The most wonderful time of the year is here! I pray this season finds your heart glad with thankfulness to the Lord for His kindness and nearness to you. The holiday season is dear to my family—full of traditions, spending time with loved ones, and reflecting on the birth of my Savior, Jesus. Over the last two holiday seasons, I have spent a lot of time pondering the coming of Emmanuel and the weight of the gift of His presence. Especially that being “here with us” meant He was not in heaven with His Father. He left His home, came clothed in utter humility as an infant and absolute power as King of kings, and dwelt among us so that we might be brought to God. A gift worth celebrating—God with us in order to bring us to God. 

Two years ago, my husband and I knew God was calling us to start fostering. Little did we know how much that would affect the holidays, in both sweet and challenging ways. I hope I can share with you some of the joys of being a foster family during the holidays and help you understand how to support foster families like mine—with a laugh or two along the way! 

One of the joys of foster care is giving a child the gift of belonging. As we have brought our foster children to spend holidays with our families, it has been incredibly sweet to watch our loved ones wrap around and treat them as though they have always been part of our family. Children need to belong, be safe, and be loved. Some of the most profound ways you can support foster families in your local church, family, or elsewhere this holiday season are by being present and available to support them, loving them well, and praying for them. I will share two examples of this, though I have several more in mind. 

My dear friend, Liz, received a call from DCS on Thanksgiving for their little boy. They forwent their family plans, skipped the festivities, and spent Thanksgiving in the NICU meeting their son who needed a place to belong.

Foster families make holiday plans that frequently get shifted last-minute, and we need support from our community. Sometimes that looks like welcoming our children into your home while we go to the hospital to room-in with a baby in the NICU, and other times it looks like providing a meal for a family bringing home a child. I fully realize this may not be convenient for you, especially amid your own holiday plans and family traditions, but your presence and willingness to offer support is such a gift. DCS does not consider the convenience of timing, so foster families cannot either. My friends were not able to be with their other children or loved ones on Thanksgiving—and they ate Whataburger for dinner. I am not knocking Whataburger—I love a good honey butter chicken biscuit—but my point is that their yes to that call meant a difficult change of plans. 

My husband and I got a call from DCS last Christmas season while we were with his family in Mississippi. The woman asked if we would be willing to come pick up a baby boy who needed a place to belong and said we had until 7:30 p.m. to get to the hospital in Nashville. I will spare the details on how fast we drove. This came with a few plot twists, the main one being my husband was slated to preach the following morning in Mississippi. With this, my sister-in-law and I drove to the hospital, in record time, I might add, and my friend mentioned above, Liz, met us there with an infant car seat and a baby boy outfit. We pulled into the parking lot at 7:28 p.m. Two minutes to spare!

My husband came home the next day to meet our newest family member. While we had plans to spend Christmas with family, we were not allowed to travel out of state with our son due to legal circumstances. Without hesitation, my husband’s family changed their holiday plans, loaded up their vehicles, and drove to Nashville so we could be together on Christmas. ‘Tis the season to be flexible! 

A couple of challenging aspects of being a foster family during the holiday season are incorporating foster children into family traditions and supporting them as they are separated from their biological families, often including siblings. If a child is old enough to know his family traditions, I ask if there are certain traditions that he would like to incorporate with ours. This gives me an opportunity to hear part of his story and lets him share with me what would make him feel more at home.

Maybe that is making a certain craft or preparing his favorite dish with Christmas dinner. This helps the child feel seen and cared for, and validates that he is not simply sitting in on the holidays with our family but is truly valued and wanted here. If we are making crafts, we give the opportunity to create something for a loved one of their choice. When we plan for holiday meals, we ask our children what dishes they would love. We understand holidays are a difficult time for most children in foster care. We expect them to grieve, and we use language to acknowledge those very real feelings. We are not offended when a child is seemingly unthankful or upset to be with us. We realize there is trauma that comes with separating families, and we choose to show up day after day, stand in the gap, love them as well as we can by the strength and grace of God, and know that love is never wasted.

