Devotionals for the Heart: Jesus Christ taught His disciples about prayer

Principles of Prayer
A devotional by Patricia Russell

“One day Jesus told his disciples a story to show that they should always pray and never give up.”—Luke 18:1 (NLT)

Many years ago, a woman in our church made a statement that has stayed with me. She said, “Much prayer, much power. Little prayer, little power.” Prayer is like gasoline in a car. For the car to move forward, it needs fuel. Likewise, we need prayer to fuel our lives every day.

First, prayer is communication between us and God. The disciples of Jesus Christ had seen Jesus pull away from them on several occasions to go and pray. They saw that His ability to do all He did and function the way He did was clearly because He received his power from His Father (God). They heard Jesus talk repeatedly about His Father. They heard and could see there was a connection between Him and God. Keep in mind that communication involves speaking as well as listening. Jesus was willing to teach them how to do this. He did so and taught them what we know as the Lord’s prayer (Luke 11:2-4).

Jesus taught His disciples to pray to their Heavenly Father by first acknowledging the most important things: Praise God and honor His holy name then ask Him to provide for your daily need. Daily repent of sin asking God to forgive you and pray to stay alert to temptation. This was a basic framework on how to pray. This doesn’t seem complicated, does it? So why don’t we pray?

Secondly, prayer requires persistence. Prayer requires hope that what we are praying for will happen. We must not give up. The Bible tells us that we must believe that God can do what we are asking. It is a requirement to believe that He is who He says He is (Hebrews 11:6). Belief in Him comes from reading His Word (The Holy Bible) and praying. Like any great relationship, you have to be consistent and persistent. Jesus taught His disciples persistence in a parable about a friend going to another’s friend seeking assistance because an unexpected visitor has come to visit. His friend tells him to come back tomorrow. But he keeps knocking on the friend’s door until the friend finally gives in, not because of the relationship but because of the persistent knocking on the door. How can you ignore a persistent cry for help? The lesson is don’t stop asking, be persistent in prayer (Luke 11:5-9).

Thirdly, prayer requires persistent faith. As mentioned, when we pray to the Lord we come to Him believing He is God and He is able to do what we ask. Jesus said in Luke 18:1 (KJV), “Men ought always to pray.” The passage goes on to share an illustration of widow who refused to give up on getting the justice she needed. She needed an answer. So, she went to the only one she knew who had the power to change her situation. She was completely focused on going to the judge who was the only one who can respond to her need. Jesus wants us to do the same for us. Go to the One (God) who can do something about your situation. The widow was unrelenting, focused and determined. Her story is a prime example of the fact that seeing and receiving the answers to our prayers requires persistent faith.

How is your communication with the Lord? Do you only speak to Him when you need something from Him or is He the first person you speak to in the morning, during the day and before you to go sleep at night? We put time and energy into our earthly relationships. Is the Lord the center of your life so that He is not an afterthought but a priority in your life? We can be so busy doing the Lord’s work that we forget about the Lord of the work and spend time communing with Him to ensure we are really living and doing what He wants.

Let’s endeavor to grow in our relationship with the Lord. If you’ve struggled in the past, know that He is ready and waiting to hear your cry and answer your prayers of faith. God can send you all the help you need.

Let’s Pray:

Heavenly Father,

Thank You for always wanting to keep an open line of communication between us through the gift of prayer. Thank You for always listening to my prayers. Forgive me for looking to others before coming to You first. Thank You for reminding me to never give up and to always pray. Help me to trust You with all my heart and not lean to my own understanding. In Jesus’s Name, I pray. Amen.

~*~
Song of Reflection #1: “What Faith Can Do” by Kutless. Listen to it here.

Song of Reflection #2: “Take It to the Lord in Prayer” by Aeolians of Oakwood University. Listen to it here.

Song of Reflection #3: “Pray” by CeCe Winans. Listen to it here.

Song of Reflection #4: “Don’t Stop Praying” by Matthew West. Listen to it here.

Song of Reflection #5: “My Prayer for You” by Alisa Turner. Listen to it here.

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Author Bio:

Patricia is a worship leader, songwriter, speaker and compiler of her 2020 best-seller anthology Stronger Resilience: Stories to Empower the Mind, Body and Spirit, as well as Lord I Trust You: Words of Encouragement to encourage readers and share life lessons during her cancer journey. 

Patricia writes, speaks, and teaches on the power of God’s Word to heal and empower you to become all that you are purposed for. She has traveled internationally and shared her gifts with audiences to encourage, empower and share life lessons through word and song. Patricia has sung on national television broadcasts and shared the stage with several respected speakers including Anne Graham Lotz and Rev. E.V. Hill.

Her greatest joy is being married to her husband, Wayne, for 34 years. Together they serve the community through their local congregation as well as providing premarital and marriage coaching. They have two adult children, Raquel and Benjamin. As a two-time breast cancer overcomer, Patricia coaches’ others to develop resilience and live life to their fullest.

Patricia has released two gospel music recordings: “Draw Me Nearer” and “Lord, I Trust You”. In March 2022, she launched her podcast “Becoming Resilient” which can be downloaded wherever you get your podcasts and also seen on YouTube.

When not reading or studying, Patricia loves to eat Thai food and spend time with “Lucy” – her daughter’s Yorkie-poo who has taken up room in her heart.

