WE SAVED YOU A SEAT

Last month I shared with you the lovely Lisa-Jo Baker's new book Never Unfriended. Today I want to share with you a new companion resource to Never Unfriended. Dayspring and Lifeway have teamed up to bring us the We Saved You a Seat Bible Study. This 7 session study is all about finding and keeping lasting friendships. The Bible study is great to do on your own but even better to grab a few friends and do it together. As summer approaches, it is the perfect time to do a study with some friends or neighbors. Gather the kids to play in the sprinkler for an hour while you and your friends learn all about friendships.

In We Saved You a Seat, you will find that friendship takes...

showing up

vulnerability

encouragement

service

forgiveness

walking away wisely

action

See what Lisa-Jo has to say...

Friendship isn't always easy. And many aren't prepared for all that it takes. Lisa-Jo gives us wisdom and insight and she always points to Scripture.

Each week has the group session then 3 days of "homework." You will love the homework, and I promise, it won't really feel like homework! I love that there are only 3 days because it can be so easy to get behind. This allows for you to actually split it up into 6 days. Or strive for 3 days and use the other days to catch up if you are behind. Each day has a friendship challenge that help you dig deep. There are 7 video sessions to go with each week. In the video sessions you will find Lisa-Jo, Alia Joy, Deidra Riggs, Aliza Latta and Kristen Strong. They share real life experiences, humor and encouragement. You will feel like you are sitting at the table with them!

To pick up We Saved You a Seat, click HERE.

Here are some great products to go with We Saved You a Seat and Never Unfriended:

This We Saved You a Seat Bible Study Kit is great! I am all about mini bags and office supplies. The kit is perfect for the We Saved You a Seat Bible study and includes: 1 pouch, 20 inspiration cards, 2 sticky note flags, 1 sticker sheet, 2 mini-highlighters, and 1 washi tape.

This Conversation Start Jar is great! We've used this at home with our teens as well as I've used it with my ladies Bible study I lead. The questions really get everyone talking and sharing. Some questions are light and just for fun and some are deep and emotional. Pick up the Conversation Start Jar  for your home, ladies night out or Bible study group!

Whether friendship comes easy for you, you are shy and struggle to make friends, or you've been burned deep by an old friend, We Saved You a Seat and Never Unfriended are great tools. You will learn how to make lasting and true friendships and learn when it is healthy to walk away.





*Disclosure: I received this product for free in exchange for my honest opinion. All opinions are my own. Links on this page may be affiliate links. Thank you for supporting this ministry by using the affiliate links.

NEVER UNFRIENDED

Unfriended.

That word.

That button is so easy to hit. One tiny tap, and boom, you are unfriended. Several years back a friend was going through a major life change and decided to unfriend a group of people from her 'old' life. I was one. She had been one of my closest friends and the rejection hurt. Another time a friend decided that if I didn't unfriend a mutual friend who hurt her, she was going to unfriend me. And then there have been a few times I was unfriended and have no idea why. Did I say or do something to hurt or offend? Was there any way to save the friendship?

Yes, I am talking about social media, but I am also talking about real life. Being unfriended hurts.

As women we crave deep friendships and lasting connections, yet, making and keeping these relationships isn't always easy. We are afraid to put the work into really getting to know someone. Then when we do, we hurt each other. We get offended. We set high expectations that we want our friends to met, then when they don't, we disregard the relationship.

In her new book, Never Unfriended, Lisa-Jo Baker says, "Friends are hard work. Heck, people are hard work. There's no getting around it. The only way through is through. Through the knowing and the showing up and the forgiving and the laughing and the folding laundry together and the walking kids to school and the daring to do the ugly cry in front of each other."

Friendship is work. But when we put that work into it, when we do those hard times together, when we believe the best in our friends, when we commit our friends to daily prayer, the friendship is so worth it.

Lisa-Jo gives us the number 1 way to be a friend when she says, "This is the secret to finding and keeping lasting friendships: become women who want to see the women around them flourish." No more of this comparison stuff. No more of this competition. Let's look to see women do well, let's help them do well. Let's pray they flourish.

Never Unfriended is a must read! Lisa-Jo gets right to the heart of friendships. If you have ever been unfriended or if you are thinking of unfriending another, you will want to read Never Unfriended.

