Hope/Encouragement Archives

If the Holidays Let You Down, God Wants to Hold You Up.

You are the One who lifts my head high. Psalm 3:3

Maybe the holidays are happy for you this year. Maybe they’re hard. Most likely they’re a mix of many different kinds of moments. Here’s a little reminder that in all of them, you’re never alone…

She stands at the edge of the room and stares at the floor. All around her conversations flow and laughter pours out. In a different moment she might have had the strength to reach out. She might have been able to overcome her insecurity. She might have made the best of this situation. But not today.

Then a voice calls her name. At first she doesn’t even respond. But soon she feels a gentle hand on her chin, tilting her face toward the sound of words being spoken to her. She does what she hasn’t all day: she looks up.

And standing right before her is Someone who loves her. Someone who sought her out. Someone who wants to hear about her hard day and her heart. And suddenly she feels a bit different.

Sometimes our hearts are downcast. We don’t even have the energy to try anymore. We feel alone. And then Jesus does something that’s beyond our comprehension. He comes to us in infinite love and tenderness. He lifts our heads.

When we look down, it’s usually because we’re feeling shame, sadness, or insecurity. Jesus wants to change all of that by reaching out to touch our lives and hearts. When someone lifts up your head, it’s an invitation for eye contact. It’s a way of clearly showing, “I see you. I’m here with you. I want to connect with you.”

Jesus is looking at you and loving you. He’s reaching out His hand to cup your chin and lift your face so you can look into His eyes.

And what else happens when we lift our heads? Our perspective changes.

Right in front of you is a Savior who wants to lift your head and heal your heart. Can you feel His touch and hear His voice? Both are full of love for you. Wherever you are today, He’s with you.

XOXO,
Holley Gerth

Happy Thanksgiving from our home to yours! We’re grateful for you.

——

For more encouragement, join me for a FREE Online Bible Study! It kicks off in January 2020. Learn more and sign up here!

This post is an excerpt from my devotional, What Your Heart Needs for the Hard Days: 52 Encouraging Truths to Hold On To. Each of the 52 devotions based on the Psalms will help weary women remember that God is faithful, we’re all in this together and there’s a good plan for our lives.

Your Work Doesn’t Determine Your Worth

by Holley

The laundry is still unfolded, the emails unanswered, the to-do list undone. I sigh and ask, “Have I been productive at all today?”

Anxiety and accusations are the only response. So I pray, “God, what lie am I believing? And what’s the truth that replaces it?” This is a new habit I’m practicing. It’s uncomfortable and hard.

Yet in that quiet moment it seems my heart hears a reassuring whisper…

Life isn’t about being productive. It’s about being purposeful.

I’ve often believed the lie that God’s first priority is what I can produce: a basket of neatly folded laundry, a dozen email responses, a to-do list with check marks. But the truth is there are things that matter just as much or more. Like feeding my granddaughter waffles while she giggles in her high chair, going for a walk with my husband, brainstorming an idea that may never turn into anything.

Just because something doesn’t have tangible results doesn’t mean it doesn’t have eternal impact.

I’m no longer going to ask myself, “Have I been productive today?” Instead I’m going to ask, “Have I been purposeful?” To me that simply means living in love. Sometimes love looks like laundry and answering email and checking off what’s on my list. Those are good and worthy things. But often it looks like the exact opposite, like we’ve done “nothing” at all. And that’s okay too.

Our work doesn’t determine our worth. Our accomplishments don’t earn us God’s acceptance. Our value isn’t validated by our hustle. We are already and always loved.

Whew. I needed to remember that today. You too? Now I’ve got some laundry to do…

XOXO,
Holley

You’re invited! Join me this January for a *free* Online Bible Study! There will be exclusive gifts and giveaways just for members. I would love to walk with you through Strong, Brave, Loved: Empowering Reminders of Who You Really Are. Get on the Waiting List for the Online Bible Study here, and feel free to invite your friends to join us.

On today’s episode of More than Small Talk, we’re chatting about common challenges this time of year and how to prepare for them so we can have less stress and more joy. Listen to Episode 49: Hustle-Less Holidays here.

Three Ways You Can Slow down Today

by Holley

I remember the days of old; I meditate on all You have done; I reflect on the work of Your hands. {Psalm 143:5}

What if the words of the Psalmist—remember, meditate, reflect—offer us a three-step process, a way of slowing ourselves down and connecting with God?

To remember means to recount or be mindful. It can be easy to overlook what has come before. Moses told the Israelites over and over, “Remember….” We can do the same by asking this simple question: What has God brought me through?

“Meditate” simply means to think about something in an intentional way. In other words, we’re not just recalling specific events but considering who’s behind them. We can ask ourselves, “Where can I see God’s hand in my life?”

Once we recognize God’s hand in our lives we can reflect on what He has done for us. This leads to gratitude, praise and growth. We can ask, “What am I grateful for today and what have I learned that will help me grow tomorrow?”

