Choose to Take the First Step

take the first step on the path — photo credit: Achim Bongard

Have you ever prayed for something repeatedly and felt like God wasn’t answering? Could it be that God wants you to take the first step? I was reading Nehemiah in my morning time this week, and it reminded me of this concept.

Nehemiah’s Task

Nehemiah decided to take on an enormous project. God put on his heart to rebuild the wall surrounding Jerusalem. With the wall down, the inhabitants of the city were open to attack. Nehemiah knew the importance of the wall.

He gathered a team of men together and started the enormous project. He got the heart of the people behind him. The Bible says the people had a mind to work. They got started building the wall.

Critics Show Up

Whenever there is a great work for God, critics always show up. That’s exactly what happened. Four guys took it on themselves to try to destroy the work Nehemiah was doing. After continually being laughed at, critcized, and openly attacked, Nehemiah gathered the people. You can read what happens next.

But it came to pass, that when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and the Arabians, and the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites, heard that the walls of Jerusalem were made up, and that the breaches began to be stopped, then they were very wroth,
And conspired all of them together to come and to fight against Jerusalem, and to hinder it.
Nevertheless, we made our prayer unto our God, and set a watch against them day and night, because of them. (Nehemiah 4:7-9)

Nehemiah Makes a Plan

If we look closely at verse nine, we see that Nehemiah and the people prayed. It didn’t stop there, though. After they prayed, they made a plan. One-half of the people worked; the other half stood guard.

Nehemiah understood that in this case, it wasn’t enough to just pray. They needed to pray and trust God to lead them; then they needed to use the skills and wisdom God had gifted them with to make the plan work.

Taking the First Step

Too often, we pray and beg God to intervene in a situation or answer a prayer; then we sit back and wait for Him to answer that prayer. I wonder how often God doesn’t come through on our prayer, simply because He is waiting for us to take the first step. He is waiting to see that we are serious, waiting to see that we trust Him enough to take the first step. The Bible is full of examples of God working miracles and answering prayers after somebody took the first step of faith.

David prayed, then ran towards Goliath with a stone and a sling. Joshua and the people walked around the walls of Jericho for seven days before the walls came down. Moses had to demonstrate God’s power in ten different ways, ten different times to Pharoah before God led them out of Egypt. In each of these accounts, God had promised victory; but His people still had to act. God couldn’t give the victory until they stepped out in faith and took the first step.

Maybe the reason God isn’t answering your prayer is that He is waiting for you to make the first move. For more encouragement on taking the first step, read Stepping into the Water and Waiting for a Miracle. What step is God waiting for you to take today?

Getting Back Up Again after Falling

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Pony Camp

My eight-year-old daughter Madison participated in pony camp last week and learned an important lesson about getting back up again. She loves horses and has been begging to have horse lessons. My friend, Kelley, told me she was going to host a pony camp and would love to have Madison be apart of it for the week. We agreed to let Madison give it a try. Every day from 9-3, Madison went to pony camp. She learned how to ride, how to groom and care for the horse, and so much more.

Falling Off the Horse

On the last day, all the parents showed up to watch our kids perform. Our family sat and watched and clapped as the kids performed. We whistled and cheered when it was Madison’s turn. She had a huge smile on her face. It was going great until something spooked her horse. Everything happened at once. Kelley yelled at Madison to hang on and came running from the other side of the corral, Madison’s helper dropped the reins of her horse, and Madison fell off her horse. A second after falling, my friend grabbed Madison in one arm and the reins of the horse in the other. We all let out the breath we had been holding.

It was absolutely silent as everybody watched Madison to see if she was okay. She kept her head buried in Kelley’s neck. Matt walked over and took her from Kelley and brought her to me. By the time I got her, she was sobbing quietly. Madison is usually not very emotional, so it surprised me to see her so worked up. She clung to me as I carried her away from the corral and into the house. I tried to pull her away from me to look at her face, but she wouldn’t let go. I just held her for the next twenty minutes or so.

Recovering from Her Fall

I finally got her to calm down. She told me her foot hurt. The horse stepped on her foot when she fell. Matt came in and checked to make sure her foot was okay. After she settled, Kelley came to check on Madison. She knelt before Madison and talked to her for a little bit. She told Madison that before she left, she wanted her to get back on the horse. I inwardly thought, ” Good luck with that!” I know my daughter, and when she sets her mind on something, there is no moving her.