Lastly, while I love to give our children the space to share their stories with us and others, I would ask on behalf of every foster parent I know, please do not ask about the child’s parents, what “happened” to them, or degrade their biological families in front of them. This can be both traumatic and detrimental for them, especially if they are old enough to remember their lived experiences. 

Many people are shocked to learn of the hundreds of children sleeping in DCS offices, shelters, and hotels across our country. I pray God would break your heart as He has mine for these children. As we set up our Christmas trees and prepare our family feasts, as we gather supplies for family traditions and move our elves around the shelves, let our hearts be broken for the children who will not wake up to gifts under a tree or sit around a dinner table surrounded by family and sounds of laughter like many of us. Let us pray for them, and equally let us pray that we would be good stewards of our homes as a resource in God’s kingdom meant for holy use. I pray you will consider making room in your family for children who need a place to belong—after all, there was no room for the very Son of God. 

ABOUT MEREDITH CUMMINGS

Meredith Cummings came to know and love the Lord as her Savior when she was 14. Moving to Nashville in 2017, her husband, Caleb, and she serve at Nashville First Baptist Church. They are a foster and adoptive family and currently have a three-year-old daughter, Hadley, a one-year-old foster son, and an infant, Lillian. Meredith is a registered perioperative nurse at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt and the lead female worship leader/songwriter for The Lowly Heirs.

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In 2024, we’re continuing to read through the Bible chronologically for greater understanding and comprehension. This approach helps us to see how all sixty-six books of the Bible work together to spotlight the one true story of God’s great love for us and our redemption through Jesus.

We’ll be starting year two of our three-year Know His Word plan—perfect for women with busy lives! While this may seem long, it avoids the trap of biting off more than you can chew and feeling discouraged when you fall behind. (We’ve all been there!)

We’re in it for the long haul. This plan focuses on the journey of reading through God’s Word and allows for more prayer and reflection.

Here are a few tips for building a habit of staying in the Word this year and beyond:

• Choose a specific time and place for your reading until your habit is well established.
• Don’t beat yourself up if you miss a few days! Simply set aside time to get cozy and get caught up.
• Read along with a close friend and share what God is teaching each of you through the passages.
• Follow along on the Lifeway Women app to connect with other women as you study God’s Word.

Click below to download a PDF version of the January 2024 Reading Plan.

We would love to hear what you’re learning as we read through His Word together. Share on social media with the hashtag #KnowHisWord24 so we can learn together!

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Celebrating Christmas with your small group brings an extra layer of joy and helps you stay connected throughout the holiday season. Coming together with friends and fellow believers not only makes the festivities more fun but also reinforces the importance of community during this special time of year. Here are a few ideas for your small group to create cherished memories and be reminded of the true meaning of Christmas—the birth of Jesus Christ.

1. Watch the Prepare Him Room Virtual Event as a Group.

Join Kristi McLelland for the Prepare Him Room Virtual Event, an invitation to intentionally make space to seek Jesus amid the season. Discover that the Christmas story is better than we’ve ever known as you dive into its historical and cultural context. Host at your church, women’s small group, or make it a part of your personal Bible study December 1–31.

Join us as we celebrate the birth of our Savior and embrace the true meaning of Christmas. Prepare Him room this season—your heart will never be the same.

Classic Christmas melodies and modern pop songs tell the story of a young woman with an unimaginable responsibility, a young man torn between love and honor, and a jealous king. Watch the trailer here!

3. Serve Together in Your Community.

Especially during the holidays, so many organizations are in need of volunteers. Do your research and contact a nonprofit whose mission aligns with what your small group is passionate about. You could volunteer at a homeless shelter or soup kitchen in your community, or you could simply collect nonperishable items as a group to send to a food bank.

