Hope & the Holidays

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Foreign. Hello, and welcome back to the Naked Marriage podcast. We are Dave and Ashley Willis, and on this podcast, we address the truth about sex, intimacy, and lifelong love. And if you're listening in real time right when this episode debuts, you know we are in the thick of the holiday season. Christmas is upon us. And Dave and I, you know, we wanted to take a moment and share a really special episode with you that is not just marriage specific. I mean, it definitely could relate to your marriage, but really, it's for anybody. And we hope that this really touches your heart because we feel like during the holidays, like Dave always says, it's an amplifier of our life. You know, the good things seem so much better, but the hard things seem so much harder. And so we have a message for those of you specifically who are going through maybe a harder season than you expected. But before we dive in, I want to share a recent review with you. And it's five stars. Thank you. And it says this. Two words that are often missing in the Christian marriage and intimacy conversation are transparent and vulnerability, but not the naked marriage. They don't miss that. So thankful for this couple and the wisdom they share here. A must listen. This person entitled it transparent and vulnerable. And I love that because that's really at the heart of what the Naked Marriage is. And we just so appreciate you guys who take the time to leave a review. You guys, if you love this podcast and you followed it for any length of time, you feel like it's making a difference in your life, the very best way that you can show your thankfulness and also spread the message is by leaving a review. It's free. You can do it quickly. It can take you, like, literally a minute. But that makes a huge difference in just spreading the message of what God can do for people's marriages. And so we'd love it if you could leave a review today from the bottom of our hearts. Thank you so much for doing that.

Yeah, it means a lot to us, and it does help other people discover the podcast. And one other quick way to help people discover this podcast, be a little Christmas gift to the whole team here and I mentioned this in one previous episode. I won't talk about this every episode, but I really think that it would be great if we could get ahold of the people at K Love, the national radio station, great radio station, and make sure that they nominate the Naked Marriage podcast for their K Love Fan Awards for their podcast of the Year category.

Yes.

And it would be so fun and it would let their whole audience know about this ministry. So if you could go on your social media, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and look up K L O V E.com that's their radio station, K Love, it's all over the country. And let them know, hey, nominate the Naked Marriage podcast for your K Love Fan Awards. That would just mean so much to our team here and it would help people discover this podcast. But today, like Ashley said, this episode is something that's straight from our hearts to yours. And I really hope that this episode is a gift to you. We're going to talk about seven truths that God wants you to remember when life is difficult. And both at Christmas time and all around the year, these truths I think could make such a difference for you. And it's our prayer that this episode is a special blessing to you. So let's dive in. Hey friends, Merry Christmas. If you're listening to this in real time is we are in December. Of course, if you're listening to this later in the year, the principles we're going to talk about today really are year round principles. And there are seven truths to remember when life is really difficult. And we want to give you hope this holiday season because what we have found is Christmas season. We sing it's the most wonderful time of the year. And it certainly can be. But maybe a truer statement is that it's an amplified time, meaning it amplifies that the good in your life feels better at Christmas time, but the hard stuff in your life, the bad stuff in your life, it feels harder at Christmas. And we don't talk about that pain. It's a time where there's a high suicide rate. It's a time when, you know, addiction and heavy drinking and unhealthy behaviors spike and people are numbing pain and they're feeling regret and they're feeling loneliness and they're looking on Instagram and all over the place and everybody's putting these perfect holiday pictures and they feel like I'm alone and there's nobody that can relate to me or I'm hurting, my marriage is hurting. Whatever your situation might be, even if things are going pretty well for you. We just want to encourage you in this episode. Just our gift to you, a little early Christmas present to you, is to give you seven truths from God's word to remember when life is difficult. And so this episode is going to have a little bit of a different structure as we're going to kind of go through this list of seven, one at a time, kind of like the 12 days of Christmas, getting 12 unique presents. Here are seven truths from God's word that just receive this. You know, just whether you're working out or riding in a car or sitting at home, shopping at the mall, whatever you're doing, just receive these truths and I hope it's an encouragement to you.

