Simply Tuesday

Discovering Our Tuesday Home (and a giveaway!)

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Are you excited to begin our Simply Tuesday hustle-free book club? I know we are, and we’re SO looking forward to connecting with you in some new ways this time! Whether you’re joining us on your own or with a group of friends, we are officially scooting the furniture around and making lots of room. Kick off your shoes, grab your book, and let’s get to it!

Read

Today we’re going to be chatting with Emily about Part 1: Discovering Our Tuesday Home (chapters 1-3). If you’ve already read that section, woohoo! If you’ve just received your book and haven’t had a chance to get started, don’t worry! You can jump in at any time and join us — and hanging out with us live on Periscope is open to everyone!

Chat Live

ST Periscope announce

Be sure to follow (in)courage AND Emily on Periscope (just click the links for both names and you’ll be able to get all the info you need to download the free app if you don’t have it yet) and join us TODAY for a free live chat!

Here’s how it will work:

  • At noon EST (in)courage will go live to chat, give you an extra fun giveaway announcement, etc. When our broadcast ends you’ll jump over to watch Emily! If you’re following both of us, Periscope will tell you as soon as Emily is live!
  • At 12:05 EST Emily will go live to discuss “Discovering Our Tuesday Home” and will answer some of YOUR questions! If you have something you’d like to ask the author, simply leave your question in the comments here on this blog post.

Discuss

Q1. Emily says: “We long for home even while we have one, search for belonging even in places where we belong.” What does home look like for you right now, and how do you find benches when you feel lost?

Q2. In chapter 2, Emily mentions that: “small is my new free.” When you hear the word “small,” what do you think of? How can celebrating our smallness set us free?

Q3. Share something you highlighted as you read through — we love hearing what you’re loving!

Continue the conversation over in our Facebook group!

Giveaway

EXHIBITION

Oh, we did mention a giveaway, didn’t we? {{grin}} Well, it wouldn’t be a book club around here without a super fun gift basket full of amazing presents, right? Each of the 5 gift baskets from DaySpring will include:

To be entered to win, leave a comment on this post (email subscribers you’ll need to click through) and answer one of the discussion questions. For bonus entries, share this post on social media & then comment to let us know where you shared! We’ll announce winners on Thursday — good luck! open to US mailing addresses only

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Helpful Links

We’ll see you here Thursday, where you’ll be able to watch the replay of today’s live chat with Emily! Happy Tuesday, friends!

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Crystal Stine
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Crystal is passionate about cultivating a community where faith, fitness, and friendship come together. Author of “Creative Basics: 30 Days to Awesome Social Media Art,” Crystal is a writer, speaker, host of the Write 31 Days challenge, and coach who shares encouragement at her blog, crystalstine.me. Connect with her on...

(in)side DaySpring: things we love
& you will too!
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(in)side DaySpring:
things we love
& you will too!
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Comments

  1. In regards to smallness and freedom, I find it so freeing to remember how small, insignificant, and fleeting my life is in respect to God and eternity. Whether I’m worried about starting something new or letting go of something old, being small gives me courage. Will this matter in 50 years? 100 years? In eternity?

  2. Thank you for all of your encouraging words. I look forward to your emails everyday. “Let’s all be Brave “

  3. I absolutely love the reminder that home is right where we are. So many times we give in to the obsession of building bigger and better things and we forget to enjoy what we have, when we have it and where we have it. Chapters One through Three are beautiful. They remind us to live in the here and now. Blessed by Emily’s words. I <3 Simply Tuesday.

  4. Q2 when I think of smallness and freedom, I think of the sunset. I love sunsets. When I’m traveling and away from home, a sunset reminds me that somewhere, the sun is coming up and that my “end” is someone else’s beginning. I feel a connection that makes my world smaller. I feel freedom in knowing that God is in control our days. He is faithful and gives us new mercies with each sunrise and sunset.

  5. I am on vacation right now and sitting and looking at the ocean reminds me of my smallness. I watch the waves and wonder where they’ve been, what lands that water has touched, what other people have enjoyed it. And I marvel that my God sees me, knows me and loves me.
    Looking forward to this study!