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Connect with Patricia:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/patrussellsings/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pat.russell.98877/
Email Patricia: patrussellsings@gmail.com

Devotionals for the Heart: Why waiting seasons are part of God's plan

Waiting: Seasons of Preparation
A devotional by Jennifer Reese

“And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.”—Galatians 6:9 (ESV)

We all know what it’s like to experience waiting seasons.

Whether it’s the season of waiting that comes before you meet your spouse, or the season of waiting as you end one job before starting the next. Maybe it’s the season of waiting for an answer in the midst of hardship, or for the person you have been diligently praying for and ministering to in hopes of them coming to know the Lord.

Seasons of waiting come in all forms, shapes, and sizes. Some feel harder than others, some feel redundant or purposeless, and some feel necessary yet are still challenging to walk through. It is interesting how no matter how old we are, how many answered prayers we are living in or what life stage we are in, we always find ourselves waiting on/for something.

No matter what it is that we are waiting for today, waiting is always intentional and purposeful in regard to what the Lord is doing in our lives and in His overall plan. Although we cannot always see what He is doing or fully understand why we had to endure a particular season, we can trust that His intentions are good and purposeful, both for our good and His glory.

How can we endure our seasons of waiting well? The answer is simple yet so hard: We wait for God. We seek Him daily, moment by moment. We fight to stand firm in the truth of His Word (The Holy Bible). We run to Him in prayer. We offer up worship with our hearts for who He is and for the fact He has chosen us, redeemed us, and made us new creations in Jesus Christ alone. We seek the help of the Holy Spirit, thanking Him for giving us the power and strength to endure and remain steadfast, despite temptations to quit, worry, be angry, doubt, etc. We learn to view the waiting period as a season of preparation rather than one of little to no purpose.

Oftentimes it is so easy for us to give into the weariness that comes during seasons of waiting. We grow tired of doing good. We grow weary in our faithfulness to the Lord. We grow impatient for the fruit of the harvest. We grow doubtful that any of it matters. It can be tempting to disregard waiting seasons because of our sinful flesh and the fact that in our society we want instant gratification. This can lead us to think anything that takes longer than a few days to achieve or acquire is worthless, purposeless, and not worth our devotion or energy.

However, this is where we must press into the Lord and His strength. We read in Romans 5:3-5 (ESV), “we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.” Additionally in James 1:2-4 (ESV) we read, “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”

These seasons of waiting are seasons of preparation for what is to come, whether here on Earth or ultimately in Glory (Heaven). As we seek to keep our faith in God through it all, the Lord is sanctifying our hearts and minds with His truth, that we may be transformed and grow in Christlikeness.

As I reflect on my own seasons of waiting, specifically last year when I was battling various health issues and concerns, it felt like a season that would never end and one that did not serve much purpose at the time. The doctor appointments and tests were overwhelming as everyone just kept coming to the same conclusion, “I don’t know.” As I wrestled to trust the Lord and desired for things to just get better or for answers to be found, I began to recognize this underlying lesson of not only remaining steadfast in hope and faith, but more so the need to slow down in my daily schedule and commitments and begin to find beauty and purpose in the still moments of the day unmarked by productivity and completed to-do lists.

It was a season of growing in the meaning and understanding of the beauty and sufficiency of His grace and glorifying Him more. While I still do not have all the answers that I want, I see now that this season was for His glory which ultimately equates to my good.

As we diligently seek to remain steadfast in whatever season of waiting we are currently enduring, may we remember that the Lord is with us. He is working in us. He is working through us, even despite our weakness. He is for us, and He is with us. He is preparing us for something farther down the road in our lives along with ultimately preparing us for Glory. May we trust Him. May we continue in our faithfulness to Him and our discipline to grow in the knowledge and understanding of His Word.

Wherever you find yourself today, do not quit and do not give up hope. Instead, re-read and meditate on that Scripture, sing that worship song, pray that prayer, share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with that friend or coworker, and ultimately just stand in the faith-filled firm confidence that your season of waiting is ultimately a season of preparation. All of this is for your good and for His glory.

Remember: The Lord’s glory is our good.

Let’s Pray: Father, thank You for this season of waiting. Thank You for the truth that this is actually a good season and ultimately a season of preparation. Thank You that though this may be hard and seem purposeless, You are working all things together for my good and Your glory. I thank You for being by my side, strengthening and sustaining me, never leaving nor forsaking me. I thank You for the fact You are for me and not against me. May my heart trust Your good intentions, perfect wisdom, and sufficient provision so that I may truly walk in peace and hope every day. In Jesus’s Name I pray. Amen.

~*~
Song of Reflection #1: “His Glory and My Good” by City Alight. Listen to it here.

Song of Reflection #2: “Wait on the Lord” by Donnie McClurkin. Listen to it here.

Song of Reflection #3: “In the Waiting” by Vicki Yohe. Listen to it here.

Song of Reflection #4: “My Story Your Glory” by Matthew West. Listen to it here.

~*~
Author Bio:

Jennifer Reese obtained a Bachelor of Social Work, a Master of Ministry in Intercultural Studies, and certifications in Biblical Counseling. 

