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After checking in at the registration desk I sat down, folded my hands in my lap and waited quietly for the numbers on the clock to read 3:15 p.m. The moment I would give my first-ever book pitch to a publisher at the She Speaks 2016 Conference. The moment I’d have to talk about a project I’d been working on for the past three years in a span of 15 minutes. The moment I’d been looking forward to for nearly a year and a half.

Once settled in my chair I felt a wave of nerves begin to wash over me. I begged them to go away and leave me alone. But with each passing minute they grew a little stronger. Lord, I need you to step in here. I prayed. My only goal is to communicate this book and the passion you’ve put in my heart clearly. Please remind me I have nothing to fear.

Seconds later the elevator door opened and Lysa Terkeurst stepped out to check in with her daughter, who was managing the check-in table right beside me. (Let me stop right here and point out — for those of you who don’t know — that Lysa is not only the president of Proverbs 31 Ministries, the organization that puts the conference on, but she’s also a New York Times best-selling author and all-around amazing woman.)

“Hi, I’m Lysa,” she said as she turned and extend her hand to shake mine.

“Hi, I’m Lauren,” I smiled, and she wished me good luck.

As if meeting Lysa wasn’t enough to take my mind off my silly nerves, her friend Colette walked over to say hello too.

“So what’s your book about?” Colette asked.

I shared a condensed version of my pitch with her and her eyes lit up. We’d only met just minutes ago but in that moment Colette asked if she could pray over me and the appointment. I don’t remember her exact words, but in my heart of hearts I know this:

God used Colette’s prayer as a blanket of peace to cover me in my moment of need.

And you want to know something, sisters? I nailed my pitch. Without a single touch of anxiety. Not because I’m a great pitch giver, but because God showed up. And when God shows up, the impossible becomes possible.

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When you think about your favorite childhood movie, what comes to mind? If you’re like me chances are it’s hard to pick just one — maybe you have a few that tie for first place.

I was almost a teenager when Finding Nemo came out back in 2003, and I can easily say it’s one of my all-time favorites. I loved it so much, in fact, that at one point I had almost the entire movie memorized. (My sister can attest to this, since the poor girl had to deal with me quoting it line-by-line every time we watched it.)  So you can imagine when I heard about Finding Dory I was beyond excited.

Sequels are great because they give you an excuse to watch a movie you’ve already seen 20 times just one more time. And two weeks ago, that’s exactly what I did. The wonderful thing about Finding Nemo is even though it came out 13 years ago, the storyline is still incredibly inspiring and entertaining. Why? Because the movie is full of courageous characters who, no matter what danger or obstacle they face, keep their eyes fixed on what’s most important.

Courage is encouraging and inspiring.

There are 3.7 trillion fish in the ocean and Marlin and Dory left everything they had to swim across the ocean looking for one. Never mind the fact that their journey would put them in contact with sharks, jellyfish and millions of other predator fish. Even when all hope seemed lost they just kept swimming.

The story of Marlin, Dory and Nemo reminds me of another story of courage — a true story that happened 2016 years ago at a place called Calvary, where a man name Jesus courageously suffered, bled and died for you and me. When we talk about courage in the Bible we often talk about David and Goliath, Peter and John, or Elijah and Deborah. But the courage of Jesus? In my mind there is no greater story.

You know what I love most about the story of what happened at Calvary? It’s about the source of courage showing us what true courage looks like. The courage of Jesus encourages us to stand strong in the face of fear, danger, pain or grief. But it also reminds us that courage cannot exist without faith and trust. Jesus had faith and trusted in his Father’s plan, and that faith gave him the courage he needed to face even death on a cross.

God is the source of our courage. And when we trust and have faith in Him, He is sure to help us stand strong against anything that comes our way.

When we watch it play out on the big screen, courage doesn’t seem like too difficult of a thing to do. But if we’re honest, in the real world it can be a struggle — especially if we try to muster up courage by our own strength.

Two days from now I will be at the She Speaks Conference in North Carolina with 800 of my fellow sisters and writers in Christ. Two days from now I will have the chance to pitch the book I’ve been working on for the last three years to a handful of publishers. And while I’m certainly excited about this cross-country adventure, I know it’s going to take a lot of courage for me to walk into a room and present my book to someone I’ve never met before. I also know I cannot come up with this courage on my own. I need God’s help. That’s why for the last week I’ve been praying this prayer of courage, and I want to share it with all of you today in the hope that this prayer might help you cultivate a heart of courage, too.

Jesus I am overwhelmed by the courage you showed during your time here on Earth. It inspires me to want to be courageous too, but I know I can’t do that without you. Lord help me trust in you completely, even when fear threatens to weaken my faith. You are greater and you are stronger than anything I will ever face. So when the time comes for me to be brave, help me remember you are always with me. Give me a courageous heart — a heart that does the right thing even if it’s afraid. A heart that walks boldly with confidence into whatever you call me to do.

