The Five HAPPIEST Hygge Things this Spring!

YAY YOU (and me, too!)! It’s THAT time once again for our Top Five Faves of the month! April’s Theme: “HAPPY, HAPPY, HAPPY!” And who doesn’t love a whole lotta happy – especially when it’s also HYGGE?!

Taste and see that the Lord is good! Blessed are those of you who run to Him!

Psalm 34:8

Here’s what’s making me happy and comfy this month:

Comfort: YIN YOGA!
Yin yoga is a slow-paced style of yoga with postures that are held for longer periods of time—for beginners, it may range from 45 seconds to two minutes; more advanced practitioners may stay in one asana (or pose) for five minutes or more. Yin yoga poses apply moderate stress to the connective tissues of the body—the tendons, fascia, and ligaments—with the aim of increasing circulation in the joints and improving flexibility. (Wikipedia)

 

I LOVE the slower pace and the intentional quieting of the body and mind while holding poses. This is a GREAT class for anyone like me with connective tissue diseases (like Lupus, RA, etc.) because it’s nurturing, yet very effective! My FAVE place to take this class is at a local salt room (local peeps, check out Tavoos Spa and make sure to take class with Karen Flynn). The added benefit of being in the salt cave just adds something special to the practice! Makes me happy, sisters! You can find videos of yin yoga online and even on some on-demand services. Check it out and tell me what you think!

Delight: COASTERS!

Frankly, everything in this month’s faves delights me!  But these custom made coasters?!  They’re extra awesome. Nothing makes me smile bigger than elephants! (See this post from Jen Hatmaker as to WHY!) So, in prepping the logo and contents of this summer’s upcoming “Breathe Box by …spm ministries…” (stay tuned – big reveal coming in the next few weeks!), I knew we had to add something whimsically pachyderm-ical to the mix! An artist friend of mine – shout out to Tammy 😉 –  is the one making the actual stone coasters that will go into our boxes this summer (trust me, they are going to be fantastic!). But for a prototype, I designed these on Shutterfly and ordered them so I could get a feel for size and weight!

HOW CUTE ARE THEY?! If that doesn’t make you smile just a little, I’m just not sure if anything will!

Enlighten: TRUTH!

Speaking of elephants, I’m super in love with a new retailer I found online called Sugarboo and Co.! They have an awesome elephant logo AND the coolest collection of unique, whimsical gifts and other wares I’ve seen around in a long time! This beauty right here is their “365 Gathered Truths” box, filled with – you guessed it – 365 quotes that give comfort, smiles, and humor.

 

AND…they even offer a refill pack over 365 MORE gathered truths once you’ve made your way through the first pack! You can check out their online store here: https://www.sugarbooandco.com/
Motivate. SOCKS!

Aside from the aforementioned yin yoga classes, working out doesn’t necessarily make the list of daily priorities in my life. I’m trying to change that. So when I saw these awesome socks from Notes to Self, I had to get THIS pair!

Perfect, right? Motivation to get moving and makes me smile when I’m all finished and get to take my gym shoes OFF! I got mine on amazon.com; but you can check out their website here:  https://www.notestoself.com/  They have a bazillion different sayings and colors!  Perfect gift to yourself – or someone who needs a little happy right now!  🙂
Nourish: TEA!

I’ve always been a lover of TEA! ALL kinds of tea from hot tea to iced tea; straight up or tea with milk;  and of course tea with lemon. You name it, I like it! This winter, I was introduced to David’s Tea and love their fresh approach to flavors, packaging, and the winsome way they put together their storefronts. Check out this assortment of teas that allows you to try out lots of different flavors to find your favorites! A carousel of tea?!

Yes, please! My personal favorites: Buddha’s Blend (white tea blend with floral goodness), Grapefruit Rose Starburst (excellent hot OR cold); and Blackberry Jasmine Blast (try it iced with agave – you’re welcome); and Candy Cane Crush (so. so. good.).  Their teas are available loose or in tea bags! Visit them online at:   https://www.davidstea.com/us_en/home/ or pop into a local store if there’s one nearby. Happy vibes all around!

That’s it for this month’s top five happy favorites! Looking forward to seeing you back here the first week of May for our special summer kick-off edition, new website links, giveaways, new content, and OH. SO. MUCH. MORE!

In the words of Bob the Tomato, “God made you special and He loves you very much”!  How happy is that?
Peace, love, and SO MUCH JOY!

Wendie

5 Things You NEED for March!

Happy MARCH!  Even though March 1st might be the first day of meteorological spring, someone didn’t tell that to the artic blast that hit Chicago this week! And so, as we thaw out from the latest wind chill event, let’s warm up with a virtual Breathe Box by SPM Ministries, filled with five new favorite things that are warming our hearts right now! (And no, we aren’t receiving any compensation, special treatment, or free products from any of these companies! It’s all for fun!)

March Theme:  Self-Care!

Dear friend, I hope all is well with you and that you are as healthy in body as you are strong in spirit.   3 John1:2, NLT

AMEN to that, sisters!  Amen.