Her educational training has afforded Jennifer the opportunity to work with various populations—such as foster care and adoption, refugee women, homeless, under-resourced youth, international students, and local churches. It has been through these experiences that she has seen a need for women of all ages to understand their true identity as a child of God in order to experience the promised abundant life and freedom.

By working as a Biblical Counselor and Coach, Jennifer focuses on helping women and teen girls discover who God is and to know their true identity in Jesus Christ. Through her professional work and ministry, she helps people learn how to carry out their specific purpose and calling in building God’s Kingdom that is not of this world.

On a personal note, Jennifer recently got married on May 24, 2025. The day was filled with abundant joy and peace, bringing glory to the Lord and wonderful fellowship with their closest friends and family. After many years of praying and waiting for this gift, Jennifer is excited to step into this new season and ministry of being a wife and hopefully, one day soon, a mom.

~*~
Connect with Jennifer:
Website: www.rootedandfixed.com
Instagram: www.instagram.com/rootedandfixed
Email address: rootedandfixed@gmail.com

Devotionals for the Heart: When grief overshadows the beauty of springtime

When Everything Blooms and You Are Still Learning to Breathe
A devotional by Patti Schultz, Ed.D.

“See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.”—Isaiah 43:19 (NIV)

There is something almost cruel about spring when you are grieving.

The world does not slow down for your heartache. The dogwoods bloom anyway. The birds sing their first morning songs before you are ready. Children laugh outside your window, and the sky turns a particular shade of blue that only April knows and somehow, all of it hurts. I have stood at that window myself, feeling the strange loneliness of a world that keeps being beautiful when you are not ready for it. If you have felt that ache, you are not alone.

The Scriptures are honest about this tension. The Psalms are full of people who wept beneath a beautiful sky. Even the disciples, after the resurrection, went back to fishing—feeling numb and not yet sure what to do with hope that felt too large to hold. Grief does not follow the calendar. It does not know that it is almost May.

When God declares, “I am doing a new thing!”, He does not promise we will see it easily or feel it quickly. He asks something gentler: “Do you not perceive it?” Sometimes the new thing is so quiet, so fragile and so unlike what we imagined like a small green shoot that we see pressing through hard ground, a moment of unexpected peace, a morning when the ache, just briefly, lifts. Sometimes perceiving is simply not looking away.

Spring is not a command to feel better. It is a promise that God is still working. Life still comes from ground that looked dead all winter. He has not forgotten you in the cold season, and He has not forgotten you now. You are allowed to sit with your grief while also looking at the flowers. You are allowed to cry tears of sadness while watching a beautiful sunrise. You are allowed to let beauty reach you even when you cannot explain how. That is not a contradiction; it is what it means to be human and held at the same time.

God is making a way in your wilderness, even now. You may not see it whole yet. But spring is His gentle reminder that new things are possible. Even here. Even for you.

Let’s Pray: Lord, the world is waking up around me, and I am still so tired. I thank You for the beauty You have placed in this season, even when I do not know how to receive it. Help me not feel guilty for the moments when it reaches me and be gentle with myself in the moments when it doesn’t. You are the God who brings life from what is dormant. You are the One who makes streams in the wasteland. I trust that You see my desert place, and that You are already at work there, even when I cannot feel it. Teach me to perceive the new thing You are doing, however quietly, however slowly. And until I can, hold me through the ones who love me, in the mercy of each ordinary morning, and in the steadfast hope that You are not finished yet. In Jesus’s name I pray. Amen.

~*~
Song of Reflection #1: “It Is Well with My Soul” (song cover in ASL & CC by Rock Church Deaf Ministry). Listen to it here.

Song of Reflection #2: “Even If” by MercyMe (song cover in ASL with Brandon of the Deaf Millennial Project). Listen to it here.

Song of Reflection #3: “Goodness of God” by CeCe Winans (song cover in ASL & CC by Rock Church Deaf Ministry). Listen to it here.

Song of Reflection #4: “Held” by Natalie Grant. Listen to it here.

~*~
Author Bio:

Dr. Patti Schultz’s inspiring journey weaves a tapestry of compassion, resilience, and divine hope. 

Formerly a public school principal, professor, teacher, and interpreter for the deaf, she now dedicates her life to a heartfelt ministry rooted in her personal experiences.

As a mother to three miracle boys here on Earth and a member of a heavenly soccer team, Patti’s story is one of unwavering faith and profound love. Her decade-long battle with infertility and recurrent loss fuels her deep compassion for grieving mothers, guiding them toward healing through the comforting embrace of Jesus Christ’s garment.

Patti’s gentle wisdom offers a safe haven for women navigating pain, reminding them they are never alone. Through her ministry, she seeks to envelop grieving mothers in divine comfort, encouraging hope, renewal, and the reassurance that God's love is always near, wrapping them in His compassionate hem as they walk the path to healing.

Living in northern Michigan, she cherishes precious moments with family and community, drawing strength from faith and connection.

~*~
Connect with Patti:
Website: pattischultz.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dr.pattischultz/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Dr.Patti.Schultz
Email: dr.patti.schultz@gmail.com

Interview with Sarah S. Brown, author of "Even the Ashes Bloom" (book)

Author Interview with Sarah S. Brown about her book “Even the Ashes Bloom: Finding Beauty When You Feel Broken”

Alexis: What inspired you to write this book?

