The Grand Prize Giveaway Story--and one more Great giveaway!

Love this poster as our Whole Family loves the story of Aslan!

Poster by Misty Krasowski

What a fun couple of weeks it has been to celebrate the launch of my book with to many. I wanted this book to be an encouragement and inspiration for women all over the world to engage in God, His love, His generous willingness to bless us, and in the story He created you to tell.

Posters have been such a fun part of this launch and I may even have a poster contest as a grand finale for Own Your Life.

Last week, we had almost 28,000 entries for the Grand Prize. My wonderful friend and assistant, Kristen Kill and I picked the winner after midnight on Tuesday and contacted her multiple times over the next two days. For different reasons, we were unable to get a hold of her over three days.

(We have had problematic entries before.) So finally, on Friday, three days later, we picked another name on Rafflecopter, and our new winner responded within a few minutes and accepted and was absolutely thrilled.

That afternoon, I received a communication from the real winner who said she did not think she had won, hadn't even given it a consideration--and  had not seen it in her email. So gracious and sweet was her response and happy to give it to our new winner, that we all decided to give both of them a ticket to the Weekend and the plane tickets, if they were willing to come alone. Both of these sweet women were so wonderful and kind and were happy just to be coming!

I wanted to introduce you to them!

Kathy Hower , from Indiana

  We live in a small town in Indiana.  I have been married for over 11 years (been together for 20 years) and God Blessed us with a son who will be 5 in February.  I have been a stay at home mommy and will return to work in Aug./Sept.  I have loved being home with our son and watching him grow.  He is amazing little boy and such a joy.  I love being a mommy it's the best job in the world!

My passion is working with children.  I taught Head Start for 11 years and loved touching so many lives and watching them grow.

 I am amazed, in shock, excited, that I won, and can't wait for our weekend.  I am looking forward to life changing events this year.  I decided January 1st that I wanted this year to be the year I see what God wants and follow HIS will.  I want to become closer to God and I feel this trip in June will be a big part of that.  I am looking forward to "Lady time" and time with God in such a beautiful place.  Thankful and very Grateful!!!

It feels like a dream to me.  I've never won anything like this or thought I would. 

 Hi, I'm Darlene Collazo and I have 3 children. Born and raised in Pennsylvania. Daughter of the King. Proud wife. Mama. Encourager. Avid Reader. World Help Advocate. Lover of words and all things creative.

Find me writing on {In Pursuit} | darlenecollazo.com, where I point women to Christ. I invite them to be agents of change in their respective spheres of influence, as they step out of their comfort zone and boldly live out the abundant life God ordained for them.

Winning this contest is a dream!

Sally Clarkson's God-given message has served as an example for several years now in my own home. I'm looking forward to growing, learning, and owning my life this year (and always). I couldn't be more excited!!

Darlene was one of the women who volunteered to be on my launch team, even though we had never met!

Sally: (I didn't even know she was hosting an Own Your Life book club! How fun is that--we get to meet and have a weekend together!)

Pray that these two women will truly be inspired and refreshed.

Many have asked if I would be doing any more intensives. I would love to host more in the years ahead. However, with a book deadline each year, my mom conferences, my blog and keeping my family and local ministry going, I just haven't been able to schedule them. However, if you keep checking here, my blog is the place where I will announce them. I promise, I will try to get to another one in the months ahead! And I may just give another ticket to the weekend away if you can find your way here! :)

And as one of the final giveaways, I want to give away something that may not apply to you, but you might be able to give it away.

I have a very dear friend here in the Colorado Springs area who runs several guest stays with Air Bed and Breakfast. She wanted to bless my audience and so she is offering 2 nights at her own rooms in downtown Colorado Springs. Amazing getaway!

If you or someone you know would like to come here for a getaway, then please share my book, with the hashtag: #ownyourlifebook by Sally Clarkson

on facebook, on twitter, in an email to a friend or group, tell them why you like OR want to buy this book, and leave me a comment below about how and where  you shared it! Or copy the Aslan poster and share it in your social media. I will use random to pick the winner!

Come see me in Colorado Springs and have a free place to stay.

AND NOW THE APARTMENT--QUIET AND CLOSE TO ALL THE FUN PLACES IN COLORADO SPRINGS!