 

Comfort:  (you get a three-fer here!  Three products in one category, just because we’re feeling the need for a little self-care!)

doTERRA Essential Oils Shampoo, Conditioner!  Why?!  Well, why not?!  Made with certified, therapeutic, professional grade essential oils, this dynamic duo provides your hair and scalp with salon-quality products that are GOOD FOR YOU!  Smells fabulous, protects your color for MONTHS, and I even think it’s helping hair growth!  I converted to these products at the beginning of the year and all I can say is…WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN ALL MY LIFE?!  They are THAT good! (bonus points for the Root to Tip serum…seriously changed my hair life…)

 

doTERRA Deep Blue Rub!  Why?  Um, aches and pains, that’s why!  This soothing rub is good for all the things that cause your muscles and joints to rebel against you!  It’s cooling and warming all at the same time.  Once you go Deep Blue, your hooked for life!

https://www.doterra.com/US/en

Only order from doTERRA website to ensure product authenticity!

(For info on how to get yourself a wholesale account for 25% off the retail prices of doTERRA products, please message me!  I’ll hook you up with my wellness advocate, Bridget Sievers of Holistic Bliss, who can get you started! )

Delight:  Wishbead Bracelets!

These darling elastic, gemstone beaded bracelets have a super special feature:  a clasp in which you place a written affirmation, intention, prayer, or wish!  SO pretty to wear and they serve as tangible reminders of good thoughts you hold for yourself and others.  They come in a variety of different gemstones with different meaning behind them.  Get one as a gift for someone special and grab one for yourself too!  Self-love is a good thing!

https://www.wishbeads.com/

 

Enlighten:  The Universe Has Your Back affirmation cards!

Let’s face it.  We can all use a little reminder now and again that someone is looking out for us!  This beautiful deck of 52 cards has inspiring messages written on gorgeous artwork!  I love pulling a new one out each week as a fresh, encouraging word!

 

https://gabbybernstein.com/card-deck/ (you can also order directly on amazon.com!)

 

Motivate:  Cultivate PowerSheets from Lara Casey!

Girls.  These Powersheets are super POWERFUL!  I just started using them in February and my goal setting and productivity have never been so meaningful and focused.  Going through the powersheet planning process at the beginning pages of the book provided me with the insight and motivation create, write, and be intentional about  goals (business AND personal)!  If you feel stuck or are in need of an encouraging push in a direction, get yourself this book!  Check out Lara’s website for loads of great products, freebies, blog posts, and podcasts!

Goal Planners and Accessories

 

Nourish:  Four Sigmatic Mushroom Hot Cacao Mix with Reishi Mushrooms!

Okay.  Don’t turn up your noses at this one.  I know.  It sounds super weird.  But mushrooms are a superfood and I swear you don’t even taste them in this awesome, relaxing elixir!  It tastes like Mexican Hot Chocolate!  I love a mug before bed!  Warms my heart, settles my spirit, and just makes me happy.  And who doesn’t like happy?!

https://us.foursigmatic.com/products/fsf-xoco-blue (you can also order on amazon.com)

That’s my top five faves for March, sweet loves.  Take care of YOU!   What are YOUR favorite things this month?!  Share and maybe we will include in April’s Top Five post!

Our in-person Bible study, Bloom, is moving along beautifully this winter and spring!  We have made it to Week 5 of Seamless, by Angie Smith and love the timing that we are hitting the New Testament this first week of Lent.  We aren’t blogging about the study this semester, but we will be back with a new series this summer that we know you will enjoy!  Keep checking in with us the first week of the month for our favorite things woven around a theme you’ll LOVE!

Peace, love, and SO MUCH JOY!

xoxoxoxo,

Wendie

Womankind IS my business

This world is full of beautiful souls motivated and capable of meeting the needs of those around them.  As Glennon Doyle says, “We belong to one another”, which perfectly mirrors Jacob Marley’s declaration in A Christmas Carol, “Mankind [is] my business!”.

Yesterday, my sweet friend, Patty, and I had the BEST time playing “Elf” and delivering personal clothing items to a group of special teen moms in Chicago!

The moms participate in the YoungLives Chicago program, which supports, mentors, and helps shape the lives of these brave, young women and their precious children.  You can read more about YoungLives by reading this post!

Simpson Academy for Young Women!  What a school, what a place!  This place, you guys.  THIS PLACE!  They’re taking the everyday, yet often extraordinary, needs of young women (education, healthcare, guidance, counseling, and love) and not only MEETING them, but exceeding them in ways only God could orchestrate.

We are His hands and feet, my loves.  We ARE.

(Pictured here:  Simpson Academy for Young Women Principal, Sherita Carter-King; SPM Ministries Founder, Wendie Connors; and YoungLives Chicago Simpson Academy Coordinator, Khadija Warfield)

Here’s the thing, sister friends.  Someone will always have “more” than you, whether it’s physical, financial, spiritual, emotional, or intellectual. But the flipside is this:

YOU WILL ALWAYS HAVE MORE THAN SOMEONE ELSE.

Let’s stand together and “make womankind our business” and our goal in 2019.  Let’s be the Esther Generation (see Esther 4:14; more on this to come…) and use our God-given gifts and resources outside our own four walls to make a difference in ways and for causes that we are uniquely equipped for.