Sarah: There were seasons in my life where I felt deeply broken. Disappointment, heartbreak, unmet expectations…the kind that shake your identity and leave you wondering who you even are anymore. And in those moments, I found myself asking: God, what are You doing here? Can anything good really come from this?

As I began to heal, I realized something powerful—God wasn’t just meeting me after the hard parts. He was present in them. Gently restoring, reframing, redeeming. This book was born out of that journey and the answer to a prayer I prayed for many years—that God would use my story to help others.

I wrote Even the Ashes Bloom for the woman who feels like her life didn’t turn out the way she prayed it would. For the one sitting in the aftermath—of loss, betrayal, disappointment—wondering if beauty is still possible.

This book is a reminder that God does some of His most tender, redemptive work right there in the ashes.

Alexis: How did you create the title “Even the Ashes Bloom: Finding Beauty When You Feel Broken”?

Sarah: The title came from this image that kept coming back to me—How, after a wildfire, certain seeds only open because of the fire. They’re called “fire-followers.” What looks like complete devastation becomes the very condition for new life. That felt like my story.

Even the Ashes Bloom is a reminder that the very places that feel destroyed aren’t beyond redemption. They’re often where God is doing His most meaningful work. And the subtitle—Finding Beauty When You Feel Broken—speaks directly to the heart of the reader. Because most of us don’t walk around saying, “I’m in a season of transformation.” We say, “I feel broken.” And I wanted to meet women right there.

Alexis: How did God bring beauty out of the very thing that broke you? Share the story.

Sarah: There was a season in my life where everything I thought my life would be…wasn’t. A marriage that didn’t last. Expectations that unraveled. A deep sense of shame I didn’t know how to name, much less release.

But as God began to untangle the lies I had believed about myself and replace them with truth, He showed me that my identity was never rooted in my circumstances—it was rooted in Him.

What I've come to see now is that the very thing that broke me became the place where God rebuilt me. Not into the person I thought I was supposed to be, but into someone more grounded, more honest, and more anchored in Him than I had ever been before.

He took what felt like ashes—loss, disappointment, shame—and grew something new in that same soil: deeper faith, restored identity, and a hope that isn't dependent on everything going right. He didn't waste a single part of it. And that's the beauty I didn't see coming.

Alexis: What was it like to share your journey through heartbreak, healing, and hope? Was it hard to be transparent?

Sarah: Yes…and no. There were definitely moments when I paused and thought, "Do I really want to say this out loud?" Because once it’s on the page, you can’t take it back. But I kept coming back to this: Someone else is living this too. And if my willingness to be honest could help someone feel less alone, less ashamed, or more seen by God, then it was worth it. I didn’t want to write from a place of perfection. I wanted to write from a place of healing.

Alexis: In what ways do you hope your story will help your readers?

Sarah: More than anything, I want readers to find peace in the middle of pain and uncertainty—and to release the shame that has told them they are too far gone. I want them to rediscover their worth in Jesus Christ, to see how faith can flourish even in barren seasons, and to embrace healing through reflection, journaling, and prayer. And above all, I want them to trust that as long as they are alive, God is still writing their story.

Alexis: What do you mean when you say God is planting seeds of new life in scorched places?

Sarah: Sometimes growth doesn’t look like growth. It looks like loss. It looks like silence. It looks like everything falling apart. But just because we can’t see what God is doing, doesn’t mean He isn’t working.

I know this to be true because I’ve lived it. The areas I wanted to hide, the ones that felt the most barren, those became the places where He began reshaping me from the inside out. Not all at once, and not in ways that were always obvious. Because seeds don’t grow overnight and they don’t grow where everyone can see them. They grow in the dark. In the waiting. In the quiet work that feels hidden but isn’t wasted. Over time, what once felt lifeless begins to tell a different story.

Alexis: Was it hard to make the book part memoir and part devotional?

Sarah: It was a balancing act. The memoir pieces required vulnerability—going back into real moments, real emotions, real memories. And the devotional pieces required clarity—Asking, “What is God inviting the reader into here?”

The most challenging part was making sure the story always served the reader—not just my own processing. But the most rewarding part? Watching those two elements come together in a way that doesn’t just tell a story but transforms one. Because it’s not just about what I’ve been through—it’s about what God wants to do in them.

Alexis: How did God help you find peace in the middle of your pain and uncertainty?

Sarah: Peace looked like small, quiet moments. Sitting with Scripture, whispered prayers, and choosing to trust God when I didn’t understand what He was doing.

There were still questions and uncertainty. That part didn’t magically disappear. But over time, I began to realize that peace wasn’t the absence of pain—it was the presence of God in the middle of it. It was the sense that I wasn’t alone in what I was walking through. That even when everything around me felt unstable, I was still being held.

Alexis: How did God help you release shame and discover your worth in Jesus Christ?

Sarah: Shame has a way of convincing you that you are what you’ve been through. It doesn’t just remind you of your past—it tries to redefine you by it.

For a long time, I carried that weight. I believed the lie that my worth was somehow tied to my mistakes— that I had to spend my life making up for them or proving I was still enough. But God began to show me that shame is not from Him. It’s something He came to remove.