4. Make a Christmas Spice Wreath Together.

Set the tone for the Christmas season by creating a lovely aromatic wreath (or garland or ornaments) you can enjoy all month long. Usher in holiday scents by using dried oranges, bay leaves, and cinnamon sticks. Do this activity on your own or make it a festive craft night with friends or family! If you have enough supplies, encourage everyone to make two—one to keep and one to deliver to a neighbor who might need a little Christmas cheer.

See the directions for how to make the wreath here!

This craft is an excerpt from our Lifeway Women Advent Bible Study.

5. Host a Gift Wrapping Party.

Show hospitality by making your home an oasis of calm and productivity during the crazy Christmas season by hosting a gift wrapping party! You have to wrap your gifts anyway, so you might as well wrap with friends. Read our blog post for more details here. And don’t forget to set the mood with a fun Christmas playlist! Check out the one we made.

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Have you ever wished you could sit down in a casual coffee shop with one of our authors and speakers and chat? We are so thankful for the amazing women of God we have the privilege of working with regularly. And while we can’t all gather in our favorite downtown coffee shop, we want to give you the opportunity to know them a little more personally. 

Every so often we’re sharing a fresh “coffee chat” with a member of the Lifeway Women family to give you the opportunity to get to know her a little better.

This month, get to know Hannah Anderson!

Tell us about your writing process. Any favorite pens, locales, teas to drink, and music to listen to?   

I began writing when my children were young, which meant that I didn’t have long periods of time to devote to it. So I did a lot of my thinking on the go—while driving or grocery shopping or cleaning. When an idea came to me, I’d grab the nearest piece of paper and scribble it down. I joke that the first “draft” of my books are piles of napkins, receipts, and Post-it notes. I am now in a season of life where I have more time, but I find that old habits die hard. So I still do most of my thinking away from the keyboard. This means that once I sit down to write, words tend to come out quickly. The important thing that I’ve learned it that thinking and writing go hand in hand, and if you find yourself staring at a blank keyboard, it might be because you haven’t thought through your ideas enough yet. Writing is not just the work of typing or scribbling. It is the work of observing and considering and imagining. And often this work can’t be done in an office. So today, whenever I find myself stuck staring at a blinking cursor, I go bake a cake or take a walk or even take a nap. And I think and pray and wonder until God brings the words I need. 

What is one of your favorite travel destinations? Is there somewhere you haven’t been that is on your wish list?   

I grew up in a pretty rural area and didn’t travel much except to visit relatives or go camping. This means that as an adult I can never get enough travel, and I’ve had the good fortune to visit so many beautiful places.  One of my favorite trips was one my family took to northern California in 2021. We were just coming out of COVID shutdowns, and my daughter had asked to see the redwoods as a graduation present. We spent a little over a week road-tripping along the coast and through the mountains. I remember feeling particularly grateful to be traveling after being grounded for so long. And just given the dramatic topography and views, there was a freedom and wildness to the trip that felt both humbling and inviting. It reminded me of that quote from author Frederick Buechner: “Here is the world. Beautiful and terrible things will happen. Don’t be afraid.”¹ 

What is the best advice you have ever received? 

This isn’t advice so much as an observation: “People do what they want.” Let me explain. People can’t always get what they want, but what we want shapes our choices. Our desires lead us. It’s not our minds or wills such much as our hearts. And this is why Proverbs 4:23 says, “Guard your heart above all else, for it is the source of life.” It’s also what Jesus is talking about when He said, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matt. 6:21). What we want, what we treasure, what we desire shapes the course of our lives. This has helped me examine my own choices and drill down into them. When I don’t understand my own actions, I ask myself, What am I really seeking here? What is that I’m trying to get? And that’s an incredibly clarifying process. It has the potential to lead to a lot of self-awareness. For example, sometimes I find myself trying to manage people or situations. I try to make circumstances come together or convince people to act in a certain way. Curiously, I don’t really want to be in charge, but I might be anxious about a particular situation. I might be nervous. So what I really want is safety. I’m trying to get safety. And once I realize this, I can go to God and say, “You know what, I’m feeling really scared here and I really need you to care for me right now.” And then I make my choices from a place of peace rather than a place of fear.  