This one sure spoke to my heart, girls.  But again, more on that to come… 😉

A big thank you to the lovely women of Glen Ellyn who went out of their way on super short notice to drop off 26 brand new bras, 56 pair of brand new undies, 55 pair of brand new socks, and 6 pair of fuzzy slippers!   You are incredible.

And an even BIGGER thank you to those of you who reached out to say you’d pray over these teen moms and their children this holiday season and throughout the year.

We see you, YoungLives mommas.  We love you.  We’re proud of the hard work of mothering you are doing.  And, more importantly, so is our amazing God who does all good, good things, even when our circumstances would tell us otherwise.  Believe it.

Merry Christmas, everyone.  And thanks, Jacob Marley, for reminding us that we really are here simply to help one another get “Home” safely…and well loved.

God bless us, every one (thanks, Tiny Tim…).

xoxoxoxo,

Wendie

P.S. Massive love and gratitude to my Elfin partner in “Christmas Crime” today, Patty Cavanagh, for her heart, her joy, her friendship, AND her freakishly awesome photo skills!!

 

 

Visibly Invisible

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.  Genesis 1:1, NLT

The first book of Bible (the book of Genesis) begins with that sentence. And in fact, the word “genesis” means beginning.  And there are lots of firsts and beginnings found within this book!

But the one thing this book is NOT a beginning of is God. God has always existed. He was, He is, and He always will be!  And if we are going to get anything out of the enormity of that statement, we need to understand two things about Him.
First, God is transcendent, this means that He is not limited by time, space, or matter. This is very hard for us to understand and get our heads around, but it is true, and if we believe in God, somehow we have faith in our belief that HE is indeed transcendent.

Yet God is also immanent. Let us not confuse that with eminent – which is someone of importance (i.e. Your Eminency) or with the word imminent, which means something that is about to happen. Immanent means to be fully inserted into something, existing within something in every aspect. We also believe THIS because we believe in and can sense God’s presence in the world around us in things big AND small.

So while Genesis isn’t the story of the very beginning of God and His existence, it is the beginning of His story and interaction with His creation – including us.

And speaking of US, take a look at this:

So God created human beings in his own image.
In the image of God he created them;
male and female he created them.  Genesis 1:27, NLT

You know when God repeats something back-to-back in the same verse He wants us to pay attention, right?!   And this particular verse is a doozy because He repeats Himself with TWO things.

First, the phrase God Created/He Created is repeated three times. DO NOT MISS THIS. You are GOD created. Every single thing about you He created. His love for you is such that  this world would not be complete in His eyes without you. This theme of His overwhelming, amazing, reckless love is transcendent and continues forever! I never want us to forget that, even though I know there are days when it feels either far fetched or even like a bold-faced lie.   Stand on that Truth, sister friends!

The other “repeat” lesson here is that you and I are created in HIS image. His OWN image. And here’s the cool part – that word “image” is translated from the Hebrew word t’selem which means “a visible representation of the invisible”. (New Testament spoiler alert –  this is the same verbiage used to describe Jesus by Paul several times in his letters to various churches!)

YOU GUYS!  We have been created to be the “face” of God.  His visible representatives, mirroring His goodness and character back to all of creation!   And why does that matter?  Because it is WHO WE ARE.  And what we do should naturally flow from who we are.

When God created you, He knew the world would need your exact, detailed, unique concoction of DNA, personality, quirks, and beauty to reveal and represent yet another holy facet of Him that could not be made visible without you.  How awesome is that?!

Genesis begins with the beginning of the story of YOU and a God who SO wanted you to be His.  As we journey through this study together, I pray that Truth really does sink in and transforms you more and more each day in His image.

And speaking of our study, if you are following along with us at home, take time this week to read Genesis chapters 1 and 2 in your favorite Bible translation!  Just let the wonder of it all wash over you as you read it!  Next week, we’ll jump into Genesis 3 with Angie Smith and the beginning of Seamless!

This week, I’ve been listening to Lauren Daigle’s new album, Look Up Child, on repeat!  Here’s a link to listen to the title track!  ENJOY!

Peace, love, and JOY!

Wendie

 

 

 

Be Glad TODAY (because it IS a good day)!

 

You all know I LOVE a really good microphone. Always have – always will. Put a “mike” in my hand, or slap one on my lapel, and well, you best be ready to hear my voice for a spell.

 
I’ve always been this way. Started in grade school when I got my first taste of the joys of being on stage when I sang the theme song of Winnie the Pooh…into a microphone. Yep, I have it BAD for a mike.

 
In middle school, I was part of a glee club type thing called Up With People, Junior. We sang all sorts of show tunes and traveled around to local places entertaining everyone from senior citizens to country club members. I loved it! Not only for the microphones, but for the upbeat songs and the feel-good vibes they gave off.