Getting Back On the Horse

We went back outside to watch the rest of her friends perform. Madison was mostly quiet and just sat with Matt and me. She told me a few times she didn’t want to get back on the horse. I didn’t say anything. Eventually, the show was over. It was time to face the music. I pretty much dragged Madison over to the entrance to the corral. She did not want to go in there, and I was pretty sure nobody was going to get her on that horse. I knew I wouldn’t be able to force her. I just hoped Kelley could work her magic and somehow convince Madison to get back up on the horse.

I’m not even sure how it really happened, but a few minutes later, a very reluctant Madison sat on her horse again, looking scared to death. I was nervous watching her. It took quite a bit of coaxing but finally, Madison started riding again. After a few minutes, she started smiling again. Everybody cheered for Madison as she went through each of the elements she had missed when she fell.

When she finished, everybody cheered; and Madison climbed off her horse with a big smile on her face. She was all smiles for the rest of the day and talked on the way home about going to pony camp next year. I must have told her a hundred times how proud I was of her for facing her fears and getting back up on the horse again.

Getting Knocked Down

Thinking about that day made me think of our lives. Sometimes life knocks us down. We get knocked on our backside by something we didn’t see coming. We get stepped on and hurt, and our hopes and dreams come crashing down. When that happens, we may need to stay down for a little bit. We may need to cry because of the fear, the pain, the loss of the dream. But don’t stay down for long. Stand back up, shake the dust off, face people again, and ultimately “climb back on the horse.”

It’s easy to climb on the horse the first time, but it’s much harder after you’ve been tossed off. Starting a new job is easy, but it’s hard to start a job after losing the last one. It’s exciting to get married the first time, but it’s scary to try it a second time after a divorce. Putting yourself out there for others is good until you get criticized; then it’s painful. It’s thrilling to start a business, but it’s terrifying to try again after the first one failed.

Getting Back Up Again

There are so many times when life hits us and knocks the ground out from under us. If we’re not careful, we wrap ourselves in a protective bubble and won’t try anything outside our comfort zone again. We have to remember, fear is not of God.

For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. II Timothy 1:7 (KJV)
There is no room in love for fear. Well-formed love banishes fear. Since fear is crippling, a fearful life—fear of death, fear of judgment—is one not yet fully formed in love. I John 4:18 (MSG)

Being a Hero

Madison became a hero at pony camp. She didn’t do any fancy tricks; she didn’t do anything more complicated than anybody else. She simply chose to get back up when she fell down. Sometimes being the hero is simply getting back up and trying again. I don’t know what has knocked you down, but I am here to encourage you to get back up again. Don’t stay down. Proverbs reminds us to keep getting back up, no matter how many times we have fallen or failed.

For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again… Proverbs 24:16

Stand up, brush off the dirt, and try again. Whatever it is God has called you to do, He will empower you to do it. Stick with it and see it through. You will look back and see that getting back up again was the best decision you ever made.

Gathering Around the Table: Plus 2 Sunday Lunch Recipes

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gathering around the table photo — photo credit: rawpixel.com

My love of Hospitality

Matt and I love to have company over to our home. There is something about gathering around the table and eating delicious food that breaks down barriers. On Tuesday nights, we host our small group. On Sunday afternoons, we either have Matt’s family or a family from church over for lunch. Sitting around the table with plates piled high with barbecue chicken, mashed potatoes, cheesy carrots, salad, and bread, we get to know people and hear their stories. My inspiration for gathering around the table comes from Bread and Wine: A Love Letter to Life Around the Table with Recipes by Shauna Niequist. It’s so good!

Hearing People’s Stories

Recently, we had some people over to our home on a Sunday afternoon after church. We prayed for the meal, and everybody filled their plates with food and moved into the dining room to sit around the table. My husband Matt has an amazing ability to get people to tell their story. He started asking questions and got them talking.

What unfolded over the next few hours was a heartbreaking story. Sensing the need for privacy, I moved away from the table and into the living room, giving Matt and this person privacy.

I heard bits and pieces of the story, enough to break my heart. Matt spent hours just listening. He would ask questions here and there to keep the conversation going, but mostly he just listened. When they were done, Matt encouraged and loved on this person. We weren’t able to change anything in this dear family’s life, but we were able to simply listen and give them our compassion and love. In this case, it was enough.