As an introvert, one thing I have struggled with in relationships is not always knowing what to say. How do I start a conversation? What do I say? What will we talk about? Dayspring has an amazing tool to help! The Conversation Start Jar is full 60 different questions to get your conversations moving. Some of the sample questions are: Extra $200 a day, or extra 2 hours a day? or What was your very first job? Not only do I plan to use the Conversation Start Jar with friends, but I am excited to utilize this tool in my women's Bible study group and at home with my kids.

Never Unfriended launches today so pick up your copy!

Dayspring is offering a special introductory offer April 5th-9th to get Never Unfriended for only $11.99 and get free shipping on both Never Unfriended and the Conversation Start Jar when you use the code FREESHIP.

Two Are Better {Part 2}

Yesterday we discussed how we need to turn to our sisters in Christ when we are facing hard times. We were not meant to do this life alone. We need each other.

Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up. Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

Ecclesiastes 4:9-12

As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.

Proverbs 27:17

On the flip side of that, our sisters in Christ will also face hard times. But will we know it?

Are you aware when your sister in Christ is hurting? When she is sinking into a pit of depression? It is so easy to get wrapped up in our own world. Worrying about our own schedules, our own homes, our own problems, that we may not even see someone we love who is hurting.

Keep your eyes, ears and hearts open to the hurt around you. Be aware of the signs of depression. Have they become negative? Do they complain about loss of appetite or lack of sleep? Have they gone through a major life change? Are they suddenly short tempered? 

First and foremost, pray for them. Ask God to be with them and touch them. Then go to your friend and genuinely be there. Talk to them, speak life over them, pray with them, just be there for them.

Let's not go through life so closed off in our own life that we forget to see the hurts of others.

Linking With:
Woman to Woman's Word Filled Wednesday

Two Are Better {Part 1}

When word splashed across my Facebook newsfeed announcing the death of actor Robin Williams, I was stunned. Such a great actor gone so early. It broke my heart. Almost immediately arguments began over the topic of depression and suicide.

I am not here to debate whether or not depression is a real disease. And I am not here to debate whether or not suicide is selfish.

I am here to say, we need each other.

Friends, we need each other. God's Word tells us that two are better than one and that we sharpen each other. That alone tells us that God did not want us to do this life alone.

Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up. Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

Ecclesiastes 4:9-12

As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.

Proverbs 27:17

We will all face depression at some point in life. Why? Because we are humans living in a fallen and evil world. At some point depression will seep in. In those times we need to turn to God, then we need to turn to our sisters in Christ.

Go to your sisters in Christ, be transparent with them, cry on their shoulder, seek their wisdom, let them pray with you, let them help you. Do not do it alone! Going at it alone is not how God intended and will only lead to destruction. Go to your sisters.

Are you facing a hard time? Do you have a close friend in Christ that you can turn to in hard times? Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments.

Linking With:
Woman to Woman's Word Filled Wednesday
Winsome Wednesday
Wise Woman

Friendship: A Gift

As I've shared before, I am a quiet person. I enjoy being around people, but have a hard time making conversation. And I am perfectly content to be in my own home with my own family. But over the past five years, I've realized how important friendships are. God didn't mean for us to do life alone.

We need each other. For some, making friends is easy. For others, like me, it is not so easy. Whichever category you fall under, we still need to work on our friendships. Just as a flower needs water, sun and good soil to blossom, a friendship need attention and work too.

Ashley Ferris says in her devotional, Friendship - Four Week Mini Bible Study, "Earthly friendships are meant to put flesh and bone to the relational attributes of God." Friendships are so important that God put it in the Bible.

Two are better than one,

because they have a good reward for their labor.

For if they fall, one will lift up his companion.

But woe to him who is alone when he falls,

for he has no one to help him up.

Ecclesiastes 4:9-10

Those you call your close friends, are you investing into the relationship? Are you intentional about praying for them? Friendship is a beautiful thing. But we cannot sit back and expect it to grow on it's own.

Friendship - Four Week Mini Bible Study is a great resource that every woman needs to read. Author, Ashley Ferris, gives beautiful encouragement in growing friendships. Each week has an inspiring devotional, memory verse, prayer and discussion questions. Each day has an activity. Great for individual study or a group study. I highly encourage you to check out Friendship - Four Week Mini Bible Study.