Holley Gerth's Blog

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A little note before the today’s post: Make sure you read to the end because I have several fun gifts for you, including a free mini ebook for the holidays! Friends don’t let friends miss out on goodies.

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Years ago I sat in a crowded room at a blogging conference. I’ve forgotten almost everything from that weekend except one phrase that author and researcher Brené Brown said from the stage, “Joy is the most vulnerable emotion we can feel.”

I had two thoughts when I heard these words: “What?” and “Exactly.”

The first reaction came because we tend to think of joy as an “easy” emotion. It’s not heavy like sadness or intense like anger. Joy is the floating balloon, the cotton candy, the confetti of our feelings. But that is a false perception. It turns out joy takes great courage.

Why? Because our brains are wired to protect us from danger. When we feel joy, we also have something to lose. Brené told Inc magazine that “80-90 percent of parents, when experiencing a moment of bliss gazing upon their sleeping child, will then picture something horrific happening to the child.”

Have you ever done something like this? You hug someone you love, and suddenly worry that they’ll get in a car wreck on their way home. You get the promotion you worked so hard for, only to feel like a fraud and picture yourself being fired. You’re finally relaxing on a beach vacation, then remember a news headline you read and feel anxious.

Joy is hard for humans, so this morning I looked up every verse about joy to look for some divine help. I found one phrase that was repeated many times, “filled with joy.”

God helps me, and my heart is filled with joy. Psalm 28:7 NLT

Jesus was filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit. Luke 10:21 NLT

The believers were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit. Acts 13:52 NLT

May you be filled with joy. Colossians 1:11 NLT

I’d always viewed joy as something I had to produce, but “being filled” means joy is something God’s Spirit pours into me. Here’s what I’m coming to believe: We, as humans, aren’t truly capable of joy on our own. It doesn’t come naturally to us. At best, it’s fleeting and dependent on our circumstances. At worst, it’s something we fake but never truly experience.

Here’s what I’m learning: Joy is something we can ask God to fill us with rather than forcing ourselves to feel it. As someone who has experienced anxiety and depression, I’m not saying we’ll feel joy if we just have enough faith. I’m also not saying that we will always experience joy, which isn’t possible or even biblical. What I’m exploring is an alternative to putting pressure on ourselves to be happy-happy all the time. Maybe our role is simply to open ourselves to joy, to not slam the door of our hearts when it comes knocking.

Joy is also not meant to be our only emotion. Paul says, “Always be joyful” (1 Thessalonians 5:16) but he also says, “My heart is filled with bitter sorrow and unending grief” (Romans 9:2). Jesus is described as being full of joy and as being a man of sorrows. Proverbs 14:13 tells us, “Even in laughter the heart may be in pain, and the end of joy may be grief.”

As I say in my new devotional book, 365 Truths for Every Woman’s Heart, “We always live with both brokenness and blessings. Challenges and victories. Sorrow and joy. They’re all mixed up together. God understands both.”

Brené says that the practice the most joyful people have in common is gratitude. I would add one more element to gratitude, and that’s trust.

Gratitude today + trust for tomorrow = learning to bravely open the door to joy

This looks like pausing to say, “God, thank You for this beautiful sleeping baby. I trust You with her future.”

It’s hugging someone we love and saying, “God, thank You for every moment I get to have them in my life. I place them in Your hands.”

It’s accepting the promotion and saying, “God, thank You for getting me this far. I believe You’ll get me through whatever is ahead too.”

It’s standing on the beach and saying, “God, thank You for the extraordinary world You’ve created. You alone are the caretaker of everything and everyone.”

The healthiest humans are those who are able to be open to the whole range of emotions and experience all of them.

Some of us resist negative emotions. We banish sadness and anger because they’re uncomfortable. Some of us resist positive emotions. We shut down joy and happiness because they feel so vulnerable. I’m in the latter group—I can sit with grief and walk alongside sorrow. But joy? That’s scary stuff.

I’m learning joy is not a feeling to force, but a gift to receive. Opening our hearts to embrace it, especially in a broken world, takes guts and bravery. Joy isn’t a balloon, cotton candy, or confetti. It’s challenging and risky, maybe even a little crazy. It’s a wild act of worship by warriors with dents in their armor.

It’s okay if joy is hard for you to feel during the holidays. This doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with you or your faith—it simply means you’re human. God understands this and He will be with you in everything you face, in every emotion you feel.