They must have thanked us at least three times before leaving and said how much they enjoyed our time together and wanted to do it again.

A Small Verse with a Big Impact

This experience made me think of a verse found in the book of Jude. As the half-brother of Jesus, Jude gives us an interesting perspective to hear from. His book in the Bible is only 25 verses long. There is a short verse tucked inside this passage that can have an explosive impact.

“And of some have compassion, making a difference:” Jude 22 (KJV)

Of all the things Jude could tell us about the life of Jesus, he talks about having compassion. He understood that Jesus made the greatest impact on people simply by loving on them and listening to them. If we want to make an impact on someone’s life, we must show them that they matter to us.

5 Ways to Show Compassion this Week

In the midst of our busy lives, how can we find opportunities to show compassion on other people?

Show a genuine interest in people. Ask questions; learn their story.
Have someone over to your home for a meal or coffee and dessert.
Meet someone for coffee and get to know their story.
Make a meal for someone going through a hard time
Send flowers or a card to let someone know you are thinking of them.

You might make the biggest difference in someone’s life this week simply because you took the time and made the effort to have compassion on them.

BONUS: Recipes!

Easy Crock-Pot Recipes for Sunday Afternoons

Trust that God Knows What He is Doing

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A New Experience

A friend recently told me about a splash park not too far from us. So Thursday morning, I told my kids to get dressed in swim clothes for the park. A few minutes later, my five-year-old came downstairs dressed in regular clothes.

“Maggie, why aren’t you wearing your swimsuit?” I asked.

“I’m not going to get wet,” she said.

“Maggie, I really want you to put your swimsuit on under your clothes. That way, if you decide to get wet, you are good to go. If not, you can still play at the park,” I told her.

Convincing Maggie

She argued with me for a little bit, then finally went and changed. When we got to the park, she was convinced she didn’t want to get wet. I sent my other kids to go play and set about convincing her. Being super shy, Maggie hates new experiences. It’s really hard for her to do things when there are new people around. In this case, there were lots of little kids playing in the water. I knew that if I could just convince her to try it, she would have a blast.

two girls eating lunch — Maggie is on the right

After a while, I just about gave up in frustration. Finally, I convinced her to go try it one time. She went and tried it, and that was all it took. She played in the water for the next hour. When it was time to leave, she thanked me and said she had so much fun and wanted to know when we could come back!

After we all piled in the van to leave, I turned around to talk to Maggie. “I knew you would have a fun time; you just needed to trust me,” I said with a smile.

God as Our Parent

I wonder how often God has a similar perspective in our lives. For instance, as soon as something unplanned or difficult comes into our lives, we assume God has forgotten us or is upset with us. When in reality, God knows exactly what He is doing. Likewise, He is working His plan in our lives. He is weaving together our experiences and the people around us to mold us exactly into who He wants us to be.

I Peter 4:19 says, “Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator.”

I love how the Message paraphrases it.

“So if you find life difficult because you’re doing what God said, take it in stride. Trust him. He knows what he’s doing, and he’ll keep on doing it.” (The Message)

God has not forgotten you. He is shaping you into who He wants you to be. Trust God and trust His process. It may be that He is preparing you for a change. Maybe it’s a new career, a move, a spouse, or something else entirely. You can read my 3 Ways to Stay Flexible and Ready for Change.

Book Suggestion

One of the best books I have read is The Hardest Peace: Expecting Grace in the Midst of Life’s Hard by Kara Tippets. I will warn you, it’s not easy to read. I read it with tears streaming down my face, but it’s really good. Her life is such a testament to trusting God even in the most difficult of circumstances. Matt recently told me Netflix made a documentary of her life.

Getting Through Today

God knows exactly where you are today and what you are going through. He hasn’t forgotten you, and He’s not ignoring you. Choose to trust Him to get you through today.

Summer Reading List for 2019

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Are you looking for some good book suggestions for summer reading? I’ve got you covered. I chose just a handful of books that I love.

NON-FICTION

Love Does: Discover a Secretly Incredible Life in an Ordinary World by [Goff, Bob]

Love Does by Bob Goff. Every chapter in this book is a story, and Bob Goff is a master story-teller. It’s so full of encouragement and inspiration to love others with our whole heart.