All right, number one, you are loved. And the scripture, there's so many scriptures that talks about God's love for us, but we want to share Jeremiah, and it says, I have loved you with an everlasting love. And I think that, you know, you could say on the surface, well, of course we know God loves us. We hear it, you know, hear it in sermons. We hear it in songs, worship songs. We read it in the Bible. But I think what we don't realize is the kind of love that God has for us is really even beyond our own understanding or comprehension because he can love so much greater and so much deeper than we could ever imagine. And I think in moments when maybe our marriage isn't what we thought it would be and where we think it should be, or our children aren't acting loving towards us or our parents, they're not acting loving towards us. Especially around the holidays, it stings so deeply, and we begin to have thoughts of doubting whether or not we are lovable, you know, of whether or not we're even worthy to be loved. And that just breaks my heart. And I know that feeling. You know, I've had low moments in my life as I've shared on here many times. I remember deep, deep, deep, when I was in my kind of lowest points, in my depression, you know, questioning that. And thank God, you know, God met me right there. You know, he meets you in your lowest of circumstances when you think there's not one part of you that is loved by anyone. And, you know, God shows you that and he tells you in His Word, which is his love letter to you, that you are worthy of love because he made you to be loved not only by the people in your life, but most of all by Him. And he loves you so much that he sent Jesus to die for you even on your worst day, even in the midst of doing the most awful thing you could possibly do, he still loves you. And so I just want to remind you guys, and we want to remind you guys that you are loved and you are worthy of love. And God made you to be loved.

So good and so true. Number two, second gift from God's word, Second truth. You are not defined by your failures. I think this time of year, more than any other, we feel the sting of our past failures. Or maybe we feel like, my life's not where I want it to be, but God has a plan for you right where you are. I love this verse from Ephesians 2:10. It says, you are God's masterpiece. He has created you anew in Christ Jesus to do good things that he planned for you long ago. And you can't outrun his will for your life. And that disappointment that you face, that failure, that setback that you faced in the past, that regret, even that sin from your past, Jesus paid the price for it on the cross. So there's no reason to beat yourself up for something Jesus literally took a beating to forgive. You've been set free. You've been made whole. The moment you put your faith in Jesus, and all those disappointments from the past can now just be part of your testimony and not part of your identity. He actually will work through all those difficult things to work it all together for your good. The Bible says, if you'll give those broken pieces to him and so find hope in that.

I love that, sweetie. Number three, this isn't the end of your story. And, you guys, I think that when we're in the midst of hard times, we just don't see a way out. Like, we just are. Like, this is it. Like, I. I just think my life is just over, essentially, and I'm just gonna have to either just live like this or in this relationship or, you know, never have the kind of job I want again, or never, you know, never get that dream that God put in my heart. Because it's just, this is the end, right? I'll never have another chance. But the Bible says something different in Romans 8:28, which is probably one of my most favorite verses, and I have a lot of them. It says, and we know that in all things, God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purp. And in essence, it's saying, listen, you might be feeling like everything's falling apart, and you might take a good inventory of your life and really have a lot of loss, but don't forget that God is still picking up those pieces and making it into something beautiful, because he can even make something beautiful out of our pain. He doesn't waste it. It's always used for our good and for his glory. And I think it's important that we don't forget that, especially when we can't seem to make sense of what's going on around us and in our life.

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Hey, welcome into Walgreens. Hi there.

Hey.

All right, hon. I'll grab the gift wrap cards and, oh, those stuffed animals the girls want.

Great. And I'll grab the string lights and some.

How about I grab some cough drops?

This is not just a quick trip to Walgreens.

I'm fine, honey.