You have a new Bible study with Lifeway called Life Under the Sun. Tell us a little about it.    

Life Under the Sun is a study on the book of Ecclesiastes. I was drawn to this project because of my love for wisdom literature as well as the raw, honesty of this book. If you know anything about Ecclesiastes, you know that it hits a bit differently than other passages of the Bible. So much so, that sometimes readers wonder why God included it in the Bible in the first place! But I love Ecclesiastes because it reveals God’s heart for doubts, questions, fears, and even anger at the injustice of the world. It’s almost as if God is inviting us to bring it all to Him and then asks, “Do you have anymore?” Ultimately, I want readers to know the goodness of God that lets them voice their questions—questions that Jesus Himself eventually answers.  

As you worked on  Life Under the Sun, what were some new things you learned along the way?   

Ecclesiastes is wisdom literature which means it uses a lot of imagery and poetic language. It doesn’t move forward in a logical, linear way so much as it cycles, returning to different themes over and over again. As I studied, I realized that this form is probably intentional. It actually gives the reader a visceral experience of Ecclesiastes’ central theme. As you read, you begin to feel like you’re turning in circles. You can easily become disoriented and unsure of where you’re going. It feels like you’re spinning, just like the earth itself spins. Just like life spins. In other words, you’re supposed to feel a bit disoriented because the whole point of the book is to give voice to the confusing nature of life. You’re supposed to feel a little overwhelmed so that you’ll reach for the stability that only comes from trusting the One who is beyond the sun.  

ABOUT HANNAH ANDERSON

Hannah Anderson is an author and Bible teacher who lives in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. Her books include Humble Roots: How Humility Grounds and Nourishes Your Soul, Turning of Days: Lessons from Nature, Season, and Spirit, and the recently released, Heaven and Nature Sing. Hannah’s goal is to encourage believers to think deeply and broadly about how the gospel transforms every area of life.

You can connect with her at her blog sometimesalight.com and on X @sometimesalight.

Want to learn more about Hannah’s new Bible study, Life Under the Sun? Through this 8-session Bible study, Hannah Anderson invites us to consider the wisdom of Ecclesiastes afresh as we search for a solid foundation for life under the sun. Together, we’ll learn to name our anxieties, concerns, and disappointments. We’ll discover how Ecclesiastes is more than self-help or good advice—how it frees us to ask the questions that Jesus Himself will eventually answer. And through its raw honesty and unflinching commitment to goodness, we’ll find hope in the One who guides all days under the sun.

Work Cited

1. Frederick Buechner, “Grace,” Frederick Buechner Center, September 9, 2016, https://www.frederickbuechner.com/quote-of-the-day/2016/9/9/grace.

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If you’re familiar with Jackie Hill Perry, you know she rarely wastes words and seldom wades in shallow waters. Jackie has become a trusted voice to many in navigating deep truths of God from a relatable and thoughtful perspective. This is one of the reasons her new devotional Upon Waking has been highly anticipated, following her first two books, Gay Girl, Good God and Holier Than Thou. 

In this 60-day devotional, each entry dives into a certain Scripture passage. Instead of a theme throughout, Jackie’s goal for this devotional is to point you to the Word of God and entice you to go further. Jackie says it best in the introduction as she writes:  

“This work isn’t the meal; it’s the appetizer. My attempt to take us beyond the quick and easy is by centering the Scriptures and not the self on each page. Each devotional is exegetically focused or observational in its approach. With either form, the goal is to stir you up. To whet your appetite, if you will, for God and His Word. Each devotional is a shovel. Once the cover is closed, it’s your turn to dig. To open the Scriptures, using my observations of them as a resource, not a conclusion. My heart for you is that by seeing Him, then and only then will you discover yourself. Primarily, that you need Him. It’s the insufficiency of everything, including devotionals, that signals our need for more than what we’ve been satisfied with.” 