The Ministry of Ordinary Places: Waking Up to God's Goodness Around You by [Martin, Shannan]

2. The Ministry of Ordinary Places by Shannon Martin. Shannon Martin’s books are so enjoyable. She talks about ministry in the city with truth and authenticity. She doesn’t sugar-coat it.

Can't Make This Stuff Up!: Finding the Upside to Life's Downs by [Lewis, Susannah B.]

3. Can’t Make This Stuff Up by Susannah B. Lewis. Susannah’s book is full of encouragement and laughs.

Unmasked: Overcoming the Shame that Says You're Not Enough by [Manney, Matt]

4. Unmasked by Matt Manney. This is my husband’s book. It’s about ripping off the mask of shame and learning that through God, I am enough.

The Circle Maker: Praying Circles Around Your Biggest Dreams and Greatest Fears by [Batterson, Mark]

5. The Circle Maker by Mark Batterson. This book is so powerful. Mark teaches us again the importance of prayer but in a relevant and powerful way.

It's Not Supposed to Be This Way: Finding Unexpected Strength When Disappointments Leave You Shattered by [TerKeurst, Lysa]

6. It’s Not Supposed To Be This Way by Lisa TerKeurst. Lisa shares her testimony in this powerful book. She shares how her life was shattered when her husband had an affair.

Make it Happen: Surrender Your Fear. Take the Leap. Live On Purpose. by [Casey, Lara]

7. Make It Happen by Lara Casey. This book is an encouragement to step out and do something great for God.

Girl, Wash Your Face: Stop Believing the Lies About Who You Are so You Can Become Who You Were Meant to Be by [Hollis, Rachel]

8. Girl, Wash Your Face by Rachel Hollis. Rachel Hollis is the queen of motivation. Her book inspires us to forget about what others think and go for our dreams.

Get Out of That Pit: Straight Talk about God's Deliverance by [Moore, Beth]

9. Get Out of That Pit by Beth Moore. This book was an eye opener for me. I loved reading about the different pits in our lives and how we get there.

FICTION BOOKS

Of Beast and Beauty (Daughters of Eville) by [Hahn, Chanda]

10. Of Beast and Beauty by Chanda Hahn. I love anything by Chanda Hahn. This book just came out and is the first in the series. It was so good! It’s a modern retelling of Beauty and the Beast.

The Iron Butterfly (The Iron Butterfly Series Book 1) by [Hahn, Chanda]

11. The Iron Butterfly Series by Chanda Hahn. This series is one of my favorite of all time. There are three books in the series, and they are fabulous.

The Traitor's Game (The Traitor's Game, Book 1) by [Nielsen, Jennifer A.]

12. The Traitor’s Game by Jennifer Nielsen. Any book by Jennifer A. Nielsen is amazing! This one is no exception.

If you need more ideas, check out my Summer Reading List from 2018. Happy Reading!

Stick It Out: 3 Daily Choices to Prevent Quitting

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In High School

Stick it out! How many times have you heard those words before? I have a particular hatred for that phrase. I think it probably comes from years of sports and being yelled at. In high school, those words were yelled at my teammates and me as we ran under the hot Midwest sun in late August. It was preseason, and we had the joy of running outdoors to get “in shape” for the coming sports season.

I remember one particular day. We were running a long stretch. One of my team members jogged next to me. She looked at me as we jogged and asked, “How do you not stop? How do you keep going?” Confused, I looked at her. “What do you mean?” I asked. She said, “Everybody always stops and walks when they need to, but you never do. How do you keep going and not stop to walk?” Her question surprised me. I honestly don’t remember my response to her. It was probably something like, “I don’t want to get in trouble and have to run more.”

In Church Planting

I have thought about that question hundreds of times since then. I think about it when I’m pushing myself to keep jogging, and all I want to do is stop and walk. Sometimes I think about it when I am tired and want to go to bed, but I have a few more things to accomplish. Often I think about it in relation to church planting. The last few years of ministry have brought heartache and failed expectations. There have been countless times I wanted to just walk away from it all.

Too many Sundays with only a handful of people showing up for church, too many months without getting paid, too many hurtful comments from people, too many feelings of failure, and on and on the list goes. I’m sure people looking at our life would ask the same question my teammate asked so many years ago. “Why don’t you stop? Why do you keep going?” One gentleman at a church we were visiting said to my husband, “Most people would have given up by now.”