Quiet Victorian Home by Downtown in Colorado Springs

Apartment in Colorado Springs, United States. Your home away from home is a totally private apartment with its own separate entrance. It sleeps 4, with a bedroom and separate living room and a crib for a young child. She is offering 2 nights free for anyone visiting Colorado Springs. Because it is a very popular vacation rental, if you win, you will have to negotiate the dates, but Shelley has a back up option of another rental. (for more information about this wonderful complex, write: shelleyrosedan@yahoo.com

HOPE YOU WIN! THANKS FOR SHARING AND HELPING ME WITH THIS LAUNCH WEEK.

Living Your Unique puzzle with Grace! Own Your LIfe in 2015

I have been utterly blessed, encouraged, humbled and delighted to receive so many messages, emails and texts about how much many are enjoying Own Your Life. Thanks for all of you who have taken the time to write.

Many have been asking to see the webcast, the trailer, and some of the posters that they missed. Today, I am sharing some of the highlights of the last couple of weeks about this book. Hope you have an amazing weekend.

Happy Day to you all.

The Trailer

You might enjoy this article from Aholyexperience.com on Ann Voskamp's blog today, where she shared about the Own Your Life book.

Also, if you missed the webcast or would like to share it with your friends, you can watch it here.

If you would like to purchase the book, you can find it here: Own Your Life

I pray your 2015 is a blessed year and seasoned every day with God's wisdom, love and purposes.

Thanks again for helping me get the message of this book out!

Loving Words Open the Pathway to your Child's Heart!

"You remind me of superman! Brave, strong and always wanting to help others."

"You are exactly the child I would have picked if I had a choice of all the children in the world."

"Yes, I do think you will be a wonderful writer. You are so clever with words."

"I just love spending time with you. You delight my heart."

Words have so much power in our lives, over the way we feel about life.

Not long ago, one of my sweet children surprised me with an email that brought thankful tears to my eyes.

"Dear Mama,

"God is doing amazing things in my life and opening doors I never imagined possible. But when I was thinking about my dreams coming true, I thought of you. Throughout all the years, you told me you believed in my impossible dreams. You listened and affirmed and encouraged and supported. I don't know if I would be where I am today, if you had not constantly invested in my life through your many words of love. Thank you, mama, for being my forever cheerleader."

I always believed that words invested forward into what my children could become, in spite of the limitations I could see every day as a mama. I prayed God would give me eyes to see the hidden gifts, the potential of what lay within their hearts, and hoped that I could invest in the future of what I believed they could become.

Words give hope, communicate ideas, inspire movements to fight for freedom, sharpen our minds to know how to think well, inspire heroism and give leadership to those longing for direction. These words are alive and shape life.

Consequently, it is significant that Jesus was called “The Word,” in John. He was the message sent from God’s heart of love, and even calling him that shows such the significance of words to God.

God is a message maker, and a lover who wants us to know His words of love. He is a Father who wants to give us words of wisdom so that we should understand how to live life well. He is the great teacher who would fill our minds with truth so that we could live free from the world’s false messages through our whole lives. God longs is a communicator and longs for our fellowship.

Your children are longing for your sweet words today. What can you tell your children that will fill their souls today?

Since words are our theme today, I am delighted to tell you about a book that shows so clearly the power of words and the danger of the tongue! My friend, Karen, Ehman, has published a book that reminds all of us that words have the power of life or death.

Many years ago, I was taking a day at Glen Eyrie Castle for planning my year. I was walking through the grounds and noticed an open room where a speaker was sharing with a crowd who was very engaged in her words. And then it hit me, that's Karen Ehman, the author of the books we have carried in our catalogue for years.

A lovely heart, a passion for God and all that is beautiful. I know you will love all of her books and especially her newest one.

Got words? Oh yeah, you do! The average women speaks over 20,000 a day—not to mention the ones she types online. Karen Ehman — a woman whose words have often landed her in a heap of trouble — shares from experience the how’s (and how-not-to’s) of dealing with the tongue in her new book Keep It Shut. Using biblical examples, as well as Karen’s own personal (and sometimes painful!) stories, Keep It Shut will equip you to know what to say, how best to say it, and when you’d better just keep your lips zipped!This book will teach you:

• The difference between gossip and properly processing with a trusted friend
• A helpful grid for using our digital tongues as we talk online or on social media
• How to pause before you pounce, attacking the problem but not the person
• How to avoid saying something permanently painful just because you are temporarily ticked off
• What the Bible teaches about making our speech laced with grace, as sweet as honey, and yet seasoned with salt.
• Also available is a six-week DVD Bible study designed for group or individual use

