Acceptance is a beautiful way to live is a part of a quote from my book Newness of Life: Trusting God in Times of Transition, and I’m pondering it with you today.

For Lent 2025, I’ll be writing new blog posts every day. I’m writing for just five unedited minutes on a quote of the day to deepen our faith in this Lenten season.

Day 43 of Lent 2025 – April 16

I’m using my own books for quotes this final week of the Lenten season. This quote is from the Grieving and Dancing chapter of Newness of Life.

Here is the quote in context:

This is why God gives us a time to grieve.  Healing and wholeness are on the side of acceptance.  It took me years to arrive at the acceptance phase, particularly when I was grieving several live relationships which may never be truly satisfying.  But acceptance is a beautiful way to live, and if grief was the price I had to pay, it was worth the cost.

When I wrote this book in late 2016, I was grieving living deaths. Those relationships were live at the time, and they weren’t what I wanted them or needed them to be.

Now, all those relationships have died. In the past three years, I’ve gone through a massive grieving process for the losses. I cycled through the steps of denial, depression, bargaining, and anger many times, sometimes several times daily. These steps were essential for me to work toward acceptance, where I have recently arrived.

In my grieving process, I’ve learned to see grief in all new ways. I see it as a great gift from God, who knows our human hearts can only take so much. I’ve learned that it often takes much longer than I would like to grieve an enormous loss. In fact, I’ll likely be grieving some things the rest of my life, though in lower levels. The book As Long As You Need has truly helped me value grief for what it is.

Now, in the acceptance stage, I see that grief got me here. Acceptance isn’t possible without grief. It’s the process God uses to heal us and make us whole again. It also leads us to dancing in praise of our Father’s goodness, which I explore more in the chapter I hope you’ll read in the full book.

You can order bulk signed copies of my book for the cheapest price in my Etsy shop. I also include meditation cards that you can’t get anywhere else. Check it out HERE, and don’t forget the discount codes below! You might also be interested in the large print, hardcover version of this book HERE.

Join me again tomorrow for another reflection on a different quote.

Find all my additional resources for Lent on this page.

Are You Looking for a Book Launch Manager or Virtual Assistant?

If you’re launching a book in 2025 or beyond, be sure to book a call with me HERE to discuss your book launch. I’ve had over 50 clients since 2022, and I’d love to speak with you soon. I’m also taking on new VA clients. You can learn more and book a call with me on THIS PAGE.

If you liked this post, I would appreciate your shares on social media!

Also, if you make a purchase from any of the links on this post, I receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support!

I send my weekly newsletter Tea on Tuesdays at 3:00 p.m. Central time every Tuesday.  I write an exclusive devotion for you each week that I share with you first.

To receive the newsletter, please subscribe below. I can’t wait to share personally with you each week!

Spring always wrestles is a part of a quote from my book Hidden Manna on a Country Road, and I’m pondering it with you today.

For Lent 2025, I’ll be writing new blog posts every day. I’m writing for just five unedited minutes on a quote of the day to deepen our faith in this Lenten season.

Day 42 of Lent 2025 – April 15

I’m using my own books for quotes this final week of the Lenten season. This quote is from the Birdsong chapter of my most favorite book that I’ve written.

Here is the quote in context:

Setting out for a walk in early spring, I still need my jackets and cold gear in the morning. But the reward for my time in layering is the cheery bird song in my woods and in the thickets and tree stands along the gravel road. Their songs, so innocent and happy, remind me to delight in the new life that is sprouting all around me.

Spring always wrestles with winter to gain the upper hand. Cold, windy days vie for power against the warmer, sunny afternoons. Yet the bird song is consistent. Right at dawn, the timing of which aligns with the morning bus pickup, the birdsong volume increases moment by moment. They join in chorus with local roosters to welcome the sun’s rays no matter the March morning temperatures.

The songs of the birds remind me to sing my own in heartfelt praise to God.

This time of year, it’s hard not to wake up with a smile because the birds are singing so loudly. Though it’s often still dark and I’m sleep-deprived, the birdsong cheers my heart and reminds me that spring always wins the battle against winter.