What was his response? What is my response? “We’re not most people.” While it is true, most people would have walked away by now, we have chosen to stay. We have chosen to continue in what God has called us to do. Why? Because we know this is God’s plan and purpose for our lives. More importantly, the reason we can keep going is that we have wrestled with knowing God’s plan for our lives.

In God’s Purpose

Matt and I have spent countless hours praying, reading our Bibles, journaling, talking to wise counselors, and talking to each other about God’s plan for our lives. We spent a lot of time working through the process I outlined in my last blog post. 6 Steps to Finding God’s Purpose for Your Life. I created a worksheet outlining the process we used. You can get it here. We’ve settled that we are to love and care for the people that God brings through the door of Greater Philly Church. We are both supposed to write. Matt’s newest book Breakthrough: Transforming the Death of Your Dream into the Birth of Your Breakthrough releases in a few weeks. I am currently writing a book. We both blog. Matt blogs at mattmanney.com. These are the things we know God wants us to do.

In the Future

How do we stick it out when what God has called us to becomes difficult or doesn’t look anything like we thought it would?

Hebrews 10:36 says, “For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.” (KJV)

The Message paraphrases it this way, “But you need to stick it out, staying with God’s plan so you’ll be there for the promised completion.”

What is the the promise? The answer is found in verse 37.

For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry. (KJV)

The promise is that Jesus is coming again. When He does, all of our heartache and disappointments will be wiped away in the blink of an eye. We will receive vindication for all the wrongs we received. He will tell us, “Well done.”

3 Daily Choices that Keep Me from Quitting

After eight years of church planting, there are three things that I have learned that keep me from quitting.

Take it one day at a time. I just have to get through today. Don’t look at tomorrow or the next day. Figure out what I need to do for today.
Stay grateful. I write down several things I am grateful for every morning in my journal.
Choose joy. I once heard Rick Warren say, “Discouragement is a choice.” We have to choose not to be discouraged. If I don’t choose joy every day, the disappointments in life will pull me down.

In conclusion, I need to fulfill what God has called me to do. You need to fulfill what God has called you to do. Together, let’s develop some stick-it-out grit, so we can finish what we’ve started.

Six Steps to Finding God’s Purpose for Your Life

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The Confusion Surrounding Finding God’s Purpose

Finding God’s purpose for our lives is like finding the holy grail. Pastors preach on it, teachers teach about it, Christians talk about it… but nobody tells you how to find it. It’s one of the most confusing topics in churches. Most people don’t know how to find God’s purpose for their lives, but all of us recognize when somebody else has found theirs.

When you cross paths with somebody who lives their life accomplishing what God created them to do, it’s contagious. You want to be around them. You want to be apart of what God is doing in their life. So how do we figure out God’s purpose for our lives?

Paul’s Understanding of His Purpose

Before we tackle finding God’s purpose, it is crucial for us to understand that everybody’s purpose in life is different. We can absolutely not compare what God wants us to do with what anybody else is doing. Paul understood this clearly. In II Timothy 4:7, he says,

“I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith:”

Paul says, I have fought a good fight, and I have kept the faith. When he talks about fighting a good fight and keeping the faith, he uses the words a and the. When he talks about his course, however, he makes it personal. He uses the word my. “I have finished my course.” This tiny word makes a huge difference. Paul understood that his course was different from everybody else’s. He recognized that God had given him a purpose and plan for life that couldn’t be compared to anybody else’s, and Paul didn’t. He focused solely on what God wanted him to accomplish.

A Simple Six-Step Process

If we could latch on to Paul’s idea, we would find so much more peace in our lives. God has created us all uniquely and gifted us differently. If we were all the same, God wouldn’t need each one of us. The fact that you and I are still on this earth and not in Heaven means that God has a special plan for our lives. He has gifted you and me specifically for what he wants us to accomplish. Your purpose will be unlike anybody else’s. We can not compare ourselves to anyone else. Even someone who is in the same line of work as you will be gifted slightly different to be able to accomplish their purpose differently than you.

A Simple Formula

If we spend our lives comparing ourselves and our lives to others, we are wasting the gifts God has given us. It’s time to stop looking around at others and focus on looking inside ourselves at how God has gifted us and wants us to use those gifts to accomplish His purpose in our lives. How do we do that? We can use simple questions and action steps to help us figure out our purpose.

