WELCOME HEART: Living a Legacy Life

Christmas is my favorite season but I can miss Jesus in the rush and crush of it all.  Laura Crosby, a writer, pastor-teacher and welcomer—loved the Christmas story so much she wanted to help us hold still enough to appreciate all the Lord did for us. 

Laura wrote an Advent study during Covid for her church in D.C. and has since made available for all of us to share, and I'm so glad she did. You may remember my first interview with Laura. Here's the link in case you want to get acquainted with her welcoming heart. She included a simple and delicious chicken recipe which I'm making tonight just because I have all the ingredients and a neighbor stopping by for dinner. 

All week long Laura is graciously offering one free copy of her Advent Study as a giveaway.

"Choosing Welcome at Advent" includes 4 short videos, Scripture for reflection and recipes! All for $10.00 (Except for the winner of the giveaway! comment below to be entered - or email me [email protected].)

Here's a recipe sample:

Link to purchase HERE to get your own copy. Holidays are around the corner and you may need to consciously sit still, breathe and watch!

Follow Laura on instagram: @lauracrosby.

Learn more about Laura on her website here.

Laura just got home from a missions trip to Scotland and last year she raised funds and awareness for those in need by hiking the Grand Canyon rim to rim. I appreciate Laura's heart for the needy as well as her desire to make travel and do challenging things with a purpose. 

Some gems from our conversation:

• We might think that "this season of our lives" is too difficult to set time aside for God, but to keep Him first is hard in any season because Satan wants to distract you. 

I love Laura and I know you will too. 

Single in my 20’s, in a new career, a new town and a new church, I felt okay mostly. Life was full and purposeful, but lonely on occasion. I wondered why families didn’t ask me over for Sunday dinner.

All I could think of was that my church friends must have thought I had such an exciting single life, I wouldn’t want to come home to their normal, ordinary home and stand at the sink and peel potatoes or hold their babies while they got dinner on and then sit down at their table to get better acquainted.

But that was exactly what I wanted to do. To be part of a family, if just for an hour or two.

The Bible says God sets the lonely in families. I was lonely. I needed to be set somewhere.

I got tired of waiting. So I called up some people. Invited them over. Invited myself over. I had a precedent and his name is Jesus.

Sometimes you just have to make it happen and not wait for someone else to pick up the phone or send a text. I invited people over because I needed friends. I don’t think people thought I might be bad company or that I would run off with the soup ladle if they had me over for dinner. I just think they didn’t think of me at all.

Maybe that’s what loneliness is: To believe you aren’t even thought about.

Trishie's Apple Crisp

5 large apples

1 cube butter, firm

Peel and slice apples

See printable version HERE

In case you're wondering, it's okay for Christians to talk about their money. Why? Because all we have belongs to God, anyway. 

Today I'm delighted to host Erik Olson, a fellow podcaster and a wealth and money consultant from Holland, Michigan. As a Kingdom-impact investment adviser and retirement planner, Erik talks about not only money, but a theological view of our earthly resources that may surprise and delight you and maybe put a fire under your seat to do something worthwhile—PLAN something worthwhile—so that God is glorified and His kingdom well-served. 

Some gems from our conversation:

• As in introvert, I prefer a spreadsheet over a conversation, but I like to think I can come alongside someone and gently and expertly help them serve themselves, others and God better with training and counsel.

Thinking of writing your story? Susy Flory thinks you should begin, like today.

Currently in seminary working on her doctoral degree, Susy Flory directs the West Coast Christian Writers Conference, and knows a good story when she hears it. Raised by an Irish mother who could tell a good yarn, Susy is a 17 book New York Times best-selling author whose favorite books are memoirs. Today we discuss how she came to co-write her lovely book, Sanctuary about a young man named Patrick who lost his way and the rescue donkeys that led him home. 

She's offering a free copy this week - leave a comment to be entered.

Susy leads Everything Memoir, both a free facebook group with loads of quality free offerings, as well as a year long coaching group on how to write your memoir which will be starting up again this coming January. Learn more about both on her website: susyflory.com and find all her links HERE.

Some gems:

• I find people endlessly fascinating and I love helping them tell their stories in any form but especially in written form.

