Renee Meyer

Posted on January 25, 2018January 25, 2018 by Renee Meyer · 2 Comments

My Steps toward a HAPPIER 2018 (my 18 for 2018)

I used to feel beholden to have new year’s resolutions figured out so I could start on January 1. But man, that does NOT work for me. January is my favorite month, and I love New Year’s Resolutions, but I need TIME to think about what I really want, and to make a plan. And December does NOT give me enough time to figure that business out.

I’ve been so much better at keeping resolutions since I started giving myself more time to make them. As an all-or-nothing person, it also helps when I start new habits at more random times. I’m not sure why, but there’s a difference between “It’s only January 3 and I blew it!” and “It’s January 13, two days into my commitment to move every day, and I forgot to do it.” For whatever reason, the second scenario makes it easier for me to start fresh the next day rather than just giving up.

For my resolutions this year, I was inspired by Gretchen Rubin’s Happier podcast (one of my favorites) to make an 18 for 2018.

Lest you think I’m not following my own advice to keep resolutions simple, only a few of these 18 things are actual resolutions. 18 for 2018 is a list of things that will make my life happier in 2018. Read more

Posted on January 23, 2018February 20, 2018 by Renee Meyer · 6 Comments

Fear Not: Willing to Wait

Join me on a devotional journey, looking at the many times God says, "DON'T BE AFRAID." In today's devotional, we look at Abraham's life for lessons on learning to "fear not..."

“Do not fear, Abram, I am a shield to you;
Your reward shall be very great.” (Genesis 15:1)

As God’s story unfolds in the Bible, Abraham is the first person to hear “Do not fear…” from God. Let’s sit at Abraham’s feet and see what we can learn from his life about freedom from fear.

We meet Abraham as Abram in Genesis 12, as God says to Him,

“Go forth from your country, And from your relatives And from your father’s house,
To the land which I will show you; And I will make you a great nation, And I will bless you, And make your name great; And so you shall be a blessing; And I will bless those who bless you, And the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.”

Abraham’s is a story of faith, and Abraham’s is a story of promise.

God says GO, and Abram goes. Abram goes in God’s promise to make him a nation, to make his name great, and to make him a blessing. Abram becomes the father of Israel, and through his descendant Jesus, all the families of the earth are blessed. Every promise Yahweh made to Abram was kept.

Abraham’s story is a story of faith and promise. But those promises of a nation and a prosperity and a blessing are given when Abram is 75, and childless. Without a child, Abram could not father a nation, or have a great name, or bless all the families of the earth.

At 99, Yahweh repeats His promises to Abram, and gives him a new name, one with the breath of God inserted in the middle. Abraham’s story is a story of faith and promise. But Abram waited for 25 years before a son was born to him, before he had even a glimpse of God’s plan, the keeping of his promise. Read more

Posted on January 20, 2018February 6, 2018 by Renee Meyer · 2 Comments

Separated from the Stars (Madeleine L’Engle, speaking through the years words we need now more than ever.)

“If we look at the make up of the word disaster, dis-aster, we see dis, which means separation, and aster, which means stars. So dis-aster is separation from the stars. Such separation is disaster indeed. When we are separated from the stars, the sea, each other, we are in danger of being separated from God.

Sometime the very walls of our churches separate us from God and each other. In our various naves and sanctuaries we are safely separated from those outside, from other denominations, other religions, separated from the poor, the ugly, the dying. I’m not advocating pulling down the walls of our churches, though during the activist sixies I used to think it might be a good idea if we got rid of all churches which seated more than two hundred. But then I think of the huge cathedral which is my second home in New York, and how its great stone arms welcome a multitude of different people, from the important and affluent to waifs and strays and the little lost ones of a great, overcrowded city. We need to remember that the house of God is not limited bo a building that we usually visit for only a few hours on Sunday. The house of God is not a safe place. It is a cross where time and eternity meet, and where we are – or should be – challenged to live more vulnerably, more interdependently. Where, even with the light streaming in rainbow colors through the windows, we can listen to the stars.” – Madeleine L’Engle

