It's been several days since I have even walked into my office. I have been loving on my family and taking time to prepare myself for the new year. I have many goals and adventures planned for 2019. And honestly I didn't realize how fried my brain was until I sat down to write this post. I was running on empty when I didn't even think I was half full. Very eye opening for me and an excellent reminder for next year.
One of the things that 2018 and it's commitments tore me away from was daily time with the Lord. I notice my take takes longer to hit empty when I section out an hour or so of my day and dedicate it to prayer, journaling and reading my Bible. This will be a priority next year. And I have found my shelves are filled with some of my favorite devotionals I've had for years and some brand new ones that I know I will treasure for years to come. Let me show you three new ones I have recently added to my collection.
Making God Smile from Kim Taylor Henry is one that I know will bring me to my knees in tears and raising my hands in praise. If you get lost in your long list of to-dos and have the right intentions, but constantly end up straying off from where your heart is leading you this one is for you. I don't know about you, but I plan to forgive others, be compassionate and to control my temper daily when I rise. But, then the dishwasher breaks, you run out of diapers, burn the last gluten free bagel, loose a client or heaven forbid get scary test results back. And then we fall back into creature habits and feel like we failed. But, you know what? God knows our hearts, he knows we are trying...we are only human. What I have in my little hands is an amazing devotional that will take us through each of the fruits of the Spirit. You know about them, we learned about them from an early age. But, what do we do with them? How do we apply them. Kim Taylor takes us through each of them in 40 day increments in a specific order so that one will build off of the other causing them to be planted firmly in your heart.
I appreciate that the days are numbered, not labeled with months, so you can start it any time. Each Fruit has an opening prayer and then within the 40 days you will read supporting scripture, inspiring passages filled with encouragement and practical insight with Biblical lessons. With that it will move you towards a life that patience, self-control, kindness, gentleness, love, peace, faithfulness, goodness and love comes freely and naturally. I plan to start this one with my Husband, we are really excited to carve out some time together to spend with the Lord.
This next one I plan to do daily in our homeschool. It's called Let the Earth Rejoice and is a beautiful collection of daily readings written by more than thirty writers. Each day is once again just numbered, so you can start at any time. Each day takes you on a discovery of the beauty God has created for us to observe and get lost in. Like the chameleon, along with a scripture we read about the way God specifically created the chameleon to have a 360-degree arc of vision and a tongue twice the length of his body and can change the color of his body within 20 seconds. Magnificently created just like us, this devotional is filled day after day with marvels all around us. From trees, angry bees and dancing birds to deep in the ocean and far out in space. I can not wait to start this with Kaden and I love how each day closes with a short prayer. This is a very special devotional, the writing is ever changing because of the many contributors so even the shortest attention span will not tire from reading this little book daily. I do wish that there was directory of who what wrote, so I could look up other writings from the readings we enjoyed the most. But, that's ok we will research a few of them throughout the year on our own.
The last devotional is called Fabulous & Focused and is designed especially for working women. I love this concept so much, because working women have different challenges then women not out in the work place.
Once again they are numbered and each start with scripture and end with a prayer. Having a Christ centered life doesn't stop when you enter the factory floor, boardroom, sales floor, online office, restaurant or even the kitchen table....where ever you find yourself working. :) This little book will give you the tools and inspiration needed to navigate the waters of work life. Like what about when the new boss comes in and wants to make huge changes or what if you drop the ball and make a huge mistake? How do you deal? It's all right here along with many other personal stories and writings that will give you strength, courage and encouragement while navigating the ever changing waters of the work place. This would be a wonderful gift for any woman in your life that is balancing work, family and wanting to focus on the Lord.
All three of these gems are sure to be a hit with anyone looking to build a closer relationship with the Lord. If you are wanting to carve out daily quiet time to pray and dig deeper into the word any of these would be a great start. I have to say too that I love that the books are all about the size of my hand and hardback. So, they can slip into most purses and backpacks or tots easily. Head over and check them out!!!
Happy New Year!!!
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