Gratefully,

Holley

FREE EBOOK: If the holidays are hard or stressful for you, I have an encouraging gift to get you through this season. My mini ebook, Hope for the Holidays, includes twenty devotions, beautiful graphics, and more. Download your free copy now, then share this post so your friends and family can get this lovely gift too!

FREE AUDIOBOOK: My brand new devotional book, 365 Truths for Every Woman’s Heart will encourage you each day. And it’s a wonderful Christmas gift for the women in your life too! For a limited time or until codes run out, when you purchase a copy, you’ll also receive the audiobook for free! Fill out this form to receive audiobook access.

FREE ONLINE GROUP: This January, I’ll be leading a Facebook group through the first 30 days of 365 Truths for Every Woman’s Heart! It will only take about five minutes a day, you can wear your pajamas, and show up anytime it works for you. We’ll have giveaways, live videos, and exclusive content just for the online group. Join me! Let’s spend the first month of 2025 connecting with God and each other.

FREE PERSONALIZED GIFT LABELS: If you purchase 3 or more copies of 365 Truths for Every Woman’s Heart as gifts, I’d love to mail you a custom label for each one to place inside the front cover. (Perfect for a sweet, personalized Christmas present.) It will include the recipient’s name, a note from me, and my signature. Time is running out to get these before Christmas!

I stand at the kitchen stove and stir butter around in a warm pan with a spoon. My mind feels mixed up too. I close my eyes and whisper the prayer I’m learning to cling to in these moments: “God, what do you want to say to my heart today?”

Usually a Scripture comes to mind. Sometimes I remember encouraging words from a wise friend. But this time a new phrase comes instantly: I love you anyway.

Tears fill my eyes because it’s exactly what I need to hear. My struggles sometimes make it seem as though God must be upset and far away. But He is still right there with me. And He is still for me.

When we battle depression, God loves us anyway.

When we fight anxiety, God loves us anyway.

When we mess up, God loves us anyway.

When we face doubts, God loves us anyway.

When we forget who we really are, God loves us anyway.

When we’re weary, God loves us anyway.

Whatever we’re struggling with today, God loves us anyway.

Do you ever have thoughts like If people really knew all of me or what I’m going through, they might not love me the same? Me too—it’s such a human thing to do. But thankfully, it isn’t true.

For years I tried to prove I was enough. Perfect enough. Good enough. Experienced enough. Smart enough. Pretty enough. But it’s only when we come to the place where we can finally say, “I’m not enough but Jesus is” that our hearts get free.

The reality is we will fall short of the expectations of others and ourselves. But it doesn’t matter because our extraordinary God, our gracious Savior, declares we are beloved and chosen and empowered anyway.

The world tells us we need to have self-esteem, but what we really need is holy confidence.

Self-esteem says we can do anything we want.

Holy confidence says we can do all things through Christ.

Self-esteem says we can belong in the right crowd.

Holy confidence says we belong to the Creator of the universe.

Self-esteem says our worth comes from what’s external.

Holy confidence says our worth comes from what’s eternal.

The Apostle Paul said we can live, “being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Phil 1:6 NIV). Our confidence comes not from what we do but what God is doing in us. He has promised that all He has for us will be finished. We already know the ending of our story; it’s not one of shame but glory.

We are daughters of God created in His image. We are chosen to be part of His plan. We are promised that we will have everything we need for all He has called us to do. We have been forgiven and set free. This is the source of our hope. This is our security. This is why in spite of our weaknesses and failures, we can walk in holy confidence today.

All of us forget the truth about who we are sometimes. That’s part of living in an imperfect world. But God is willing to remind us each day. He is with us, for us, and working in us beyond what we can see.

I carry my plate to the table and whisper, “God, help me truly believe I’m loved by you right now just as I am.” My prayer is the same for you. May we be confident we’re loved anyway. May we be certain we’re loved always, especially today.

This post was inspired by my new devotional book, 365 Truths for Every Woman’s Heart. It will encourage you each day, and it’s a wonderful Christmas gift for the women in your life too! For a limited time, when you purchase a copy, you’ll also receive the audiobook for FREE! Plus, we have a few more fun opportunities for you…

This January, I’ll be leading a group through the first 30 days of 365 Truths for Every Woman’s Heart! We’ll have giveaways, live videos, and exclusive content just for the online group. All you need is a copy of the book. Join us!

If you purchase 3 or more copies of the book as gifts, I’d love to mail you a custom label for each one to place inside the front cover. (Perfect for a sweet, personalized Christmas present.) It will include the recipient’s name, a note from me, and my signature.