One of the best gifts I gave myself last year (it is, as they say, the gift that keeps on giving) was Madeleine L’Engles Glimpses of Grace: Daily Thoughts and Reflections. I grew up on L’Engle’s fiction, and her nonfiction writing has been one of the best discoveries of my adult life. I’m making my way through her Crosswicks journals, but when I heard about a daily devotional type book of her writing I knew I had to have it. Her gentle language and wise thoughts are the perfect end to my every day. I could share half of what I’ve read, and every day gives me something to think about (usually something lovely and something that points me to God – though in a very different way than I’m used to.)

Here’s to hoping for a world in which we are less separated from the stars, and from each others.

Posted on January 19, 2018February 20, 2018 by Renee Meyer

Spiritual Adulting

I live half my life with millennials, so I’m always hearing how hard adulting is, and “I can’t adult today”. Of course I also get a front row seat to watch people grow up and learn to “adult” whether they like it or not (English major alert: I’m finding it super hard to use adult as a verb, even when I’m speaking I mentally add the quotes. I’m going to try to relax, but…)

My job allows me to be a sort of midwife/doula as college students move from freshmen to seniors, then graduate and learn to take responsibility in their lives and relationships. The internet is awash with resources for “adulting” in life and business and (to a lesser extent) relationships, but I’ve been thinking of ways we grow up in our spiritual lives. Read more

Posted on January 16, 2018February 20, 2018 by Renee Meyer · 2 Comments

Fear Not: The Fear of the Lord is the Beginning of Wisdom

I feel God calling me right now, to something new or different. I don’t want to be melodramatic, so let me be clear: I don’t know how new, or how different, and I suspect that the new or different isn’t what I expect. I also don’t think He’s calling me to something bigger. I’m guessing it is something smaller, actually.

But I do feel like He’s calling me.

That sounds pretty romantic, but the truth is that I am scared to death. I trust God, but I don’t like change, and my life already has plenty of change coming, thankyouverymuch. I’m scared.

Afraid of mis-hearing God, of making wrong decisions.

Afraid of disappointment.

Afraid of failure. (Really, really afraid of failure.)

I’m afraid.

I decided a long time ago not to make decisions based on fear, but I’ve found that fear leads me in super sneaky ways.

So I’m going back to my roots, Bible study wise, and I’m doing a Word study. I’m going to look at every place the Bible says any version of the phrase “fear not” or “do not be afraid.” I think I’ve read somewhere that “fear not” is the most repeated command in the Bible, so I’m guessing this will take a while.

I probably won’t write about every single verse I find, but I tend to learn more when I communicate what I’m learning. So I’m inviting you to join me on this journey. Most Tuesdays you’ll find some “fear not” thoughts here, as I work out this truth in my life. I’d love to hear what you’re afraid of, and the areas where you need to hear God’s invitation to “fear not.”

I’ll probably study in chronological order because that makes the most sense to me (Hi, I’m Renee. I like to go in order.) But my verse of the year is from the middle of the story, and it’s another return to my roots (as this is something of a life verse for me.) Read more

Posted on January 9, 2018February 20, 2018 by Renee Meyer · 4 Comments

A Letter to My Future Self

In one of the last books I read in 2017 the author, knowing she’d be traveling the world with her family, journaled a note to herself:

I question our sanity by our third day here. I’m enamored of the earth’s diversity of climates and cultures, and I want a drink of all of it. But China is a struggle for me, with its Communist worldview a battering ram against my overzealous democratic autonomy. I knew this about China before we landed here, so a few weeks before we left I journaled a note to my future self, as a hammer to break the glass in case of an emergency (the emergency being, of course, questioning our sanity and considering a trip to a coffee shop to grab some Wi-Fi and book a return flight home):

You’re in China, which is hard. But you can do hard things. You won’t be here long. This month is the foundation for the year. Lean in to the struggles; give thanks for the easy times. Hard doesn’t mean wrong. You’re on the right path. (Tsh Oxenreider)

This note keeps coming to mind as we move deeper into 2018. I’m not going globe-trotting with my family (I WISH!), but for the first time in many years I’m entering this one knowing for sure there will be hard things, because this year is bringing CHANGE (not my favorite.)