Megan Fate Marshman tells us what to do when we don't have all the things figured out: go to Jesus and tell him that we don't. And then we go to him again and tell him again. We need reminding. We are prone to think we are in control and what a gift from God that we are not. 

I just finished reading an advance copy of Megan's latest book, RELAXED: WALKING WITH THE ONE WHO IS NOT WORRIED ABOUT A THING and I'd love to say that I'm totally relaxed AND not worried about a thing. But I'm more relaxed and I'm less worried. So good. Buy one for yourself (if you don't win the giveaway) and one for that friend who may be worried—oh, that's every friend, or most anyway. 

Megan, a single mom of two young boys—her dear husband Randy went to be with the Lord at age 36—writes from what she is learning about grief and worry and autonomy and coming to Jesus over and over again. A knowledgeable and charismatic teacher of the Word, Megan pastors at Willow Creek Community Church, Chicago, runs the women's ministry at Hume Lake Christian Camp and is the women's pastor at Arbor Road Church, Long Beach, CA. 

Megan’s website

Megan on IG

Megan on Facebook

Megan on X

Buy Link

Some gems from our conversation:

We don't need to do more; rather, we need to be intentional about showing love right where we are.

God's gift to us is that we don't need to trust in ourselves.

Risk-taking is Christlikeness because you are setting yourself up to need him and the prompts almost always lead to love.

Anxiety signals me where I'm trying to get my security.

We experience a sanctification gap and we go about it all the wrong way to close that gap without God.

Grief has taught me to pay more attention to what really matters and less attention on those things that don't. 

We are called to be God's hands and feet to anyone he brings our way. 

We are not working on making a perfect family; rather on doing things right.

Anxiety alerts us that something is going on in the dashboard of our soul. 

We all have a story to tell and when we tell it, we can encourage someone else who may need to know and trust God a little bit more.

Julie Sunne expected certain things from God and when they didn't happen, she realized she didn't really know this God she was raised to believe in. Married 36 years, a mother of 4, Julie experienced 5 miscarriages and 4 live births in a stretch of 8 years. Their third child and only girl, Rachel, was diagnosed as intellecturally disabled and will need to be cared for her entire life. Rachel, age 26 but developmentally only age 3, continues to teach Julie about trusting and knowing God in his entierty. 

Julie's book points our minds and hearts to God and you'll want to get one for yourself and anyone you know who is struggling with hope. She's giving away a copy this week so be sure to comment here or on social media for your name to be entered. 

SOMETIMES I FORGET: 60 REMINDERS OF HOPE FOR YOUR HARD DAYS, a concise and helpful devotional to direct our minds and hearts to the nature of God. As Julie says, we don't just wish for something, we hope in God who is immutable and never-changing. 

In the pages of this book, you will discover:

--more about who God is

--how God relates to us as His children

Some gems from our conversation:

• When God didn't answer my prayers, I just felt that his blessings pertained to other people, not me. 

Follow Julie at juliesunne.com.

I’m not sure why we bother arguing with God. God being God comes with an unfair advantage but I imagine I’m not the only one who tries. There’s that Jonah fellow from Nineveh. He argued but he ended up—well you probably know where he ended up. Even Jesus who had a special connection, you might say, debated with his Father about the wisdom of what he was about to go through right before the cross. He went anyway. Alone, for the most part.

I should have known better than to argue. There’s no point. But processing out loud is my favorite and God already knew what was in my head. And, while arguing takes two and I did most of the talking, I did get an answer

At 30 I wasn’t worried about gray hair. I had a great life. I just didn’t want to grow old alone. I had a plan to love and serve God—but not by myself. Phone calls can mess up the best of plans.

YOUR TURN

1. Do you have a plan for your life? What does it include?

1. When your plans take a “wrong turn” in your view, how do you deal with your disappointment?

1. Have you ever argued with God? If not, you can try it out today. (I'll wait...)

How did that turn out for you?

If we remember He’s our perfect Father—and loves us even more than our own dads—and that he knows what’s ahead, we can relax. Instead of stewing we can wonder how He’s going to surprise us with something we would never think up on our own.

That’s one of the fun parts about following God—the surprise factor. It gets me every time.