What I love most about Upon Waking is twofold. One, I appreciate the invitation to begin your day focused not on the typical distractions filling most mornings (social media, email, to-do lists) but rather on the Father, with the application of examining your heart in relation to Scripture. It is amazing how different your day can unfold when, at its start, you simply turn your attention to God. Two, I appreciate how Jackie turns the reader’s attention toward God—with short, daily entries that simply operate to kindle your hunger for an even deeper and richer encounter with Jesus after the daily reading is complete. She says:  

“That’s the point of this book. To cultivate in you the desire for God. I can promise you that a sixty-day devotional cannot do that for you. God sent Christ to die for sin, overcoming the penalty and power of it so that you can know Him. And Christ sent the Spirit to fill the saints so that you can know Him. He is the sufficient one. So if ever you finish a page on day one or sixty and notice that you’re still hungry, good!” 

If you’re looking for a compelling devotional that doesn’t let you off the hook, this is one you don’t want to miss. In true Jackie style, she puts her finger on the pulse of what each day’s passage is pointing to and helps confront the main issues we face in relation to knowing God. Some quotes from the book that give a hint of what you might find are: 

• “Time has never been the reason anyone doesn’t pray; the heart is.” 
• “Prayerlessness is almost always a humility issue—the natural consequence of a heart that tends to believe it is good without God. Yes, you may be busy, but it’s possible that you are also proud.”  
• “Suffering creates an interpretive lens. Either refining the sufferer’s vision of God or blurring it.” 
• “The end of life will be a kind of beginning, on a new heaven and new earth, where nothing and everything has changed forever.”  

Upon Waking is a devotional you’ll want for yourself, but also one you’ll want to give to those you love. There’s no better gift than “daily reflections to discover ourselves and the God we were made for.” 

More About Upon Waking

What do you wake up to each day? What do you discover once your eyes have opened and you put your feet to the floor? A mountain of notifications? An endless feed of headlines that make you angry? A flood of tasks that you can’t possibly get done in the next twenty-four hours?

What if you could wake up each day to discover something so much bigger—and so much better for you—than all that chaos? What if you could discover God? What if you could discover yourself in light of that God? What if your eyes could be opened to the things that really mattered? What if, in one simple devotional a day, you could glean principles from timeless wisdom to sharpen you for each day’s inevitable challenges?

In her lyrical, compelling, and poignant voice, bestselling author and Bible teacher Jackie Hill Perry offers sixty short, daily reflections on specific passages from Scripture to help you awaken to the God you were made for, the life you were made for, and the person you were made to be.

About Ashley Veneman

Ashley Veneman serves as a marketing specialist for books for B&H Publishing. Ashley and her husband, Justin, have two children and live just outside Memphis, Tennessee, with a cat named Nancy. She holds a BA in Communications from Union University, and an MA in Communication Rhetoric from The University of Memphis. Ashley loves teaching young women in her local church, photography, and planning epic road trips with her family.

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After I tragically lost my husband in my early twenties, God called me to attend Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas, when I was in my late forties. During my educational pursuit, I was approached to teach a Sunday school class for single mothers at First Baptist Dallas where I attend church. When asked to teach the class, I was initially unaware that the start date of the class would be the anniversary of my husband’s death. But as I sat in the informational meeting and learned the start date, I fought back tears as I pondered my heavenly Father’s faithfulness to my children and me. At that moment, I knew God would use everything He had brought me through to help others.  

Single moms are one of the largest contemporary mission fields in the world. So, how can we, as the church, minister to single moms? We can minister to them by pointing them to the Savior’s love and unchanging truth, through means of prayer, encouragement, discipleship, and fellowship. By meeting single moms where they are (in their pain and their fears—and for some, in their redirected journeys), the church has an amazing opportunity not only to walk alongside single moms and their children but also to impact their lives for eternity. But where do we start?     

