Fear and Death in the same phrase is like a double-whammy isn’t it?!

That’s what I thought when Jess and Angie invited me to be a part of the Bloom Book Club discussions.  Me, contribute to a discussion on the fear of death?  Yikes!

But we did indeed have some great discussion, mostly because Angie has written such a powerful book on the subject of fear,What Women Fear: Walking in Faith that Transforms

Hop on over and join us for the discussion.  If you haven’t been following along, you can go back and catch up on the previous chapters.

Fear is really one of those things that completely holds us back from being all that God has created us to be.  If you wrestle with fear in any way, this book is a great place to begin replacing that fear with faith!

My Fabulous Friday is filled with packing, painting, cleaning, more painting and more packing.  Oh and probably a run to get more boxes and packing supplies.  Moving is a great reminder of how much crap you collect.  PURGE people, PURGE!  It’s good for the soul.

I have a few opportunities to post around the blog-o-sphere this week.  If you’re bored, you can check these out:

• Talking about “What’s Next” at the Willow Creek Association blog
• Having some more conversation about the dangers of “Hitting the Wall” at the Gifted for Leadership blog

And to top off our Fabulous Friday, it’s a book-giveaway day!

I’ve got 5 copies of the new release The Guardian

A young woman thrust into a world of power and corruption…
The sold-out follower of Christ who vows to defend her…
And the scroll that links them both together…

Anna Riley has just stumbled across a family secret–her ancestors have been keepers of an ancient scroll that God gave to John the Disciple.  And now it’s hers.  But Anna will soon discover that being the keeper of the Scroll comes at a price, for there are those inside the Church who would have the scroll and its secrets at any cost.  Sucked into a world of corruption and deceit, Anna is thrust into a journey that leads her half way around the world.  And the only person she can trust is a stranger named Jason Lang who, she’s told, was appointed by God to help her with the task.

As Anna and Jason race against the clock, Anna’s own journey of faith may very well be the thing that unlocks the scroll’s secrets.  And her decisions will determine whether the man she’s grown to love will live or die, as a mystery that’s eluded the world since the time of Adam and Eve is finally revealed.

I’m usually a little wary of Christian fiction but this book was a great read!

To win your copy, leave a comment telling us your favorite Christian fiction book.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Well you all know I’m a fan of Marcus Buckingham.  I love how he thinks, especially in regard to drawing out the best in people.  He challenges and inspires, and always makes you feel like you are wonderful – no matter what your strengths are!

I’m very excited for his new book and thought you might enjoy hearing a big more about it too.

You can get it on Amazon for a great deal right now!

Who’s your favorite author and why?

What is it costing us when half the church’s gifts go untapped?

I’ve been wrestling with this question quite a lot lately.

Conversations are stirring in the church world of our inability to engage the 21st century female.

Here are some things that I hear repeatedly:

“I don’t know where I fit in the church.”

“I feel like I don’t belong because I’m a single woman and everything the church does is for wives and mothers.”

“I don’t want to just serve in nursery or kids ministry, but I don’t know how to get involved in other ways.”

Before I came on ministry staff full-time, I used to feel this way too.  However, I remained silent thinking I was just the unusual one.   (I was pretty sure that I must have been given a male brain in a woman’s body.)

The truth is that the majority of the 20 & 30 something women in your churches feel this way.  They may be attending, but they are sitting quietly back out of respect and uncertainty.  They really wrestle with whether they fit in the church at all anymore.

Church leaders: Are we really ok with that?  Are we really ok with perpetuating half the population’s feelings of uncertainty and worth?

If you are willing to engage the discussion, I want to beg you to check out Carolyn Custis James new book, Half the Church: Recapturing God’s Global Vision for Women

Women comprise at least half the world, and usually more than half the church, but so often Christian teaching to women either fails to move beyond a discussion of roles or assumes a particular economic situation or stage of life.  This all but shuts women out from contributing to God’s kingdom as they were designed to do.  Furthermore, the plight of women in the Majority World demands a Christian response, a holistic embrace of all that God calls women and men to be in his world.

Carolyn Custis James unpacks three transformative biblical themes, showing how God gives women a new identity that frees them to embrace the life he gives.

Half the Church embodies a positive, kingdom approach to the changes, challenges, and opportunities facing women throughout the world today.

What trends do you see in how young women are being engaged in the church today?

Occasionally there are unexpected collisions in life that alter our course even if we don’t realize it at the time.

My collision with Kat Davis was less than a spectacular one (or so I thought at the time.)  We were two young twenty-something interns competing for power and influence and our chance to make our mark.  Truth be told, I think I was the one competing for all those things, Kat was just being passionate about the things she loved.  And sometimes that annoyed the crap out of me.

But it didn’t take long for Kat to win my heart.  We shared a cubicle wall, and day in and day out I would hear her pray for her customers, ask about their life, celebrate their wins and generally encourage everyone she came into contact with.  How can you not like someone like that?

Around the same time Kat began The Daily Verse as a way to inspire her friends and coworkers.  It was just a simple email with a scripture and Kat’s thoughts and insights on the passage.  Nothing flashy but always timely and profound.  Her faithfulness to this simple act of encouragement really inspired me.