Winter is always a battle for me because I suffer from seasonal affective disorder. This is a form of depression that happens between the time changes in fall and spring. The older I get, the harder the fight becomes. I must remind myself over and over that every single year I’ve ever lived, spring always arrives, and that’s a sure sign my depression will lift.

In my personal life right now, today’s quote is a good reminder to put my hope in God. For the past three years, and even before that, hope has wrestled with despair. There were many days when I thought despair would win. Certainly, for hours, days, and weeks at a time, despair had the upper hand. However, hope has been gaining ground in the fight each day of this Lenten season. I’m grateful to feel more hopeful as God heals me and gives me hard proof that hope is coming to life.

It’s good to be reminded of this in the book I wrote just months before my world shattered. God knew I’d need these words in this season, and I’m grateful to look back and gain hope from them today.

You can order bulk signed copies of my book for the cheapest price in my Etsy shop. I also include meditation cards that you can’t get anywhere else. Check it out HERE, and don’t forget the discount codes below!

Join me again tomorrow for another reflection on a different quote.

Find all my additional resources for Lent on this page.

Are You Looking for a Book Launch Manager or Virtual Assistant?

If you’re launching a book in 2025 or beyond, be sure to book a call with me HERE to discuss your book launch. I’ve had over 50 clients since 2022, and I’d love to speak with you soon. I’m also taking on new VA clients. You can learn more and book a call with me on THIS PAGE.

If you liked this post, I would appreciate your shares on social media!

Also, if you make a purchase from any of the links on this post, I receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support!

I send my weekly newsletter Tea on Tuesdays at 3:00 p.m. Central time every Tuesday.  I write an exclusive devotion for you each week that I share with you first.

To receive the newsletter, please subscribe below. I can’t wait to share personally with you each week!

Close proximity is a part of a quote from my book Transforming Your Thought Life, and I’m pondering it with you today.

For Lent 2025, I’ll be writing new blog posts every day. I’m writing for just five unedited minutes on a quote of the day to deepen our faith in this Lenten season.

Day 41 of Lent 2025 – April 14

I’m using my own books for quotes this final week of the Lenten season. This quote is from the Unforgiving Thoughts chapter of my most popular book.

Here is the quote in context:

Jesus offered compassion and healing in close proximity, not from a distance. He touched the eyes of two blind men who needed his miraculous healing and compassion (Matt. 20:34). As often as possible, offer your compassion closely too. A face-to-face meeting, phone call, or a card can transform a relationship marred by unforgiveness.

I’ve seen lots of posts on the topic of forgiveness this week in my feed. Usually, that means God is trying to tell me something, and I’m getting the message loud and clear. I need to work on forgiving people who have hurt me, and this advice I wrote in 2018 also applies to me.

Forgiveness is hard, but when we pair it with compassion, it’s easier to offer. The more I understand about a person’s hurts that motivated their sinful actions, the more I can show compassion. I have also hurt others from a hurt place inside me, and I want to be compassionate like Jesus was.

Recently, I’ve worked on forgiveness and compassion in a relationship I didn’t think would ever recover.  However, I am enjoying the surprise God gave me in all he did to give resurrection to this relationship. It’s only because of God and the good works he does in me that this is possible, and I’m praising him for this blessing. I share this to help you know that offering compassion in close proximity can heal relationships and even turn them around for your own benefit.

I pray that my book will help you in whichever thought life struggle you’re facing, whether it’s unforgiving thoughts or one of the other sixteen types listed in the book. It’s now available as an audio book HERE.

You can order bulk signed copies of my book for the cheapest price in my Etsy shop. I also include meditation cards that you can’t get anywhere else. Check it out HERE, and don’t forget the discount codes below!

Join me again tomorrow for another reflection on a different quote.

Find all my additional resources for Lent on this page.

Are You Looking for a Book Launch Manager or Virtual Assistant?

If you’re launching a book in 2025 or beyond, be sure to book a call with me HERE to discuss your book launch. I’ve had over 50 clients since 2022, and I’d love to speak with you soon. I’m also taking on new VA clients. You can learn more and book a call with me on THIS PAGE.

If you liked this post, I would appreciate your shares on social media!