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.”  –2 Corinthians 1:3-4 (ESV) 

Ministering through prayer and encouragement 

Families within the church body can adopt single moms and their children through prayer and encouragement.   

Prayer: One of the greatest ways to invest in the life of a single mom and her children is through prayer commitments from families within the local church. As a young single mom, I remember asking countless people to pray for my two children, and they did. Knowing I had individuals who not only were praying for my family, but individuals I could also go to for special requests, meant so much to me as a young mom.     

Encouragement: Families can encourage single moms through random acts of kindness, such as inviting them and their children to their homes for a special lunch, sending notes through the mail to reassure them, or offering to watch their kids for a couple of hours. In addition, ladies within the church body can give their time by calling to let them know they are not alone or just by listening to a single mom who needs to talk.     

Note: Pay close attention to holidays such as Mother’s Day and Valentine’s Day since these periods may be especially difficult for single moms.    

Ministering through means of discipleship 

Starting a small group discipleship where older women pour into the lives of single moms is by far one of the top ways to minister. During this period, three to five women are placed in a group where they go through a Bible study together as well as engage in life together. The group prays for one another and holds each other accountable.    

Ministering through fellowship    

Another way to minister to single moms is to encourage them to attend women’s ministry events, fellowships, and more importantly, Bible studies. Set aside a few times a year for single moms’ fellowships—a time when single moms can get together for special outings such as movie nights and dinner. Make sure to provide childcare. Additionally, set aside special outings for single moms and their kids.   

Ministering through life skills 

Churches have a wonderful opportunity to offer life-skill training for single moms: money management, parenting tips, workforce training, and so forth. This outreach can be a great evangelistic tool, ministering to single moms inside, as well as outside, the church.     

Additional ways for churches to minister to single moms  

1. Once a year, before school starts, offer a backpack drive to help with kids’ school supplies.   

2. If you are a beautician in the church, prayerfully consider offering your services to cut a single mom’s hair, as well as her children’s (whether it is on special occasions or even for a year).  

3. Through the men’s ministry, two ideas that would help single moms tremendously are: (A) to offer monthly or bimonthly oil changes (free) for the moms and (B) to organize a group of men to help with home repairs a few times a year.   

4. Families could adopt a single mom and her family during Christmas, providing gifts and financial support.  

5. Set up a basic food pantry for moms needing extra help.   

6. Churches can send single moms and their children on mini-weekend vacations once a year.   

7. Churches can set up a special fund to help single moms who need financial help.   

8. Set up a scholarship fund to help single moms in their educational pursuits.     

As a church, let us strive to do more than just recognize the need to minister to single mothers. In his book, The Christian Counselor’s Manual, Jay Adams states, “It is one thing to stand by (support) as another suffers and struggles, assuring him that you care; it is quite another to roll up your sleeves and pitch in alongside of him.”¹ Single moms need to know they are not alone in their journeys. May we rise to the call, roll up our sleeves, and reach as many single mothers as we can with the love of Jesus.   

For more information on starting a single moms’ ministry at your church or ways you can best minister to single moms, contact Strong and Courageous Ministry, a ministry for single mothers that the Lord called me to develop. 

Dr. O’Shea Lowery is a mother of two and Nana of six. She is a passionate speaker and writer, imparting God’s truth and lessons, which He has entrusted to her, to women’s groups, church classrooms, and through women’s Bible studies, poems, podcasts, and blogs. O’Shea is a regular podcaster for LEAD Magazine, a Christian leadership magazine reaching over a million believers.  
 

Shea received her bachelor’s degree in Christian Ministry from Blue Mountain College, her master’s degree in Biblical Counseling from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and her doctorate in Family Ministries at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. She is a member of FBC Dallas, in Dallas, Texas. She recently wrote a Bible study titled: My Life as a Single Mom. 

1. Jay Adams, The Christian Counselor’s Manual (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1974). 

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