And He didn’t do that all at once—it was a process. Through Scripture, prayer, therapy, and the steady encouragement of people who spoke truth over me when I couldn’t see it for myself, God started to gently unravel the lies I had believed. He kept reminding me that my past does not define my worth—and that I don't have to earn His love. It was already mine. Little by little, that truth began to take root. I started to see the difference between conviction and condemnation. One draws you closer to God, and the other pushes you into hiding.

Over time, I began to understand that my worth wasn’t something fragile I could lose—it was something secure in Christ. I realized that God was never asking me to carry shame. He was inviting me to lay it down. And when that finally settled into my heart, it didn’t just change how I saw myself, it changed how I lived.

Alexis: What has God taught you about how faith can flourish in barren seasons?

Sarah: He taught me that barren doesn’t mean empty.

Some of the deepest growth in my life didn’t happen in seasons of abundance. It happened in seasons where I felt stripped down to almost nothing. The things I once relied on were gone or shaken, and I didn’t have the answers I thought I needed. But that’s where something shifted. Because that’s where my faith stopped depending on circumstances and started depending on God.

In those barren seasons, I learned that faith isn’t proven when everything is going right—it’s formed when you choose to trust God when nothing makes sense. When prayers feel unanswered. When the outcome is unclear. When all you can do is take the next step in front of you.

God showed me what looked like a barren season was a season of preparation. God was strengthening my foundation, reshaping my understanding of who He is, and teaching me that even when life feels still or uncertain, He is always at work.

Alexis: How did reflection, journaling, and prayer help heal your pain?

Sarah: They gave my pain somewhere to go. Instead of carrying everything internally, I was able to process it with God honestly and openly, without filtering or trying to “clean it up” first.

There were moments when I didn’t even know what I was feeling, just that it was heavy. Journaling helped me slow down enough to name it. To get it out of my head and onto the page. It was in those pages that I began to see patterns—lies I had been believing, fears I hadn’t acknowledged, and places where I was still holding on instead of letting God in.

Prayer became less about saying the “right” words and more about being real with God. Sometimes it was just a sentence. Sometimes it was silence. But it was a space where I could bring everything—the questions, the anger, the grief—and trust that He could handle it.

Reflection helped me look back and recognize something I often missed in the moment: God had been with me all along.

Even in the seasons that felt the most confusing or painful, I could begin to trace His presence—through people, through small moments of provision, through the quiet ways He sustained me when I didn’t think I could keep going.

It didn’t take the pain away overnight. But it helped me process it, release it, and slowly begin to heal instead of just carry it.

Alexis: What is the BLOOM framework? How does it work?

Sarah: The BLOOM framework is a simple, intentional way to move from reading to transformation. Each chapter ends with this rhythm:

• Believe – Anchor yourself in a core truth
• Linger – Sit with Scripture and let it speak to you
• Observe – Notice what God is doing in your life
• Offer – Respond through prayer
• Magnify – Shift your focus to God’s presence and respond through action

It’s not meant to be overwhelming. It’s meant to be invitational. My hope is that readers don’t just close the book feeling inspired but equipped.

Alexis: Thanks for the interview, Sarah! God bless you and your book.

~*~
Author Bio: 

Sarah S. Brown is a Christian author and speaker who helps women anchor their identity in Christ and find renewed confidence through life’s hardest seasons. 

A former teacher, she contributed to Hope for the Holidays, A Year of Hope, and bestseller Stories of Good Grief, Vol.2. Sarah was named a Woman of Influence by the Nashville Business Journal. Her book, Even the Ashes Bloom, invites readers on a faith-filled journey from brokenness to spiritual renewal. 

Sarah lives in Tennessee with her husband and two sons and believes strong coffee and shared stories can change the world.

~*~
Book Blurb:

Have you ever wondered if God could bring beauty out of the very thing that broke you? 

In Even the Ashes Bloom, Sarah S. Brown invites you on a heartfelt journey through heartbreak, healing, and hope. After walking through the devastation of divorce, Sarah discovered a God who doesn’t discard broken soil—He restores it. Through her story, you’ll find comfort in knowing that your pain isn’t wasted, your story isn’t over, and God is already planting seeds of new life in the very places that feel scorched.

Part memoir, part devotional, Even the Ashes Bloom weaves together Scripture, storytelling, and soul-nourishing reflection to help you:

• Find peace in the middle of pain and uncertainty
• Release shame and rediscover your worth in Christ
• See how faith can flourish even in barren seasons
• Embrace healing through reflection, journaling, and prayer

Each chapter ends with Sarah’s signature BLOOM framework—a guided rhythm of believing, lingering in truth, observing, offering prayer, and magnifying God’s presence in your life. Perfect for personal reading, small groups, or quiet time study, this book will meet you tenderly in the ache and remind you that God’s grace writes better endings than we ever could.

Even when all you see is ashes, God is already growing something beautiful.