  6. Home for me is two places right now, and I think it will be that way for the rest of my life. It is the place my husband and I live, but it also the place we go to several times a year to be with our families.

  7. I am on my way home after a lovely vacation . thank you for opportunity to win your book.

  8. Home is where my hubby and I do life together. I agree that I long for my Heavenly home. Have been thinking about that more lately with the world situations and my aging dad on hospice!!

    For me small means not having a ton of stuff. I love “smallness” of life. It frees me to think of eternity and enjoy the simple pleasure God has placed in front of me!

    Blessings 🙂

  11. Home looks like my boys…going for walks on a nice evening, cuddling up and watching a new Pixar movie, just being together. Thanks for the reminder:)

  12. Home is more of a feeling for me, when you stop and let yourself feel the peace pouring in. Some days are harder than others.

  13. When I think of small, I think of cozy, welcoming, adequate…something I try to remember when we host people here in our small duplex, which I like to refer to as “our nest”. 🙂

  15. I’m listening to the book via Amazon. I would love to have the actual book! Thank you for the opportunity!

  17. I would love to be one of the winners of this basket then I could join you in the book club.

  18. Before reading Emily’s book, small to me meant insignificant. I love the reminder that standing next to the ocean also makes us feel small. It’s a good reminder that we are small but we serve a big, big God and he is the one in control.

  20. I have loved the first 3 chapters!

    Page 47 was one that really stood out to me.
    I often forget that I need to fight for moments that seem insignificant or small.

    “What gives moments meaning is not the moments themselves but the presence of Christ with us in the midst of them.”

    Homework in the afternoons, sitting in car lines, rushing out the door to work/school in the morning, packing lunches, bedtime routines, dinner fixing, table clearing…all of it has purpose and meaning. I can’t forget that I am responsible for reflecting Jesus in them all. And that He is responsible for everything else–the outcomes, the plan, the everything.

    Thank you for your words of truth and love!

  21. I haven’t read the book yet but to me home is not just a place but a feeling of peace, happiness, and contentment. Thank you for an opportunity to win the basket.

  22. So excited about today!! Been enjoying the 1st 2 chapters and have been impacted already. Two quotes that resonated deeply with me are: “learning to live well in ordinary time isn’t a call to elevate moments; it’s a call to draw close to Christ.” (P.47) and “…it’s good to consider that home is a Person we bring with us rather than a destination we trying to find.” (P.62). I am breathing freely and easier with the reminder that He is my home and gives me my purpose. Happy Tuesday!

  23. I haven’t gotten my book yet but really want to participate and would love to win.

  24. For me small means I don’t have to worry about things that I would have the tendency to worry about! That make sense?

  26. It helps me to remember how small I am and how big God is. Often things seem overwhelming until I can get some perspective on how God views them or how He can use my problem to bring glory to Himself.

  27. Home is where I can be myself. I can look to the clouds and know God is looking down on me. I love the birds chirping, freshly cut grass and the quietness to be alone with my God.

  28. We just had a women’s gathering at our church and ‘Simply Tuesday’ was recommended as we were also on the subject of Sabbath and slowing down. Then Bloom Club has this book study! I had already ordered the book so if I win I can pass it on to someone else! Looking forward to this it has been awhile since I have participated.

  29. Q1. Emily says: “We long for home even while we have one, search for belonging even in places where we belong.” What does home look like for you right now, and how do you find benches when you feel lost?
    Home for me right now looks like my church, The City Church, and more importantly my City Group. I look forward to every Thursday when I get to see my family and hear how their week has been and what joy and heartache lies in their soul. This is my HOME and family.
    My benches are my blood family. I know that at any point when I need to rest my soul that my Mom and Sister are just a phone call away, and if I need some deep insight my Dad is truly insightful through email.

    • This is my statement above (I forgot to log in). And I shared this post via Facebook as well!