I want to be present and thankful, and I don’t want to let fear of future change steal my joy today. So from the peace and stability of January 2018, from a life that has stayed relatively the same from year to year for a while now, from a heart that naturally overflows with gratitude (rather than having to fight for it), here’s a letter to my future self.

Dear Future Renee,

From this frigid early January day, I don’t know how you’re responding to change and difficulty: With faith and grace, or struggling to trust God. Holding on tight to the things you know are true, or if giving in to fear. I don’t know what hard things you’re facing, whether they are the ones I expect now, or others that have come as a surprise.

But I do know:

Whatever giants you are facing, God is bigger. He is with you, and His goodness is bigger than you know. You are loved and known, not forgotten and invisible.

As things shift and change, I hope you remember:

God never changes, and He will not change His mind about you.

Your stability does not come from your plans, or your ability to manage things so that everyone in the world is comfortable and safe and happy.

Your value is not from being needed by others, or from everything staying the same. Change is natural.

And your hope is not in people or organizations or homes or paychecks or roles. God’s goodness is not limited by your failures or other people’s response to you.

The great story of your faith, the story you see in the Bible and in nature is that life comes from death. You can embrace everything that feels like death right now, and release the things that are changing, the chapters that are ending, the seasons that are over. Let everything fall to the ground like seeds, and trust the God who makes the flowers grow, God who spoke everything you see into being.

Is this hard? Yes. But you can do hard things. Don’t try to do them by yourself, and don’t pretend to be stronger than you are. Say a prayer, go for a walk, choose gratitude, take a nap, call a friend. Hard doesn’t mean you’re on the wrong path.

Let these changes bind you to the God who calls you by name, the Father whose arms are always open to you, whose Word has been your treasure and whose Spirit has been your breath. He will not fail you.

He will not fail you.

Are you facing change or other hard things in the coming year? What would you say to your future self?

Posted on January 4, 2018January 4, 2018 by Renee Meyer · 3 Comments

4 Tips for KEEPING Those New Year’s Resolutions

Resolutions get a bad rap, but I LOVE them. I even make New Month resolutions (sometimes). That level of intensity is not for everyone, you do you. But as a self-improvement junkie I have learned some helpful things over the years, whether you are a resolution nut like me or not.

1. Be realistic and honest

Know what you want, why you want it, and whether or not you are willing to make the necessary changes. Lose weight/get fit is a common resolution, but if my desire to eat what I want continues to outweigh (ha!) concern about my health or appearance, I will never actually make changes in that area.I am considering some form of “keep my house clean” as a resolution this year. It has been on my long list for years (I am seriously not great at housekeeping), but rarely makes the short list. Mostly because of this principle: when I am honest with myself I just don’t care enough about it. Especially not when I had little constant-mess-makers home with me all the time. And in the two years I have worked outside the home again, I have mostly cleaned the things other people see, just before they are going to see them. But as I work on my list of 18 things that will make me happier in 2018 (from Gretchen Rubin’s Happier podcast, more on this soon!), I know that having less clutter and dirt would make me happy. Especially the areas like my bathroom that only affect me, since those tend to be last on my list, always. I just need to figure out some manageable steps, and am trying to be realistic about my desire and commitment to change.

2. Keep your resolutions short and simple

Even into my 30s when I should have known better, I was making lists of 10+ (or 20!) things I wanted to change or improve. And I regularly didn’t make it a week with even one. First: My focus was spread too wide to actually accomplish any one thing. Second: If your list is long, you likely have things on there you’d like to improve, but don’t actually care about enough to make the necessary habit changes (see number one.)