~*~
Buy Sarah’s book:

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Books-A-Million

Walmart

~*~
Connect with Sarah:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authorsarahsbrown/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorsarahsbrown

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/authorsarahsbrown/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/authorsarahsbrown/

Website: sarahsbrown.com

Devotionals for the Heart: When the press is part of God's plan for you

Hardship Produces What You Never Knew Was Inside
A devotional by Heidi Lewis-Ivey

“For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.”—2 Corinthians 4:17 (KJV)

Long before olive oil found its way onto kitchen shelves and dinner tables, someone had to press the olive. Not gently. Not carefully. The stone wheel rolled over it with full, crushing weight and only then did the oil flow. The most valuable thing inside that small, humble fruit was never going to come out on its own. It required the press.

Now think about your life right now. The weight you’re carrying. The pressure that seems relentless. The season that is lasting far longer than you thought you could endure. What if, just what if the press you are under is not punishment, but process? What if God is not squeezing the life out of you, but drawing something priceless from you?

The Press Has Always Been Part of the Plan

The Garden of Gethsemane—the very place Jesus Christ went the night before His death on the cross—means “oil press” in Hebrew. Jesus, on the most agonizing night of His earthly life, chose to go to a place named for crushing. It was there, under the weight of what was coming, that His surrender produced the salvation of the world.

Nothing about that night felt like victory in that moment. But Heaven knew what the press was producing. Let’s read about it in Isaiah 53:3-5 (KJV). It says, “He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.”

Christ was bruised so that peace could flow. That is the theology of the press. Not that suffering is good, but that in the hands of a sovereign God, nothing is wasted. Not one tear, not one sleepless night, not one moment of pain that you thought would break you.

Suffering Has a Produce

The Apostle Paul was not a man who wrote about suffering from a distance. He was well acquainted with suffering. Paul was shipwrecked, beaten, imprisoned, and abandoned. He knew what it felt like to be pressed from every side. And yet he teaches us that every step is producing something.

Let’s read more about this in Romans 5:3-5 (KJV). It says, “And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; And patience, experience; and experience, hope: And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.”

Tribulation produces Patience then Experience that turns into Hope, which results in God’s Love Shed Abroad. Every step in that chain has weight and purpose. Tribulation is not a dead-end, it is producing patience. Patience does not grow in comfort. Experience is not produced on easy days. And hope the kind that maketh not ashamed is produced in the exact moments when hope seems hardest to hold onto.

What the Press Produces in You

Think about the people whose faith has moved you most. The ones whose testimonies stopped you in your tracks. Chances are, they were not people who had easy lives. They were people who had been pressed and out of that pressing came depth, compassion, resilience, and an anointing that simply could not have come any other way.

God is not interested in producing a shallow version of you. He is after the gold. And gold, scripture reminds us, is tried in fire. Let’s look at 1 Peter 1:7 (NIV) to explore more of that this means. It says, “That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ.”

Your faith is being tried, yes. But it is also being proven. Every time you choose trust over fear, praise over despair, and surrender over control, the press is producing something eternal in you.

You Are Not Being Crushed—You Are Being Prepared

There is a difference between being destroyed and being pressed. The Apostle Paul knew it. He lived it. And he made sure we understood it. Let’s read what he says in 2 Corinthians 4:8-9 (KJV). He wrote, “We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed.”

Troubled on every side but not distressed. There is a boundary on what this season can do to you. The press is real, but it does not have the final word. God does. And what He says about you is that you and I are being prepared for greater fruitfulness, for deeper influence, for a testimony that will set someone else free. Hallelujah!

The olive doesn’t get to choose the press. But it doesn’t have to. Because the one holding it knows exactly how much pressure is needed, and exactly when to stop. The Lord knows the same about you. Let’s read Job 23:10 (KJV) for more knowledge about this. It says, “But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.”

Be Strong and Let the Press Do Its Work

In my devotional published on this blog last month, we talked about what it means to be strong. But strength is not the absence of pressure it is the decision to trust God in the pressure. It is believing that the One who allowed the press is the same One who will catch every drop of what it produces.

You are not being punished. You are not forgotten. You are not too far gone. You are in the press and what is coming out of you is more valuable than you know. Your tears are not wasted. Your endurance is not invisible. Your faith, tried in this fire, is orchestrated by Heaven and will be used in ways you have not yet imagined. Hold on. The oil is coming.

Let’s Pray:

Lord, I don’t always understand the press I’m in, but I trust the hands that are holding me through it. Help me to remember that you waste nothing. That every hard thing is being worked together for good. That I am not being destroyed; I am being prepared. Help me to surrender to the process, to give thanks in the midst of it, and to believe that what you are producing in me is worth every moment of the pressing. In the name of Jesus, I pray. Amen.

~*~
Song of Reflection #1: “Greater is Coming” by Jekalyn Carr. Listen to it here.

Song of Reflection #2: “Refiner” by Maverick City Music. Listen to it here.

Song of Reflection #3: “Blessing in the Storm” by Kirk Franklin. Listen to it here.

~*~
Author Bio:

Heidi Lewis-Ivey is an affirmed prophet and an internationally acclaimed speaker. 

She impacts audiences with her authenticity and bold style of delivery. She has had the opportunity to minister in Trinidad, St. Thomas USVI, Manchester and Liverpool (England).

Heidi is an award-winning and bestselling author. She is the author of Can I Rest Awhile? and Black Girl Cry: What Black Women Need to Know to Amplify Their Voices. She is a co-author in Soulful Prayers (Volume 1 and Volume 2) and Soulful Affirmations. Heidi is the convener of the Encountering the Courts of God movement and the founder of Visions International, a training ground for five-fold ministry gifts.

