The Joyful Life Magazine
The Joyful Life Magazine
A quarterly lifestyle print publication for Christian women seeking the JOY found by inviting JESUS into our everyday lives.
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  • “He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.” John 15:2 NIV⠀ ⠀ Pruning can be a pretty painful procedure.⠀ ⠀ And things can look decidedly ugly before the blossoms bloom and prolific floral beauty prevails.⠀ ⠀ The first time my husband went on a pruning frenzy in our yard, he left nothing but piles of sad-looking sticks in his wake. I was mortified. In my horticultural naivety, I thought he had gone temporarily insane. But he assured me it was for the good of the garden. And, of course, he was absolutely right. ⠀ ⠀ In time, everything grew back healthier, producing more flowers and fruit than ever before. ⠀ ⠀ Friend, like it or not, WE need regular pruning. When we’re ineffective, not realizing our full potential in Christ, it’s down to our gracious Gardener to trim us and shape us. And He does so with such wisdom and kindness and love—we can rest easy knowing we are in the very best of hands.⠀ ⠀ There are certainly times we feel discouraged, disoriented, and unsure of our sudden “nakedness” as we’re undergoing the pruning process, thrown off kilter by our uneven branches. It’s hard to imagine we will ever be useful and beautiful again. But eventually, in His time, the buds WILL reappear, and when they do, we see promise and strength and beauty—evidence of God’s handiwork.⠀ ⠀ The pruning might be painful, but the results will be prolific… for His glory.⠀ ⠀ Laura Thomas, @lauracthomas
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  • The Joyful Life Community Share by Vanessa at @atthepicketfence ⠀ ⠀ It’s Wednesday. The middle of the week. And if you are anything like me, the pain of Monday is already a distant memory and you are looking forward to the weekend with all of its possibilities.⠀ ⠀ The middle days are like that aren’t they? They seem like they are neither here nor there. Sometimes it seems like they are just something to be gotten through.⠀ ⠀ But, what if we saw this middle day differently? And what if we saw the middle days or our faith differently?⠀ ⠀ There are so many times in our lives when we feel like we are in a holding pattern. We aren’t experiencing the high highs or the low lows.⠀ ⠀ We’re just trudging through.⠀ ⠀ These days can sometimes feel like a waste. But I think that God wants us to see them differently. I think He wants to see them as a gift. A break from the Mondays and the weekends.⠀ ⠀ The middle can be a wonderful time to regroup, refocus and reflect on our lives.⠀ ⠀ Don’t fight the middle days my friends.⠀ ⠀ Embrace them in all of their in-between-ness and you might just be surprised by what they have to offer you.⠀ ⠀ “We all have those times when there are no flashes of light and no apparent thrill to life, where we experience nothing but the daily routine with its common everyday tasks. The routine of life is actually God’s way of saving us between our times of great inspiration which come from Him. Don’t always expect God to give you His thrilling moments, but learn to live in those common times of drudgery of life by the power of God.” (Oswald Chambers)⠀ ⠀ Are you in an ‘in-between’ season? Feeling like you’re stuck in the middle days? How can I be praying for you?⠀ ___⠀ ⠀ If you are not currently following Vanessa's beautiful feed...be sure to go give her a follow! @atthepicketfence ⠀ ___⠀ ⠀ Tag #joyfullifecommunity to be featured in our feed. ❤️⠀
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  • I had such high hopes for my productivity that day, with a long list of things to accomplish by 4pm.⠀ ⠀ But when my husband walked in the door, the laundry was half-done, the surfaces were still cluttered, the dust bunnies remained, and dinner was barely prepped. I felt like a failure. ⠀ The baby was hungry (again), so I retreated to our bedroom. Glancing around, the shame quickly consumed me. ⠀ ⠀ “You make your kids clean their rooms, but look at yours. Hypocrite."⠀ ⠀ “You’ll never finish all the projects you’ve started. Procrastinator.”⠀ ⠀ “Your kids will look back and remember you like this. Messy. Unkempt. Unorganized. Always struggling. Always behind. Never enough.” ⠀ ⠀ Then enters our 17-year-old. Seeing past my weak smile, she asked me what was wrong. Through the lump in my throat, I told her exactly what it was. ⠀ ⠀ “I’m failing as a mom. And a wife. And an example to all of you.” I repeated all of the accusations I’d just heard and believed, terrified that if she didn’t see it already, she’d be in total agreement once it was said out loud. ⠀ ⠀ Instead, she said this. And I will never forget it.⠀ ⠀ “All of the things you think make you a bad mom- they are actually the things that make you a good mom. You were paying attention to your kids. Isn’t that more important than what you didn’t do?”⠀ ⠀ Disillusioned, I nodded my head. ⠀ ⠀ And so I pass on the same shame-shattering encouragement to you. ⠀ ⠀ I suspect your piles of laundry, stacks of mail, and unchecked to-do lists are there because you allowed more important things to come first. ⠀ ⠀ The enemy? He wants you to feel badly about that. He wants you consumed by the way things look.⠀ ⠀ But our Jesus? He looks beyond the dusty, cluttered, unorganized surfaces and into your heart. And He says, “Good job prioritizing. That house stuff will still be here when your kids aren’t.” ⠀ ⠀ "Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time..." Ephesians 5:15-16 ESV⠀ ⠀ Elizabeth Oschwald, @adding.joy
