ministry

February 15, 2018 by Tricia Goyer 3 Comments

5 Ways to Encourage Singles While They Wait on God | Kristen Tiber

Scroll below for a chance to win a paperback copy of Kristen Tiber’s At the Well!

When I think back to my single days, I am very thankful I had a group of girlfriends with whom to hang out during the years before I got married. The time of waiting to meet and marry my husband would have been so much longer if not for a lovely group of Christians who could spur on one another in faith, laugh endlessly and fill the weekend hours together.

But it isn’t always that easy for everyone and social media hasn’t alleviated the situation. Today’s singles are not only challenged with navigating the single life in a society where the idea of love and marriage is often distorted and confusing, but they also have to swipe through their feed filled with stories and photos of their dating, engaged and married friends. It is no wonder we see so many Christian singles rushing into dating and pursuing unhealthy relationships.

What can we do to love and help today’s singles and tomorrow’s marriages?

Here lies an opportunity to lead singles in truth, provide direction and connect in a way that will encourage them to wait on God, to seek Him for a marriage partner and hold fast to biblical values.

Five Ways We Can Encourage Christian Singles

1. Point Them Always To The Faithfulness of God.

It is easy as a single person to feel lonely and forgotten when everyone else is pairing up like the couples on Noah’s ark. Remind singes that the One whom they trust with their salvation and eternity can surely take care of the details of their love life.

He knows every thought, every fear and every disappointment. He sees them and most definitely, has not forgotten them. Singles need to be reassured that God is faithful.

2. Model Strong Godly Marriages.

Singles’ groups are wonderful, but singles also need mentoring from married couples. Not all Christians grew up in a healthy, faith-filled home. Invite singles from your church for lunch after worship. Include them in Bible study groups. Meet them for coffee. Build relationships. Allow them to see what it means to be a godly husband and wife.

3. Encourage Spiritual Growth in Every Season.

No matter what the season of life, we all need to be growing in our faith and living a life of surrender to the Lord. Inspire singles to make the most of this time and grow in a vibrant relationship with God.

4. Direct Singles to Opportunities Where They Can Serve.

Some of my favorite activities that filled my single days were the many opportunities for ministry. Encourage singles to serve. One benefit of helping others is that it broadens our perspective and propels us to think beyond ourselves. It is a great prescription for a lonely heart.

5. Inspire Them with True Love Stories.

Have you shared how you met your husband or wife with the singles in your church? I have always enjoyed the opportunity to tell of the 6’5” guy I met on a blind date and ended up marrying as a part of God’s wonderful plan. Tell your story, but also encourage from the Scriptures. Genesis 24 holds a beautiful account of how God arranged for the very woman Isaac was to marry. His hand is over the entire story. Singles can find great encouragement and inspiration from this story of God’s plan for finding love.

Is God entrusting you with encouraging singles? How can you be a blessing to those who are waiting on God for love and marriage?

How can you encourage singles while they wait on God? @KristenTiber shares 5 ways on @TriciaGoyer

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More about At The Well: Discovering God’s Plan for Finding True Love, for Christian singles

At the Well takes readers on a journey through Genesis 24 – the story of Isaac and Rebekah – where God reveals the most beautiful blueprint for finding love and pursuing marriage. Want to know where to meet a future spouse? It’s time to head to the well.

Purchase a copy of At the Well
Amazon | KristenTiber.com

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Kristen Tiber and her husband, Dan, met on a blind date fifteen years ago. Two years later, they married and now have two elementary-aged children. Kristen has a degree in Christian Thought/Christian Ministry and spent many years in part-time and volunteer youth work, yet God led her in a different direction for her professional career. For seven years, Kristen worked with countless couples as a wedding planner.

She loves Jesus, planning parties and teaching youth and young adults to follow God with their whole heart. Kristen has been blogging for six years and is the author of Teach Me to Serve. Currently, she and her husband teach the high school Sunday School class at their church.

June 1, 2015 by Tricia Goyer 1 Comment

6 Ways Your Children can Serve ‘The Least of These’

As moms there are many things we want our children to know, but as a mom for 25 years now (and my youngest still only four years old) I find as the years past my priorities for my kids focus more on Jesus’ priorities. And what was one of those priorities at the top of the list? Caring for “the least of these.” More than anything Jesus wants us to care for those without honor, without resources, and often without hope. When we do this for your children, we are training them to love as Jesus loved.