  30. I’m bummed!! Would so love to join in with these Book Club discussions! But I work on Tuesdays! Led a small group of women in studying A Million Little Ways!! Refer to it often now with others who aren’t in the Group. Also, encourage some of my therapy clients to read it!! Powerful stuff, Emily, that you bring to the Table!! Thank you!! Thank you ~ for your seeking & obedient heart!! Know these books come to us with joy, but also with sacrifice!! You are one of God’s jewels!!

  32. I find benches when I feel lost by digging deeper into God’s Word and reminding myself of His promises. I also find benches in community. Praying together with my husband and friends and talking with them helps bring me back to all of life’s goodness around me.

  33. Love this book club. Home for me is evolving. It looks very different from what it looked like a year ago. I am intentionally having to find the silver lining and concentrate on the small things that truly are the big things. I am learning that even when things don’t go as I wanted or planned, there is still good to be found and lessons to be learned and in the end, it WILL all work out for my good. But I don’t want to just look forward to the end – I want desperately to enjoy and make a difference in the current state. Thanks for your encouragement!

  34. When I think of small, I think of how big and wonderful God is…I may be small but I am a part of something so much bigger!

  35. I look forward to my Tuesday home and Simply Tuesday e-mail. it’s a blessing to see women that are not afraid to let the world know that they love our Lord.

  36. Right now how is where ever I lay my head. We have been in the process of building a home and my husband has been very sick with a mystery illness for the past 9 weeks and so we have our plans on hold until he gets better. We are living in a small apartment and have been for the past month, but I have to trust that God is in control no matter what the situation is or how bad the outcome looks.

    • Dear Kate, I do not know what the illness your husband is facing is… but I too had a mystery illness and recently found some answers. I have Addison’s Disease. It is rare and may not be the answer for your husband. It begins as adrenaline fatigue or adrenaline burnout. The symptoms are varied and few doctors know much about it despite the fact that it has been of medical knowledge since the late 1800’s. The reason is that there is no “cure” per se. If you want to know more, go to my facebook page and ask to be a “friend” or leave me a message and I will give you more details. It took me years to get a diagnosis and when I was reading the posts I just felt led to share this when you said “mystery illness”. I will pray for you and your husband.

  37. When I hear the word small, I now think of being free from the things in life that can weigh us down. I think of the little glories of life and how I can soak them up!
    2 things I’ve loved about the beginning of the book:

    “Celebrate your smallness.” I wanted to see the big picture of my life and instead he told me to be small- not only to be small, but also to celebrate it.

    What if the small moments are the very portal into experiencing the kingdom of God? I believe they are- and if we miss them, we miss everything.

    Emily is just giving us the good stuff, the words are just sinking into my soul and making it a more comfortable place.

  40. Q1. Home is where my people are. My bench is usually sitting around the island in my kitchen with friends who stop by or with my man. We dig deep and laugh plenty over chips and salsa. .

    Q2. Small makes me think of a child — reaching up to Daddy. Right now, the Dunbars are going through a lot. Our circle has gotten smaller, and we are finding that God is with us in the quiet as we reach up and say “we need you to carry us.” — I think letting go and surrendering our messy lives to the Lord helps us to walk with joy and peace, rather than worry and fear.

    Q3. “It’s easier to celebrate in the beautiful small, but often it is in the terrible, the unexpected, and the uncomfortable small where we grow closer to Christ, share in His suffering, and ultimately find out true home” (p. 54).

    I am sharing on Twitter and Facebook.

  43. Looking forward to joining the Simply Tuesday discussions. I left a message on Crystal’s explanation of Periscope but will ask it here. Will I receive the fullness of the bookclub chats on Facebook? Thank you!

  44. So excited about this new book. It is on my wish list, so I would love to win the basket. Hard to focus on God sometimes when we “feel small” and are worrying about finances and illness. But you bring up the hard questions that will give us the best answers… God is a BIG GOD ! And right now I do not feel like I truly have a “home” and I do feel lost and would love for a bench or a spot on the sand (as I live near the shore) and a friend to talk about all of this with. So I am looking forward to hearing what you all have to say. Whoever wins the basket will be immeasurably blessed.

  45. Right now home is wherever my husband and kids are. The glorious benefit of my husband working from “home” and my kids “home”schooled is that we can do it wherever we want!

