Loving God's Word with Gretchen Saffles
On this episode of the Journeywomen podcast, I chatted with Gretchen Saffles of Well-Watered Women about loving God’s Word. Ya'll know this is my favorite topic! I asked Gretchen to chat with me because I know she's passionate about encouraging and equipping women to get into the Word of God and find their identity and purpose in Christ. Gretchen is the founder of Well-Watered Women, an online women's ministry that reaches worldwide, has written several Bible studies, and is the creator of the "Give Me Jesus" quiet time journal for women. Through her online ministry, she longs to meet women right where they are with the hope of the gospel and ignite a desire in their hearts to know Jesus more. On any given day you can find her with a coffee cup in hand, a toddler by her side, a message stirring in her soul, and a God-sized dream on her heart.
As an added bonus, Gretchen has graciously offered ya’ll a discount code to the Well-Watered Women shop from now until November 30, 2017 for 10% off your entire purchase! Use the code JOURNEYWOMEN at checkout. This would be a great time to stock up on meaningful Christmas gifts for your girlfriends!
Tell us a little about who you are, what you do, and the ministry God’s entrusted to you over at @wellwateredwomen.
When did God begin to cultivate in you a passion for the Word?
What is it that you really LOVE about the Word?
How has loving God’s Word changed you? What will the Word do for us as we cultivate a hunger and passion for it?
How do you find motivation to study when you’re not really feeling it or when things just don’t seem to make sense?
How do you share what you’re learning with others? What does it look like for you to inspire and encourage other women with the Word without being obnoxious?
How do you encourage your husband and your son to get into the Word of God?
Have you ever been fearful of sharing what you’re learning in a public setting, like online, in a small group, or in front of an audience? If not, how do you boldly proclaim the truth despite the reality that we are prone to error? If you have been fearful, what encourages you do continue sharing/teaching the Word of God, despite the fact that our understanding of the Bible is ever-developing?
What has giving God the first fruits of your time looked like in varying seasons, like college, when you were a newlywed, in motherhood, and running a business? What practical tips can you offer for cultivating a heart for the Word even when you’re in a busy season?
What’s your favorite book of the Bible/which book has been the most impactful/life changing?
3 Questions I Ask Every Guest
What are 3 resources would you recommend to someone who wants to cultivate a love for the Word?
What are your 3 simple joys?
Who has had the greatest impact on your own journey with Jesus?
Note Worthy Quotes
“This life is so short. It’s too short to not do what the Lord has called us to do.”
“Scripture is all one story, one complete story, sharing this Good News of Christ and that he is in it from beginning to end. Once that clicked… it was like everything changed.”
“Hebrews 4:12 says that the Word of God is living and active and I can honestly say that no other book compares to the words of Scripture. It’s like a bottomless treasure chest that we can never exhaust.”
“I know we say we’re so busy, but if you just track the amount of time you open up your phone to look at social media, or maybe you watch that YouTube video or show on Netflix, all that time adds up to being a crazy amount of time. I have realized that I never regret waking up a few minutes early or turning off my phone to spend time with him.”
“God’s Word is always alive and it’s what we need.”
“Our human nature is to come to our quiet time and to walk away thinking, ‘I’ve got to have something to impress people,’ and we come with a motive and an agenda, when really we should be coming with hearts ready to meet with the Lord.”
“Refuse to let your public passion exceed your private devotion.” -Francis Chan
“Christ just calls us to show up as we are. And whenever we share with vulnerability and yet with confidence pointing to Christ and how he fulfills, satisfies, delivers, and redeems, that’s what draws women to hear the Word, because that’s the message of the Gospel.”
“Ministry shouldn’t be compartmentalized it should flow into every aspect of our life.”
“If there’s a woman whose husband isn’t getting in the Word, my greatest encouragement for her would be to keep getting into the Word. Keep praying, keep opening up Scripture, and be that woman who fears the Lord and serves her husband well.”
“I view social media and all of the things I do online as an opportunity to worship the Lord and to speak the truth of Christ in love and yet in boldness. The gospel is meant to be bold.”
“Truth without love destroys and love without truth deceives. But truth with love delivers.”
“How am I teaching the gospel rightly and fully right where I am? And how am I also cultivating a deeper walk with God in all of this? Following Jesus’ example in all of this has really been helpful too.”
“I’d encourage women not to do things backwards. Our tendency is to give God our leftovers… Flip that around. Give him your best moments.”
“The more we have to do on this earth, the more we should be getting into God’s Word. That is what’s going to equip us to do everything else.”
“It’s so easy for us to put doing before being with Jesus, but we cannot do things for Jesus unless we have first been with him.”
“The words ‘quiet time’ aren’t even in the Bible. We’re supposed to abide. Abiding doesn’t look like this one moment thing every day. Abiding is a moment-by-moment remaining in Jesus, being with Jesus, keeping our eyes on him.”
“You make time for what matters most to you.”
“Jesus is with you. He’s not disappointed in you in your season. He has equipped you. There are so many different ways you can get into the Word.”
“Find ways to fill your life with Scripture.”
“I keep a cactus on my desk because I want a reminder that a cactus survives and thrives in the desert because it collects water and retains it for the seasons and moments when it's dry. We’re the same way. We need to retain God’s Word, store it up in our hearts, surround ourselves with it, and he will use it to carry us through those moments.”
Gretchen's Resources
Women of the Word by Jen Wilkin
Help me Teach the Bible Podcast with Nancy Guthrie
Gretchen's Simple Joys
Her morning coffee
A Kindle (more specifically, reading with the backlight)
The Autobiography of George Muller
Tim Keller Twitter Account with Kindle Deals - @dailykeller
Going on family adventures
IMPORTANT NOTE
Journeywomen interviews are intended to serve as a springboard for continued study in the context of your local church. While we carefully select guests each week, interviews do not imply Journeywomen's endorsement of all writings and positions of the interviewee or any other resources mentioned.
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