A Warm Welcome to Jennifer Slattery
Jennifer shares a devotional and a link to an excerpt from her new book, Breaking Free
Living Fully Present in the Present
“Can you hear me now?”
“Are you even listening?”
My mind can be a jumbled mess, with so many must-dos swirling around, I miss out on the blessings unfolding right in front of me. It takes determination to remain fully present in the present.
This “present-focused-living” campaign started a year or so ago with a trip to the UP building to join my hubby for lunch. My daughter came with me, and the weather couldn’t have been better.
Overcast, a slight breeze, maybe 75 degrees. Plus, I had annoyed my daughter a total of 0 times on the drive over. (If you didn’t believe in miracles before…)
We get there to find my husband waiting, inching toward the exit. We’d fully expected to eat in the company cafe’, which is lovely.
But he–and God–had other plans.
My husband surprised us by asking if we’d perhaps like to eat somewhere else, saying he “had time”. Guiding us out of the building and toward the historical Old Market area with its cobblestone streets, amateur musicians, eclectic stores, and every flavor of cuisine one could imagine.
We chose to eat at Blue Sushi Sake Grill, a fun restaurant with a unique atmosphere. Then, swept up in the joy of the moment, I determined to ignore that to-do list that continually screamed at my subconscious, and after my husband returned to work, spent the rest of the afternoon being silly-goofy with my daughter.
Being fully present in the present.
I’ve come to realize I need to do this often, even when—especially when—life gets crazy. Because it will always get crazy, but I can’t let the crazy crowd out my connections. I need to make those relationships a top priority, and sometimes that means playing hooky.
Let’s talk about this. What do you do in those crazy-busy times to nurture your relationships?
In what ways are you living a partial life? What have you allowed to hinder your joy of today? What can you do today, right now, to live fully present in the present?
About Breaking Free
Sometimes it takes losing everything to grab hold of what really matters.
Women’s ministry leader and Seattle housewife, Alice Goddard, and her successful graphic-designer husband appear to have it all together. Until their credit and debit cards are denied, launching Alice into an investigation that only leads to the discovery of secrets. Meanwhile, her husband is trapped in a downward spiral of lies, shame, and self-destruction. Can they break free from their deception and turn to the only One who can save them? And will it be in time to save their marriage?
Read a free, 33-page excerpt here
See scene location pictures for Breaking Free on Pinterest
Buy Breaking Free at
Christian Book Distributors
Barnes and Noble
Amazon
Bio
Jennifer Slattery writes soul-stirring fiction for New Hope Publishers, Christian living articles for Crosswalk.com, and devotions for Internet Café Devotions, the group blog, Faith-filled Friends, and her personal blog. She also does content editing for Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas’ Firefly imprint, and loves working with authors who are serious about pursuing their calling. When not writing, reading, or editing, Jennifer loves going on mall dates with her adult daughter and coffee dates with her hilariously fun husband.
Visit with Jennifer online at JenniferSlatteryLivesOutLoud.com and connect with her on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/JenSlatte and Twitter: @Jenslattery
See scene location pictures for Breaking Free on Pinterest
Comments