.
Think about what you’re thinking about.
Reject lies and embrace the truth that sets you free.
Laugh every chance you get.
Let go of negative thinking that holds you back.
Make the most of this day.
Discover fresh faith with 12 verses to energize faith today. Click on the image for a free printable list of verses. For more bonus resources, join my newsletter!
Discover Fresh Faith
[tweetthis hidden_hashtags=”#blogredesign #freshfaith”]Come see what’s new at GingerHarrington.com. We’ve got a new look![/tweetthis]
Words to encourage your heart, strengthen your soul, and ignite your faith.
For the past six years, Ginger’s Corner: Where the Spiritual Meets the Practical has been the tag line for this blog. It’s time for a fresh change.
Fresh Vision
Living out what we believe, trusting God in all our moments brings a holy joy to our lives. In Christ, the power of Holy Spirit is present every day. Every. Single. One.
Let the spiritual meet the practical in your life, keeping faith fresh for today. Love God, embrace truth, and enjoy life–three simple ways to a deeper life.
Love God.
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart….love your neighbor as yourself.”
Draw closer to God by loving him and loving others with a whole heart. Love is the foundation opening our lives to the fresh flow of the Holy Spirit. How will life be different as we choose to love God with everything we’ve got?
Blog topics for deeper life with God:
Relationship with God
Spiritual Simplicity
Holiness and Whole-Living
Discipleship of the heart
Prayer and Worship
Loving Others
Ministry
Embrace truth.
“And you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”—John 8:32
Discover how to learn and apply Biblical wisdom in a way that helps you live out what you believe. Embrace the truth of who you are in Christ and find freedom from struggles that hold you back. The power of Truth transforms our lives thought by thought, word by word, and choice by choice. Holiness and wholeness come one choice at a time.
Blog topics for embracing truth for a deeper faith:
Spiritual Focus in a Busy Life
Quiet Time and Listening to God
Biblical Insights and Devotions
Tips and Tools for Embracing God’s Word
Replace Lies We Believe With Truth
Freedom From the Things Holding Us Back (Flesh)
Identity and Freedom in Christ
Spiritual Disciplines
Soul Health for Our Emotions
Enjoy Life.
“I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” John 10:10
Discover freedom to live fully in Christ. Fresh faith rests in the vibrant life of Christ setting us free to enjoy each day.
Blog topics for enjoying life:
Yes, we ‘ll still do fun and goofy posts of humor (cause Quirk-Girl has to get out every now and then), but we’re also writing about…
Joy and Spirit-Filled Living
Becoming Your Best
Family and Friends
Military Life
Holidays, and Hospitality
Let’s Laugh!
The opposite of fresh is stale or stagnant, right?
Maybe you’re feeling stuck and stale in some way. Life has challenges and hard moments that weary the soul. Friend, here’s what God has been writing into my heart:
I’m doing a new thing. Let me make your life fresh with the ever-present Living Water of my Holy Spirit, for my loving kindness is for you and with you.
My mercies never cease.
My lovingkindness is new, fresh every single morning.
Rivers of fresh living water will nourish and energize faith.
Have I got this down? Nope. This blog is about what God is doing, and I’m on the same journey as you.
Together, let’s ask God to release a fresh flow of His Spirit in our lives.
He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’” John 7:38
We all need God’s fresh presence flowing in us and through us every time we show up.
Every morning we put our feet on the floor.
Every day we love families and encourage friends.
Every time we face hard days.
Every moment we rely on the power of Christ rather than ourselves.
Every thought we speak and every word we write.
Why fresh faith?
God gives us a fresh start each day to walk in the power of the Holy Spirit. Every moment offers a fresh opportunity to choose God’s best.
Here’s a simple truth to hold tight today:
God’s mercies are fresh for you everyday. God’s love is real for you today.
So let’s not miss it!
Ready for fresh faith?