I am making a list of 18 things that will make 2018 happier, but there are only a few traditional resolutions on there. The list is filled out with tasks (like “clean out my closet monthly”, “find a system for regularly getting the photos on my phone into some physically enjoyable form.”) or things I want more of (sleep) or less (wasting time on my phone.)

My actual resolutions are few, specific, and things I actually care enough about to change.

3. Schedule it

Whatever your resolution is, put it on the calendar. And honestly consider what you need to say NO to in order to say YES to your new habit (or vice verse, what positive thing you will do in order to say no to a bad habit.)

I have already failed at this. I intended to do daily yoga in January, but I didn’t plan a time in my day to do it. So I am already behind 2 days. I can’t think I will do daily yoga (or daily anything else) without planning a place and time in my schedule for that to happen.

I am going to follow my own advice (from the Advent Devotional) and jump in today rather than trying to catch up. And I am picking a realistic time to do it (mornings on weekends and holidays, just after my younger two go to bed on work days.) That should get me on track to keep that resolution (which I am REALLY excited about!)

4. Start where you are and embrace a GROWTH versus an ALL OR NOTHING mindset

Real growth happens when we make daily deposits, over time. Small, regular habits accumulate, and consistency trumps random. But our tendency is to jump in making sweeping changes without addressing smaller habits that make up that lifestyle. For example: If I rarely or never exercise, and my New Year’s Resolution is to work out for an hour daily, how likely am I to give up? Quite.

This one is really hard for me, because I am 100% all-or-nothing. Matt says I am a light switch, either all in or all out (he is a dimmer switch, slowly inching his way up. This is a very entertaining marriage dynamic.)

I have to try hard to remember that small changes add up, because making a resolution to do something small or incremental seems super lame to me. But when I make big goals and can’t keep up the pace, I give up completely, forgetting that anything I am doing counts toward growth and change, if I do it consistency.

The idea of habits has been really helpful for me. I try to remember that anything I do or don’t do regularly is a habit. Two years ago one of my resolutions was to floss daily. I occasionally skipped, but on the second day I would remind myself that I was in danger of sliding back into my habit of not flossing.

As I think about health and wellness goals this year, I want to keep a growth mindset: Any healthy choice is better than not caring at all, ignoring or shaming my body. I also need to keep this habit principle in mind, not bullying myself or depending on rules and schedules, but asking, “Am I making a habit of ignoring and mistreating my body? Or am I habitually nourishing and caring for myself?”

Happy New Year! And cheers to making resolutions we can KEEP!

Have you made resolutions this year? What helps you keep your new year’s resolutions?

Posted on January 2, 2018February 20, 2018 by Renee Meyer

Welcoming 2018: A Prayer

This is the year the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.

I welcome You in this new year, Lord, and I want more of You. Remind me of how much I need you. Make me small in my own eyes, but remembering I am greatly loved. Keep me close to you, always.

I receive this new year from you, Lord. I welcome all it brings, whatever it brings.

I trust you. Whether this year holds that which looks good and easy, or that which seems hard and harsh, I trust You.

I release my thoughts, plans, and expectations for this new year. I release my illusions of control. I release my tendency to manage outcomes (for myself and others). I release even my hopes and dreams.

I welcome Your control, Your outcomes, Your hopes and dreams for me and for the world around me.

In this new year I welcome unexpected twists and turns. Not my will, but Yours be done.

As I walk the path of 2018, let me walk in love. Let me walk in faith, not fear. Responding rather than reacting. Gentle with myself and others.

And let me walk in hope. Not hope in my plans or desired outcomes, not even in the hope that You will do what I want.

In 2018 let me walk in the great hope that you are with me, always. And let me walk in the hope of redemption: that your goodness is big enough to bring goodness even in things that are not good, in all this year holds, whatever this year holds.

Amen.

Posted on December 28, 2017February 6, 2018 by Renee Meyer · 2 Comments

My Best Reads: 2017

It was a GREAT year for reading! I didn’t make my goal (100 books in 2017), but I did read 23 more books than I read last year. And I might make it to 72 books read by the actual end of the year, if I finish everything I’m reading right now.