  47. I think small can be the little accomplishments or successes that lead to greater feats. It’s the combination of small that leads to a big impact.

  48. Home is where my husband is and wherever the rest of my family may gather. My mom is my “bench” when I feel lost. We sit and share our hearts and always come away feeling stronger.

  50. Q1. Home is an empty nest now. I’m working on having it be full but also a place for rest for travelers and anyone who wants to just hang out. I have a spot on my couch and a chair outside that I go to for my bench.

  51. Home is a very special place that separates us from the happenings of this world. What a great gift basket that would be to help lift one’s spirits.

  52. Visited your Pinterest Board… found lots of cool stuff there ! Also went to your Facebook page !

  53. When I hear the word “small,” I think “insignificant” or “of little value.” However, Emily frames “small” in a new way. Celebrating our smallness can set us free by allowing us simply to be who we are and leave the results up to God. We focus on what is in front of us; God is in charge of what happens beyond that.

  54. I would LOVE the change to win this giveaway! In chapter 2, Emily mentions that: “small is my new free.” When you hear the word “small,” what do you think of? How can celebrating our smallness set us free? I think often I don’t truly see “small” I just see event. I don’t think through little things as blessings I just move past them in a hurry to get to the next thing. The essence of “small” to me is slowing down and focusing on each moment, whether I think it is important in that moment or not. What a blessing it is to appreciate life all the time not just in the “big moments”

  56. “Home” has been missing in my heart for years as I’ve been living far from my family in another country. Home now is choosing to have peace about where God has placed me… Regardless of whether I feel like I belong or whether it feels like home.

  57. Learning to appreciate every moment as a gift. This is a new part of my walk with God. Learning to see through a new pair of eyes-His. Learning to hear through a new pair of ears-His. As I have had difficulty seeing God in the small things(so I thought) of life, excited to find that God is in it all, with me in it all…….. My home has been a very difficult challenge for me due to changes in my husband. But this has caused me to seek the Lord to answer and see it His way. New freedom!!! Looking forward to finding more freedom from this book in everyday life. Thank you!

  59. I moved internationally and home feels like missing family and friends, and ease of even finding my way places. Thankfully, I do have a few people who feel like “home” to me in my new location. It’s coming together.

  60. Love this book and so encouraged to just be and to embrace the small and to draw closer to God!!

  61. I love using technology for good and seeing & hearing both Crystal and Emily just now was good! So excited to hear what others are experiencing as they enter into reading Simply Tuesday. Looking forward to sitting on the bench with you.

  62. Oh my goodness! So much of my book is underlined and highlighted. Love the line, “I’m exploring what it looks like to release my obsession with building a life and embrace the life Christ is building in me, one small Tuesday at a time.” This kind of encompasses all my other highlighted parts. This book has been such a blessing! I will be sharing this post on Facebook as well as my small group’s page (We’re reading It’s Simply Tuesday!).

  63. when I hear ‘small’ I probably first think of the worlds definition…’retraining’ my thinking is a daily thing. one I can’t do without Jesus. small, when seen through the lens of the gospel? definitely to be celebrated – as we do seemingly small things with great love (Mother Teresa, I believe?). I’m so appreciative of this book, Emily’s time on these Tuesdays and the reminders and insights that God is using me just exactly where I am.

  65. So I guess the full replay won’t be available until Thursday? Periscope made it look like I could watch it now, but then it suddenly ended in the middle of a story. 🙁

  66. I don’t have the book yet but I love the idea of small being freeing. As I remember that God is so much bigger than me, I don’t have to be in control or try to do things on my own. He will help me in ways bigger and more powerful than I could even imagine.

  67. After just finishing chapter 1, every time the word small appeared into my heart came the word “humility.” In all things we are to humble ourselves before the Christ in us. This has not been an easy process for me, in fact, just the opposite, but it is growing in strength.

  68. Sometimes the issues in my life seem SO BIG. They fill every available space of my mind and heart. But I am reminded of not only how small I am but more importantly how small those issues are when I walk the dogs in the morning and look up and see the vast open HUGENESS of the sky. If God is big enough to have all that covered and to count not only every star in the sky but every hair on my head he’s got all those (un)big problems that occupy my mind under control too. Remembering that helps me keep things in perspective. God loves me and the small part of His creation that I occupy.