She holds a Master of Business Administration in Organizational Leadership from Norwich University and a Bachelor of Science in Management from Boston University. Heidi is the CEO of Nael & Associates Inc and franchise owner of Patrice & Associates recruiting firm. She is a member of the Pentimenti Women Writers Group, a former mentor with Year Up, former board member for Friends of Young Achievers, and a Diversity Equity and Inclusion Strategist.

Heidi is the proud aunt/great aunt of 14 nieces and nephews and two bonus nieces. They are her joy. The older nephews have become her protectors.

Heidi is an NFL football fan. As a child, she taught herself the game. In 2017 she won her NFL.com fantasy football league. Heidi is an avid reader (Audible listener) of romance novels, a lover of purses and handbags, and a tea snob who believes bling is always appropriate.

She lives in Boston, MA.

~*~
Connect with Heidi:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/iamheidi01
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/heidi-lewis-ivey

"He Calls Me Daughter" (film) is now streaming online via Angel Studios

When Momentum Influencers Network (MIN) asked me to share more about the film titled “He Calls Me Daughter”, I agreed because my life was positively impacted through watching this film a few weeks ago and I believe this documentary would make a significant difference in the lives of females who are suffering from father wounds and struggling in their faith walk with Jesus Christ.

He Calls Me Daughter will start streaming via Angel Studios this April 23. Angel is a platform for deeply personal, healing-centered stories rooted in faith.

Before I share my review with you, I’d like to share words from Angel Studios about this film: He Calls Me Daughter is a deeply personal and emotionally powerful film that explores what it means to carry a father wound and what it takes to heal from it. Through raw storytelling and spiritual insight, the film reveals how unmet needs from an earthly father can shape identity, relationships, and self-worth. But it also offers a path forward. One rooted in the love of a Heavenly Father who restores, redeems, and redefines what it means to be a daughter. This is not just a story about pain. It is a story about healing, forgiveness, and identity.

Here’s some additional info from Angel Studios with some notes from me:

What happens when the one meant to protect you is the one who hurt you?

Now there’s a movie filled with real-life stories and ending with practical resources to help you heal those wounds from your earthly father and show you the pure, healthy and protective love of your Heavenly Father.

This documentary is for: Women navigating pain, abandonment, or broken relationships with their fathers. Faith-based audiences seeking healing, identity, and restoration. Parents, especially fathers, who want to better understand their role and impact. Viewers drawn to emotionally resonant, testimony-driven storytelling.

Core Themes in this film are:

1. God as the Perfect Father

Even when earthly fathers fail, God’s love remains constant, personal, and healing. He steps into the gaps left behind and restores what was missing.

2. Healing the Father Wound

The “father wound” shapes how daughters see themselves, love others, and relate to God. This film brings language and clarity to that pain, while offering hope for healing.

3. Forgiveness Through God

Forgiveness is not easy. It is a process made possible through a relationship with God, who enables true release and restoration.

4. Identity as a Daughter

At the core of the film is a powerful truth: your identity is not defined by what you lacked, but by who calls you His.

5. A Message to Fathers

Fathers play a critical role in shaping their daughters’ sense of worth and security. This film is both a wake-up call and an invitation to show up, love deeply, and lead well.

Why Angel Matters

Angel provides a home for stories that go beyond entertainment and into transformation. He Calls Me Daughter is the kind of film that resonates deeply but is often overlooked by traditional platforms. Angel ensures stories like this are seen, shared, and experienced by the people who need them most.

This film speaks directly to the pain many women carry but rarely name. We want women to know: Healing is possible, even from deep father wounds. Your identity is not defined by your past, but by your Heavenly Father. Forgiveness is not weakness, it is freedom. Fathers have the power to shape, protect, and affirm their daughters.

The tone and style of this film is:

● Emotionally honest and vulnerable

● Hopeful, healing, and faith-centered

● Reflective rather than preachy

● Personal and relatable

● Uplifting without minimizing pain

If your relationship with your dad left wounds, this film is for you.

Call to Action: Watch He Calls Me Daughter now on Angel and experience a story of healing, identity, and restoration. Join the Angel Guild to support more stories that bring hope, healing, and truth to the screen.

~*~

My Review of “He Calls Me Daughter” (film):

Captivating. Poignant. Transformational.

Those are three words to accurately describe this film aptly titled “He Calls Me Daughter”. If you are a female who has had a complicated relationship (or no relationship) with your earthly father so much so that it has distorted your view of your Heavenly Father, then this movie is for you.

Filled with real-life stories and testimonies from women in the real world, this movie will touch your heart and transform your mind to see God as who He really is—a loving Heavenly Father who will heal your wounds inflicted by your earthly father if you let Him.

This movie highlights the pain of several women—a few who are not well-known but have influence and the rest who are famous, including Christian comedian Chonda Pierce and Lynsi Lavelle Snyder-Ellingson who the owner and heiress of the In-N-Out Burger company that is popular in the state of California. The testimonies shared by these ladies are both heart-touching and heart-wrenching at the same time. But the powerful point in everyone’s story is how God has touched the broken hearts of these women and carefully restored their faith in His Love which is greater than the love any earthly father can give his daughter.