 
My FAVORITE song of all was called “The Best Time of Your Life”. It was written by the Sherman brothers way back in the 1950s and originally was the theme music set to a ride in Tomorrowland at the Disney parks (does anyone do “Happy” better than Disney?!).
The lyrics still run through my head from time to time and they immediately sprang to mind when I was thinking about our scripture this week! Here they are:

 

Now is the time. Now is the best time.
Now is the best time of your life.
Life is a prize, live every minute.
Open your eyes and watch how you win it!
Yesterday’s memories may sparkle and gleam,
tomorrow is still but a dream.
Right here and now, you’ve got it made.
The world’s forward marching and you’re in the parade!
Now is the time. Now is the best time.
Be it a time of joy or strife.
There’s so much to cheer for, be glad you’re here.
For it’s the best time of your life.

 

Sweet friends, today IS a good day. See, we can’t “hold” on to time – we can’t store it up in a jar or even lock it up in a vault. We cannot manipulate it with some sort of Orwellian remote control that would allow us to go backward to relive the good old days or catapult us forward through dry valleys today in order to get to the good times we pray still await us.

 

I love to imagine that the last couple words of that Psalm above (you know, the part that says, “let us rejoice and be glad today”) are a REAL LIFE, REAL TIME invitation from the Psalmist to stop and “smell the roses” – TODAY.
Sure, I encourage you to enjoy the big stuff and successes that come your way, but don’t miss those little morsels of joy that are just sitting there waiting for you to notice them.

Like…the way the wind makes the lilac blossoms bounce on the bushes. The way the water shines on the tanned back of your child as she crashes into the pool with a swan dive. The smell of suntan lotion being sprayed on the kids on the softball fields. The sound of an old song you love being played a few cars up from you at traffic light. The intensity of a lightning bolt at night and the feeling of thunder’s reverberation rattling your storm screens. The scent of the rain on the fresh cut grass outside your window.

 

We have to take time (MAKE time) to do these things EVERY day, to combat the notion that we think we are all “too busy” to stop to smell anything, let alone roses.

 
Let’s take this week to remind ourselves to slow down and rejoice in today’s moments – big and small. Let’s also remind ourselves, if something unpleasant or difficult comes our way, to say, “If this is the worst thing that happens to me today, I can still count it as a good day, because (insert a blessing here)…”

 
“This is the day the Lord has made, let’s rejoice and be glad!”, really translates as, “This is a God created day, not me created day. And since everything He creates is good, today is good. So I’m glad to be living it today.”

 
So when you are tempted to forget to celebrate a “today”, just imagine me, as my 6th grade self, standing right there in front of you, microphone in hand and animatedly singing:

 

Because if nothing else makes you giggle in the moment, I’m quite sure that will! 😉

 

(What’s that? Oh, I’m sorry. Had I neglected to mention I also twirl baton???!!! )

 
Peace, love, and JOY!

 

Wendie

The Butterfly Effect (why YOU matter!)

I don’t remember the first time I heard about The Butterfly Effect but I DO know it fascinated me immediately! The thought that a single butterfly could flap its wings somewhere in like, Arizona or something, and that the eventual effect could cause a hurricane somewhere on the other side of the world (due to the movement of air molecules that, in turn, moves more air molecules, and so on and so on…) is just SO COOL!

Did you know The Butterfly Effect actually has been scientifically proven and is now considered scientific law?  It even has a fancy pants title.  Listen to this mouthful: The Law of Sensitive Dependence Upon Initial Conditions. Don’t ask me to explain it to you, because math and science aren’t really my thing. But overall, I can explain it this way: every flap of wings, breath breathed, and action taken all matter because they cause another reaction, which causes further reactions, etc.

That refers to YOU, too, spiritually speaking.  As in:  your actions, your words, your skill sets and talents.

I don’t know about you, but sometimes when I’m evaluating myself and my “strengths and skills”, I have a tendency to look around at the skills sets of others and wonder why I didn’t get theirs instead!

But here’s the thing, you guys.  We cannot all perform the same function(s) because NOTHING on earth would get done. We’d all just be flapping our wings and moving air molecules back and forth at one another and they’d never make it half way across the globe in order to change the world in the way God intended! Listen to what Paul has to say about this in his first letter to the Corinthians:

I want you to think about how all this makes you more significant, not less. A body isn’t just a single part blown up into something huge. It’s all the different-but-similar parts arranged and functioning together. If Foot said, “I’m not elegant like Hand, embellished with rings; I guess I don’t belong to this body,” would that make it so? If Ear said, “I’m not beautiful like Eye, limpid and expressive; I don’t deserve a place on the head,” would you want to remove it from the body? If the body was all eye, how could it hear? If all ear, how could it smell? As it is, we see that God has carefully placed each part of the body right where he wanted it.

1 Cor 12:14-24,The Message

I know. The ear always wants to be the foot. The foot wants to be the eye. The eye thinks it would be better off as the mouth. The mouth decides the hands have it goin’ on much more than it does. Sound at least a little familiar?!

But God knows what He’s doing, sweet friends. He designed us with a million different ways of serving, relating, leading, and connecting with one another so that things will get done and get done in His will! Here’s another way Paul said it:

All these gifts have a common origin, but are handed out one by one by the one Spirit of God. He decides who gets what, and when.

