The Saturday Six

One.

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It's been five years since the season that drained me of all life and made me wonder if I would ever be okay and normal again. Though I longed to know then what I know now {it really will be okay}, God granted me that season of deep pain to teach me to draw close to Him in a way I otherwise never would have experienced. Even so, in that time, there were so many around me who loved me and just wanted me to be okay. They were saddened and confused by my tears and pain and wanted to snap their fingers and fix it all in one instant. It doesn't work like that, and as this post by Kristen Welch so beautifully says...sometimes it is okay to not be okay. Truth for you or those around you today!!


Two.

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In our Sunday School class, we've been studying Gary Thomas's book/curriculum The Sacred Marriage. This past week, we talked about how struggling makes you stronger as a person, and how God sometimes uses marriage struggles to grow strength in people for other areas of their lives and vice versa. Fascinating discussion over that. This article, ALSO by Kristen Welch speaks to the very same thing...and even if you're not married, I think this is both a good pre-marriage read and just a life read. Struggles hit single people too, and they can achieve the same results even if not shared with a spouse. {And a special shout-out to Kristen, who I think now holds the title of being the first person to ever be double-featured on the Saturday 6!}

 Three.

If you grew up in church like I did, there's always the danger that some of the basic foundations of what you've been taught start to become so familiar that you forget they actually hold great meaning. Loved Scotty Smith's fresh writing on the Fruit of the Spirit. Winced a couple times as I was reminded of areas where I fall short and need the Spirit to work in me. Great devo for today.  

Four.

If you didn't catch this post by Ann Voskamp this week, please do read it. As she lamented her lack of gardening finesse this year, her husband offered her the biggest gift in reminding her these beautiful words: “You gotta remember that you were doing important things this spring. Something that I’m thinking will harvest far more in heaven than sunflowers or zinnias — or zucchinis.” She says many more stunning things we all need to hear as well, but that one line just got me. The things we do here may LOOK lackluster here, but what an eternal paycheck they can offer!

Five.

Had a fun first this week...I sat on the OTHER side of the podcast mic! My friend Joey Harris has a podcast, and he asked if I could join him to share a bit of my story and talk some about this new season God's led me to explore. I had a great time chatting with him - it's about 30 minutes long, and if you'd like to hear it, you can listen here!

Six.

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A few weeks ago, my friend Christy posted on social media about a new novel called Five Brides by Eva Marie Everson. I commented to her that I thought it sounded like a fabulous read, so she sent a copy my way, and I have been eager for today to roll around so I can tell you about it!

The novel, based on a true story, weaves the lives of five wildly different, very independent women in the 1950's. Joan Hunt, an American who grew up in England, after her parents fled the States during the Depression, comes to America for the first time in search of gainful employment so she can send money to her family. Her pen pal since childhood, Evelyn Alexander, catches Joan's courage and leaves her own tiny southern farming community to join Joan in Chicago for a chance to become something she never could in the South. They meet the well-to-do Betty Estes, who balks at her parents' insistence that she live in luxury in favor of full time work and independence. The three ladies share an apartment with two sisters of Swedish descent, Magda and Inga, who are chasing their own very different dreams, away from the watchful eyes of their conservative parents.

The five young ladies have virtually nothing in common, besides an address and a desire to make their dreams come true. One rare afternoon, they find themselves all home at once and an impulsive shopping trip leads them to try on a wedding dress in a store window. Each of them try on the same dress and decide to pool their money to purchase it...and each will wear it on her wedding day.

The book follows their dreams and stories, their highs and lows, their successes and defeats. And it brings in fascinating details of life in the fifties - in America and abroad - that provides a beautiful history lesson encased in captivating story form.

I was worried I would not be able to keep up with five story lines, but Eva did a masterful job of weaving them together in such a way that moving from one to the next felt natural, not confusing. My heart rooted for each of the ladies, and I saw a bit of myself in each of them, in different ways. Eva showed how the details of life may have been different in that season, but the heart of each girl remained completely relatable.

The book is long - 480 pages - and I'll admit it's been a while since I read a book of that length. I hoped I wouldn't get bored or overwhelmed - and I most certainly did not. It was a captivating read about a time that though fraught with issues of its own, was beautiful in a way I've never known.

I'm thankful Christy recommended the book and sent a copy my way so I could read it. I'd eagerly read anything else by Eva Marie Everson after this introduction to her!