BUY HERE: 

I would like to give away 2 of Karen's books because I know you will be inspired by her words.

a Rafflecopter giveaway So the message of today is, Own Your Words! :)

Don't Let the Critics Get you Down! Vision that Lasts a Lifetime

Vision that Lives for a Lifetime

Therefore, do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. Hebrews 10: 15

The fear of man brings a snare, But he who trusts in the LORD will be exalted. Proverbs 29:25

I can still remember when I first had aspirations toward writing as an adult, many years before I wrote my first book. I had worked hard on a short essay, and felt deeply proud of my effort toward creative expression.

Out of an excitement to receive feedback, I approached a family member with experience in creative writing, to see what they thought. After a quick look over my work, this person said without any hesitation, “This is very low quality. You’ll never be a writer of any merit with this kind of rubbish.”

Frustrated but not deterred, I persisted in stating that my writing was worthwhile. In an effort to end the argument, this family member took my writing sample to a professional editor, to prove that they were right in their assessment of my skill.

When the editor finished, he looked up and said, “This is very good! There are several streams of writing styles that contribute to high-quality writing. Sally’s writing is in a very specific style, but it is highly effective in that genre.”

Many years later, after finishing a rough draft of one of my first books, I passed my first chapter of my first book manuscript on to my assigned editor.

I had put my heart and soul into the writing, and felt very passionate about the message of the book. I can so clearly remember our conversation after that person finished my book. She emphatically said, “This is trash. I can’t believe you would think that this is worthwhile. It’s completely useless.”

At first I was tempted to be crushed and believe her, but after some thought, I regained the conviction that what I wrote was worthwhile. I remembered my experience with my family member many years before, and many other such encounters in the interim.

When I wrote her back, I felt confident and resolute in replying, “You simply don’t appreciate either my style, or the content of my message. You don’t like me or my book, and from here on out, I would like to work with a different editor!” (The next editor was amazing, affirming and enthusiastic about my book, so her encouragement actually drew the best writing out of me.

God has given each of us a call upon our lives to trust in him and invest in righteousness, but only a few are able to both listen to His voice, and keep listening throughout all seasons of life.

There are so many voices that speak into our lives that try to establish a sense of authority. Some are worth listening to, those who have earned the right to speak into our lives; but many are simply people who want to have power over our choices and convictions. It takes maturity to understand the balance between receiving input, and knowing our calling well enough to stick with our ideals.

I once had someone walk up to me after a seminar, and say, “You’re such a wonderful writer and speaker! How did you gain that excellence and win such a big audience so quickly?” I laughed when I replied, “It’s easy, it only took 20 years!”

As a mom, your convictions will be challenged by a culture that is permissive. Your children will sin and drive you crazy on a regular basis. You will be exhausted many of your years. There will be times when you think nothing you are doing matters, and that your life is invisible. Yet, the truth is, a child who has a committed mama is the most blessed child in the world.

You are in a very active battle for the souls of your children, the next generation. Of course the world, and Satan would love for you to listen to voices of discouragement. But hold fast, keep going. You are God’s heroine, the one He has designed to civilize nations, And in due time, you will reap the vast reward of all of your faithful work.

I am soooo excited about the Better Mom Book Club, as they are going to be studying Own Your Life. Over 1000 women from all over the world are joining together to discuss the chapters and to share from their own lives. Today, I have recorded a special message just for this club of women. Go Here to sign up and enjoy and be refreshed in great fellowship.

For those of you who have asked, I know you will be challenged, instructed and encouraged very practically about how to make a focussed and intentional and purposeful plan for your life through the upstream field guide at Tsh Oxenrider's blog, theartofsimple.net.  I am speaking there, along with 7 other speakers. You can find this HERE Live with the end in mind!

Lots of great opportunities now to give you a great start for a wonderful new Year. I wish you a beautiful day!

Where there is a will there is a way: Self-Government

"Whoever has no rule over his own spirit is like a city broken down, without walls." -Proverbs 25:28

What an amazing person you are! By God's design, you have been invested with incredible potential. You have a heart that has the capacity to show great love, to give hope, truth and wisdom through your words, to create beauty and to bring light to darkness.