  69. Remembering my smallness helps me to stay connected with my sense of awe and wonder, and thus to stay conscious that God is the Source, and God is all-encompassing. The easiest way to reconnect with my smallness is to look at the stars, or to sit on the seashore watching the waves.

  70. My home is with my sweet family: my husband, son, and daughter. I am homebound, so my life revolves around my home in every way. On most days the only people I see are my immediate family. I have a friend who comes to visit me each week, so that is a “bench” in my life. Otherwise my benches are online. I have found good friends, encouragement, and community online, and they have been such a blessing in my life.

  71. My husband and I moved to a new town/state 8 months ago, so home is definitely something I’m still figuring out. But it’s comforting to know home will always be with my husband. Most of my friends are back where I grew up, 9 hrs away so we have group texts and send each other cards to keep in touch. I’m learning home might mean texts and letters right now, and that’s ok.

  72. How good to know that we are never too small for Jesus to see us, know us, love us and care!! Thanks for the encouragement! Blessings to all! xo

  74. I’m reminded of the song by Nichole Nordeman where she sings “O Great God, be small enough to hear”…even though He is BIG and GREAT He is still small enough to hear me, small enough to be close to me. That settles me. He’s not so big to crowd me out of the room. He is small enough to be with me.

  75. I’m really enjoying and relating to this book. I am excited to here what emily and others have to contribute.

  76. Home has always been hard for me to define… I grew up in France (I’m an MK) and now I live in Michigan (by way of Indiana and Wisconsin :)). But people are home to me. My husband and children and those friends who stick with me through all the changes.

  77. Question 1: Home is love. It is open and warm. My home is family, friends, and my church. I still feel lonely at times because I spend a lot of time alone in my physical home during the day. But i am connected to a virtual home without walls.

  78. After 27 years our last child has left for college and I am “again” reframing my concept of home. For years it has been where ever my children were….even on vacations I would find myself putting wildflowers in a cup on our picnic table to make it seem like home. Now they are launched and it is just my husband and I…and it feels different but not less loving. More like waiting for them to return….but I keep thinking that it’s a lot like God waiting on me…for me to return. Me checking the inbox for an email from my college son is like God waiting to hear from me. That’s my home….my connection. To my kids, my husband and my father in heaven.

  79. I love how she’s helping re-shape the word small. When I think of small now, I think of quiet, manageable, exquisite, and graceful. Not insignificant or unworthy. Celebrating smallness means that everything is worthy. Everything lovely. Everything can be managed. It makes things (life?) feel more accessible.

  80. I’m really looking forward to reading this book! In fact, it arrived in my mailbox just today – in time for today’s blog post and discussion. I am picking it up on my way home from work and once supper and chores are done I will sit down with a cup of tea and start reading with pen in hand to underline passages and make notes as I go.

  81. Great giveaway! This book looks wonderful. In terms of where “home” is…I love to be surrounded by my awesome village of people (friends and extended family) where I am, but I also am so thankful for the nuclear family (my husband and our two blessings) that is always with me. To think that just 11 years ago, we were just barely dating and now we know each other better than anyone else. Such a special position to be in for one another (and also one that we need to take very seriously). Does that make sense? That is what “home” is to me these days…

  82. There was lots of underlining but here are two from Ch 2 that both gave me great big deep breathes when I read them: “What gives moments meaning is not the moments themselves but the presence of Christ with us in the midst of them.” and “And home is wherever I am because Christ has made his home in me.”

  83. Shared this post of Facebook!

    Q3. Share something you highlighted as you read through — we love hearing what you’re loving!

    I listened to it as a drove around for work so I didn’t get to highlight anything. I do, however, remember one significant detail that totally hooked me into reading this book. Emily said that she was going to originally go to school to be a sign language interpreter. I am a teacher for students who are deaf/hard of hearing so I immediately felt connected to her! 🙂 It encouraged me that God can use the small areas of even my world to speak into and share with the other small areas He allows me to touch on a daily basis. I also loved the picture of that bench. I imagined where it might sit in my current neighborhood or my some day future back yard.