1 Cor 12:4-11, MSG.

If we’d all been given the spiritual gift of wise counsel, who’d be out there healing the sick? If we all only had the gift of clear understanding, where would we get the miraculous acts? I could go on, but I think you’re getting the picture.

“There are generations of yet unborn whose very lives will be shifted and shaped by the moved you make and the actions you take today. And tomorrow. And the next day. And the next. By [God’s] hand on you, millions – billions – of lives will be altered, caught up in a chain of events begun by you this day.”

Andy Andrews, The Butterfly Effect: Everything You Do Matters, copyright 2009.

Whatever you’ve been given, however you’ve been wired, whoever you connect with and how, is a GIFT. Every single thing you do, every flap of your wings? It matters.  Spread those beautiful wings of yours and SOAR!

Peace, love, and SO MUCH JOY!

Wendie

Freckles are Cute, but You’re Cuter ;)

Confession time. And it’s “juicy”.

The summer after second grade, I read the book, Freckle Juice, by Judy Blume and suddenly became convinced that my life would be perfect if I just had freckles.

I know – I’m totally aging myself here and some of you won’t even know what I’m talking about with that book title or maybe even the name Judy Bloom.

PEOPLE. JUDY BLOOM IS LIFE.

Well, she’s LIFE for those of us girls who grew up in the 70s and early 80s. And if you take Judy Bloom books and follow them up with John Hughes movies? Now THAT is honestly LIFE.

But I digress. Back to Freckle Juice. I’ll have to admit, prior to reading it, I never gave freckles a second thought. But after reading this book, I was obsessed with having freckles because I thought they would make me special. The thing was, I was NOT willing to drink the concoction (I totally thought it was real, BTW):

“Sharon’s Secret Recipe for Freckle Juice: Mix up all these things together – stir well and drink fast: grape juice, vinegar, mustard, mayonnaise, juice from one lemon, pepper and salt, ketchup, olive oil, and a speck of onion. One glass makes an average amount of freckles.” (from Freckle Juice, by Judy Bloom)

SO instead of drinking that gross juice, I decided to try sun-tanning, permanent marker, and prayer. But no matter what I did or how many prayers I prayed, I never got freckles.

You ready for a sage truth I’ve learned that summer? Here it is:

If you don’t have freckles, YOU WEREN’T MEANT TO HAVE THEM.

Feel free to insert anything you’ve coveted and yearned for over the years. There are times we look at the attributes we admire in others and wonder why we weren’t gifted and blessed in those ways. We spend too much time looking outside of ourselves and feeling neglected and left out because of what we don’t have. But the truth of the matter is that you weren’t made for those things; you were made for different (and dare I say BETTER) things. Things that suit you. Things that allow you to do YOU.

This summer, I’ll be encouraging all of us to start thinking about the following three questions:

• Who am I? (How have I been created? What am I good at? What are the attributes God uniquely ascribed to me?)
• What do I care about? (What are the things that make me tick? What moves me to tears – both good and bad? What do I want out of life?)
• How can I live my life so that it reflects God’s purpose for me? (How can I marry up who I am to what I care about in order to make a difference in meaningful ways?)

Why are we doing this? Because it matters deeply that you connect and cultivate the gifts, talents, and attributes that God bestowed upon you. These things are uniquely yours and have significance beyond anything your sweet little head can imagine.

Our job is to take everything good and sacred and holy that God has placed within us and, as we nurture and cultivate and grow them, pour them right back out into the lives of those He places around us.

This world, YOUR world, needs you to be YOU. Not “a version” of you, not the you that has Sharpie freckles tattooed onto your precious face because you think that is what makes you special. WE need you to actually be YOU. Because THAT you is the special you.

Here’s what I want you to do this week.

• If you don’t already have one, get yourself a copy of Melanie Shankle’s new 100-day devotional, Everyday Holy: Finding a Big God in the Little Moments. Start it NOW!

 

 

There are 100 days from Memorial Day up to Labor Day! I can’t think of a more FUN and meaningful book to keep us in God’s word this summer!
• Start noticing the things that make you uniquely you. What are you good at? What do people tend to bring up about you that they admire? What role(s) do you personally gravitate to in your family/job/friend group (i.e. the one who gets things done, the big idea girl, the creative one, the teacher, the FUN one, the peacemaker, the calming influence, the math mind, etc.)?
• Grab a journal and start writing these things down!  Keep track of things as they pop into your head.
• Meditate (or even memorize!) this verse: For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. Ephesians 2:10, NLT
• Make this your motto this week:

 

See you back here next week for more Cultivate 2018! And follow us on Instagram and Facebook for Meaningful Mondays, Wisdom Wednesdays, and Friday Fundays!

It’s going to be a great summer, sister friends!
Enjoy your week!

Peace, love and JOY!

Wendie

The JOY of Gratitude! (She PERSISTED Week Two!)

Here’s a little Bible trivia for you. In scripture, how many times to you think God speaks to us about gratitude in the New International Version?  Well, according to a word count website, christianbiblereference.org,  it’s 340 times.