You have a charming personality that is uniquely suited to God's plans for you--perhaps a quiet, thoughtful introvert who ponders life deeply, or an extrovert who loves to reach out to people, perhaps you love to make messages and teach truth or maybe you serve others  my perceiving their needs and meeting them.

Whatever personality you have, it is suited to play your role, your part in God's mega-story of history. No one else can play your role--just you. But, to live into God's potential, His love for you, the ways He wants to redeem your life there is one thing required!  It all starts with your heart. Heart is mentioned over 800 times in scripture because it is of vast importance to God.

As we nurture and discipline our children, our goal is to teach them what is true and then train them how to choose to obey what is true. Same for adults!

If you have a heart to pursue Him, to trust Him, to obey Him, then you have all the possibility in the world to complete His design for your life. But, you must choose to rule over your heart, because to engage your whole life in your own great story requires you to rule over life from the commitment of your heart. It starts with self-government.

Self-government is defined this way: a person learns to command himself, his impulses, his work habits, emotions, intellect, and talents, and to rule over his will in a productive way.

Children can begin this at a very early age, and I have found it to also be of utmost importance to adults–as one cannot be a mature believer unless one has mastered self-government, self-control and patience.

The idea behind self-government is that all of us have power and authority over our own lives. This power comes from within, and can help us master problems, surmount obstacles, and use our self-will to achieve great things.

Self-government doesn’t mean working out life in the flesh without the power of God, but affirms that we have a moral character that can be strengthened and undergirded by our will, through practice. Mysteriously, the Holy Spirit, who lives inside of those who have committed their lives to Christ, prompts us to walk in righteousness. But, as we learn to obey His wisdom, to exercise our will, and seek to walk in his ways, our spiritual muscle grows stronger. The person who has cultivated this kind of strong character is useful and productive in every area of life.

To make this commitment today and inspire others to do the same, tweet and/or update your Facebook status today to:

I will own my life today by being self-governed. #ownyourlifebook

 We will be posting the winner to the Grand Prize of my

Own Your Life Book Launch today as soon as we hear

from the winner to make sure she wants to attend our

conference!

My friend, Tsh Oxenrider, who blogs at theartofsimple.net is beginning a course for the new year that will inspire you, give wisdom, provide ideas, help you discover your purpose, and focuses on many of the principles found in Own Your Life: living with deep intention, bold faith and generous love. As a part of her course, you will hear excerpts from her interview with me, and  about what it meant for me to write this book, to figure out how to live intentionally, to engage in a simpler life. There are 7 other contributors, and the course is packed full of helpful resources, challenges for your own planning. I think you will love this course, called The Upstream Field Guide.  Find out more HERE , register for her course and get planning for a purposeful new year.

Now is the Time to Move from Chaos to Order, Purpose, Peace

"For the mountains may be removed and the hills may shake, But My lovingkindness will not be removed from you, And My covenant of peace will not be shaken," Says the LORD who has compassion on you." Isaiah 54:10

"Mama, lift the curtain so we can see the mountains," one of my little ones said as we crept towards the airport one snowy morning.

This little one knew what was real and what he could not see,  because the mountains graced our little home every day. He was sure of what his eyes had seen and his feet had walked. But this day, the snow, steam and fogged covered over so that our eyes could not see behind the curtain of mist.

The beginning and ending of Owning Your Life is recognizing the God who created us, loves us, knows us, created us for purpose and intimacy with Him. The God who longs for us to understand His purposes and blessings for us so that our lives might be rich and fulfilling.

Each of us is born with a spiritual, emotional, intellectual and physical capacity to live vibrantly into vast potential for accomplishing great feats, (it is a glory to God when we are excellent in skill, wisdom and life), to love deeply and generously, (to experience deep intimacy, friendship, companionship), to know and understand great intellectual and wise knowledge, (God commanded us to worship Him--to serve Him with our minds).

He created us to know and experience so much because He is great, infinite, transcendent, and dazzling.

The world has veiled the glory of God, and sin has robbed us from understanding how marvelous He created our lives to be.

And yet, "The people in darkness have seen a great light,"and Jesus came to lift the veil and to show us His dynamic reality.

My challenge to you this year, in 2015, is to live into God's ways as deeply as you are able to look with the eyes of your heart to see His presence, His fingertips of His reality in all the moments of your day. Believe Him and serve Him with all of your being. Engage your heart to believe in prayer. Extend generous words of love, encouragement to those who walk in darkness.

This is your year to Own Your Life and to live with deep intention, bold faith, generous love.