As Jesus said in Matthew 25:40 (ESV): “And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!”

How do you train your kids to serve the least of these? @TriciaGoyer shares 6 ways here:

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So how can we train our children to serve the least of these? Here are six ways.

Create toiletry kits for the homeless. Have you ever had an awkward moment when you’re stopped at a stoplight and there’s a homeless person standing a few feet away? Instead of looking away or fiddling with your stereo, use that time to offer a toiletry kit. Have your children help you put together kits in gallon zipper bags and keep them in your car. Things to include: soap, comb, toothbrush, toothpaste, chapstick, hand wipes, and fingernail clippers. You can also include a bottle of water and a few granola or snack bars. Your children can also write out Scripture verses to tuck inside.
Pull weeds and do yard work for an elderly neighbor. Do you have someone in your neighborhood or your church who could use a helping hand? Take an afternoon or even a full day to roll up your sleeves and get to work. Bring your own tools and supplies. Even young kids can pull weeds or pick up trash.
Host a shoe-cutting party for Sole Hope: Sole Hope helps African children live lives free from jiggers, which infect and deform their feet. Instead of just buying and providing shoes, Sole Hope also helps African men and women by teaching them a trade: how to make shoes. Older children can invite friends to work together to help underprivileged children get shoes. Included in kit from Sole Hope are patterns for the shoes. With old jeans, willing volunteers, and a small donation, children can do their part in put shoes on the feet of kids who have none.

Read the rest of this post over at thebettermom.com!

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Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

March 3, 2015 by Tricia Goyer 18 Comments

Restoring the Lost Art of Piggy Bank Savings

There is nothing more wonderful than to hear exciting announcements like this:

“Mom, I’m getting married!”

“Goyers, guess what? You’ve been chosen to adopt a wonderful sibling group!”

We’ve heard both within the last six months, which means that our family is growing in wonderful ways! (And more information about this new sibling group will be coming through my blog in future weeks … I promise!)

Of course, there’s nothing worse than hearing wonderful news and the first thought being, “Great, but how am I going to pay for this?!”

For most of our married life, John and I have spent whatever we’ve had in the bank, living check to check. Some years were very lean, and some years were abundant. But it’s been in the last few years that we’ve been better at savings … and aren’t we glad. Now we can look to expand our family with excitement, not huge worries about costs.

But that’s just one benefit.

Having a happy piggy bank also:

Helps guard against credit debt.
Helps to teach kids the value of money.
Reminds us that we are in control of our money.
Allows us to share our abundance and give to others.

Happy Piggy Banks Guard Against Credit Debt

Having a savings account is a buffer than helps you to guard against credit card debt. When you have money put aside, you can celebrate life’s events with a joyful heart, and without the worries of having to scale back on family celebrations. You are also prepared when those surprise expenses come up like medical bills or new tires.

Happy Piggy Banks Teach Kids the Value of Money

For children (well, sometimes adults too) the concept of money is vague. To help children understand better, show them an example of your family budget with savings, giving, and expenses laid out. Let your kids watch you as you write checks or put money into your savings account. Provide your children a small, weekly allowance and help them to do the same with their money.

Let the kids feed the pig! Piggy banks are a life-changing adventure. #savewithECCU bit.ly/ECCU4U

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Happy Piggy Banks Reminds Us We Are In Control of Our Money

When we spend using credit cards, money slips away every month with fees. When we have a budget and a savings account, we can happily decide between our wants, our needs, and how to spend and give. Instead of $50 or $100 (or more) going to interest every month, we can give to worthy organizations that supporting teenage moms or who fight against human trafficking around the world. We decide where every penny goes, and who it can help.

Happy Piggy Banks Allow Us to Share From Our Abundance And Give To Others

Having a savings account prepares us for life’s challenges, and life’s celebrations, but it also helps us to give with compassion. There have been times I’ve wanted to give to causes, but I’ve had little to give. When we save well, we can give well.

Saving Can Be Giving, Too

Most people already know the benefits of credit unions, such as customer ownership, fewer fees and higher savings rates. An added benefit is affinity-based banking—the intersection of faith and financial planning. These are financial institutions that offer business and consumer banking services while also investing profits in social causes. Using a credit union like this doubles your giving. You not only have more to give with few fees and higher savings rates, the credit union is using their profits to give to worthy causes, too!