TAKE GOD AT HIS WORD

“There is surely a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off” (Proverbs 23:18).

TELL GOD WHAT’S GOING ON (write your prayer or pray the one below):

Lord, God,

Thank you that you love me and that you are love so that you can’t betray. Help me place the truth of your character over my feelings. I surrender my plans to you. May I look to you in trust and expectation. I love surprises. Thank you and amen.

Lori Margo wife and mother of three adult children, knows what it means to stay awake all night and worry - like all good mothers do! She knew God loved and cared for her—even while facing cancer four times and losing her mom at a young age. But her faith stalled out one day and she prayed, "Lord, I need to know you are with me. Show me ways you are present here in these struggles." And that began her process of tracking God, keeping short lists, recording how He's answering prayers, big and small. She prayed: God I just want to know that you are with me. If you answer my prayer or if you don't—I'm still going to trust you, no matter what."

Lori writes:

Both phrases are true and happening simultaneously: Life is hard. God is incredible.

That’s my story.

I’ve had hard things come my way AND I’ve experienced the faithfulness of God alongside the pain and suffering. He met me where I was and brought peace as I held the pieces of a life I never imagined for myself.

Some gems:

• Life is hard AND God is incredible.

Learn more from Lori at lorimargo.com.

Speaker, author, Keith Ferrin heard someone tell or perform the entire book of Luke on stage for two hours straight. He made a lunch date with the presenter for that next day, a lunch date which lasted nine hours. For the last two decades, Keith's been presenting Scripture by the book as a storyteller. "The Bible is not only meant to be studied, understood and obeyed", Keith says, "it's meant to be enjoyed." We discuss the Thdifference as well as what it means to internalize the word vs memorizing the words.

Keith is passionate about helping people know and love God's word and offers great series on YouTube as well as on his website. Keith is offering my Welcome Heart listeners a half-off coupon for two of his great resources: get both for the price of one.

One course is called Relational Bible Study. www.keithferrin.com/rbs

The other is called The Simplest Way to Internalize the Bible www.keithferrin.com/internalize

Use this LINK to get them both for the price of one.

His free resource is: The Simplest Way to Study the Bible. LINK HERE.

Some gems:

• People are under the false belief that massive parts of Scripture is confusing so they don't even attempt to read it.

To learn more about Keith and how to learn to enjoy the Bible, follow Keith on all social platforms @keithferrin or his website: keithferrin.com.

Bret Lott knows how to make a woman cry. Possibly a man, too, but I'm not sure. I know he's cried (sobbed, he admitted) when reading Leif Enger's book, Peace Like a River. I already liked Bret Lott but that made me like him even more. 

Bret Lott, award-winning author of now 16 books (both fiction and non-fiction) didn't start out to become a writer and, in fact, met obstacles along the way. I'm glad he persevered; if you've read Jewel, one of Oprah's Book Club selections, then I'm sure you're glad as well. He wanted to ride a horse and be a Park Ranger. Grateful that didn't pan out. 

Fun sidenote: Since I'm also from Southern California, it was a delight to find out that Bret used to work at Knott's Berry Farm at the candy apple booth and once-a-month he made waffles for Mr. Knott. 

Bret is giving away a signed copy of his latest book out this month entitled: GATHER THE OLIVES, On Food and Hope and the Holy Land  - comment below or on social media to be entered!

Born in Los Angeles in 1958, Lott grew up in Buena Park, CA and Phoenix, AZ before returning to California to live in Huntington Beach, CA. He met and married his wife of 40 years, Melanie Swank Lott, at First Baptist Church of Huntington Beach/Fountain Valley. A graduate of Cal State, Long Beach(1981), Lott headed to Massachusetts for graduate school at UMass Amhurst. He received his MFA in 1984 and landed his first teaching position at Ohio State Univ. In 1986, Lott joined the English Department at the College of Charleston, where he is now a tenured professor and director of the new MFA program and leads writers retreats to Italy.

Find out more about his writing retreats here: https://bretlottwriting.com

Be sure to comment below to be entered to win: Gather the Olives.

Some gems:

• The difference between a good writer and a bad writer: the bad writer says, "Here I am, I have something to say." The good writer writes a good story and you're not aware he or she even exists.