My heartfelt gratefulness to the most amazing launch team who friended me and helped me to begin to get these messages out to many arenas. I am deeply humbled and grateful. My thankfulness to so many friends who have written, prayed, loved, and helped.

My prayer is that this year, we shall see His light shining through His children more brightly than ever before because we have come more clearly to see Him as He is and to reflect His glory.

May God bless each of you in 2015 as you Own Your Life for His glory--and respond to all that He has graciously provided. I pray you will be comforted, inspired, transformed, encouraged, tickled with happiness, and that His gentle touch and smile of affection will be over each day.

Thanks for this week. I will return to normal at my blog soon--I may need a nap or two first! :)

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Join me today for a wonderful article and a giveaway of 10 books at unveiledwife.com

The Giveaway will end at midnight tomorrow night and I will announce the winner Wednesday morning. Can't wait to see who will be with me for our wonderful mentoring gathering this summer. We shall celebrate and have a wonderful time.

I hope my book will be of great encouragement to you, as that was my sincere hope when I wrote it. Blessings and blessings and lots of love to you all.

Own Your Relationships: Marriage, Parenting, Friendships and a Giveaway!

Special note: Giveaway winners from earlier this week are listed at the bottom of this post! 

Home is the primary holding place for all that is valuable and it is the sanctuary for building loving relationships.

"They will know you are my disciples by your love for one another."

Relationships, to a great degree, determine the fruitfulness of your whole life. Jesus defined the ultimate reflection of our presence in the world as how well we loved one another. Christian love requires a choice, an obedience, a heart to serve.

"Greater love has no one than this, that lay down his life for his friend."

Jesus, the ultimate symbol of sacrificial love, models to us what love looks like with real people and then He calls us to the same love for those in our own world.

Marriage: a picture of our sacred relationship with God. He is forever our bridegroom living to serve us and we are to be his loyal, loving, responsive bride. When we cultivate and develop mature relationship in our marriage, we reflect His love to the world.

Mothering and Parenting: As our Father give us purpose, instructs us in wisdom, trains us, provides a stunning creation to inhabit, blesses us with good gifts, protects us, sacrifices for us, so we are to recreate His own model through our lives to bless, train and provide for our children.

Friendship: A place of giving, encouraging, serving, sacrificing as He laid down His life for His friends.

So to Own Your Life, in relationships, infers that we must be responsible, committed, exhibit sacrificial love in our relationships.

God's word is the foundational place where I have learned about my relationships. It starts with a daily investing in our love and knowledge of Him. Then marriage and family become the places we understand Him better as we practice loving as He did. Friendships emerge as we cultivate a heart for ministry from watching and knowing His compassionate love. So love and mature relationships start with loving and knowing God.

I love my giveaways today. First, my wonderful publisher has provided me with some wonderful books to give away. I asked them to come up with a package  of books that would start out the year for one of my subscribers to be set up for quiet times--books that would help cultivate a deeper walk with God.

It includes the Women's Sanctuary Bible, The Life Application Study Bible, Pocket Prayers for Women, and The One- Year Experiencing God's Presence Devotional

Jeanna Young is a very dear friend, who wanted to have a beautiful way to teach her children about what is looks like to have a relationship with God, to understand how to love others, to know how to grow in character. She created a whole line of books and dolls to implement her own training for her four children. So, to emphasize the importance of our parenting and teaching role, I wanted to give something that would be a blessing to moms and their children in teaching these important principles. Jeanna is so generous to share these with us.

The Princess Parables series is built on the Parables of Jesus.  Each of the stories teach a different parable with character truths for the young princesses in your life.  They follow the adventures of five royal sisters - Hope, Faith, Grace, Joy and Charity - who display distinct personalities that are very relatable. Each princess represents a different Biblical virtue, represented in her storybook.The illustrations are colorful and timeless offering princesses role models that all little girls will want to immolate.  Also from the pages of the storybook, the Princess sisters are now available as dolls! Each of the dolls teach modesty and virtue with painted on undergarments.  The Princess Parables is a ministry to bless moms with Godly role models for their princesses – rich in character! 

You can find out more about the ThePrincessParables.com

Today I am thrilled to be giving away Princess Hope and the Hidden Treasure, Princess Grace and Little Lost Kitten,Princess Charity's Courageous Heart Princess Faith's Mysterious Garden, Princess Joy's Birthday Blessing as well as the Princess Joy doll, Princess Faith doll, Princess Hope doll, Princess Charity doll and Princess Grace doll!