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  • This has been a hard couple of weeks. I started a post earlier that just felt lacking in authenticity and instead of pressing on with it, I felt like God was leading me to share a different perspective, a different encouragement — a different word. ⠀ ⠀ THE LIES⠀ ⠀ There are so many things I’m struggling to accept this week. Tomorrow I turn 45 — and it feels like an unwelcome visitor being forced upon me. Not because I feel old — I truly don’t. It’s more because of all the other ways I feel as I look at the looming date on the calendar. ⠀ ⠀ Inadequate.⠀ Unaccomplished. ⠀ Behind. ⠀ Lacking.⠀ Weak.⠀ ⠀ All ways I wouldn’t have expected to feel at 45. I expected to feel at peace, settled in, comfortable, perhaps even a step ahead in the journey of life. ⠀ ⠀ Instead I feel like a girl — still dependent, still striving, still struggling, still running to catch up with life — in a body that often groans its age and with a mind that loses the sunglasses on top of my head with a frequency that honestly shocks me.⠀ ⠀ THE TRUTH⠀ ⠀ Sometimes we need to accept the truth and stop allowing our unmet expectations to rob us of the joy we’ve been given in Christ. ⠀ ⠀ I may be inadequate, but Jesus is more than enough — He is my all.⠀ ⠀ I may be unaccomplished in some areas, but Jesus accomplished salvation on my behalf.⠀ ⠀ I may be behind in this life, but Jesus has gone before me and is preparing a home in His eternal kingdom for me. ⠀ ⠀ I may be lacking in many areas, but Jesus is my gain.⠀ ⠀ I may be weak, but Jesus is my strength. ⠀ ⠀ GRACE⠀ ⠀ So on the eve of the day I will turn 45, my heart’s desire for this year is to accept myself as He accepts me — the beautiful Bride of Christ — holy and blameless, standing firm and confident in the shadow of amazing grace!⠀ ⠀ “He has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him.” Colossians‬ ‭1:22‬ ‭ESV‬‬⠀ ⠀ Sandi Sutton, @sandisutton⠀ ⠀ ___⠀ ⠀ Tag a friend who needs to be encouraged by the full acceptance we have in Jesus! ❤️
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  • Sometimes we think we are doing a much better job of trusting God than we actually are. If you’re anything like me, maybe you recognize the signs.⠀ ⠀ You ask God for direction and then:⠀ ⠀ -Give him a menu of options to choose from⠀ ⠀ -Run your own plan past Him for his sign off and approval⠀ ⠀ -Say yes to every opportunity that comes your way, hoping you’ll eventually hit the jackpot⠀ ⠀ -Chase after a goal that you believe is your purpose or calling⠀ ⠀ Sound familiar? I confess I have pretty much done all of these things at one time or another. Instead of waiting on God to show me what’s next - in His timing, I’ve chased after career, relationship or personal goals that I *think* are going to bring me a greater sense of purpose, fulfilment or joy. Yet often they’ve left me disappointed, empty, or unfulfilled. It can be hard to fully relinquish control and trust God’s ways over our own. Yet we are told to simply surrender to Him.⠀ ⠀ I love how the Message translates Romans 8:12: ‘Take your everyday, ordinary life - your sleeping, eating, going to work, and walking around life - and place it before God as an offering.'⠀ ⠀ What if we gave our time, our energy, our calendars over to God? Would we start to notice more God-appointed, tailor made opportunities that He sprinkles throughout our day. Would we have more flexibility to follow His nudging and take His lead? When we take the focus off of ourselves and what we want, we often start to see the hand of God in our lives - - everywhere we look. ⠀ ⠀ As Lysa TerKeurst ( @lysaterkeurst ) writes in her book ‘Uninvited’: “Though we can’t predict His specific plans, the fact that God will work everything together for good is a completely predictable promise."⠀ ⠀ If we truly trust God with our lives, He will give us a purpose and a role to play in His Kingdom work that is far better than anything we could come up with ourselves. So that rough draft you've made of your future? Give it to Him and let Him turn it into a masterpiece.⠀ ⠀ Vicki Bentley, @purposeful_joy
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  • Today on the blog, Ashley Bartley ( @tendingwild ) shares her very personal journey through postpartum depression and anxiety. Although Ashley’s story is told from the perspective of a mother in the midst of postpartum - it is practical and applicable to any woman who finds herself struggling to pull herself out of the despair that depression and anxiety create.⠀ ⠀ You will be blessed by Ashley’s words as she shares her struggles, as well as her victories, and offers a tremendous amount of hope for anyone in the throes of depression or anxiety.⠀ ⠀ You can read Ashley's post by clicking through to the link in our bio.⠀
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The Joyful Life Magazine


for christian women seeking the authentic joy found in jesus

The Joyful Life Magazine
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