If you ever get a little tired of life’s battles, this is for you.
If you ever wrestle with fear or insecurity, this is for you.
If you’ve ever feel unsure you’re ever going to have victory, this is for you.
It’s for me too because I can relate to all of the above. I also know what it’s like to come to a new place of feeling strong, brave and loved.
By strong I don’t mean faking it and trying to hide our limp; I mean knowing we are women in a battle, beautiful warriors who cannot be overcome.
By brave I don’t mean reckless or forceful; I mean having the courage to face whatever comes our way, to walk in holy confidence and be okay with what’s messy or uncertain.
By loved I don’t mean what we know in our heads; I mean living in the truth of who God is and who He says we are even when the lies we’re tempted to believe are hissing in our ears.
We may not have ever met but I believe with all my heart that you are a woman created by God who has been placed here for such a time as this. Whatever you’re going through now, whatever has happened to you in the past, can’t change your identity or destiny.
You don’t have to be defined by your circumstances.
You don’t have to be defeated by your struggles.
You don’t have to settle for less than God’s best in your life.
I know this is true because I’ve lived it. In a particularly difficult season, I sat on a plane in the dark, sniffling into a too-small napkin and trying not to scare my seatmate. I felt disappointed by life and I thought about giving up. But Jesus met me in that moment and what poured out of my heart became the beginning of a life-changing revolution in my world and turned into my book Fiercehearted.
After Fiercehearted released thousands of women read it and through their responses it became clear there was so much more to be said. Strong, Brave, Loved builds on the themes of that book and ties them with Scriptures, prayers, and ways to apply truth in our lives. (You don’t need to read Fiercehearted to benefit from the devotional. Don’t wait another minute to start embracing the victory that’s rightfully yours.) Every word has been carefully created and chosen to encourage, equip and empower you to live as an overcomer.
Wherever you are today, whatever you’re going through, I pray Jesus will meet you like He met me on a plane in the dark when it felt like I didn’t have any strength or courage left. I pray He’ll rescue your heart and renew your hope. I pray He’ll bring you to a new place of feeling strong, brave and loved that’s beyond what might even feel possible right now.
We are made for more than “I’m fine.”
We are fiercehearted women; this is our time.
XOXO,
Holley
MORE:
This post is the Introduction to my new devotional book Strong, Brave, Loved.
The free Strong, Brave, Loved Online Bible Study begins the first Monday of 2020. If you haven’t already signed up, you can do so here.
Today’s More than Small Talk podcast episode is titled “How Did We Do In 2019?” We’re returning to the question we asked at the beginning of the year: What’s one way that we might want to live our life differently in the next 12 months?
We would love to hear your answers in the More than Small Talk Facebook group, and if you want 2020 to be full of joy, holy confidence, and victory — I hope you’ll join the Online Bible Study! We’ll talk about each of these things together.