Don't forget to buy your copy of Own Your Life and join the book clubs starting soon!

The Better Mom Book Club

And Sarah Mae's book club-

-Be sure to buy your copy today!

Today is the last day to enter the Grand Prize Giveaway!

AND Here they are! The week's winners! Please look for an email in your inbox from a member of our staff to help you redeem your prize. Congratulations!

Mom Heart Conference Ticket: Kate Headley

10 Winners of a Copy of Own Your Life: Christina Ollis Angelo, Yvette Mcintire Ling, L. Johnson, Susan Simcoe, Paige Yelle, Danielle Ogilvie Rodda, Lauren, Erin Branscom, Julianne Hyma, Sonya Hicks

Whole Heart Book Bundle: Dawn Fong

Oil Painting by Katy Rose: Lindsey Gallant

Interior Design Room Consultation With Logan Wolfram: Bridget Burrit

Sally's Favorite Things Bundle: Kellie Waddell

Life Coaching Package: Angel King

Spiritual Director Package: Kali Smith

Managing Your Mornings e-book: Denise Warnick

How They Blog Kit: Stacey Friesen

Thanks for Coming to the Own Your Life Book Launch Webcast!

Dear Wonderful Friends,

Thanks so much for joining us for the Own Your Life webcast. Receiving such encouraging emails and messages has meant so much to me and my sweet friends, Sarah Mae, Crystal, and Angela.

Thanks, too, for all of you who have participated in my launch week by sharing about the webcast, my newest book, and sending messages out to your friends. I am so very excited about this message as I want to inspire and encourage women everywhere that God has designed all of our lives to be filled with His purposes, to be covered and carried by His generous love, and to be a part of His story in the world.

I hope that you will also enter the Grand Prize Giveaway to win 2 free tickets, (one for you and a friend of your choice), to come to one of my private mentoring conferences this summer including airline tickets, hotel, a buffet breakfast at the 5-star Broadmoor Hotel and lots of inspiring sessions with like-minded women in my Colorado home. Enter on my website to win!.

You might enjoy this article from Aholyexperience.com on Ann Voskamp's blog today, where she shared about the Own Your Life book.

Also, if you missed the webcast or would like to share it with your friends, you can watch it here.

There will be several great Book Clubs studying Own Your Life that will greatly encourage you! Here are two from my friends:

The Better Mom and Sarah Mae.

If you would like to purchase the book, you can find it here: Own Your Life

I pray your 2015 is a blessed year and seasoned every day with God's wisdom, love and purposes.

Thanks again for spending the evening with us!

Sally Clarkson

Giving Life to Your Priorities

The wise woman builds her house.

Proverbs 14:1

Building a house from almost scratch cost us hundreds of hours of planning--the bedrooms to suit our boys who would share, the little one for Joy who was young, then Sarah's special blue colored walls. We  planned a library for all of our books, planned a playground, as well as our grass and garden.

Then, we worked, painted, arranged, planted and watched our beautiful home grow into a place rich in comfort, ministry, fun and a saving place for all that is good. There is a rhythm to life--planning and building. Dreaming and working hard to fulfill dreams.

To own one's life, means to envision what is most important, from God's perspective, what goals are worthy and then making plans to accomplish them and working hard in that direction. Over the years, I have learned to copy wise people and to grow from their input and finally to work out the plans.

That is why I am delighted today, to give away all sorts of life coaching from two wonderful friends who are resources of helping with life planning and priorities for you or you and your husband. Both are consultants who guide and inspire people in every walk of life.

And then my wonderful friend, Kat, has generously offered to give away her course that is so very practical and insightful about helping moms know how to organize their day, to build priorities that suit your family and how to make a rhythm of making time for God. I think these gifts will be wonderful for you.

Own Your Life: Life Coaching Giveaway

In two coaching sessions Life Coach, Carey C. Bailey, will partner with you to evaluate where you currently are in your day to day and where you desire be in any area of your life. We will use tools such as a Life Balance Survey, Values Inventory and Personal Identity Worksheet to provide focus and clarity as you begin the process of stewarding your life and the portion you have been given.

Carey Bailey is a woman who loves to dance around the living room with her husband to Michael Jackson, loves Blue Bell Pralines and Cream ice cream, loves reading to her 2 little people in a tree house and loves having Jesus as her BFF!