You are loved.


You have a purpose.


Your future is secure no matter what happens.

Those are just a few of the reminders I share in my new devotional book, 365 Truths for Every Woman’s Heart. I’m so excited to share that it’s releasing today!

I created this book to help you feel closer to God and listen to his heart for you! Here’s an excerpt…

The God who spoke the world into being wants to speak to your heart today. With so many voices competing for your attention, he is inviting you to take a few moments to be still and listen.

When pressure tells you to try harder, God reminds you that you’re already accepted.

When insecurity says you’re not enough, God reassures you that you’re deeply loved.

When fear whispers you can’t handle what’s ahead, God promises to take care of you.

God said, “Let there be light,” and he is still saying “Let there be . . .” in your life. Let there be peace. Let there be hope. Let there be grace. Let there be light in your darkest places, in your most difficult moments. He will bring his best for you into being.

God welcomes you into his presence just as you are right now. His voice is one of compassion, not criticism. He will speak only life-giving words to you. He calls you by name. He knows your desires. He understands your needs.

You’re not here by chance; this moment is a divine invitation into deeper intimacy with the one who joyfully created you. His Word is forever true, and he has so much to say to you.

Prayer: God, I love you and I want to listen to your voice above all others each day.

Give One/Get One – It’s Christmas shopping season and if you purchase the hardback or ebook of 365 Truths for Every Woman’s Heart as a gift (for someone else or for yourself!), you’ll receive the audiobook for FREE!

January Online Study – I’ll be leading a group through the first 30 days of 365 Truths for Every Woman’s Heart this January! We’ll have giveaways, live videos, and exclusive content just for the online group. Join us!

Personalized Copies – If you purchase 3 or more copies of the book as gifts, I’ll mail you a custom label for each one to place inside the front cover. It will include the recipient’s name, a brief note from me, and my signature.

I’m sitting in a drive-through line pondering a situation I can’t seem to control. My husband and I are in snowy Colorado coming home from a trip with family. We’re catching a flight in the morning, which means staying at a hotel tonight and fast food is the only nearby option. In a quest for comfort, I order the same meal I did as a kid—filet-o-fish and hot fudge sundae (don’t judge).

Our time here has felt magical—skiing, sledding, making snickerdoodles, cozying up under warm blankets. But I’ve been vaguely distracted by a situation back home. “I can’t figure out how to resolve it,” I tell my husband when he asks what I’m thinking. I’ve fixated on this particular problem for months, looked at it from every angle, broken it apart and put it back together. But I can’t find peace.

Now even on vacation there’s no rest inside my mind. I feel weary, so tired of worrying, exhausted from carrying the weight of what I can’t seem to make right. I pause and pray these words…

God, give me the wisdom to know what work is mine to do today. I release everything and everyone else to You. Amen.

I feel a shift within my soul as soon as I finish. I realize I thought I wanted a solution but what I really needed was to surrender. Stop fighting what I can’t change. Start focusing on my own life instead of what I can’t fix. Release responsibility for other people and return to what God has asked of me.

I was doing work that wasn’t mine.

Work that isn’t ours is…

– Trying to be responsible for everything and everyone


– Telling ourselves something is our fault when it’s the result of a broken world or someone else’s choices


– Carrying more than our share of the emotional weight in a relationship


– Forcing an outcome rather than taking the next small step of obedience

Work that is ours includes taking responsibility for our thoughts, words, feelings, actions, desires, and needs. It involves taking care of our hearts, souls, minds, and bodies. It means we “run with endurance the race God has set before us…keeping our eyes on Jesus” (Hebrews 12:1-2).

The funny thing? The second I said “amen” the person I’d been struggling with sent me a text message. I’d been holding on so tight and when I finally let go, it seemed to unlock something in a way beyond what my human mind is able to comprehend.

Of course, I still want to try to take control again. The situation isn’t fully resolved and I want to put a nice checkmark next to it. I want to clean it up, put it in a category, make it neat and tidy. I don’t want to deal with the mess, the uncertainty, my absolute inability to cause things to turn out the way I want.

I’ve had to pray the same little prayer I did that night in the drive-through over and over again. I’ve said it at least five times this morning and it’s only 9am. I might say it a hundred times before I go to sleep tonight.

After I say “amen” I ask, “What is my work to do right now?” Then I clean up the kitchen, hug my husband, walk a few steps, or pull out my laptop and type words that will remind me of what is true, and hopefully do the same for you.