If you’re looking to start making your piggy bank happy I’d like to help! (Actually ECCU wants to help and I’m excited about them helping YOU!)

Simple Math: Your savings + ECCU = More Ministry

With ECCU, your money does more than earn a good interest rate for you. It helps fuel Christ-centered ministry worldwide by providing loans to churches and low-cost banking services to missionaries and Christian organizations. Together, you + ECCU = supporting and resourcing more ministry. Plus, if you open a Money Market Savings today, ECCU will donate $50 to International Princess Project to help fight human trafficking in India.

“SAVE WITH ECCU” $1,000 GIVEAWAY!

Enter below for a chance to win $1,000. The contest runs from March 5 – April 10, 2015. The qualified winner must open an ECCU Money Market Savings account where the $1,000 will be deposited. Click here for official rules.

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December 4, 2014 by Tricia Goyer 2 Comments

A Heart Wide Open Christmas: Day 5 | How to Extend God’s Love to Hard-to-Love People

We want Him to conform to our limited ideas of who He is because we’re scared of letting Him be I AM. –Shellie Rushing Tomlinson

Just a couple of weeks ago I was leaving a church function with my daughter-in-law Katie and my 7-year-old daughter Bella. As we walked to our cars, we saw a homeless man laying in front of the store next to the church. It was cold out, and the man had no blankets no gloves. He was thin, and I wondered if he’d eaten.

I glanced at him and quickly looked away. Then Bella and I got into my car, and we watched my daughter-in-law Katie get into hers. I started to pull out when I thought about the Good Samaritan. Was I really going to leave church (leave my “ministry” work) and just leave that man laying there?

I called Katie’s cell phone. “We have to do something,” I said.

“I was thinking the same thing,” Katie answered.

Bella and I ran into Walgreens to buy a hat, gloves, scarf and food. We met Katie who had two blankets in her car. With tentative steps I approached the man, laying our gifts before him. “Sir, I thought you might be able to use these things, God bless you.”

He barely glanced up, and I hurried away. I didn’t want a big show. I just wanted to help.

There was nothing good or attractive about the man, but I felt God’s pleasure as I started my van and drove away. And that’s when I realized the key to extending God’s love to hard-to-love people. The key is something Nike’s know for a while: Just do it.

Just buy the meal.
Just offer the blanket.
Just listen to the story.
Just take off your coat and hand it over.
Just love.

We can do these things, because we have Jesus in us. He loved so we loved. Christmas wasn’t about who Jesus was … but who He is: the great I AM. The one who provides everything we have and enables us to give.

In the book of John, Jesus offers 7 “I AMs”:

I am the bread of life. (John 6:35, 48, 51)
I am the light of the world. (John 8:12)
I am the door of the sheep. (John 10:7, 9)
I am the good shepherd. (John 10:11, 14)
I am the resurrection, and the life. (John 11:25)
I am the way, the truth, and the life. (John 14:6)
I am the true vine (John 15:1, 5)

So many times at Christmas we focus on the baby in the manager. Instead, we need to see Jesus as the one who provided everything we need. He is the great I AM, enabling us to love and to give even when it’s not comfortable.

And does my story end there? No.

Just last Sunday I was sitting in church when my daughter-in-law motioned to the back. “There he is. That’s our homeless man.” He’d come to church, and my hope is that He would discover where all good gifts came from—through Jesus. But I also liked to think that us showing even those small steps of love helped to get him through the door.

Jesus, I AM, is the one who loves through us … drawing others to seek Him in ways we’d never expect.

Download the printable at Shellie’s website!

When we seek God first He gives us more than we anticipate. #HeartWideOpen

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October 14, 2013 by Tricia Goyer 1 Comment

Podcast: Living Inspired: Peyton Jones | Ginger Ciminello

Living Inspired ~ Thursday 3CT (10/17/13)

To listen to the interview: go here and click on the player in the upper right corner of the screen.

This week on Living Inspired, please welcome Peyton Jones, author of book Church Zero (David C. Cook, 2013) and Ginger Ciminello, author of book Forget the Corsage (Westbow Press, 2013).

If you’re reading this after 10/17/13 you’ll be able to find this show . . . and all my shows in the archive section.

For your chance to win a copy of Peyton’s Church Zero or Ginger’s Forget the Corsage leave a comment below. Winner will be announced on Friday on the winner page.