I like how this movie showed a full-circle journey for each woman featured. I also appreciated how they featured stories that a variety of women from different backgrounds, ethnicities, cultures and backgrounds can relate to. This movie leaves no stone unturned in getting their core message across to women who are hurting.

This film was worth the time I spent watching it. At the end of the film, the hosts talk to the audience for a few minutes to point them to a resource you access by scanning a QR code. The resource is a curriculum for women who need help healing from their father wounds.

I highly recommend this documentary to all females who are suffering from father wounds and need a healthy dose of hope and healing from their Savior.

~*~
Watch the trailer for He Calls Me Daughter here.

Visit the official website for He Calls Me Daughter film here.

Join “He Calls Me Daughter” via Angel Guild:
https://www.angel.com/guild/join/he-calls-me-daughter

~*~
#HeCallsMeDaughterAngelMIN #MomentumInfluencerNetwork

Disclosure: Many thanks to Angel for providing a sample of this product for review. Opinions are 100% my own.

My Review of the She Reads Truth Spiral-Bound Notetaking Bible

When Momentum Influencers Network (MIN) asked me to review the She Reads Truth Spiral-Bound Notetaking Bible, I readily agreed because I love reading God’s Word (The Holy Bible) and sharing it with everyone!

But before I share my review with you, I’d like to share a word from Momentum Influencers Network and a few notes from me about this product:

The She Reads Truth Spiral-Bound Notetaking Bible experience was designed with special attention to the details to make opening your Bible every day even more enjoyable.

These details include:

• Spiral-bound CSB, like you’ve never seen before

• Beautifully illustrated key verses

• Wide margins for journaling, notes and prayers

• Daily reading logs for accountability

• Five volumes, perfect for portability

• Built-in community with other women through She Reads Truth

• Additional study helps like timelines, maps, charts & book introductions

Before reading this Bible, I was familiar with the She Reads Truth ministry for women. I must admit, this notetaking Bible does not disappoint!

~*~

My Review of the She Reads Truth Notetaking Bible for the New Testament:

The first thing I noticed was how big and heavy this product is…so huge that you would think it contains the entire Bible from Genesis to Revelation inside. But true to the title written horizontally on the far-right side of the cover, this book only contains the New Testament (Matthew through Revelation) of The Bible.

I found the spiral ring binding of this book to be a bit problematic because it often got stuck when I tried to open the book and turn the pages. I also think that while the cover subtle gray cover with a hue of gold and bronze is pretty, the font size for title of this Bible is too small and can almost be missed where it is positioned.

The first page you see when you open this book is neatly laid out, clearly written and easy to read. The designer and publisher used white space perfectly on this page. I think it is impressive that two women (Raechel Meyers and Amanda Bible Williams) were the general editors for this edition. It is also impressive that the publisher (Andy McLean) has a Ph.D.

I appreciate the letter from the editor for the readers on the second page to the right. The tone was warm and welcoming. The letter was very comprehensive in describing who this edition is intended for (women) and how to get the most out of your Bible reading experience with the added details that speak to the heart of women who are following Jesus Christ.

The Table of Contents was neatly laid out and centered on one page. The next page instructs you how to read the New Testament. It is followed by a reading log that spans four pages. It is there where you can note the date when you studied each chapter of each book in this Bible.

This is followed by two pages spent on introducing the reader to the Christian Standard Bible (CSB) which is the translation for all the Scripture within this book. After that is one page explaining the abbreviations, you will see as you read this CSB translation. I thought this was helpful.

I liked the artwork on the back of the page that tells you are about to start reading the New Testament with the book of Matthew. The artwork features blue mountains and white cloudy skies. A Bible verse is written in the center. The color scheme calms your mind and prepares you to read God’s Word.

Before you read the first verse, there is a page that leads you into Matthew with a historical timeline, Biblical background, tells you the message and purpose of Matthew then provides a note of thanks for this book.

When you turn the page, you will see a detailed map of The Passion Week in Jerusalem. On the right page, you will see a detailed outline of this book (Matthew). The next page starts with verse one of chapter one of Matthew. I appreciated how easy it was to read because of the larger than usual font size and extra space between each verse. I also liked the lines set across the wide margins of every page so I can take notes as is the purpose of this edition of the Bible.

All the books in this Bible have the same format, layout and details that I described in the first book (Matthew). I appreciated the consistency and attention to detail.

The final page with text on it lists the names and titles of the people who contributed to this beautiful Bible and made it ready to read. I appreciated that they gave credit where credit is due.

After the page that lists the contributors, there are a few final pages that are each completely blank. Perhaps that is intended for the reader to take more notes, write a journal entry or create their own artwork based on what they read in this Bible.

Overall, I like this edition for women and recommend it to every female not only in the She Reads Truth community, but worldwide.

~*~

Order your copy today wherever books and Bibles are sold. Here’s the purchase link: https://www.bhpublishinggroup.com/she-reads-truth/

Disclosure: Many thanks to Lifeway Christian Resources for providing a sample of the product for this review. Opinions are 100% my own.

#SheReadsTruthNotetakingBibleMIN

#SheReadsTruth

#SheWritesTruth

#ChristianStandardBible

#MomentumInfluencerNetwork