(Confession: I don’t always want to do this. Sometimes I’d much rather whine, pout, and try to take charge again. Sometimes that’s exactly what I do. And that’s okay. Surrender is often a process, not an event.)

If you’re worn out from trying to control something or someone, I’m inviting you to say this prayer and ask this question with me too.

Today let’s do our work, and let God do His.

Today’s post is an excerpt from my online course, Heal After You’re Hurt. Susan, a recent graduate, described the course as, “jam-packed with powerful, healthy, soul-searching methods to help you navigate your healing journey.”  Angela said, “This course has been such a blessing! It truly feels like a God thing.” You can start today and finish at your pace! Find out more.

Who struggles with self-criticism? (Raises hand.) I’ve talked with thousands of women through my work as a writer, counselor, and life coach. One of the most common phrases I hear is, “I don’t know how to stop being so hard on myself.”

I think many of us were raised to believe self-criticism is necessary in order to be “good.” We have to keep ourselves in line. Make sure we do the right thing. Meet expectations. But I’m learning in ever deeper ways that Jesus came to rescue me from being “good” just as surely as he came to rescue me from being a sinner.

What do I mean? I think trying to be “good” is the modern-day version of living under the law. It’s about following rules instead of living freely in an intimate relationship with God. It’s about trying to achieve perfection instead of wholly trusting in grace. It’s about proving why I should be loved instead of resting in the belief that I already am.

I am not very likely to ever rebel (although there was that season in college…). But I am likely to show up every day of my life as someone who has to hustle to prove her worth, who hears a voice of condemnation in her mind, who feels like maybe she could be just a little bit better. I need Jesus to rescue me from all of this.

I also recently read an article that explained self-criticism activates our flight-or-fight response in the same way an external threat does. When we live with chronic self-criticism, we become a threat to ourselves. When we do this for years, research shows it can lead to emotional issues such as anxiety and depression as well as physical symptoms. Safety is a basic requirement for well-being, and self-criticism makes us feel unsafe with ourselves.

I cringed when I typed those words because they feel so true in my life. Our culture talks so much these days about avoiding toxic relationships and making sure we have safe people in our lives. But this aspect is often overlooked—the first person we need to feel safe with ourselves.

How do we do so? By loving ourselves in the same ways God has called us to love each other. God didn’t say, “Love everyone else, but it doesn’t matter how you treat yourself.” God is just as grieved when we treat ourselves poorly as he would be if we did the same to someone else.

I sat in a lovely coffee shop one morning, latte next to me, the chatter of a dozen conversations around me, and looked up every verse in the New Testament with the phrase “each other.” I compiled a list and then replaced “each other” with “Holley.”

Here are a few examples…

Love Holley. John 13:34

Stop condemning Holley. Romans 14:13

Be an encouragement to Holley. Romans 15:32

Now you try it…

Love (your name). John 13:34

Stop condemning (your name). Romans 14:13

Be an encouragement to (your name). Romans 15:32

(For a free downloadable version of the complete list, click here for 15 Biblical Ways to Love Yourself Today.)

Does this feel harder to you than doing these things for a friend? Yep, me too. I think loving ourselves is not something we can accomplish on our own, just as we can’t love others on our own either. I don’t think I have the capacity as a human to love other humans the way God does—and that includes loving myself.

My first tendency when I read the list I created with my name in it was to once again feel like I was failing at something and should feel guilty about not doing this better. Then I laughed because I could see my inner critic at work again.

So instead I paused and prayed, “God, please supernaturally empower me to love myself the way you love me.” Isn’t this what obedience means? It is simply aligning ourselves with the heart of God.

Tim Keller said “Shalom experienced is multidimensional, complete well-being—physical, psychological, social, and spiritual; it flows from all of one’s relationships being put right—with God, within oneself, and with others.”[i]

The work of God in our lives is to bring us deeper into Shalom until that work is completed when we are Home with Him forever. Part of that work, of things being made right in our lives, includes healing our relationship with ourselves.

Loving yourself is not prideful. Loving yourself is not selfish. Loving yourself is simply aligning with the heart of God toward you.

More than Small Talk Podcast – In “Feel Safe Enough” (episode 301) I share what I’m learning about what it means to feel emotionally safe, why it matters, and how it aligns with the heart of God for us. Our conversation includes biblical truth, a bit of brain science, and steps you can take toward feeling safer today.

Heal After You’re Hurt (course) – Sometimes it’s hard to love ourselves because we’ve been hurt by someone else. If that’s your story, then you don’t have to heal alone. I’d love to come alongside you through this online course.

