Close proximity is a part of a quote from my book Transforming Your Thought Life, and I’m pondering it with you today.

For Lent 2025, I’ll be writing new blog posts every day. I’m writing for just five unedited minutes on a quote of the day to deepen our faith in this Lenten season.

Day 41 of Lent 2025 – April 14

I’m using my own books for quotes this final week of the Lenten season. This quote is from the Unforgiving Thoughts chapter of my most popular book.

Here is the quote in context:

Jesus offered compassion and healing in close proximity, not from a distance. He touched the eyes of two blind men who needed his miraculous healing and compassion (Matt. 20:34). As often as possible, offer your compassion closely too. A face-to-face meeting, phone call, or a card can transform a relationship marred by unforgiveness.

I’ve seen lots of posts on the topic of forgiveness this week in my feed. Usually, that means God is trying to tell me something, and I’m getting the message loud and clear. I need to work on forgiving people who have hurt me, and this advice I wrote in 2018 also applies to me.

Forgiveness is hard, but when we pair it with compassion, it’s easier to offer. The more I understand about a person’s hurts that motivated their sinful actions, the more I can show compassion. I have also hurt others from a hurt place inside me, and I want to be compassionate like Jesus was.

Recently, I’ve worked on forgiveness and compassion in a relationship I didn’t think would ever recover.  However, I am enjoying the surprise God gave me in all he did to give resurrection to this relationship. It’s only because of God and the good works he does in me that this is possible, and I’m praising him for this blessing. I share this to help you know that offering compassion in close proximity can heal relationships and even turn them around for your own benefit.

I pray that my book will help you in whichever thought life struggle you’re facing, whether it’s unforgiving thoughts or one of the other sixteen types listed in the book. It’s now available as an audio book HERE.

You can order bulk signed copies of my book for the cheapest price in my Etsy shop. I also include meditation cards that you can’t get anywhere else. Check it out HERE, and don’t forget the discount codes below!

Join me again tomorrow for another reflection on a different quote.

Find all my additional resources for Lent on this page.

Are You Looking for a Book Launch Manager or Virtual Assistant?

If you’re launching a book in 2025 or beyond, be sure to book a call with me HERE to discuss your book launch. I’ve had over 50 clients since 2022, and I’d love to speak with you soon. I’m also taking on new VA clients. You can learn more and book a call with me on THIS PAGE.

If you liked this post, I would appreciate your shares on social media!

Also, if you make a purchase from any of the links on this post, I receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support!

I send my weekly newsletter Tea on Tuesdays at 3:00 p.m. Central time every Tuesday.  I write an exclusive devotion for you each week that I share with you first.

To receive the newsletter, please subscribe below. I can’t wait to share personally with you each week!

Overcome guilt is a part of a quote from my book Transforming Your Thought Life for Teens, and I’m pondering it with you today.

For Lent 2025, I’ll be writing new blog posts every day. I’m writing for just five unedited minutes on a quote of the day to deepen our faith in this Lenten season.

Day 40 of Lent 2025 – April 13

I’m using my own books for quotes this final week of the Lenten season. This quote is from the Guilty Thoughts chapter of my book for teens.

I struggled with guilty thoughts in my teen years. Some were based on true guilt, but many were based on false guilt. In this chapter, I delve into the difference that we all need to know for our spiritual growth.

As an adult, I also sometimes experience guilty thoughts. Yet, as I write in today’s quote, the keys to overcoming guilt combine confession and repentance. Rather than beating myself up for what I did wrong, I take these steps and have greater peace with God while I deal with the consequences of my sins.

Freedom in Christ is truly possible when we get serious about confessing our sins and repenting from them. I only wish I had taken hold of that truth in my teens, and that’s why I want teens to read my book and know this is true for them.

I encourage you to order a copy of my book for teens HERE.

Cool Story!

Right after I published this blog post, I saw this tweet:

You can order bulk copies of my book for the cheapest price in my Etsy shop. Check it out HERE, and don’t forget the discount codes below!

Join me again tomorrow for another reflection on a different quote.

Find all my additional resources for Lent on this page.

Are You Looking for a Book Launch Manager or Virtual Assistant?

If you’re launching a book in 2025 or beyond, be sure to book a call with me HERE to discuss your book launch. I’ve had over 50 clients since 2022, and I’d love to speak with you soon. I’m also taking on new VA clients. You can learn more and book a call with me on THIS PAGE.

If you liked this post, I would appreciate your shares on social media!

Also, if you make a purchase from any of the links on this post, I receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support!

I send my weekly newsletter Tea on Tuesdays at 3:00 p.m. Central time every Tuesday.  I write an exclusive devotion for you each week that I share with you first.

To receive the newsletter, please subscribe below. I can’t wait to share personally with you each week!

Only God is a part of a quote I read in Meshali Mitchell’s book Restored, and I’m pondering it with you today.

For Lent 2025, I’ll be writing new blog posts every day. I’m writing for just five unedited minutes on a quote of the day to deepen our faith in this Lenten season.

Day 39 of Lent 2025 – April 12

I have been blessed to read an early copy of Restored, a beautiful book in many ways. It not only has an encouraging story of redemption but also gorgeous and peaceful photography.

Meshali writes about trauma recovery with gentleness and grace. She tells how restoring a farmhouse revived her soul and brought her closer to God. One of the stories, which I will not spoil for you, reveals how only God could use old wallpaper to show her how much he loves her.

I’m encouraged by Meshali’s story of redemption. She’s still in the process of healing, and so am I. I’m glad I found another Christian woman who is honest enough to speak about the pain yet also hold hope that God will fully redeem her story.

You’ll find much encouragement in Restored, which I encourage you to order HERE.

Join me again tomorrow for another reflection on a different quote.