That’s third in frequency only to directives regarding love, which comes in at number one at 551 times, and fear at 366 times (one for every day of the year plus leap year)!

We understand the importance of love, of course. It’s the very fabric of Christianity and woven into our DNA!  And we can also understand the need to reassured about fear and anxiety and to be directed to trust God! But gratitude?  Why would it have such a prominent place in terms of scripture themes?

Dr. Robert Emmons (UC-Davis), has helped to open the Greater Good Science Center at UC-Berkely to not only scientifically study gratitude and its effects on us, but also to promote the practice of gratitude world-wide.

Emmons and his associates have scientifically studied some of  the positive effects of a regular practice of gratitude (practices range from keeping a written daily gratitude journal, recording gratitude in some other way [like the 365grateful.com project we read about last week in  our Flow Book:  The Book That Takes It’s Time] to simply thinking of three things you are grateful for at the end of the day). The first thing they discovered is that you can rewire your brain to be happier by simply recalling three things you are grateful for each day for 21-days.  It all has something to do with neurotransmitters and the chemicals and hormones and stuff!  Basically, gratitude actually rewires the neuro-pathways in the brain to help release more happy chemicals than in the brains of folks who do not practice.

In addition, they identified these seven benefits mind and body benefits to the regular practice of gratitude:

1. Strengthens relationships and helps to make new ones
2. Improves your physical health and motivates you to take better care of yourself (less illness, quicker recovery times, exercise more, eat better, see doctors on regular basis)
3. Improves psychological health (lead to improved memory, happier outlook, and a diminishing of depressive feelings and anxiety)
4. Increases empathy and decreases aggression behaviors
5. Improves sleep (one study states that if you spend 15 minutes recalling things that make you thankful at the end of the day will help you sleep better, deeper, and longer that those who do not)
6. Improves self-esteem and helps you become an encourager of others
7. Increases your mental strength and fortitude and makes you more resilient in times of hardship

Those are some pretty powerful and peace-inducing changes you can make to your body and your mind, right?  But, spiritually speaking, what’s so special about being grateful, other than the politeness of saying thank you?

 

Gratitude breaks down the barrier between the mind and the spirit and is a TRIGGER for joyful and worshipful prayer!  How awesome is that?!

When we feel a sense of gratitude for something God has provided, (and let’s face it, it all comes from God!) our spontaneous response is prayer!  We don’t thank God because it’s the polite thing to do.  We thank God because we can’t help ourselves!  It’s our soul’s response to His goodness and our reward is His joy in our hearts.

Ann Voskamp, in her book 1000 Gifts, dives into the spiritual significance of gratitude.  She traces it back to the Greek word, eucharisteo, which, in Greek, encompasses the words:  grace, thanksgiving, and JOY.  Hang onto that for a sec, because we will be circling right back to it.

There is something called cognitive dissonance and that is a psychological term that means you cannot think and believe two polar opposite things at the same time. Like, you can’t be proud of your work while simultaneously being ashamed of it.

So with that in mind, you cannot feel gratitude in the spiritual sense (which we now know means grace, thanksgiving, and joy) and ALSO be sullen, burdened, and angry.

 

I did an informal poll over the weekend and asked people, spiritually speaking, what could they use more of in their lives. Unanimous two responses?

Peace and joy.

Okay.  So let’s do a quick recap of what we already know:

• Number one thing gratitude does for your mind? Brings you peace.
• Number one thing gratitude does for you spirit? Brings you joy.

Looking for more peace and joy in your world? The answer is to practice gratitude.

But , this is not something we do quickly, nor should we treat it as a “to do item” on a list of chores! It’s not just:  “QUICK!  Name three things you’re thankful for – GO!” and be done with it. It’s something we do persistently, intentionally, mindfully, prayerfully.  As Ann Voskamp says, “It takes a full twenty minutes after your stomach is full for your brain to register satiation.  How long do you think it takes your soul to realize when your life is full?”

THIS is where we start getting intentional about mindfulness:  what it is, why it’s important, what it does for you, and how to begin a practice of it.  Our readings this week will be on mindfulness and gratitude and we’ll be stepping into exercises from our books to help nurture it!  Click here to access the homework exercises and click here to access additional resources for this week!

Go enjoy your week, sweet friends!  And get into the gratitude groove! 

I am GRATEFUL for YOU!!!

Peace, love, and JOY!

Wendie

Up Next Week:  A Special Conversation with some special guests!  😉

 

You do you. I’ll do me.

If there is ONE thing I can say about practicing spiritual disciplines it’s this:  it’s personal.

Even though we’re all reading the same study (Enjoying Jesus) and following along with the same series here (Come Closer), we are all getting something different out of it.

That’s the beauty of such a wonderfully creative God.  We are each unique.  We each respond to the vast aspects of His holy character and His call on our lives differently.