Also, if you make a purchase from any of the links on this post, I receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support!

I send my weekly newsletter Tea on Tuesdays at 3:00 p.m. Central time every Tuesday.  I write an exclusive devotion for you each week that I share with you first.

To receive the newsletter, please subscribe below. I can’t wait to share personally with you each week!

Overcome guilt is a part of a quote from my book Transforming Your Thought Life for Teens, and I’m pondering it with you today.

For Lent 2025, I’ll be writing new blog posts every day. I’m writing for just five unedited minutes on a quote of the day to deepen our faith in this Lenten season.

Day 40 of Lent 2025 – April 13

I’m using my own books for quotes this final week of the Lenten season. This quote is from the Guilty Thoughts chapter of my book for teens.

I struggled with guilty thoughts in my teen years. Some were based on true guilt, but many were based on false guilt. In this chapter, I delve into the difference that we all need to know for our spiritual growth.

As an adult, I also sometimes experience guilty thoughts. Yet, as I write in today’s quote, the keys to overcoming guilt combine confession and repentance. Rather than beating myself up for what I did wrong, I take these steps and have greater peace with God while I deal with the consequences of my sins.

Freedom in Christ is truly possible when we get serious about confessing our sins and repenting from them. I only wish I had taken hold of that truth in my teens, and that’s why I want teens to read my book and know this is true for them.

I encourage you to order a copy of my book for teens HERE.

Cool Story!

Right after I published this blog post, I saw this tweet:

You can order bulk copies of my book for the cheapest price in my Etsy shop. Check it out HERE, and don’t forget the discount codes below!

Join me again tomorrow for another reflection on a different quote.

Find all my additional resources for Lent on this page.

Are You Looking for a Book Launch Manager or Virtual Assistant?

If you’re launching a book in 2025 or beyond, be sure to book a call with me HERE to discuss your book launch. I’ve had over 50 clients since 2022, and I’d love to speak with you soon. I’m also taking on new VA clients. You can learn more and book a call with me on THIS PAGE.

If you liked this post, I would appreciate your shares on social media!

Also, if you make a purchase from any of the links on this post, I receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support!

I send my weekly newsletter Tea on Tuesdays at 3:00 p.m. Central time every Tuesday.  I write an exclusive devotion for you each week that I share with you first.

To receive the newsletter, please subscribe below. I can’t wait to share personally with you each week!

Only God is a part of a quote I read in Meshali Mitchell’s book Restored, and I’m pondering it with you today.

For Lent 2025, I’ll be writing new blog posts every day. I’m writing for just five unedited minutes on a quote of the day to deepen our faith in this Lenten season.

Day 39 of Lent 2025 – April 12

I have been blessed to read an early copy of Restored, a beautiful book in many ways. It not only has an encouraging story of redemption but also gorgeous and peaceful photography.

Meshali writes about trauma recovery with gentleness and grace. She tells how restoring a farmhouse revived her soul and brought her closer to God. One of the stories, which I will not spoil for you, reveals how only God could use old wallpaper to show her how much he loves her.

I’m encouraged by Meshali’s story of redemption. She’s still in the process of healing, and so am I. I’m glad I found another Christian woman who is honest enough to speak about the pain yet also hold hope that God will fully redeem her story.

You’ll find much encouragement in Restored, which I encourage you to order HERE.

Join me again tomorrow for another reflection on a different quote.

Find all my additional resources for Lent on this page.

Are You Looking for a Book Launch Manager or Virtual Assistant?

If you’re launching a book in 2025 or beyond, be sure to book a call with me HERE to discuss your book launch. I’ve had over 50 clients since 2022, and I’d love to speak with you soon. I’m also taking on new VA clients. You can learn more and book a call with me on THIS PAGE.

If you liked this post, I would appreciate your shares on social media!

Also, if you make a purchase from any of the links on this post, I receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support!

I send my weekly newsletter Tea on Tuesdays at 3:00 p.m. Central time every Tuesday.  I write an exclusive devotion for you each week that I share with you first.

To receive the newsletter, please subscribe below. I can’t wait to share personally with you each week!