Due to shipping cost, giveaway open to US residents only

More about Peyton: Peyton Jones is founding coach of New Breed Church Planting UK/USA. A serial church planter, Jones is currently planting multiple churches stateside starting in urban Long Beach, California. Involved in international planting since age 24, he’s engaged in tentmaking mission work as a firefighter, factory worker, and psychiatric nurse, bringing all of these experiences to the table. Jones received his MA Theology Pastoral Studies from Wales Evangelical School of Theology and served as the evangelist for Lloyd-Jones’s legendary Sandfields church, Aberavon.

Connect with Peyton: Twitter Website

More about Church Zero: A radical call to reform, Church Zero is a punk-rock approach to the pressing issue of gaining ground as rapidly as the early church.

With a fresh perspective forged in the dirty trenches of international post-Christian societies, Peyton Jones pulls no punches as he brings this message to the American Church: We have lost our way.

The church is losing ground fast: losing the generation under age 30 and drawing few nonbelievers toward Christ.

Christ gave us a leadership model for commando outreach, and the church has ignored it for too long. Will we continue down the path of self-preservation, defending our stalled church structures? Or will we follow the blueprint Jesus lays out?

Church Zero challenges readers to once again become a radical, dangerous people who cannot be ignored. It’s time to break out!

Purchase your copy here.

More about Ginger: Texas-born Ginger Ciminello is a passionate writer and speaker who communicates through story-telling and dramatic narrative. Her awkward middle school phase lasted almost ten years, allowing her to connect with students in a humorous and personal way. Ginger holds a deep desire to reach her audiences and encourage them to laugh, learn from her mistakes, and look up to the Father. Her own story contains embarrassing moments, a two-year bout with an eating disorder, being abandoned at the prom, and finally finding contentment in knowing whom God has made her to be. In September of 2013 she released her first book, Forget the Corsage. Ginger holds a bachelor’s degree in theatre ministry from Abilene Christian University and has over ten years of speaking experience at various churches, camps, and educational groups. She worked for six years in camping ministry with Pine Cove Christian Camps in Tyler, Texas before making her way to the desert of Arizona. Ginger is currently lives in Phoenix, Arizona with her eHarmony matched husband, David, and their daughter. Ginger writes a weekly blog to continue the conversations that start every time she walks into an auditorium, classroom, or sanctuary.

Connect with Ginger: Twitter Website Facebook

The story behind Forget the Corsage: July 13th I delivered my firstborn daughter. She was exactly one week past her due date, but God’s timing was of course, perfect. Everyone is right. This is the hardest yet most joy-inducing adventure of my life. Norah was the first labor of the summer. Forget the Corsage was the second. I’ve been working on a manuscript for almost three years. Who knew it would take so long? I’ve been thinking about writing a book since I was maybe 23 years old. I’ve always known it would be addressed to young women, a sort of spiritual memoir, and a way to greater connect with the audiences that I speak to. The title comes from my unique prom story. I lived my entire high school journey in expectation of my senior prom. I had the dress, the heels, and the perfect hair but I didn’t have the date. At the last-minute, I recruited a friend to accompany me. He was to pick me up at the house, escort me to dinner, and drive me to the dance. He was supposed to bring me a corsage. Instead my date arrived to the dance after 10:30pm. (He had a good reason.) He rushed in to find me standing at the bottom of the escalator that had already delivered my entire senior class to their “Night to Remember.” (I did not have a good reason.) I had waited by myself for over an hour because I was convinced that I couldn’t enter the dance until I had my date and my corsage. I danced to only three songs that night and spent most of my prom thinking, “No one will ever want me.” Since that time God has laid those words heavily upon my heart. If I truly am a daughter of the King, then I know the response to my own lament. Not only does Christ want me, but also He has given me an abundant and exciting life. His love provides the courage to live adventurously regardless of any dating status. Forget the Corsage is a reminder to stop waiting for life to happen to us, but instead to go and live life to the full right now. It can be tempting to buy into the lie that real living starts when we graduate, get the perfect body, find Mr. Right, and land our dream job. But the truth is that we are waiting for something that has already been given to us from God: life to the full. The target audience of this little book is young women. Each chapter begins with a letter to myself at different stages of my life. “Dear fifteen year old Ginger …” “Dear eighteen year old Ginger …” “Dear twenty-seven year old Ginger …” (You get the idea.) The letters span from 12 years of age until 27. That’s about the target. If I could go back in time and give myself a pep talk or kick in the pants, this book is what I would say. So which labor was harder? Giving birth to Norah was definitely quicker! I don’t know. It’s going to be a while before I consider repeating either again, but I am so, so proud of both. And lest you think this was just one delightful day after another, let me tell you that more tears have been shed from May through September than you can imagine. My husband gets the Red Badge of Courage, the Purple Heart, and THE BEST OF ALL THE THINGS EVER Award for going through these two labors with me. Really, who decides to do both of these things at the same time? If nothing else, I’ve learned to let my friends and family see my tears. I am REALLY getting good at apologizing, and slightly better at asking for help.