Years ago, I had breakfast with a group of writer friends who gather once a year, women whose names you’d know and faces you’d recognize. The conversation drifted to talking about the challenge of finding true connection in our everyday lives. I felt surprised—I would never have guessed these women struggled with loneliness.

I’m discovering this is the secret every woman in the whole wide world tucks away inside: Sometimes we are lonely. It’s a hard thing to talk about in this era of friending, liking, and sharing with the entire universe. But being lonely is simply a symptom of being human, and sometimes it can even have unexpected gifts.

Loneliness teaches us better than perhaps anything else what we really want from community. For instance, if we tend to be lonely in groups, then we’re probably craving deeper one-on-one time.

Loneliness also prompts us to appreciate the people we do have in our lives. If we never felt their absence, it would be much harder to treasure their presence. To choose to love is to choose to be lonely sometimes.

Loneliness draws us closer to Jesus, who “loved us and gave himself up for us” (Ephesians 5:2). When no human relationship can fully satisfy the longings of our hearts, we realize we are looking for Someone beyond this world.

Loneliness challenges us to open up and let people in even when we’re afraid. If we never felt lonely, then we would never take the risk to be vulnerable.

By the time that breakfast was over, I sensed a collective sigh of relief that came from our conversation. Our struggles lose their power when we can share them with even one person. That day I learned loneliness is inevitable; feeling alone in it is optional.

God, thank You that I am never truly alone. In moments of loneliness, remind me of what is true and help me to reach out to others and to You for the support I need. Give me eyes that see when others are lonely too, so I can be a comfort to them as well. Amen.

Gratefully,


Holley

Today’s post is a piece I wrote for a new book by my dear friend and fellow author, Kristen Strong—Praying Through Loneliness: A 90-Day Devotional for Women. You’ll recognize other voices as well as discover new ones as you walk this journey from feeling alone to knowing you’re surrounded by more love than you could have imagined! Kristen also recently released a gift book titled Friends Are Family We Choose that’s a beautiful gift for the friends you love.

The natural pace of your soul is slow. Not hurried or worried, not rushing or pushing. Look at the speckled bird eggs, the drift of the cotton ball clouds and the rhythm of the salty waves. The God who spoke all you see into being created you too.

He has no trouble with his to-do list. He’s not asking you to be more productive. He knows that our lives are only a flicker, our glory like wildflowers, that we are all just building sandcastles on the shores of eternity.

The invitation for your life is not about how much you can accomplish, how fast you can go. The invitation of your life is about intimacy. The God who loves you is asking, “Will you walk with me?” He did so in the cool of the Garden with Adam and Eve and on the shores of Galilee with fishermen. He does so now with you in the ordinary happenings of your existence.

God said one of his names is “I am.” This means, among other things, that where you can find him is in the present. Right here, right now, in the beating of your heart and the breath in your lungs. He is in the nowness of your life, the meals at the table, the miles spent in your car, the hush that comes when you finally turn off the lamp by your bed.

Everything your soul needs is already yours in this moment. You are loved. You are accepted. You are enough. You are fully known. You are on your way Home. It is okay to take your time getting there.

More than Small Talk Podcast: I loved this conversation with my dear friend and fellow (in)courage writer Ligia Andrade about Human Courage vs. Holy Boldness.

Free resources: I’ve created several free devotional plans for you on the YouVersion app. Just download the app to your phone and search for “Holley Gerth” to find all of them!

It’s easy to tell ourselves we can’t say “no.” The reasons are many: If we say no, we’ll let people down. We’re being selfish. We should be able to handle it. We’re pushed by guilt, pulled by obligation. We resist “no” out of fear of rejection or the elusive search for perfection.

Perhaps our “no” has not been received well in the past. There have been consequences, raised eyebrows, sighs of exasperation. So we abandon our “no” like a tattered suitcase, donating it to what we believe is the greater good. Surely we don’t need it.

But this is what we often miss: We are always saying “no” whether we use that exact word or not. Because every time we say “yes” to one thing, we are also saying “no” to something or someone else.

When we say “yes” to the task that’s not our responsibility, we say “no” to whoever would have gotten that emotion and energy. When we say “yes” to the chronic taker, we say “no” to taking care of ourselves. When we say “yes” to meeting the expectations of someone who is unpleasable, we say “no” to the embrace of grace.

So the question isn’t, will we say “no” or not? Instead it is, how will we use our “no” today?