She is self professed candy junkie but sugar will never match her deep desire for helping women satisfy their cravings for abundant life. She does this through life coaching, speaking, and by co-hosting With Joy Retreats.

She is a Texas girl that transplanted to the desert of Arizona over 15 years ago to escape the humidity. She has worked for 20 years in mega churches serving families and most recently ended a 10 year run as the Family Life Director at Radiant Church in Surprise, Arizona.

Her years of managing over 40 employees, walking with families through heartache and blessing, her love of living out her days in God’s truth, coupled with the Life Coach Certification process have brought her to this place of Life Coach, Teacher, and Dreamer.

You can connect with Carey through her Web-site, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or Instagram.

What is life coaching? 

Life Coaching is looking ahead at your ideal life and creating a strategy to realize that vision. The coaching process gives you a safe place to:

• Set forth the hopes and dreams you have for all areas of your life.
• Assess your current circumstances, paint a vision for the future and breakthrough obstacles in your life.
• Find biblical freedom from the lies that have made themselves at home in your mind.
• Develop a strategy that will allow you to live life to the fullest and walk with purpose.

In addition to this amazing giveaway, Carey is also offering a special 10% discount to our blog readers! Use the code: SALLY during checkout on her site to redeem this offer!

Own Your Life Work-Life Integration Consulting with David Sachsenmaier

Package: 2-Hour Work-Life Integration Consultation for couples – a $750 Value

Do you sometimes feel you are failing miserably at holding work and personal life together? Does our 200 MPH American life leave you breathless much of the time?

Over Skype, we will address the critical areas of both work and personal life and how they are interconnected.  The SynterPoint model will serve as a 360° total work-life assessment. Our model addresses the five key areas of our humanity and how they are helping or hindering our overall work-life integration. These areas are Physical, Mental, Spiritual, Relational and Emotional.

“A fully integrated work-life leads to optimal work engagement and life fulfillment."

• David has 30 years of international experience working with US and European business executives and managers in both the corporate banking and nonprofit world.  As a former Managing Director at Bank of America, David understands the complexities and challenges that the corporate work life puts on an individual, a marriage and a family. David also has an MDiv with a concentration in counseling that gives him a great foundation in understanding the deeper issues in all areas of life.
• David’s greatest passion is helping business and nonprofit leaders and their spouses find maximum fulfillment, integration and engagement with their total life-work journey.  He is highly trained and skilled at seeing into the lives of leaders, executives and their spouses.
• David lives in Colorado Springs where he is the President of SynterPoint Consulting. He works with both corporate and non-profit leaders in helping them find their true “SynterPoint” of life – the place where all of life converges and integrates. David also has a local practice in Colorado Springs where he works as a consultant, counselor and spiritual director.
• David and his wife Margaret met in college 30 years ago. They have six children from 16 to 6. They moved to Colorado Springs six years ago from southern England where David was pastoring a church.

 My sweet friend Kat at inspiredtoaction.com loves inspiring moms through her blog and podcast and is passionate about helping them put their ideals into measurable action steps that change the way they manage their time and relationships. I am so excited to be giving away her e-book, Maximize Your Mornings today! It is a step by step guide to owning your life and waking up FOR your family with a plan in place and the resources to thrive and flourish in your day. Kat also loves sharing the behind the scenes stories of bloggers at her popular site How They Blog. And we are thrilled  to be giving away her Blog Planning Kit to one of you today- its full of over 25 pages of blog planning bliss and covers everything you might want to get started blogging, or to revamp and refocus the blog you already have.

Be sure to join me today at Ann Voskamp's blog, Aholyexperience.com and on LoveGodgreatly.com. I am so honored to have articles about my book there.

We will be announcing the winners of the week's contents later today on the blog and social media so please check in to see what you have won! And keep entering the grandprize giveaway on my sidebar to spend a weekend with me.

Thank you so much for celebrating the release of Own Your Life with me!

 You can Buy Your Copy of Own Your Life Here

Owning the Beauty of Your Soul with Beautiful Giveaways!

