Uncategorized – Page 11 – Melissa Schlies

Love: My Favorite Books 2018

Read to the end to find out how to win one of my favorite books! Recently, I heard someone use the word “intimate” to describe the experience of reading. Think about it. Usually, when we read a book, we tune out the rest of the world. We put down our phones. We stop our busyness. And in many cases, we go to a quiet place, sit, and give our full attention to the words of someone we’ve never met. For a few hours—or a number of small moments over a few days or weeks—it’s just us and the book. Now, [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2018-12-06T02:10:35+00:00December 6th, 2018|Categories: Christmas, Good Books, Health, Lead, Leadership, Learn, Love, Love Learn Lead, Uncategorized|1 Comment

He Always Comes

One of my favorite books growing up was The Lion The Witch And The Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis. Early in the story, one of the main characters, Lucy, finds herself in a magical, snow-covered land. The first creature she meets there is Mr. Tumnus who is half man, half faun. Though she is taken back by his appearance, he is very kind and they soon become friends. Mr. Tumnus tells Lucy that she is in Narnia. The reason it is so cold there, he explains, is because a witch has cast a spell causing it to always be winter [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2018-12-04T12:55:34+00:00December 3rd, 2018|Categories: Christmas, Faith, Hope, perseverance, Uncategorized|3 Comments

Love: Out of the Box Christmas Gift Ideas

The Christmas craziness has begun. Thanksgiving is over, which means Holiday parties abound. It is time to decorate trees and houses, write and send Christmas cards, and shop for presents to put under the tree. All while balancing our everyday responsibilities. There’s no question it’s the most wonderful time of the year—but, it’s also a little chaotic. That is why, over the years, we’ve found ways to trim down some of the craziness of the season, without losing any of its joy or meaning. For us, it has meant sending fewer cards, only decorating our tree (rather than the rest [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2018-11-14T19:15:54+00:00November 29th, 2018|Categories: Balance, Christmas, Lead, Learn, Love, Love Learn Lead, Uncategorized|Comments Off

When God Says No

Have you ever wanted something so badly, but it didn’t come? Have you ever prayed a prayer that rose from so deep in your soul, it felt as if your whole body prayed it? And then, God was silent. Or worse the door you were sure He was going to open wide, seemed to slam in your face. Without warning or a reason you could see, you were sent reeling. Like asking your best friend to be there for a big life moment, you asked God to be there for you, and He didn’t show up. It almost feels like [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2018-11-05T15:29:33+00:00November 26th, 2018|Categories: Faith, Hope, perseverance, Rejection, Saying No, Uncategorized, Waiting|2 Comments

Happy Thanksgiving 2018

“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.” ―Melody Beattie Wishing you a very happy day, friends. May the spirit of this day turn what you have into enough. May you know feasting, belonging, and friendship, today and always. Oh, and wherever you are, may there be pie, lots of pie. What or who are you thankful for today? Are you in [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2018-11-05T14:46:51+00:00November 22nd, 2018|Categories: gratitude, Lead, Learn, Love, Love Learn Lead, Uncategorized|Comments Off

The Hardest No

“…The very things you think you need most desperately are the things that can transform you the most profoundly when you do finally decide to release them.” —Shauna Niequist Sometimes, the hardest no’s in our lives are the ones we have to tell ourselves. They’re the ones that often begin with a whisper, “I am not going to have dessert this week.” “I am only going to have one drink.” Only they’re ignored when the stress gets too much, or everyone else is having another. We don’t listen to the whisper, so we say it a little louder to ourselves. [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2018-11-19T12:18:46+00:00November 19th, 2018|Categories: Balance, Courage, discipline, Failure, Health, Hope, Making Decisions, perseverance, Saying No, Uncategorized|1 Comment

Learn: Three Questions to Ask After Rejection

At the beginning of seventh grade, the girls in my class started asking out the boys they liked. It became a thing they did at recess. Each day, after lunch, the boys would play basketball. While all the girls would stand in a group, just behind the basket ball net, watching the boys. And at least once a day, a girl would yell over the noise of the basket ball game to ask a boy to go out with her friend. A girl never asked out a boy directly. Usually, during this daily drama, I stood and bore witness. Mostly [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2018-11-05T15:10:29+00:00November 15th, 2018|Categories: Failure, Lead, Learn, Love, Love Learn Lead, perseverance, Rejection, Success, Uncategorized|Comments Off

No Is Not An Answer

On my journey to live out my calling, I have received a lot more no’s than yeses. I was reminded of this recently, when I started reading through one of my journals from the year after I graduated college. At the time, I was working at a bookstore in Boston, and sending my resume out to almost any youth ministry job posted online that I could find. In a journal entry from February, a full nine months after graduation, I wrote about receiving a letter from a church saying they were going with a more qualified candidate. A letter—Do you [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2018-11-12T13:33:48+00:00November 12th, 2018|Categories: Acceptance, Calling, Character, Courage, Hope, Identity, perseverance, Success, Uncategorized|Comments Off

Love Learn Lead November 8, 2018

It hardly seems possible that we’re already into November. Perhaps it’s because it took until the middle of October to finally begin to feel like fall. But, as soon as it was cool enough to wear big sweaters and boots, I had a feeling that before we knew it, the Holiday’s would be on our door step. Thankfully though, we have a few weeks yet before Thanksgiving, and a little more time to enjoy the beauty of this season. For me, this fall has looked like coming up with new paleo recipes involving the apples we picked at a local [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2018-11-03T14:15:03+00:00November 8th, 2018|Categories: Change, Courage, Freedom, Lead, Leadership, Learn, Love, Love Learn Lead, Making Decisions, Saying No, Uncategorized|Comments Off

Learn: How to Tell If You’ve Found Your Calling

Traditionally, I am not a big hat person. So when we went to Ireland for vacation this year, the last thing I ever expected to buy was a hat. Maybe a new pair of gloves or a wool blanket—but not a hat. Only, that is what happened. One morning, on our way to Dingle, Tony and I stopped in the charming thatched roof town of Adare. I needed a cup of coffee, and it was a good place to take a break from driving. We found a parking spot, and then a cup of cappuccino for me, before moseying [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2018-11-01T14:38:23+00:00November 1st, 2018|Categories: Calling, Identity, Lead, Leadership, Learn, Love, Love Learn Lead, Making Decisions, Uncategorized|Comments Off

Love: My Favorite Books 2018

He Always Comes

Love: Out of the Box Christmas Gift Ideas

When God Says No

Happy Thanksgiving 2018

The Hardest No

Learn: Three Questions to Ask After Rejection

No Is Not An Answer

Love Learn Lead November 8, 2018

Learn: How to Tell If You’ve Found Your Calling

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