Soul Friend Books - A Ministry of Spiritual Formation in Community

Starting over

Posted by Jodi Meiter on Thu, Jun 14, 2018

Jun 142018

Do you ever feel like you need a fresh start? A do-over? A clean slate? I think we all do, at times! I like to write. I think I’m pretty decent at it. But I’ve been believing a lie. Some lying spirit has told me that I don’t have anything to say, nothing worth saying, and that nobody needs to hear anything from me. Mr. Liar has told me these things many times and so I’ve stopped writing. I believed the lie and decided the liar was right. However, my spirit has been quenched. The spirit in me is not [ …read full story ]

Letting Go

Posted by Jodi Meiter on Tue, Feb 28, 2017

Feb 282017

Dear Family and Friends, I’m writing to let you know that we are in the process of transitioning baby Garrett from our home to a new foster family that will plan to adopt him if Kara’s parental rights are severed. I’m writing to ask for prayer for all of us during this process. As you can imagine, ALL of us have gotten very attached to this baby love bug and we love him very much. We are trusting that this new family (Todd and Jennifer Wright, and son Matthew, age 6) will give him all the love and attention that [ …read full story ]

Teenager ‘funk’ and all that good stuff

Posted by Jodi Meiter on Sat, Oct 15, 2016

Oct 152016

Beginning the Teen years is one of the many milestones in the life of a parent. In our family, “13” is an especially big birthday for our boys. We have given gifts that encourage them to grow to ‘be a man.’ Assert some independence, take some risks, try out your talent, lean in to your creative side, and enjoy an area of life that has not ever been open to you before. For our firstborn son’s birthday, his dad bought him a dirt bike! Talk about feeling like ‘big stuff!!’ I’m not sure who was more excited, Jonah, or [ …read full story ]

Parenting with Kindness

Posted by Jodi Meiter on Sat, Oct 8, 2016

Oct 082016

Almost 10 years ago, my husband Bill and I had the opportunity to tour Israel with a group from our church. The only catch was that we would have to leave our 3 young children behind for 12 days! As a Bible student, I had always wanted to travel to Israel. I had to take advantage of the opportunity to go! I had to trust God, that He would take care of our children while we were overseas. So we packed up and left our 7, 5, and 3 year old in the care of my parents, with occasional relief [ …read full story ]

Are we Starry Eyed? The Privilege of Motherhood

Posted by Jodi Meiter on Wed, Apr 27, 2016

Apr 272016

Are we Starry Eyed? The Privilege of Motherhood

Motherhood is a whirl of activity. It is sometimes a giant blur. It feels like being on a merry-go-round that one can never get off. In the midst of the daily tasks and challenges of motherhood, sometimes we forget to enjoy the present. We forget to cherish the soft baby skin and the cute childlike talk and the closeness that comes from being needed 24/7. The call is great. The mission is impossible. The consequences of failure are dire. Of all of the roles we take on in life, motherhood is not the place to mess up. Fortunately, we do [ …read full story ]

How much time do you have?

Posted by Jodi Meiter on Mon, Apr 4, 2016

Apr 042016

Do you ever feel like there is not enough time to do what you need to do? Do you ask yourself how you will fit it all in? How do you decide what to do first? How do you decide what can wait for tomorrow? There are so many facets of our lives. It is not possible to do everything in a day. How do we figure out what we should be doing? I am comforted by Jesus’ words in Matthew 6:33 “seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” [ …read full story ]

What is Spiritual Formation?

Posted by Jodi Meiter on Sat, Jan 9, 2016

Jan 092016

Sometimes big words throw us off, but Spiritual Formation is just the fancy term for how we grow spiritually. It encompasses all that God does by His Holy Spirit to bring new life to us. Spiritual Formation is the transformative process that happens when we submit our lives to God and surrender to His will. It is the means by which He changes us from carnal people far-from-God, to Christlike saints, who are walking with God and living to see His will be done on earth as it is in heaven! So how does this happen? How do we participate [ …read full story ]

Thankful for the Thorns? How to delight in weaknesses

Posted by Jodi Meiter on Tue, Jan 5, 2016

Jan 052016

Thankful for the Thorns? How to delight in weaknesses

Shockingly, Paul tells us to be thankful for our weaknesses, for insults, persecutions, and difficulties. He argues that God allows these things into our lives so that we remember to walk in the Power of God, and not in our own strength. 2 Corinthians 12:7-10 To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my [ …read full story ]

In His Name

Posted by Jodi Meiter on Wed, Nov 18, 2015

Nov 182015

Our help is in the name of the Lord who made heaven and earth. Some days, or weeks, or even months, require more ‘calling out’ than others. I’ve been in one of those seasons. Needy, you could call it. Longing for rescue. Hoping for one of those things you throw off a ship to save a drowning sailor…you know, a life preserver? One of those times when you are thinking about so many different things that you don’t seem to be able to think at all? Overwhelmation, one writer called it. A silly word, but I like it. It describes [ …read full story ]

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