And while I know study and meditation may not necessary sound amazingly exciting on the surface, these two disciplines we are covering this week  are my jam.  They are my entire heart toward God wrapped up in one luscious package.  They are the love language in which God speaks to my heart and the voice with which I hear Him most clearly. There is NOTHING I love more than some good, solid alone time with my Bible, a pen, my journal, and GOD.  As a matter of fact, I even told all the sister friends this week that if Tim were ever to ask them what the perfect gift would be for me, they now know they are supposed to say:  “A weekend away at a shwanky hotel tucked away with cozy pah-jeejees (aka pajamas), Prosecco, Perrier, and a Bible.”  Well, and maybe this handsome devil, as long as someone was willing to walk him for me.

I’m a simpleton at heart, aren’t I?  😉

The point is, I LOVE these two disciplines and if you aren’t sure about them yet, I’m hoping to convert you today!

We read and study scripture to get to know the sound of God’s voice and heart. We get to know the things that matter to Him, to His heart, and we also get to know the things He doesn’t like.  It’s not so much knowledge for the sake of knowledge (although there really isn’t anything wrong with that unless we use that knowledge in order to be a know-it-all or to somehow distort the teaching of it).  But it’s more about getting to know what’s important to God because that information beings us closer to Him.

Think about it.  In your best relationships, you know what is important to the other person, right?  So it makes sense that we should know what’s important to God!  He reveals His character to us through His Word – His Living Word.

In other words, “study”, in and of itself, answers the questions of what does God say, what does God like, what does God want us to do.

Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.   Deuteronomy 11:18-19, NIV

Meditation, which of course goes hand-in-hand with study, answers the question of what does God want this information to mean personally for me? So while study could stand alone without meditation, meditation would be difficult to be independent of study because it’s hard to think about something you don’t know about!

So in order to get the most out of scripture, we should be doing both.

One of the videos for this week’s chapter has Julie talking about how meditation allows her time to dwell with a specific portion of scripture. I love that, especially if we put that in context with how we defined “dwell” a few weeks ago as in “pitching a tent with”.  So when we meditate, we are sitting down and hanging out with God and His word for a little while and letting Him speak to the importance of that piece of wisdom to us.

There are tons of different formulas to studying a piece of scripture. But the first thing we should do before we even begin the study piece of this is to come quietly before God and ask that He guides our study.  We ask that He would be with us and help us to get a little bit of wisdom out of what we are reading.  We surrender our own agenda or preconceived ideas that might be lurking in our hearts and minds, and just ask the Holy Spirit to guide our reading.

And then, I think it comes down to personal choice in how you decide to study. I found this graphic on Pinterest this weekend and think it’s just brilliant.

I already put one in each of my Bibles, I love it so much!  Basically, study is a way for us to answer the question for ourselves:  “What does this say and how can I make this as easy as possible for me to understand.  You all should know yourself well enough at this point to know how you learn best.  Maybe you’re a memorizer or maybe you are a list maker.  Maybe you are artsy or a journal-er.  Whatever your preferred method of learning something, do that.  And don’t rush through it.  It’s not a race, it’s an exercise, a practice, a discipline.

As you first start out, you might find it difficult to decide what passage to study. You can always think about your favorite Bible stories or verses and start there.  Maybe there is something particular on your mind and heart that day and so you can use your Bible index or Concordance to look up a few verses that speak to that topic until you find one that seems to really resonate.

You can use a devotional or the gospel of the day or anything like that to get you started.  You can use any of the verses we’ve looked up so far in this study.  The key is to pick something digestible in one sitting.  In other words, a few verses or a short chapter – not an entire book.  Read it and play around with it for a bit. You will know God nudging  you to it if it piques your interest, makes you want to ask a question about it, or if you want to sort of insert yourself into the story.  Stay with the study piece until you get it.  Take it with you throughout your day, your week, etc.  Maybe read it a couple times a day.  Share the facts of the story with someone else (even if it’s me – I’m always up for some good Bible stories!).

Once you are able to close your Bible and sort of factually retell the “story” or verses you’ve been studying, you’re ready to move on to meditation!

Meditation basically answers the questions of “What does God want me to know about Him through these words and what is He calling me to do about it?”

Now. Just like study, there are a bazillion ways you can go about this.  You should’ve tried out one method in our book on day 2 with Psalm 1, which I hope was a good experience for you.  Maybe it feels weird at first, but it is insightful, right?

And AGAIN, the first thing to do is always invite the Holy Spirit to guide you through the process!  Otherwise, it’s just you deciding what YOU think about it, not what God wants to reveal to you!

I personally have used a method called Lectio Divina (which is Latin for Divine Reading), which is a contemplative sort of prayer meditation that originates from the Benedictines I think dating back to the 6^th century.  And sort of like the Ignatian Daily Examen, it can be morphed a bit to suit your needs.  Here’s a graphic that explain it more clearly than I probably can in words!  If you want more info on this, just Google it!

The most important piece of this dynamic duo of study + meditation is this:  quiet your mind and ask God to guide you.  He never turns down an authentic, intimate invitation like that, girls.  And be patient with yourselves.  We are a society of BUSY BUSY BUSY.  And these disciples we are learning about and trying are all about QUALITY TIME spent in pursuit of drawing closer to God.  It’s counterintuitive to our nature.  But the payoff is well worth the time and effort!