How has God gifted me- what talents do I have?
What abilities have I developed over the years?
What is my personality?
What am I passionate about?
How can I take the answers to the above questions and combine them to meet a need in other people’s lives?
Write down your two or three top choices. Pray about those options. Talk to other close family and friends and get their opinion on your choices. What do they see as a natural fit for you?

Now the formula is simple, but the process may take some time. That’s okay. Take the time to really think through your answers. If you find the answer to number 5, you can begin to find God’s purpose for your life. Don’t overcomplicate it. God only gave you so many talents, passions, and opportunities to grow your abilities. He did that to point you in the direction of what He wants you to do with your life.

Free Worksheet Download

To work through the above process, I have created a worksheet you can download here.

Once you work through this process, it may mean you need to make some changes in your life. Read my 3 Ways to Stay Flexible and Be Ready for a Change. Give yourself time and allow God to lead you.

An Additional Resource

One of the books that really helped me when I was trying to work through this process was Fringe Hours: Making Time for You by Jessica Turner.

When we find out what God wants us to accomplish with our lives, we become unstoppable. We get out of bed, excited for the day and ready to work. Is every day perfect? No. Do hard days still come? Yes; but we will have the motivation and drive to keep us moving forward.

waves on the beach — photo credit: Sean O.

Love the Life You Have, Not the Life You Want

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Focusing on What You Don’t Have

We have the greatest of comparisons in our backyard. When you stand on our deck and look into our backyard, you can look straight ahead and see our four kids playing in a ten-foot-long, 18-inch deep blow-up pool. If you look just to the left into the neighbor’s yard, you will see an immaculate above ground pool surrounded by a large deck. Their pool is beautiful and always crystal clear. Ours is usually dirty and has grass and bugs floating in it, no matter how many times we empty it out and fill it up again.

Do you know what the biggest difference is though? Our pool is full of life and laughter. The kids play in it all day long, laughing, yelling, and having fun. Our neighbor’s pool on most days sits empty. Once in a while, their granddaughter comes over and swims all by herself in the large pool. Madison invited her to come and play in our pool, but she only stayed for about five minutes. Why would you stay and play in a tiny pool when you can swim in your own huge pool?

A Life Lesson from My Kids

Looking at the neighbor’s beautiful pool this spring when we moved in, I was heartbroken for our kids. They have always wanted a big pool, and we moved in right next to one. I thought they would be sad, but I have been amazed that it doesn’t seem to bother them. They are too focused on their own pool to waste time thinking about the beautiful pool next door. Learning from them, I made a commitment to God to focus on the life I have right now, not the life I want. Sure, we need to bring up our income, we need to move into a larger house before the kids get older and much more. But right now? Right now, I get to stand at my kitchen sink washing dishes and watch my kids hav a blast swimming in a small pool. That’s the life I have right now, and I love it!

I hope you are having as great a summer as we are. If you missed it, be sure to read my 3 Keys to Having a Productive Summer. This summer, love the life you have, not the one you want!

Three out of four taking a break from the pool to eat lunch.

3 Keys to Having a Productive Summer

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Summer Break

Because I homeschool during the school year, I take summer break really seriously. I look forward to it, probably more so than my kids. I set goals I want to accomplish, projects I want to complete, books I want to read, and more. We only take off the months of June and July for summer break. To accomplish everything I want to, I have to be strategic. I have found three keys that work for me to have a productive summer.

Key #1: Make a List of Goals

Before summer starts, I write down my goals for what I want to accomplish. Summer goes so fast! If I don’t take the time to write down my goals, summer will be over and I won’t have accomplished anything I wanted to. So before summer started, Matt and I used one of our date nights to write down what we want to accomplish personally and what we want to do as a family.

Key 2: Make a Daily Schedule for the Kids and One For You

I know that if I want to get anything accomplished this summer, my kids need to know what to do and when to do it. Otherwise, they will drive me crazy all day with… What can I do? I’m bored. What’s for lunch? What’s for supper? Can we go outside now? We made a summer schedule and placed it on the refrigerator so the kids know what they can do all throughout the day. We are a few weeks into our schedule, and it seems to be working really well for us. Instead of them coming to me every two seconds, they go look at what they should be doing.