Find all my additional resources for Lent on this page.

Are You Looking for a Book Launch Manager or Virtual Assistant?

If you’re launching a book in 2025 or beyond, be sure to book a call with me HERE to discuss your book launch. I’ve had over 50 clients since 2022, and I’d love to speak with you soon. I’m also taking on new VA clients. You can learn more and book a call with me on THIS PAGE.

If you liked this post, I would appreciate your shares on social media!

Also, if you make a purchase from any of the links on this post, I receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support!

I send my weekly newsletter Tea on Tuesdays at 3:00 p.m. Central time every Tuesday.  I write an exclusive devotion for you each week that I share with you first.

To receive the newsletter, please subscribe below. I can’t wait to share personally with you each week!

The unreasonable person is a part of a quote I read in How to Solve Your People Problems, and I’m pondering it with you today.

For Lent 2025, I’ll be writing new blog posts every day. I’m writing for just five unedited minutes on a quote of the day to deepen our faith in this Lenten season.

Day 38 of Lent 2025 – April 11

I first read How to Solve Your People Problems when I was still in relationships with several difficult people. It gave me the validation, insight, and strength I needed to stand firm on my boundaries.

Today’s quote helped me see the “why” behind their behaviors. I knew their childhood stories of pain, and I knew none of them had fully healed and grown from the traumas they had faced. They hadn’t taken steps to grieve, own their part, and learn better skills. Seeing them as emotional infants helped me show compassion while also reinforcing my boundaries.

If you have an unreasonable person in your life, this quote can give you perspective. It can help you view them with empathy but also remind you to stand firm in your right to be treated as an adult. However, you may need more help to learn how to deal with them. The book is packed with practical advice from a Christian perspective, and I recommend it to you for the difficult relationship you’re facing today.

More quotes from How to Solve Your People Problems:

• In the Bible, they are called “fools” or “the wicked.”
• Unreasonable people have an aversion to personal wrongness that extends far beyond anything experienced by reasonable people. To them, being wrong presents a threat to survival that equals most physical threats. Unreasonable people put all of their energy into safeguarding rightness – to staying safe – and none into solving conflict problems.
• Most unreasonable people missed attending Good Conflict Camp, but they all attended Drama School, where they developed into thespians of the highest order
• The unreasonable person performs his drama for self-serving reasons – to maintain rightness and avoid wrongness.
• The best alternative to a flight reaction is also honest civil conversation. Tigers need to be more civil, while turtles need to converse more. We can be tigers, turtles, or talkers.
• Rehearsing our responses, anticipating button pushes, and knowing how we will respond ahead of time alters our behavior.
• The Cold War ended not because the U.S. was nice but because the U.S. was strong…We didn’t change their minds; we changed the conditions. And when the conditions changed, they changed their minds.

You’ll find much help and encouragement in How to Solve Your People Problems, which I encourage you to order HERE.

Join me again tomorrow for another reflection on a different quote.

Find all my additional resources for Lent on this page.

Are You Looking for a Book Launch Manager or Virtual Assistant?

If you’re launching a book in 2025 or beyond, be sure to book a call with me HERE to discuss your book launch. I’ve had over 50 clients since 2022, and I’d love to speak with you soon. I’m also taking on new VA clients. You can learn more and book a call with me on THIS PAGE.

If you liked this post, I would appreciate your shares on social media!

Also, if you make a purchase from any of the links on this post, I receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support!

I send my weekly newsletter Tea on Tuesdays at 3:00 p.m. Central time every Tuesday.  I write an exclusive devotion for you each week that I share with you first.

To receive the newsletter, please subscribe below. I can’t wait to share personally with you each week!

Decrease so God can increase is a part of a quote I read in Sacred Rest, and I’m pondering it with you today.

For Lent 2025, I’ll be writing new blog posts every day. I’m writing for just five unedited minutes on a quote of the day to deepen our faith in this Lenten season.

Day 37 of Lent 2025 – April 10

I first read Sacred Rest when I was on a winter beach vacation a few years ago, and the book has changed my life since that time. I blogged about that experience in THIS POST, which I encourage you to read HERE.

What I learned from this book that revolutionized my life was that there are different types of rest we need, not only sleep. Once I started putting Dr. Saundra’s advice into practice, I experienced great changes that I keep to this day.

The most important advice is to observe a weekly Sabbath rest. I’ve intentionally cultivated this habit for the past 20+ years. Since I work from home full-time, it can be difficult to stop working. Surprisingly, I became more productive throughout the week as I chose to take a dedicated break each Sunday.

When we decrease the noise and busyness in our lives, we can hear God’s still, small voice more easily. As I spend time in Bible study, prayer, and corporate worship every Sunday, I remember that God comes first on my priority list. When I practice the spiritual discipline of silence on the Sabbath, his peace and guidance increase in my spiritual life.

This book has changed the way I observe the Sabbath. It’s no longer regimented but delightful. You’ll find much practical encouragement in Sacred Rest, which I encourage you to order HERE.

Join me again tomorrow for another reflection on a different quote.

Find all my additional resources for Lent on this page.

Are You Looking for a Book Launch Manager or Virtual Assistant?

If you’re launching a book in 2025 or beyond, be sure to book a call with me HERE to discuss your book launch. I’ve had over 50 clients since 2022, and I’d love to speak with you soon. I’m also taking on new VA clients. You can learn more and book a call with me on THIS PAGE.

If you liked this post, I would appreciate your shares on social media!

Also, if you make a purchase from any of the links on this post, I receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support!

I send my weekly newsletter Tea on Tuesdays at 3:00 p.m. Central time every Tuesday.  I write an exclusive devotion for you each week that I share with you first.

To receive the newsletter, please subscribe below. I can’t wait to share personally with you each week!