"Choosing Light"

16 x 20 Original painting by Katy Rose

Oil on Canvas, prepared for wall-mounting

Recently, amidst a freezing day, slugging through snow, sleet and sand on the freeway, Joy and I dropped by to see a close family friend. She was leaving the next day for college and we wanted to see our friend. As we walked in her home for a very short hug and hello, we heard soft music wafting softly, candles were flickering on her table, 3 cups of her grandmother's china held steaming hot tea, and homemade biscotti with chocolate and nuts graced the plates. We both sighed out the stress of our busy day and enjoyed the best 5 minute cup of tea we have ever had. The beauty of our friend's preparation deeply ministered to our over-busy stressful hearts.

Owning our moments by filling them with beauty is wisdom to a woman who understands the marathon run of life. If we are giving out every day, all the time, we must refuel, refresh, take time to rest and take care of our needs so that we can last well and last strong.

God is an artist at heart and His desire to delight us is evident throughout the created cosmos. He loves to delight us. To celebrate our need for beauty, pleasure, variety, personality, I am delighted to give away some amazing gifts of beauty and beauty making. And I cannot say how very thankful I am for these precious friends who have made their gifts available for you!

First, my sweet friend, who is an artist, is giving away an amazing original painting. She painted this just for us! Absolutely thrilled. Meet Katy.

Katy Rose is a mother of two young boys and believes that a life poured out is a life filled up. She writes and shares at her blog about Goodwill Living. What is that? It's that's  about breaking through the walls of our comfort zones and running free. It's about standing on the firm reality that endless acquiring and amassing does not result in peace, but a life poured out in Jesus' name does. It's about embracing our families as immeasurable gifts, worthy of our best. And seeing our homes as central hubs for ministry, whether it's meeting the needs of our families or strangers. Its about owning our lives so that we can share them with others.

As her boys have entered pre-school age, Katy decided to teach them along side the children of refugees.  In the afternoons while her boys nap, Katy paints. She sells her work in her online shop and the beauty that eventually hangs in the homes of others also pours out a ministry, providing surgeries for Iraqui children through the work of the Preemptive Love Coalition.

Today, I am giving away an original work by Katy! A piece inspired by my new book, here's what Katy has to share about it:

"Sally shares this prayer in the beginning of Own Your Life, a prayer she declared before the Lord over 20 years ago. It is the inspiration for this painting:

"Lord, I will choose to find light in the darkness. I have no guarantee about how any of this will turn out, but I am planting flags of faith. No matter what happens, I will be as obedient as I can to bring joy into this place, to create beauty in the wilderness, to exercise generous love, and the persevere in patience. I will choose to believe that wherever you are my faithful companion is the place where your blessing will be upon me." (p. 9, Own Your Life)

Through the mingling of dark and light, this piece draws on the essence of Redemption, the captivating story of God inviting us out the the darkness and into Light. 

As we cling to that Light, we aren't spared from the storms of this world, yet by His grace, we persevere with full confidence in our victorious Redeemer, choosing light."

I hope you win this special work of art to hang in a special area of you home!

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It was a profound realization when I understood that I could become an artist with my very life and paint the reality of God, the creator in all the ways I made my home a reflection of His creativity. The next giveaway is to help you plan how to make your own home even more, a place that gives beauty, design, and a plan to make it your own. I can't eve believe that Logan has volunteered to give an amazing gift to you to celebrate this week's launch. I have been amazed at her skill and artistry since I first saw the amazing way she turned Allume into a dazzling, lovely artistic atmosphere for all of us who attended. Amazing talent and skill were obvious.

Logan Wolfram, host of the Allume Conference and writer at Life For Dessert is a talented event planner and interior designer. Her new book about following God to unexpected places with a curious faith and soft heart, releases in the Spring of 2016.  Today she is helping me celebrate the release of Own Your Life by donating a One Hour Phone Consultation about the interior design of a room of their choice with a lucky winner! We want you to love the spaces of your home, to learn how to cultivate beauty and contentment and find creative ways to enjoy where you live! Logan's ideas are inspiring!

Finally, I wanted you to have a bundle of my favorite things--things I keep around every day--for daily pleasures and celebration.(My favorite tea--Yorkshire Gold, a vanilla candle, a mom heart necklace, one of Joel's cd's, a journal, a frame-able art quote from a friend, and a dark salted chocolate almond bar.

And don't forget to get your own copy of one of my books!

Own your Life is available now. You can buy your copy here.

Remember, you can enter the grand prize giveaway every day to win a weekend with me. Enter the rafflecopter on the side bar--and go there to find out the details.

Sooo grateful for all of you who have helped me spread the word about my book. Thanks a zillion!