Audra Jennings

An Interview with Amberly Neese, Author of The Friendship Initiative After a long year of separation, we long for connection. Despite faster internet connections, better WiFi hotspots, and more ways to stay connected than ever before, our lives still feel less and less connected. We desire healthy friendships but feel less equipped to make and foster them. In The Friendship Initiative , Neese dives into the friendships and connections Jesus made to reveal 31 keys for building relationships such as: exercising grace, asking/answering questions, having compassion, exercising humility, being present, reaching out to those who are different, and more. Each devotion includes Scripture, a devotional reflection, practical application ideas, and suggestions for reflection and prayer. Readers will find encouragement and practical help for connecting with others in their everyday lives by focusing on loving others as Jesus did. Q: In addition to the Common Ground Bible study, you also ...

  Part 2 of an Interview with Amberly Neese, Author of Common Ground The Scriptures hold the key to living at peace despite our differences. In each week of the four-week  Common Ground: Loving Others Despite Our Differences  Bible study,  Amberly Neese  combines stories of sibling rivalries from the Bible with personal experience, humor, hope, and her love of God’s Word.  Common Ground  provides a how-to for overcoming conflict by examining sibling relationships from the Old and New Testaments including: Joseph and His Brothers: How to Combat Jealousy Moses, Miriam, and Aaron: How to Work Together Despite Differences Mary, Martha, and Lazarus: How to Appreciate the Contributions of Others Rachel and Leah: Having Compassion for the Plight of Others These stories point readers to peace and reconciliation in all their relationships, reassuring them that it is possible to find common ground with everyone—despite their differences. Each week focuses on...

Part 1 of an Interview  with Amberly Neese, Author of Common Ground In her new Bible study, Common Ground: Loving Others Despite Our Differences , author, speaker, and humorist Amberly Neese leads women in a study of sibling rivalries in Scripture so that all members of God’s family can find a safe place to come together to navigate conflict and heal relationships. Whether it is in politics, the professional world, a party, or a pew, every person faces some kind of conflict on a daily basis. It’s not only in-person interactions that can become heated—social media is deluged with opinion-spewing, hurt feelings, and broken friendships. What we so desperately need is hope and practical tools to navigate the tumultuous waters in order to live at peace with everyone. Q: These days it seems like people argue just for the sake of arguing rather than trying to find common ground. Do you have any theories on why every topic seems to be so polarizing? Honestly, with feelings of isolatio...

  It’s Time to Work on Our Relationships Amberly Neese leads women in a study of sibling rivalries to find common ground With feelings of isolation and disconnection at an all-time high, it’s more important than ever to learn to live at peace with others, even when we disagree. In her new Bible study, Common Ground: Loving Others Despite Our Differences , speaker and humorist Amberly Neese leads women in a study of sibling rivalries in Scripture so that all members of God’s family can find a safe place to come together to navigate conflict and heal relationships. Whether it is in politics, the professional world, a party, or a pew, every person faces some kind of conflict on a daily basis. It’s not only in-person interactions that can become heated—social media is deluged with opinion-spewing, hurt feelings, and broken friendships. What we so desperately need is hope and practical tools to navigate the tumultuous waters in order to live at peace with everyone. Fortunately,...

You Aren’t Required to Like Your Story Heather M. Dixon helps women find hope and God’s sovereignty in life’s disappointments and difficult circumstances There are f ew things that can make us feel as helpless as living with a story we don’t like. Life is rarely fair, and things happen beyond our control that impact our lives in negative ways. Maybe our story involves the loss of a loved one, an unwanted transition, a difficult diagnosis, or a dream that fell through. At one time or another, we all deal with disappointments and feel that we are being punished. For women searching for a glimmer of hope, Heather M. Dixon has written Renewed: Finding Hope When You Don’t Like Your Story , a four-week study diving into the life of Naomi from the Book of Ruth. While most studies on the book of Ruth focus on the book’s namesake, Dixon focuses in on Ruth’s widowed mother-in-law instead. “ I’ve always read and taught Ruth from Naomi’s perspective because ultimately, I think i...

Part 2 of an interview with Shannon Popkin, Author of Comparison Girl Miss  part 1  of the interview? Read it here . Do you constantly compare yourself with others? On social media, in your neighborhood, at church, or in the school drop-off lane, do you push yourself to prove that you measure up . . . and then feel ashamed when you don ’ t? Measuring yourself against others isn ’ t healthy. And it isn ’ t God ’ s plan. In fact, the way of Jesus is completely upside down from this measure-up world. He invites us to follow him and be restored to freedom, confidence, and joy. In Comparison Girl, Shannon Popkin shares what she has discovered about her own measure-up fears and get-ahead pride. With humor and honesty, she ’ s created this six-week Bible study to explore the conversations Jesus had and the stories he shared with people who—like us—were comparing themselves. Q: Women comparing themselves to others has been around since the beginning of time—w...

Part 2 of an Interview with Amberly Neese, Author of The Belonging Project Miss part 1? Read it here ! In The Belonging Project , speaker and comedian Amberly Neese combines Bible study with delightful humor to create a refreshing and engaging experience that will encourage and equip women to pursue deeper relationships and true belonging by loving and serving one another. She describes The Belonging Project as an exploration of the New Testament as it pertains to biblical community. “God has designed us to live in mutually beneficial relationships and has given us the blueprints to do so in his Word. The study is designed to encourage, empower, and equip participants to thrive in the community to which God has called them,” she shares. Neese provides biblical and practical help for cultivating meaningful relationships that glorify God through an examination of the many “one another” scriptures throughout the New Testament. She groups more than fifty of them into theme...