Our “no” is a powerful force. It can set boundaries, protect time or the people we love, create safe space for our minds, hearts, and bodies. It can align us with the heart of God and his purpose for our lives.

Jesus often said “no” to human demands and disappointed people with his refusal to align with their plans. He said “no” when his followers wanted an earthly king, a crowd wanted another free meal, Peter wanted him to avoid the cross. An intentional, loving refusal isn’t selfish; it’s a reflection of our Savior. Sometimes “no” is the way we say “yes” to God’s best.

Holley

P.s. If you reply to an email I send, your words will land directly in my inbox. Even if I can’t respond to every message, I gratefully read each one.

More than Small Talk Podcast: I loved this conversation about the relentless tenderness of Jesus toward women. If you missed it, you can listen here.

To celebrate back to school season, all of my online courses are on sale! Yay! Which one would help you most: Heal After You’re Hurt, 7 Ways to Thrive as an Introvert, or Be a Kick-Butt Writer by Friday? Sharpen your pencil, pull out your notebook, and find out more here.

A reader recently created and sent me this video, sharing her helpful and creative book summary of You’re Already Amazing! Hearing what encouraged her – encouraged me! Thank you, Jocelyn, for reading and kindly taking the time to share with others.

Take heart, daughter.

These are the words of Jesus to a woman who has endured bleeding for twelve years. She has pressed through a crowd. She has sought Jesus. She has touched the edge of His cloak. She is unclean. She shouldn’t be here. She is breaking all the rules. But she can’t hold back. Because she also knows what it’s like to be isolated and anxious, hopeful then devastated, discouraged and desperate to keep believing that God has healing in store for her.

Have you ever felt that way? Maybe you haven’t bled physically—but you’ve bled emotionally. Maybe the wound came from someone you love and should have been able to trust. Perhaps depression drained all the joy from your heart. Life circumstances might have cut you and you’re still trying to recover.

What I love about this biblical story is that Jesus doesn’t say, “Get well soon” or even “Be healed.” Everyone who knew the details of this woman’s story thought her biggest problem was losing blood. Jesus alone looked at her and saw that the biggest risk was that she could lose heart.

Losing heart means we stop believing things can get better.


Losing heart means we can’t seem to keep our grip on hope.


Losing heart means living tired and numb, going through the motions.


Losing heart means becoming disconnected from the truest parts of who we are.


Losing heart means we start saying, “This is just the way it is.”

We will all be tempted to lose heart at some point in our lives. It might come after years of something hard. It might happen suddenly because of an unexpected loss. It might not be one thing but many, a slow accumulation of hurts that steal our strength. Are you the woman pressing into Jesus today?

“Jesus turned and saw her. ‘Take heart, daughter,’ he said, ‘your faith has healed you.’ And the woman was healed at that moment.” (Matthew 9:22 NIV)

Jesus is turning toward you today. He sees your pain. He is saying to you, “Take heart, daughter.” These are words of affection and protection. They are an affirmation and invitation. They are full of tenderness and belonging.

What’s causing you to lose heart today? Whatever you’re facing, it matters to Jesus. He has seen all you have endured. He knows how many nights you’ve stared at the ceiling, trying to sleep. He has heard every prayer that feels like it’s still unanswered.

Jesus knows how hard it is sometimes to just keep trusting, keep pressing forward, keep believing that change is possible. He looks at you not with criticism but compassion, not pressure to hurry up your healing but infinite patience, not disapproval but deep love.

The woman who approached Jesus did what she could until Jesus did what only He can. She showed up. She dared to try. She took steps. So if you are in a season of waiting for healing, it is okay for you to do what you can too.

In my life, that has looked like saying “I’m not okay” to trusted friends, going to counseling, moving my body in healthy ways, looking for resources to help me learn and grow. It means asking, “What is the next small step I can take toward Jesus today?” and then doing so even on the days I don’t feel like it.

Of course, there are also meltdowns and detours, slip-ups and setbacks, moments when I want to just give up. That’s part of being human for all of us. What matters is that we keep going until the moment when we finally experience the healing we’ve been seeking. It is coming. I type that with hopeful tears in my eyes. It is not meant as a cliché or spiritual band-aid. I know full well it doesn’t take the bleeding away. But I’m choosing to keep believing today, and I’m inviting you to do the same with me.

Take heart, daughter.

Jesus spoke those words to a woman in a crowd; He is still speaking them to your heart now.

If you’re losing heart because you’ve been hurt by someone in your life, my online course Heal After You’re Hurt can help you heal and move forward. Find out more here.