Following along with our Come Closer study?!  Make sure you’re up to date with all the reading so far (you should be finished reading through Week 3 in the Enjoying Jesus Book).  This week, I encourage everyone to find two or three verses and attempt to study AND meditate on them!  We will be back here on the blog in two weeks (we are using next week to have extra study and meditation time!).  Get ready for the next two disciplines  (one of which is my LEAST fave…fasting 😉 ).

Here’s a great link to our fifth song by The Afters.  I LOVE it!

May God’s peace, love, and JOY infuse you FULLY this week!

So much love,

Wendie

 

How to #HAGS (Have a Good Summer ;) )

Happy First Tuesday, sweet sister friends! It’s FINALLY summer break!  I’m so, so happy about this for, like, a million and fifty-seven reasons. But Reason Number One is (drumroll please):  this beautiful family of mine needs a break.

Yours does, too? I thought so.

Don’t worry. We aren’t the only ones.  It’s been an issue for millennia.

He knew we’d all need a break at times.  Thank you, LORD!

So here’s the practical application and importance of this – at least in my world.  For me, summer break means a break from the “control” of school days because it’s totally structured FOR us, but not necessarily BY us.  The school system decides when the kids will be in school.  The coaches and activity leaders decide when practices and games and recitals are held.  The tutors decide what hours they are available.  The teachers decide what homework is due and when.    The moms at pick up decide who is playing with whom afterschool and where…AHEM.

The order of our days is predetermined by the forces around us and, for the most part, we need to get in line with it in order for there to be order, if you know what I mean.

Graciously, summer dances to a different beat.

And so today, at the start of what is summer break for many of us, I am giving you a little advice on how to have a good summer. It goes something like this:

“GO DO YOU.

AND DON’T BE AFRAID TO ENJOY IT.”

 

Is that awesome or what?! So often, we think of indulging in things we enjoy as something we will judged for.  But God (don’t you just LOVE Him?!) basically turns that thought on its ear and says, “Girl, if it’s permissible  –  and tons of amazing and fun things in this life are – you might as well enjoy it because I made it just for you.”

I don’t know what it looks like for you because He wired each of us so beautifully different. For me, it’s a big girl glass of wine on a starry night sitting by the outdoor fire.  Or maybe it’s just an extra half hour by myself at the pool with my Bible.  Or hey – it’s even ordering pizza two nights in a row just because I don’t feel like cooking.  But whatever allows you to have some seriously permissible fun this summer, I say GO FOR IT!

(Photo from Pinterest)

Girlies, let’s shake things up for a couple months. Change your schedule and include something new you’ve been wanting to do.  Try taking after dinner walks with your spouse, or maybe early morning coffees on the deck.

Ask your boss if you can shift your work schedule to come in an hour earlier for a week or two so you can earn a little flex time and take a few extra days off to just kick around in your garden or in the city. Get creative with your time.

Let your kids “drive the boat”, so to speak. Have them choose activities that allow exploration of their passions and interests.  Let THEM choose their playmates and embrace their own choices and decisions (within reason 😉 ).  Consider ditching those dreaded “summer skills books” in favor of comic books and silly novels and even Netflix (did I just say that out loud?!). Volunteer at the food bank and make blankets to distribute to those in need when the cold weather returns (because  – SPOILER ALERT – no matter how hot it gets this summer, that Chiberian chill will be back).

Go get lost on a road trip. Swim in a lake. Wear cut-off overalls.  Go to a concert.  Call your college roomie. Hang out with your mom. Show up at your best friend’s house with some flowers and iced tea just because you can.  Talk a walk with Jesus.  Smooch a puppy on the lips (this one might be my favorite!)!

Have your own church service in the park. Eat a humongous cheeseburger, for Heaven’s sake, and wash it down with a cold beer or soda in a glass bottle.  Have a popsicle at breakfast and ride the Ferris wheel…three times in a row!  Eat sweet cherries and spit the pits on the ground.  Embrace simple things that bring mega-doses of joy.

Yeah. These are the things I wish for you AND for me this summer because even the smallest, simplest things reveal God’s great love for us.  And we are blessed to be able to experience them. Be aware of your gifts and use them to better this world.

I guess what I’m saying, love bugs, is that I wish you the happiest summer break ever. Like, EVER.

Stop making your summer bucket lists and just go do all the things you were going to put on them. Sometimes the spontaneous stuff is sooooo much better anyway.

Okay. Enough screen time.  Go on now. Get on out there.  The world is waiting.

What are you still doing here?!?!? I mean it – GO!  Get outta here!  I triple dog dare you.

#HAGS 😉

Peace, love, and JOY!

Wendie

PS – See you back here on July 4^th for the next First Tuesday post…!

PPS – If you are local to the Chicagoland area, I encourage you to check out a great resource:  “Glen Ellyn Moms Village”!  They have awesome social media sites for ideas and inspiration for your summer… AND year-round!! Be sure to follow them so you can  keep updated about local happenings and musings regarding Glen Ellyn and the surrounding communities; the sites are run by one of my favorite sister friends!!!

https://www.facebook.com/glenellynmomsvillage/

https://www.instagram.com/glenellynmomsvillage/