If you are interested, you can see our kids’ schedule here and my personal schedule here. You can also print off your own summer schedule to fill in here. If you check out our schedules, you will see that Sunday and Monday are not on there. On Sundays we have church, and Monday is a Sabbath Day for us.

Key 3: Make a Meal Plan

One of the keys to sticking with the schedule is to have my menu planned out for the week. If I don’t, I will spend valuable time trying to figure out the next meal or fielding questions about it. I use this simple menu printable from iheartplanners.com. You can access it here. I printed off several copies on different colored paper. I fill in a new one each week on Sunday. It makes such a difference! Our days have run so much smoother since incorporating a meal plan that the kids and I can see.

These three keys have made a difference already in our summer. Use these three keys to give you and your kids the most productive summer yet!

3 Ways to Stay Flexible and Be Ready for Change

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Traveling in College

When I was in college, I traveled around the country on a musical team representing my school. I played the piano for our group, and we performed at a different church every Sunday. One of the leaders who traveled with us had a saying, “Flexibility is the key to ministry.” If she said it once, she said it a thousand times. She desperately wanted us to understand that leaders must stay flexible with changing times, people, and situations. With decades of ministry behind her, she knew all too well that life has a way of changing when you least expect it.

I understood this concept in a small way in college, but over a decade in ministry has helped me to clearly understand what she was trying to teach us. The best leaders are the ones who can adapt and change to the people, times, culture, and ideas around them. They don’t hang on to the past, unable to change and adapt and move into the future.

Allowing God to Redirect Us

Sometimes God completely redirects us. Maybe it’s a career change, a move, a new relationship, a loss, a painful experience, or something else completely. God has a habit of shaking things up in our lives when we least expect it. If you would have asked me a year ago to foresee some of the changes God took our family through last year, I would have been shocked. I had no idea that the bottom would fall out for us both in our ministry and in our personal lives. I had no idea we would go for months on end without getting paid, endure depression and discouragement like we never had before, face the pain of potentially walking away from the church we started seven years ago, and having to sell our home and move.

Holding Loosely to My Plans

I have learned over the past several years that the best way for me to succeed in life is to find what it is that God wants me to do and follow it wholeheartedly. View the talents and abilities, dreams and desires He has given me as a compass to point me towards what He wants me to accomplish. The struggles of this past year taught me that I also have to hold on to those plans and dreams with a loose hand and allow God to change my direction and plans at any time because He will do that when we least expect it!

King Solomon teaches us this principle in Proverbs. Proverbs 16:9 says, “A man’s heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps.” (KJV) The Message paraphrases it this way, “We plan the way we want to live, but only God makes us able to live it.” (MSG)

Proverbs 16:9 says, “A man’s heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps.” (KJV) The Message paraphrases it this way, “We plan the way we want to live, but only God makes us able to live it.” (MSG)

3 Ways to Stay Flexible and Allow for Change

How can we accomplish our goals and dreams and yet be flexible enough for God to be able to move or redirect us?

Keep a tender heart. Keep a clean heart and conscience before God. Forgive people who do you wrong. Don’t get a hard heart with people or situations that disappoint you. God may be allowing those painful situations in your life to move you in a different direction. If Matt and I hadn’t battled every day to keep a tender heart, we would have walked away from ministry this past year.
Develop a consistent morning time routine. Spend time every morning praying, reading the Bible, and journaling. We can’t expect God to direct us if we aren’t spending time with Him. He will use His Word and time in prayer to show us and direct us into what He has for us. My morning time was a lifeline for me this past year. If I hadn’t spent years developing the habit of reading my Bible every morning, journaling, and praying, I would have given up. If you would like some ideas for developing a consistent morning time, read my best tips for an effective morning time.
Continue growing and learning. Spend time reading good books, listening to podcasts, and growing. So many times a podcast I listened to or a book I read helped me to stay faithful, keep moving forward, and make the changes I needed to. It is so much easier for God to redirect us and change us when we are in the habit of growing and learning. If you need book or podcast suggestions, here are a few of my favorites.

Staying Flexible and Be Ready for Change

If we keep a tender heart, spend each morning connecting with God, and allow God to change our thinking by reading good books and listening to good podcasts, we are as ready as we can be for God to interrupt our life and send us in a new direction. Don’t hold so tightly to your ideas, your plans, or your dreams that you can’t let God redirect you and point you in the new direction He wants you to go.