Mar 13, 2017
Welcome to the Simply Joyful Podcast
Episode #009 with Lea Ann Garfias
Being Real & “Rocking” Your Ordinary Life!
Show Notes: KristiClover.com/009
You have to love it when God lines things up just perfectly! Last week we talked with Wendy Speake about finding ways to use our creative gifts to bless our family — and the world. As women and moms we can easily allow the busyness of life to consume us and snuff out those passions and dreams that we once had. I hope you were encouraged to realize that God gave you your gifts and talents — and you can and should still use them — it might just look a little differently than you originally thought. However, we also talked about how it starts at home.
Well, today God worked it out that this new interview with Lea Ann comes on the heels of Wendy's podcast. That wasn't what I had planned. I had these two ladies scheduled weeks apart. However, due to several different factors, they are back-to-back. And get this…today we a going to look at how to “rock your ordinary” life. So, we're talking about starting at home and pouring your heart into living out an extraordinary life…right in the middle of your “ordinary” day! Yep! God is good!
On a “Simply” & “Joyful” side note…
This is always one of my favorite parts of the podcast. I ask my guests to either share about how they are finding joy or how they are adding simplicity to their lives. Well, Lea Ann has a tip for you that made me laugh out loud! It's great! I hadn't thought of it!
In This Episode
In this episode Lea Ann and I talk about how to “rock” life even in the ordinary moments. We aren't called to make our lives look like other people's. Our callings are all different. Our gifting is all different, too. This really is such an amazing conversation to have right after Wendy's episode! They fit so perfectly together! I love how God ended up working out the details for these two episodes to be back-to-back.
I can't wait for you to listen in on my encouraging conversation with Lea Ann!
Highlights from This Show
“God not only didn’t call me to
that life, He didn’t even give me a desire for that life…my burden,
my calling, isn’t to have the cutest house on the block and my
calling isn’t to be even a podcaster.”
— Lea Ann Garfias
“I think we as women allow Satan
to...discourage us and make us feel like we’re less than or not as
effective in the ministry because we’re not ministering the same
way as the lady across the aisle from us. And that is a terrible
lie.”
--Lea Ann Garfias
“We need to be honest, and that
is a huge part of our commitment to one another. [We also need to
be] able to share…the truth with our close friends who are
supporting us. Finally, we each have to be willing to be honest
with the Lord and tell God what is the real issue.”
–Lea Ann Garfias
“…when we’re brave and when
we’re honest, that’s when God can heal us and sanctify us and grow
us more to be like Him; not only individually but together as a
couple.”
–Lea Ann Garfias
“I don’t have to pretend
in front of her, I can ask her for prayer and she will pray for me.
I can tell her that I have a sin that I’m wrestling with and she
won’t judge me, because she’s a sinner too.”
–Lea Ann Garfias
“When we are being real with
people and they see what God can do through that–that is the
‘testimony.'”
–Kristi Clover
“If we can have the courage to
be honest and open with our friends, we’ll find out that some of
the stuff we’re hiding might just be normal behavior or just the
regular way the world works, and we don’t have to spend so much
time trying to hide things or brush stuff under the rug that really
isn’t important.”
–Lea Ann Garfias
“These little ordinary moments
in our lives can have a tremendous impact on someone around us…just
saying a nice word and [being] honest and encouraging…we
don’t even realize how much that can relieve the burden from
someone around us.”
–Lea Ann Garfias
“If there are listeners who grew
up in a dysfunctional family or from a background of abuse, they
recognize it’s hard when you come out of a situation like that to
untangle what the difference is between your Heavenly Father
and your earthly father…”
–Lea Ann Garfias
“My prayer is that maybe
starting with this book and then leading through healing
relationships and biblical counseling, that women will be able to
find hope because God does love you.”
--Lea Ann
Garfias
“I have every human reason not
to believe, but I can tell you, that it is my faith in God that has
restored me to health. Not just physical health, but emotional and
spiritual health. God has allowed me to see redemption and healing
in relationships that, humanly speaking, you would never
expect.”
–Lea Ann Garfias
“There is nothing more beautiful
than to honestly look at the broken pieces of our past and see how
God can recreate our hearts and our souls for His own
glory.”
--Lea Ann Garfias
Books Mentioned…
…Dangerous Journey is an easy to read story version of Pilgrim's Progress.
Scripture Mentioned...
“For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ…For the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot should say, ‘Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,' that would not make it any less a part of the body…If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, yet one body…Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.”
1 Corinthians 12:12-27
Please Note...
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I hope you enjoyed this week's podcast! My prayer is always that you will be blessed and encouraged by each episode.
Live Simply. Be Joyful.
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Connect with Lea Ann...
Author Lea Ann Garfias helps women recognize the extraordinary impact they make with their seemingly ordinary lives. A homeschool grad and homeschooling mom of four, Lea Ann fuels her roles as author, professional violinist, choir director, and soccer mom with a whole lotta coffee.
You can check out Lea Ann's books HERE on Amazon! You can find Lea Ann on her website at lagarfias.com.