 

To most people July 10 is just another ordinary summer day. But to me it’s a very special day, because July 10 also happens to be my birthday.

I don’t know how it works in your family, but birthdays are a big deal on my mom’s side of the family. Not only did your birthday mean you got to choose the meal for Sunday dinner at gramma’s — it also meant you got to choose your favorite kind of cake to eat. It meant that people would shower you with love and presents all day long; It meant almost 20 people singing “Happy Birthday” to you; It meant a day totally dedicated to you.

Since my birthday is in the summer, July 10 also meant boat rides around the lake my grandparents live on. These traditions made birthdays anything but ordinary, and I felt completely loved, cherished and cared for.

Then … I grew up. Mr. MLS and I moved away. The hoopla of the magical year 21 came and went. And somewhere along the way it began to feel like my birthday was just another day. Just when I think it couldn’t get any more lackluster, this year happened.

My sweet parents were kind enough to drive to Iowa to celebrate with me in person. We were having a great time together, until Sunday rolled around. Have you ever had a day where one thing after another goes wrong? And eventually, after awhile you just start laughing at how bad the day is? Yeah. That was my birthday this year. I don’t need to go into details but I will tell you this: I’m thankful I had a sucky birthday. Why?

Because it taught me that birthdays are not about receiving attention and having everything go your way.

Nowhere in the Bible does it say everything will be perfect on our birthday. Nowhere are we told that it will be a sunny day with rainbows and butterflies and a perfectly made cake. Nowhere are we told that we will get every present we hoped for. But you know what we are told and what we are given? We are told that because of our birth, we have been given not only the free gift of life here on Earth, but also — for those who believe — the free gift of eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord {Romans 6:23}.Read More

Silent whispers spread like wildfire around the room as my high school English teacher handed out a list of the capstone requirements for our senior class.

One of the assignments: Memorize John F. Kennedy’s Inaugural Address.

“Wait a minute … you want us to memorize what?” a classmate asked in disbelief. “Do you realize it’s 27 paragraphs?”

The teacher nodded and I felt worry lines form quickly across my forehead. I’ve never been good at memorizing things. In Sunday school I had a 50 percent success rate when it came to remembering the weekly scripture. There’s no way I have the time or talent to memorize this. I thought to myself. I’m just not a memorizer. Ugh. What’s the point anyways?

It strikes me that how I felt about an assignment as a senior in high school is how many of us feel about scripture memorization as grown women.

We tell ourselves we don’t have time. We tell ourselves we aren’t any good at it. We tell ourselves it’s just for kids. We tell ourselves it’s not worth it. But those are all just lies the enemy wants us to believe. Here’s the truth — You and I are both capable of memorizing scripture.

Because I was motivated to get an A in my English class, I worked hard to memorize JFK’s address and eventually accomplished the goal. I use this story as an illustration to encourage you: If a girl who’d never had a good memorization track record was able to memorize JFK’s entire inaugural address, I promise you that bible memorization is within your reach.

Memorizing is not a matter of skill — it’s a matter of motivation.

So why memorize scripture?

When we memorize something, it becomes a part of us. It has the power to transform our thoughts.It can strengthen and comfort us in our time of need.

It’s been more than six years since I memorized JFK’s address, but there are still parts and pieces that come to mind and inspire me every now and then. Although it seemed like a silly high school assignment at first, ultimately, it was the catalyst I needed to see the benefits and effects of memorization.

Once I recited the address to my teacher, I began to take scripture memorization more seriously. I worked diligently to commit the word of God to memory just as I had committed the address to memory for a school assignment. Not because I felt like I had to, but because I wanted the scripture to become a part of me. I wanted to be able to recall the Word of God whenever I needed to.

The most wonderful thing about all of this? The more I meditated on God’s word, the more I was able to claim His truths; The stronger my faith became; The more prepared I was to deal with anything that came my way; The more I appreciated the beauty of God’s story; The more I wondered at the love of our Creator.

God doesn’t just want His children to open up their Bibles on Sunday. He wants His children to be filled with His word each and every day — and He wants to use His Word to transform us from the inside out.

If you are interested in memorizing scripture, here are the top 10 verses that have transformed my walk with the Lord:

1. And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28

Life is unpredictable and it can get really messy, really quick. Whenever the rug feels like it’s been pulled out from under my feet, I reference this verse to remind myself that God’s working all things together for my good.

2. He has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time. 2 Timothy 1:9

Every day brings along with it a deep longing for purpose and meaning. We all want to know our life has value. But we don’t have to strive for it; We just have to follow after our Father. God has showered us with grace and saved us through His Son Jesus, and He calls us to live holy lives for His glory — not our own fame.

3. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Galatians 5:22-23

Anytime you experience anger, bitterness, judgment, hatred, jealousy or any kind of dirty-rotten feeling, it’s time to do a gut check. Where’s your heart? Are you bearing fruit or growing thorns?Read More