    I am loving the book!! From one professional to people who area deaf/hard of hearing to another, I am excited to hear more from you Emily 🙂

  84. Q2. In chapter 2, Emily mentions that: “small is my new free.” When you hear the word “small,” what do you think of? How can celebrating our smallness set us free?

    My smallness sets me free when it reminds me of God’s greatness. I can only do what I can do. Then I trust God to do what only He can do.

  85. Home looks like family to me! My husband and I are thinking about relocating away from both of our families (we have been praying for several months for a job offer, however it is out of state) and I am discovering how to find these much needed “benches” when feeling lost without my idea of home.

  87. Q1. Emily says: “We long for home even while we have one, search for belonging even in places where we belong.” What does home look like for you right now, and how do you find benches when you feel lost?

    Home for me right now looks like discovering and embracing who God made me to be: my longings, desires, values, and gifts. I find benches when I feel lost by praying from the deepest part of my soul.

  88. My home looks like Starbucks. When I can’t concentrate in my actual home or just need a bench to sit in, maybe read a book, or just think, I head over to this small Starbucks branch near my home. It’s quiet enough to hear my thoughts, but with enough chatter from patrons to feel part of a community.

  89. Home looks like love….home with my kiddos, us all together, spending quality time together in our peaceful little yellow house 🙂
    Thanks for hosting such a lovely giveaway for your readers/supporters!

  90. Home for me is a house that feels too big, and a heart that feels restless. For the first time in almost twenty-one years, I have no children under my roof. They are both off at college now, and it is just my husband and myself. Home is quiet. Yet it’s not. Our house just recently acquired a new puppy, after the tragic loss of our last puppy during September, who was only 7.5 months old. Home is also a little chaotic as we go back to potty training and schedule adjustments all over again. Home is trying to navigate our way through a marriage that has entered a new season, after tenderly coming out of a long, rocky season. I don’t quite know where I belong right now, and I long for a group to come and fellowship with. I can even provide the bench.. I have three.

  92. Home to me is where I can find rest and comfort – whether in my family, other people, brothers and sisters in Christ, or just sitting by myself with God’s Word. When I feel lost, I’ll seek out reminders of who I am and what my purpose is here in verses and in heartfelt conversations with people I love.

  93. Home is my quiet place after a long day out in the work world, curled up on my couch w my cozy blanket, amidst stacks of to-be-read books. When I feel lost I need couch time at home or to find cozy bookish places (bookstores, outdoor parks, coffee shops, libraries) to connect to my thoughts.

  94. Home for me is spending time with my people and my family. My bench is taking time to just be still and take time to refresh and renew my body and soul. I’m not always so good at remembering that.

  95. How did I miss my Periscope reminder?? 🙁
    Small reminds me of how much clutter I have, and how much I could give away. Small reminds me of minimalism

  97. Home looks like rest right now. God has been calling me to rest for awhile, and I finally got the message and listened! I find a bench in friends who are just a few steps ahead in this journey, and finding comfort in knowing that we can get through anything that can come our way.

  98. Question number two. When I hear the word small I think of the phrase enjoy the small things in life. I love going for walks, looking at the every changing scenery around me. God’s work at hand. The leaves changing color, the birds chirping, the waves lapping, all of it is so big and so much to take in when you focus on it that you realize how precious this life really is. We spend so much time driving past these treasures every day that we don’t stop to see the small, and best things in life.

  99. Thank you for this book club and bringing us together to discuss. To answer #1 Home to me is family. Being in the moment and feeling the blessings of each other. So many times we are always doing and wanting more to feel accomplished or complete. We need to remind ourselves to enjoy the moment and live in what we have, what the Lord has blessed us with and know it is enough, we belong right where we are in this moment.

  100. I don’t have a book, so I can’t rightfully answer the questions, but right now home is not a stable place. I’m at a point in life where I feel very lost and confused. Part of me would like to be “settled” somewhere with a “normal” life, but there’s a deep calling in me to adventure out, knowing that my fulfillment of “home” will only be found when I’m see Jesus face to face.