We live in a world that tells us we must always keep moving. But sometimes what we need most is to pause for a few moments so that we can remember, meditate and reflect.

Beginning in January 2020, I’m hosting a free Online Bible Study. Together, we’ll walk through my new devotional, Strong, Brave, Loved: Empowering Reminders of Who You Really Are. More information — and info on how to join! — is available here.

If you aren’t already listening to the More than Small Talk podcast, we’d love for you to join us as a Fourth Chair Friend today. Listen to Episode 48: Gratitude When You Have an Attitude here.

Let’s Choose Holy Confidence Instead of Comparison

by Holley

I walk through my home, thoughts swirling through my mind like the dust bunnies doing dances in front of my vacuum. I think of other women who have cleaner houses. Which leads to thoughts of those who cook better meals. And that goes on to the ones who have cuter outfits, and are better at social media, and can make small talk with ease.

I wish I could be like . . . is the refrain that goes round and round in my mind.

Finally, feeling drained, I hit the power button on the vacuum. I whisper a question, “God, why do I feel the need to be like so many other people?”

It seems there is an answer that comes so quiet . . .

Because the enemy would rather have you be like anyone but Jesus.

If I’m busy trying to be like Mary, Martha, and Margaret, then I’m left with no time to be me. Or, more specifically, to let Jesus be who He is through me. Each of us are made in the image of God. That means we’re created to show Him to the world in a way no one else ever has and no one else ever will.

I do that by being who He made me. And you do that by being you.

As I wrote in the Holy Confidence chapter of Strong, Brave, Loved, “The world tells us we need to have self-esteem but what we really need is holy confidence. For years I tried to prove I was enough. Perfect enough. Good enough. Experienced enough. Smart enough. Pretty enough. But it’s only when we come to the place where we can finally say, ‘I’m not enough but Jesus is’ that our hearts get free.”

I empty the vacuum bag into the garbage and admire how dust and clutter give way to clean again. I smile because my heart suddenly feels like that too. Comparison replaced by clarity—about who I am, what I’m called to do, and the God who’s wild enough to choose me for His purposes.

My new devotional, Strong, Brave, Loved: Empowering Reminders of Who You Really Are, released earlier this month, and I’d love for you to join me as we walk through it each day — together. Information on the Online Bible Study is available here, and I hope you’ll sign up!

If you aren’t already listening to the More than Small Talk podcast, we’d love for you to join us as a Fourth Chair Friend today. Listen to Episode 47: Clutter, Chaos, or Creativity? here.

God Is Not Looking for Perfect Examples

by Holley

I am sure of this, that He who started a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.
{Philippians 1:6}

I’m an amateur eavesdropper. I often work in coffee shops where conversations swirl around me as thick as the scent of espresso. Most of the time I’m able to tune them out but sometimes one makes my head snap up from my laptop. I’ve heard scandalous confessions of love, details of doctor’s appointments and workplace complaints of all sorts. This morning I found myself the recipient of some unsolicited wisdom.

A young man and his mentor sat next to me talking about faith. Apparently they’ve been meeting awhile because the young man asked, “When am I going to be ready to help someone else?”

The mentor paused and then answered, “I think you’re asking the wrong question. Because as long as you ask ‘Am I ready?’ then you’ll always be able to find a reason you’re not. A flaw. A struggle. Something you think you need to learn more about. The better question to ask is, ‘Have I received something?’ If so, then you have something to share. When is the best time to start passing it on? Yesterday.”

I looked over for a second just to be sure he wasn’t talking to me. Because I have wondered this as well. Haven’t we all? Here is a secret of faith I’m learning: We never feel qualified. We never feel like professionals. We never feel like we’ve got it together enough to really make a difference. And maybe this is a good thing. Because the only folks who seem to have believed otherwise were the Pharisees.

God is not looking for perfect examples. He is looking for ordinary people willing to just love one another. He is calling the messy, the broken and the incomplete. This is good news for all of us. It means our role is not to show off; it’s just to show up. He will give to us and then He’ll give through us. We’re simply asked to be willing and brave enough to do it as we are and not as we’d like to be.

My heart needed to hear all of this today. Maybe yours did too. Perhaps sometime we’ll run into each other at a coffee shop and we can talk it over. And when we’re done, I’ll try very hard not to eavesdrop on you.

This post is an excerpt from my new devotional Strong, Brave, Loved: Empowering Reminders of Who You Really Are. It released last week, and your kind words of encouragement as you share about the book online have meant a lot to me. I’m grateful for you!

Have you added your name to the Waiting List for the {free} Online Bible Study that I’ll be hosting? I’d love for you to join us. Learn more about the Study here!

Today’s More than Small Talk podcast episode is about loving broken leaders. Join us for an honest, timely conversation about why so many leaders seem to be burning out or giving up (and why you could too) as well as how we can all help each other.