Photo Credit: Sean Hayse

Every Wednesday for the past 8 weeks or so, a group of ladies from my church has been gathering to go through “Finding God Faithful: A Study On The Life Of Joseph” by Kelly Minter. I have to admit that when this study was first picked, I was not super excited to focus in on Joseph; a patriarch whose story I thought I was already very familiar with. However, I quickly learned there were so many subtle lessons packed away in Joseph’s life that I had previously missed. These lessons I’ve found are not only extremely helpful in my daily life, but more importantly have brought me closer to Jesus. I was absolutely overwhelmed at all the parallels between Joseph’s life and Jesus’ life. I had simply never noticed it before. My poor women’s group is probably so sick of hearing me nerd out about it, so I decided to write an extra blog post this month to share my notes with you!

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I keep a running list of possible blog topics on my phone. When it’s time to pick there is typically one shouting out at me. This month however I could not decide between a handful of topics. I decided to ask my social media followers to vote on a topic. It came down to a close race between family budgeting tips and the enneagram. I am not quite ready to give budgeting advice so I am going to share with you my enneagram journey so far.

You may be wondering, the enna-what-now? Simply put, the enneagram is a personality test. But in truth, it is so much more than that!

I know what you are thinking. I thought the same thing when I first heard about the enneagram. I was a communications major and I spent time working in corporate America, the last thing I needed or wanted was another personality test. I had already taken them all (the letters, the animals, the colors) and this test wasn’t going to tell me anything new.

But, I was wrong.

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Guys, making new friends as an adult is hard. Making new friends as a wife and mother is even harder. I have stayed in toxic friendships for years because it honestly felt easier than cultivating new friendships. In the past, my husband and I struggled to find even just one couple we could both connect with and that was in the same life stage as us. And what about once you’ve made a new friend? Once the “honeymoon stage” has worn off and you’re dealing with real life issues, how do you navigate the complexities of keeping a friendship? It should be easy, but the truth of the matter is that a lot of times – it is messy. I have found that nothing kills a friendship faster than insecurity and a competition mentality. If you choose to be friends with someone, you have to make a conscious effort to love and trust them. No friendship can thrive under paranoia and constant criticism. This week I asked my social media followers for the best friendship advice they’ve been given and the first one I got went like this: “celebrate their wins even when you feel like you’re not winning! It is not a competition but a relationship.” Amen, Brooke!

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I recently did a bible study through If:Gathering called, “Redeemed.” This study was all about looking at how God has impacted your life, writing it out, and sharing a story that will glorify God. So, here goes…

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Do you know those parts in the bible when they say: be anxious for nothing; let your heart not be troubled; trust in the Lord; and fear not for I am with you? I had always thought those to be words meant to comfort me in times in times of struggle. However, when I found myself with a full blown anxiety disorder I looked to the church for guidance and was surprised at the response. In short, I was told that being anxious was a sin because it meant that I was not trusting in the Lord.

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I’ve been on somewhat of a spiritual journey over the past year or so. It all started with a personal challenge during Lent of 2015. I was raised Catholic and my husband Methodist. At the time, neither one of us were really connecting with our current denominations. I was determined to find a new church home for my family. I posted on Facebook asking for church suggestions and told my husband, “if we have to visit a different church every Sunday then that’s what we’re going to do.” As luck would have it, we visited River City Vineyard Community Church one time and never really looked back.

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