  101. My home right now is living at my parents house in my kid sisters room with my 3 and 2 year old daughters after having to leave our home for safety reasons. I feel it’s in not being able to care for my girls like I want to, but I realize that my identity is not truly in being a mom; it is at the foot of the cross with Jesus.

  102. I find myself living a lot in the past and worrying about my future…or at least the future for my children. I spend so much time planning and prepping with the hopes of having time later to spend with my children, to make friends, to write that book. I need to feel satisfied with the NOW, and know that I don’t have to do anything to get to Christ. I don’t have to be perfect to earn his presence. He is already here. And I really like how Emily encourages us to invite Him even though He’s already there!

  103. This discussion promises to be filled with encouragment and hope for those of us who love to be in our homes and want others to join us there, for us and for them!!

  105. So looking forward to reading and savoring Emily’s words, knowing living simply doesn’t mean living small!

  106. Q1. Emily says: “We long for home even while we have one, search
    for belonging even in places where we belong.” What does home look like
    for you right now, and how do you find benches when you feel lost?

    We live overseas and our physical home has changed 11 times in the past
    9 years, we even moved again three weeks ago to a new house in the same
    city (not by choice!). We’ve left our home culture and entered in to a
    new one, and that has its challenges, one of them being that sometimes
    we feel like wanderers without a home.

    I often grumble and
    complain about this, wanting to be back “home” where people know me, or
    settled in a “home” where I’ll be able to stay longer than a year. What I
    have learned over the past few years of nomad living though is that
    when I am always longing for the “what could be’s” and the “what has
    been’s” then I miss out on an opportunity for people to know me and for
    me to learn from the here and now. My longing for the past or for
    something in the future adds to my feeling of unsettled-ness because I’m
    not being content with where I am now and not giving myself the chance
    to be home there.

    I know that God, in his mercy, is teaching me
    in a real way that this world is not my home. And on most days I am
    thankful for that. smile emoticon

    Home and a good bench for me is being able to have a routine where my
    mornings are cleared up to spend some time with the Lord in His word. He
    is home, and He is constant.

  107. I think living “smaller” or with less frees up your mind to focus on God’s bigger picture. Living smaller means not competing to see who has the best house or car or material things. Living small sets you free from being held down by trying to have the next best thing. It helps you live freer in contentment.

  109. Q1. I’ve been really struggling lately with looking ahead to the “next thing” instead of enjoying being right where I am. I want to move out of the city to a country home soon, I want both of my kids to be in school full time so I have time to myself (major introvert here), I want the flea infestation to be gone from my house… It’s so hard for me to just be content.

    I feel like this is a topic that God is really laying on my heart this year — in MOPS we’re discovering how we can “fiercely flourish” right where we’re planted. I hope to learn how I can celebrate lavishly, embrace rest, and notice goodness — in the here and now, not the future.

    I don’t have a bench. I need to find one…

  110. In answer to question two, smallness and freedom exist at my daughter’s grave. I sit beside my daughter I never met, look off at the mountains in the distance, and I’m reminded of the small within me. The moment lasts for a few minutes but this is where I find my peace and talk to God. This is also my home. I’m complete when I am sitting at her grave while reading a book to all of my children, earthside and in Heaven.

  111. “We long for home even while we have one, search for belonging even in places where we belong.” What does home look like for you right now, and how do you find benches when you feel lost? Home for me right now is connecting with God and my three sons. Recently divorced after a 20 year marriage, never feeling like I belonged ANYWHERE (we were military) and never being settled in a “home” for more than 3 years…..I never felt “HOME”. Still don’t. I’m a travel nurse. Always felt, and still do, feel like the outsider. Oh how this book hit home, explaining how you always feel like you have to be the best, exceptional in the eyes of God….Am I good enough for God, have I done enough, did I do things right, have I done enough. I missed out on so many chances to do things right with my boys….always looking ahead, when this would happen, when the next milestone would be met. I long to be small….to be quiet…to enjoy the restful times. I don’t need fame, fortune, material things. I just want to be a part of my family and God’s family. My benches when I feel lost…..I pray, I call my BFF and cry, vent, and pray some more. I think I am really going to enjoy this study. I’ve already gained so much in just 3 chapters!!