Fast forward 11 years or so… Kat is one of my dearest friends.  We’re both still attempting to conquer our little corners of the world.  And recently Kat accomplished one of her biggest dreams – publishing her first book!

What began as a simple email to encourage friends turned into thousands of daily subscribers and now the first published version of The Daily Verse.

The Daily Verse is a collection of Scripture passages from the English Standard Version of the Bible, along with short, simple and real-life commentary from Kat.  I particularly love the space for personal reflection.

If you are not already a subscriber, be sure to sign up for the free, online subscription of The Daily Verse HERE.

I also encourage you to order a copy of the book at The Daily Verse website.

It’s a great gift book too! I’m getting ready to place my Christmas order (my family – pretend you didn’t read that).

Congratulations Kat!  I’m so proud of you, friend!!

I’m enjoying this great little book, Unwritten Travels, written by my friend Jenny Black.

One of the exercises in the book is to describe how you would spend an ENTIRE DAY if you could do whatever you wanted?

Here’s mine:

On a beach… in the fall

Sun is out, but temp is moderate

Walking, reading, praying

Sitting in silence

Not hurrying

Not worrying

What would your day look like?

This week flew by!

Fortunately it was a very good one.  Here are some things on my mind today:

• An important project that I’ve been working on (which happened to be one of my thorns), is officially complete today!  Holy cow, that’s a wonderful feeling.  I’m not sure how to adequately celebrate it.
• It’s been a roller coaster week for all things Cultivate Her.  Some good news, some bad news, some big dreaming and then a great event this past Wednesday with our guest speaker Tami Heim.  We’re dreaming and scheming some amazing stuff for all things women in leadership, so stay tuned.
• Our Cross Point missions teams are back home this week.  Our team in the Dominican Republic came back Tuesday and our Honduras team gets back tomorrow.  So proud of each of these teams for serving so big!  You can check out highlights from the Honduras trip HERE.
• Almost finished with Steven Furtick’s new book Sun Stand Still: What Happens When You Dare to Ask God for the Impossible.  This one is making me think and pray BIG!  It doesn’t release until Sept 21st, but you can pre-order by clicking the title.
• Gotta finish up my talk for The NINES this weekend.  Are you registered to attend?  It’s FREE!  Our entire staff is going to attend this year.
• Can’t believe July is almost over.
• I’m working on some big planning and leadership development stuff for our team for this fall.  I’m getting so excited – love people development stuff – LOVE IT!
• My thumb which I smashed during flood week is growing back really funky.  Kind of afraid it’s going to stay that way. 
• Going to the beach for a few days the end of next week with my sis.  Can’t wait!
• Walking with Ash in 30 minutes!  Love that sweet little Audrey Beth but she has messed up our weekly run/walk time.  Excited to get back to it!
• Hoping to see Inception this weekend.  Everyone is raving about it.  Have you seen it?

Find some joy in your weekend and tell us about it!

Ahhh, I love Fridays!

I actually have a full day planned today, but all things that I am looking forward to.  Here’s what’s on my mind today:

• Excited about a collaborative meeting with a few of my favorite women to brainstorm long-term plans for Cultivate Her.
• Had the privilege of talking with Greg Darley this week and learning more about Backstage Leadership.  If you are looking for an intensive, leadership development opportunity where you can connect and learn from some amazing leaders, check this program out.  They start another class this fall!
• My dog is crazy today.  C R A Z Y !  I can’t figure out what he needs… he’s pacing like a mad man!
• Just started the book Strong Women, Soft Hearts by Paula Rinehart.  Really great book that I first heard about from Jessica and Angie for Bloom Book Club.  Just read the chapter on desire and am wondering if I really know the true desires of my heart.
• Gotta register for Story today.  Only a little over 100 seats left and best rate ends today.  Are you going?
• Right now a 5 mile hot, humid run is ahead of me.
• Maybe the pool tomorrow…

Love the summer!

What’s your plan for this weekend?

I’m kind of a geek for self-discovery.  I love uncovering the layers of who God has created me to be.  I love deciphering what is authentically me and what has been shaped by my life experiences.

I love personality profiles, self-help quizzes, spiritual gifts tests and just about anything that helps me “make a careful exploration of who I am” (from my favorite verse Galatians 6:4-5).

So that’s why I’m thoroughly enjoying my newest treasure:

Unwritten Travels is a fun little book co-written by my friend Jenny Black and her friend Jenny Watson.

“The Jennys” take you on a whimsical journey of self-discovery that is fun, insightful, thought-provoking and inspiring.  I know you’ll enjoy it too.  You can check out their website Unwritten Travels and/or order Unwritten Travels here.

What’s your favorite self-discovery resource?

One of the challenges I find as a leader is sorting through all of the great resources out there for equipping yourself and your team.  There are so many GOOD books, articles, blogs, etc. that sometimes I feel like all I’m doing is reading or studying rather than applying anything that I’m learning.

I also struggle with choosing which books to study with my staff.  There are a lot of good business books out there from which you can draw some applications to church work, but is it worth having the staff read it too or should you do the homework and share the clif notes with them?

So help a girl out…

How do you clear through the clutter?

Do you have a system/process for determining what you study and/or what you study with your team?

What’s the best resource (book, blog, magazine, etc) that you’ve found this year?