Purchase your copy here.

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October 1, 2013 by Tricia Goyer 1 Comment

The Mission and Ministry of Motherhood | Plus a Giveaway

I’m always on the lookout for new parenting resources. As a full-time mommy and writer, I’m constantly searching for inspiration and tips on ways to balance my career and family life. When I discovered these two foundational books, I knew I had to share them with you!

Do you long for your home to be life-giving and peaceful?
Is it your desire to pass on a legacy of righteousness to your children?
Do you struggle to balance the duties of motherhood with a loving relationship with your children?
Would you like creative ideas for keeping your child’s heart open to you and to the Lord?

No calling is greater, nobler, or more fulfilling than that motherhood. Every day, as we nurture our children, mothers influence eternal destiny as no one else can. Tragically, today’s culture minimizes the vital importance of a mother’s role. By catching a vision of God’s original design and allowing it to shape your life, you can rediscover the joy and fulfillment to be found in the strategic role to which God in all his wisdom has called you, for a purpose far greater than you can ever imagine.

Discover how understanding God’s purpose and design can empower you to be the mother you long to be.

You can purchase The Mission of Motherhood here or at Amazon.

The Ministry of Motherhood

Because Motherhood Isn’t Just a Job. It’s a Calling.

A mother’s day is packed with a multitude of tasks that require energy and time: preparing meals, washing clothes, straightening and cleaning the house, and caring for children. These jobs all are necessary and crucially important. But in the dailyness of providing for a child’ s physical, emotional, and social needs, vital opportunities for spiritual nurture and training can be overlooked.

This doesn’t have to be the case. You can focus your energy on what matters most. Learn how you can:

Make life’s mundane and nitty-gritty moments work for you and not against you.
Discover ways to make character-building a natural part of life.
Teach your child in the same way Jesus taught the disciples.
Pass on crucial gifts that will serve your family for a lifetime.

Using biblical wisdom and practical teachings, Sally Clarkson shows how you can make a lasting difference in your child’s life by following the pattern Christ set with his own disciples–a model that will inspire and equip you to intentionally embrace the rewarding, desperately needed, and immeasurably valuable Ministry of Motherhood.

You can find purchase The Ministry of Motherhood here or at Amazon.

Sally Clarkson is the mother of four children, a popular conference speaker, and the author of numerous books and articles on Christian motherhood and parenting, including The Mission of Motherhood, The Ministry of Motherhood, and Desperate. In 1994, she and Clay started Whole Heart Ministries to encourage and equip Christian parents to raise wholehearted Christian children. Since 1998, Sally has ministered to thousands of mothers through Mom Heart Conferences, and more recently through her blog, ITakeJoy.com (for Christian women).

Enter to Win!

I’m giving away two sets of the two books! If you want to enter to win, fill out the widget below. Only those in the U.S. are eligible to win.

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ministry

Five Ways We Can Encourage Christian Singles

More about At The Well: Discovering God’s Plan for Finding True Love, for Christian singles

Happy Piggy Banks Guard Against Credit Debt

Happy Piggy Banks Teach Kids the Value of Money

Happy Piggy Banks Reminds Us We Are In Control of Our Money

Happy Piggy Banks Allow Us to Share From Our Abundance And Give To Others

Saving Can Be Giving, Too

Simple Math: Your savings + ECCU = More Ministry

“SAVE WITH ECCU” $1,000 GIVEAWAY!

Living Inspired ~ Thursday 3CT (10/17/13)

To listen to the interview: go here and click on the player in the upper right corner of the screen.

**Due to shipping cost, giveaway open to US residents only**

Enter to Win!

Due to shipping cost, giveaway open to US residents only