Goodreads makes a fun “Your Year in Books” page, so you can see all 69 of my books if you’re interested. (Fun fact: I started using Goodreads to track books last year just so I could get a “my year in books” page!) But I’m sharing the best of the best here.

My Top 3 Books of 2017

The Hate U Give: This is listed as YA and advertised with a “ripped from the headlines” flavor, but both of those things can be misleading. It’s a good story, well told. And the characters felt like actual people you could meet, living actual lives I now understand and have compassion for. So good.

When Breath Becomes Air: I was afraid to read this, knowing the author died before it was finished. But it is much more about life than death, and it is the best written book I read this year (except for maybe Jayber Crow.)

The Almost Sisters: This book might not be for everyone, but it was definitely for ME. Such a fun book, and about so much more than it is about. I can’t remember when I enjoyed a book this much, I wanted it to go on forever. I finished my library copy in 2 days and immediately handed it to my best-book-friend so she could read it without waiting on the hold list. We both loved it.

Best Book to Read With Your Kids

A Wrinkle in Time (I’m BEGGING YOU: Read this yourself and/or with any kids in your life before the movie comes out this spring!)

Runner Up: When You Reach Me (recent Newberry winner, a super fun mystery/sci fi read, and an homage to my beloved Madeline L’Engle)

Favorite Audiobooks

Nearly half of my 69 books were audiobooks, it’s the biggest way I have increased my reading, especially once I figured out what type of book I prefer in audio (light fiction and narrative non-fiction.)

At Home in the World (I’ve had it on Kindle since it came out, but hadn’t made time to listen to it: Got it on audio from the library, read it fast, and LOVED it.)

Gretchen Rubin’s Books (The lastest is The Four Tendencies, but Better Than Before is my favorite, and one I’ll probably listen to again early in 2018.)

Young Jane Young (If you liked Be Frank With Me or Where Did You Go Bernadette, you’ll like Young Jane Young.)

As You Wish (this is a MUST LISTEN, it would not be half as enjoyable as a real book.)

Since I didn’t do a dedicated December post, the books I read this month are:

At Home in the World

The Last Anniversary: My first Liane Moriarty, it won’t be my last. This would be a great beach/vacation read, I read it on the plane home for Christmas.

To Be Where You Are: The latest in the Mitford series, which I’ve been reading for years. I’ve known these characters longer than anyone in my daily real life.

Wonder: Loved it, cried big fat tears. Haven’t seen the movie yet.

Frientimacy: I read this as part of my preparation for a speaking opportunity at a retreat, but it was good for me personally to have a framework to think through friendship struggles and how I can grow my relationships.

And as we close out 2017, here are the books I’m reading right now.

I should finish at least 2 of these by the end of the week…

Daring to Hope by Katie Davis Majors (LOVING IT.)

Braving the Wilderness by Brene Brown (I forgot to bring that to Texas with me, otherwise I’d be finished already.)

Tell Me Three Things (YA that’s been on my TBR since last year, I’m listening to it on overdrive.)

I’m also slowly listening to Anna Karenina, but it’s daunting with Audible telling me I have 30 hours to go…

I’d love to hear what your top three books of the year were! And if you had any reading goals, did you make them?

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Posted on December 26, 2017January 18, 2018 by Renee Meyer

How to Carry Christmas Spirit Into the New Year

Some years I am still in the mood for Christmas carols well into January, and others I’m ready to pack up the holiday festivity and jump into a clean new year moments after the last gifts are opened. This year, as the candles were lit and the words to “Silent Night” filled my family’s Christmas Eve, I realized how badly I need “the dawn of redeeming grace” with me as we head into 2018.

In that moment, words from the Christmas story came to mind, words I’d been reading and thinking about over the course of Advent. Specifically, three verbs. Read more

Renee Davis Meyer

Author: Renee Meyer