By Becca Stevens Babies and toddlers are precious, but those years are so hard.If I hadn’t consecrated time for a daily devotional at the start of each day, I don’t think I would have made it. Early each morning, I found the peace I desperately needed to hear from God in the bathtub. I lit a candle, read a Psalm, and soaked in the silence for 20 minutes. Those 20 minutes each day saved my spirit so I could be a good mom, wife, pastor, and entrepreneur. “Because you are human you will continue to make mistakes. Thinking that you should live an error-free life is symptomatic of pride. Your failures can be a source of blessing, humbling you and giving you empathy for other people in their weaknesses. Best of all, failure highlights your dependence on Me. I am able to bring beauty out of the m...
4 Tips to Living with Confidence By Alli Worthington Have you ever felt so nervous, worried, or anxious that you wanted to stay in bed and pull the covers over your head? Have you ever been so overwhelmed by the fear of failure, of disappointing your family, that you just shut down? Me, too. So often, I sense fear getting the best of me. When I feel like I’m going to fail, I want to hide, put on my mask, and snap at the people I love. Sometimes I just want to flat-out quit. But that’s not the person I want to be. So when I feel overwhelmed I pray, read a powerful daily devotion in Jesus Calling, and use this little Fierce Faith mantra to keep me on track. Show up. Be real. Love others. Don’t quit. These four little phrases have boosted my confidence and transformed the way I live. I bet th...
In 2012, my word for the year was risk. My daily devotional consisted of studying risk takers, AKA crazy people, in the Bible. It was a pivotal year for me in my faith journey. I’m not a natural risk taker. Far from it, actually. I like to control my environment and make calculated decisions. I call it wisdom, but in reality, it teeters on a lack of faith. And as someone who’s not a risk taker, the words of the December 9 entry of Jesus Calling strike me to the core: “Be willing to go out on a limb with Me. If that is where I am leading you, it is the safest place to be. Your desire to live a risk-free life is a form of unbelief . . . In order to follow Me wholeheartedly, you must relinquish your tendency to play it safe.” Have you ever looked up the definition of risk? In case you haven’t...
In my daily devotionals growing up, somehow I missed the good news that Jesus could save me on earth in physical and emotional ways—even though I was already spiritually saved for heaven. Finding this brand of holistic peace, which helped me find a calming joy with Jesus in everyday life, meant I could give it away. “The friendship I offer you is practical and down to earth, yet it is saturated with heavenly Glory. Living in My Presence means living in two realms simultaneously: the visible world and unseen, eternal reality. I have equipped you to stay conscious of Me while walking along dusty, earthbound paths,” September 5, —Jesus Calling. I’m just an ordinary person. But I started to live a spiritual adventure by following Jesus to the nations in my neighborhood, to people with the leas...