Leading Lady #Lifehacks with Shae Wilbur

In addition to being a CCM artist, Shae Wilbur is an on-camera beauty expert seen on shows like E! News, the Real, EXTRA and more! Each issue she is bringing the Leading Ladies of Leading Hearts top picks for looking and feeling your best! Here are her top picks for the Christmas 2019 issue:

SLAY THAT WINTER DRY FACE

On that moisturizing note, as soon as the temperatures start to drop, I break out my hydrating face masks. Glam glow has one of my favs — it’s the Thirsty Mud Hydrating Treatment Mask. I love it because I put it on right before bed, and don’t have to wash it off or anything. It just soaks into my skin overnight and I wake up with my skin feeling extra glowy and soft.

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5 Ways to Find Work-Life Peace plus BONUS Summer Smoothie Recipes

by @SaundraDalton Smith in Leading Hearts magazine

THE MORE DOORS GOD OPENS IN MY LIFE for ministry and leadership, the greater my understanding of Paul’s comment in 1 Corinthians 16:9:

  “For a great door and effectual is opened unto me, and there are many adversaries” (KJV).

As leaders, our peace is constantly under attack. Busy schedules and family obligations daily vie for our attention. Rest becomes an afterthought, and our time with God is sacrificed for doing more work for God. It takes courage to set healthy personal boundaries. It takes strength to have a plan for ongoing self-care.

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Edie Melson Shares the Best Excuse for Saying “NO”

By Edie Melson @ediemelson in the Summer 2019 issue of Leading Hearts Magazine

No, not no to God. But in my years of ministry, I’ve discovered the need to safeguard my time and energy. I’ve also come to realize that can’t be done without learning how to say no.

We all only have so much time in a day. And if you’re like me, life is filled to overflowing. So that means constantly guarding our priorities.

There are a couple of areas where I’ve had to develop discipline in this regard.

NO to the Good Things to Leave Room for the God Things

I’m bad about seeing a need and equating that with a call to serve. The truth is, God doesn’t call me to fill every ministry hole. He has specific things He wants me to do at specific times in my life.

If I say yes to every opportunity I come across, then God can’t use me in the ways He has planned.

To help me evaluate what to become involved with, I’ve developed a few steps I go through before I say yes.

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Teaming Up for Wellness

by Pam Farrel @PamFarrel in Leading Hearts Magazine

MINISTRY CAN BE DEMANDING ON OUR BODIES: THE CONSTANT PUSH TO MEET DEADLINES, THE RUSHING AROUND TO HELP PEOPLE, THE CONSTANT MEETINGS OVER.

HIS CRISIS

My husband had been the picture of health; then suddenly his blood pressure went through the roof. This got our attention because his grandfather died of a stroke at age 47 and his father had a stroke that left him paralyzed and disabled at age 48. Bill was 45. The super productive husband I had known was going to bed at 6 p.m. and still seemed exhausted the next day. The doctors were baffled by his erratic BP.

At the time, Bill and I had achieved some measure of success as writers. Men Are Like Waffles, Women Are Like Spaghetti had hit the best sellers list. Bill was also the senior pastor of the largest church in our city, and we were completing a new building project. In addition, all our sons were teens with full schedules that impacted Bill. too.

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Do the One Thing that Changes Everything: Have You Given up the Words that Hurt You?

by Janell Rardon @janellrardon in Leading Hearts Magazine

OPEN THE PAGES OF ANY GREAT NOVEL AND ESCAPE INTO A WORLD FILLED WITH ENDLESS HEARTBREAK AND WORDS THAT HURT US.

Whether traveling up the Congo River with Charles Marlow (Heart of Darkness), imprisoned in the redroom with Jane Eyre, meeting Victor Frankenstein in the icy Arctic (Frankenstein), or fleeing from a royal ball before the clock strikes midnight (Cinderella), novelists give words to our deepest fears, our deepest longings, and our deepest desires.

Somehow, the power of story transcends time, culture and history and wields an immense, uncanny power and ability, unlike any other medium, to grab our hearts; giving voice to the voiceless, life to the lifeless, and hope to the hopeless.

But no story offers entrance into the world of relationships like the greatest story ever told, the Bible — full of romance, conflict, betrayal and the ultimate triumph of good over evil. For centuries, these true stories reveal the power of real love working out in the lives of real people.

People just like me and you.

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