A Q&A Interview with Caitlyn Fisher
Are you struggling with finding purpose? My girlfriend Caitlyn Fisher is a senior in college majoring in Psychology, with plans to pursue her Master’s degree. We recently had an interesting conversation about a paper she wrote for school, which became the topic of this guest blog interview. I believe there are some gold nuggets in her paper… and in our conversation!

By Allison Pearson,
“A Letter From Jesus On Healing” creator
I remember feeling guilty at times in the months following the death of my husband, Richard, to a brain tumor. I had become so radically transformed by the love of God, there was simply no room for sadness in my heart.

By Stacy Riddle, worship leader &
singer-songwriter artist
Are you in a place of feeling your dream will never grow beyond a seed tucked away inside of your heart? Did you have a dream begin, only to feel like it died before it could grow past infancy?

A Q&A Interview with Kennette Pyles,
pediatric swim survival advocate
In the United States, drowning is among the leading causes of death for children ages 1-4, second only to birth defects. In children up to age 14, it is the second leading cause of death behind motor vehicle crashes. This month’s featured girlfriend, Kennette Pyles, is creating a ripple effect to reduce the statistics of drowning among kids of all ages.

By Lisa Hentrich, Founder of GAMGstories
“Anywhere, anytime of the day, just a prayer or a phone call away...God and my girlfriends.” - GAMG song lyric - Ever since the “God and My Girlfriends” song I co-wrote was released on Reba McEntire’s Dove and Grammy-winning album in 2017, I knew I wanted to create a sharing space that embodies its message.

By Bria Jean Valderrama
wife, mom & worship singer-songwriter artist
Early in the second trimester of my second pregnancy, I had a vision. In this vision, an adorable little girl with dark, loose curls, fair skin, and the sweetest demeanor sat peacefully on the floor playing like kids do - happy as could be. Fast forward a month, and our ultrasound confirmed that we were indeed having a little girl! However, with this joyful confirmation came jarring news. With a sober face and a solemn voice, the doctor explained…

By Amber Alyssa Hayes

In Israel, the sound of the sirens is a normal way of life. Children learn from a young age to run to the nearest bomb shelter immediately -- only 15 seconds of time can mean the difference between life and death.

By Lydia Walker Athey,
founder of RusticSongbird.com
We weren’t made to do life on our own. We were created with a longing for real relationships, to draw us closer to God and to others. It’s a comforting reminder that even though we may feel lonely at times, we’re never truly alone, because God is with us. He gives us this assurance in His Word:

By Carla Nelson
entrepreneur, author, speaker & co-host
of The Marriage Creative

The word “pet” is usually associated with a warm and cuddly animal that brings joy and comfort to its owner. But if you’ve been through a cancer diagnosis journey as I have, this word has a totally different meaning -- one that can bring immense fear and anxiety because of what those letters stand for: ‘positron emission tomography - used to determine how much cancer is in a person’s body and how far the cancer has spread.’ I’m here to say you don’t have to fear, friend. You CAN have peace in the PET scan!

By Rachel Barrentine
Founder of AnchorHouseTV

“Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.” -Proverbs 13:12 NIV

Hope is a powerful substance. It breathes life and gives us the ability to keep going. We get physically ill when we run out of hope. I can think of a number of instances when I felt hope leave my body. It felt like something sucked the life right out of me.

By Trina McNeilly, author of the newly released “Unclutter Your Soul” book

Do you have an overactive mind that often leaves you paralyzed from moving forward and living life to the fullest? Have you ever felt as if your inner life is tight, busy, or chaotic?

Five years ago, it became very clear to me that my inner home (as I like to call it) was extremely cluttered. I was living in a constant state of overwhelm.

By Dawn Dalton, Grace Light Productions

“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith-and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God.“ - Ephesians 2:8

It has been said that suicide statistics increase during the holidays. I don’t know if that is true or not, but I do know what it’s like to feel hopeless, worthless and so tortured that I didn’t want to live anymore. In my weakest moment as I stood at the brink of taking my own life with a gun to my temple, a stranger walked out of a wooded path and changed everything.

By Megan Naumovski,
Illustrator, DrawingOnGrace.com

How do we know what gifts we are to cultivate and how our hopes and dreams should evolve? We can begin by asking the Lord what He thinks and then listening with the heart of a child who dreams big and isn’t limited by doubt. With a heart full of trust and hope, God wants us to explore the desires of our heart.

By Whitney Wiser - professional body builder,
speaker, and founder of WiserFit

I was broken and bruised, and my dreams were crushed.  In 2011, I was lying in a hospital bed being told by doctors I would have to learn how to walk again.  I was told my competitive sports career was over -- I would probably never be able to compete in bodybuilding again – and I should prepare myself for this new reality. The way I ended up there was by hands of someone who had told me he loved me.

By Danna Larson, Rural Revival founder
& podcast host

Revival. I guess that’s what I set out to inspire when I started Rural Revival, though I hardly knew it at the time! It all started coming together as I was driving home from Nashville for Christmas on the farm in Iowa, through small town after small town. It really hit me that I’m tired of seeing our small towns slowly die off and fade away. I loved growing up in my small town. It was a great way to grow up! And I really want to see future generations have that same opportunity and experience.

By Joy Yancey,
boutique business entrepreneur

I didn’t know what I was missing when I thought I had everything. We lived a nice life with a nice house and a nice pool, nice clothes, nice everything. I thought things we were good, having worked my way up to a salary that gave us all that we wanted and needed in my 19 years on the job. Then, I got a slap in the face at 40.

By Kayla White, Promise Manor
historic event venue owner

Have you ever felt as though you are staring down a hallway knowing there is a door in sight, but the journey getting there seems long and slow? I promise, you are not alone.

The pauses of life, which I refer to as the “hallways,” can be such hard transitions. As a follower of Jesus, there have been many times in my life when I knew God said “no…” or “wait…” when all I wanted to do was sprint ahead to what I believed was the answer or destination.

By Anna Austin - True Blue Farm owner

It was a little more than 5 months ago when my husband and I set off with our 4 kids across the country to pursue our idea of the American Dream - to build a farm and raise our own food on our own land.  If you’re reading this after it was first published, or if you’re not quite sure what 5+ months ago was, let me fill you in….