  112. Q2- I think of vulnerable and helpless when I think of small. That is terrifying and dangerous feeling to me, but I think it’s actually the thing I need most…to be vulnerable before God and let Him do what I’m helpless to do. I’m so glad to have that concept redeemed. I am loving this book so much!

  113. I shared on Facebook! I’m completely in love with that gold journal. If I don’t win it, I’m going to have to buy one!

  114. “Home” for me right now is the house in which I grew up. It is only a temporary home and I long for a place that I can truly make “my home” until God calls me me to His heavenly home. When I feel lost, I curl up in my comfortable chair with my Bible, several devotional calendars, and as many books by Christian authors as I can pile around me to read. I play Christian music and light candles and try to absorb the wonder of belonging to the family of God. I remember that I am never truly lost because God is always with me.

  115. What does home look like for you right now, and how do you find benches when you feel lost?
    Home is my husband and sweet girls spending fun time together; working from home and two homeschool days per week; studying the Bible and seeking to grow in spiritual maturity (the process is way slower than I would like) : ); and trying to live with intention. When I feel lost, I reach for my prayer journal and encouraging books and get my mind settled.
    I posted this link on Twitter and Facebook!

  116. Q1: Home for me is in my tiny little town with my husband and daughters. Life here is slow and I love it that way. When I’m feeling lost I pick a quiet room in the house and dive into my bible reading scripture pertaining to whatever may have me feeling troubled. I find God’s word very secure -kinda of like my security blanket.

    Q2: When I hear “small” I think of my daughters. They are little girls but everyday they remind me of God’s grace and how coming to God like a child make a HUGE difference in our relationship with him.

    Q3 “Discovery of God lies in the daily and the ordinary, not in the spectacular and heroic.”
    This touched me because under the piles of dirty dishes and laundry sometimes I feel as though I’m not serving God to the fullest. Statements like the one above remind me that serving my family is indeed serving God. Jesus had a servant’s heart therefore me striving to have a servant’s heart does glorify God.

  117. Love the stuff in the giveaway! I also have enjoyed the sample I read of the book through Kindle as I haven’t received my book yet.

  120. Home is where my people are. I finally get this. After moving many times it no longer is a place but a space shared with my people.

  121. Home right now is being with the people who love me and fill me up. It’s being with my best friends in nursing school, hanging out with my boyfriend, and being lazy in the living room with my family. The benches I find when I feel lost are the things that remind me of the people I love and who love me. And of course God is always my home and my bench. He’s where I feel the most love and the most belonging. He holds me when I’m too tired and lost to go on, and He helps me find my way back home.

  122. right now I feel relationally “lost” at times because as I reach out to different groups of women in my community, I can feel “alone”…in that none of these friendships have a natural connecting point. living in a small town where people are established with “best friends” sometimes I can feel sad about this longing. but i’m trying to remember the exhortation to build these benches of community pockets and to trust God to fill my needs when the longings deepen…and that seeking to live outward focused will yield fruit at the right time. thank you!

  123. I am tired of hustle and bustle of life! It has been hard for 1.5+ years between work changing and getting super busy with longer hours and my aging dad’s many illnesses. I desperately needed spiritual whitespace. I was on the proverbial “hamster” wheel and needed off!! Now I can take the needed time and be there more for my dad–he’s on hospice! It is such a relief and blessing from God!!

  124. We all have a need to belong and being reminded that home is right where we are is right on point. I am so glad that our home begins and ends with God. Be blessed.

  125. Have this book on my list but budget is tight this month so haven’t been able to join in the fun. Really hoping to win!

  127. When I look at the night sky on a clear evening, I realize how small I am! Yet like the stars that God has named, he knows my name as well as everyone else’s. That makes me feel very significant!

  128. Crystal,
    This sounds like a good book! So many great writers among our (in)Courage women! I am proud of each one that got a book published!!