Well, just in case. You know what they say, Tis the season. This is help staying healthy through the holidays. Walgreens. Yeah. That is so good. Again, not just. These are not just for the holidays. I think we feel some of these most at the holidays. But this is for any time of year, any time of year. Number four. And this is important, especially when we're hurting, because this doesn't come naturally when we're hurting. But keep an attitude of gratitude. I think having a spirit of thanksgiving, thankfulness is so important. The Bible talks about this in many ways. Here's one verse first. Thessalonians 5, 16, 18. Rejoice always, pray continually, and give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you. In Christ Jesus, sometimes we're saying, lord, what is your will for me? What is your will? And usually what we're asking is like, do you want me to take this job or that job? You want me to stay in my house or move to this house? Do you want us to adopt a kid or have another kid or not have another kid? Like God? What are these big life decision wills that you have for me? But God's will for your life starts with this. I mean, it's so clear. This is God's will. Have joy. Be prayerful. Talk to your heavenly father and the Third one, give thanks in all circumstances. That means don't just give thanks when things are great, but give thanks when things are difficult. You know, I think about the Apostle Paul writing from a prison, and he wrote several of the Epistles, the books of the New Testament, from a prison cell where he was hungry and cold and shackled and abandoned by friends. And he would write about joy and peace and how he was growing so close to God in that moment, and how we should focus our thoughts on that which is good and excellent and beautiful and worthy of praise. That doesn't mean we put our heads in the sand and pretend like life's problems don't exist. But it means that when we choose to focus in on God's plan for us and his presence with us, then it can turn a prison cell into a worship center. And a person who has Jesus in a prison is actually freer than somebody walking the streets as a billionaire that doesn't know the love and grace of God. And so we need to always have thanks. And we need to let that gratitude, that thankfulness give us peace and joy even in the midst of the struggles, even while we're waiting for those prayers to be answered, even while we're saying, God, I don't know when you're going to come through on this prayer request, but I'm going to trust you and have joy even as I wait.

Beautiful. All right, number five. God's plans for your life are even better than your own plans. Now, you guys, I think this one is what's hard, because we're like, but it's my life and I have good plans. You know, and sometimes we can feel that call from God pulling us in a direction that we didn't really necessarily want to go. But what you'll find when you follow his plan, it always leads to things that are even greater than we ever asked or imagined. All right, I love this verse from Jeremiah 29:11. Many of you probably already know this, but for it says this, for I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future. And I love this because we all want a hope and a future. And so we have to remember when things don't seem to be going the way that we wanted them to go, that when we trust in God and we fully surrender our own plans to God, that He will show us where that hope in the future is leading. Right? But a lot of times it's not. Not like the five year Plan. You know, a lot of us planners out there, we want the five year plan. We're like, well, God, show me more of the picture. But you know, it says that his word is a lamp into our feet, a light into our path. And I don't know about you, but if you've ever been on a hike at night or a little walk at night, and you have that light and you're lighting your path, it only shows you so far. And that's how God leads us. And a lot of it's just about trusting him, because that's part of the journey, is learning to trust God. And so I just encourage you in the midst of, of this time in your life where it's uncertain and it's not going the way that you wanted it to go, fully surrender to him and trust him and know that he will light your path. He will show you where to go. And his plans are so much better than anything we could ask for or imagine.

Man, that's so good. Number six, and I love this. You might be feeling alone right now, even if you're married, but maybe there's tension in the marriage and you feel alone even in your own home. And that can be such a difficult place to be. But I love this truth. God will never leave your side. There's so many verses about this that Jesus will never leave us or forsake us. But I love this Old Testament verse From Deuteronomy, chapter 31, verse 6 says, Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them. For the Lord your God goes with you. He will never leave you nor forsake you. So you might feel alone, but don't trust your feelings. Trust God's truth and God's promises and he is with you and he is for you. And he is going to carry you through this season that you're in and things will get better. That's some of the best news we have as followers of Jesus, that all our pain is temporary pain and all our joy will be eternal joy. So the struggle you're facing, it's a temporary struggle and God's doing something unique in it. You might not see what he's doing, you might not feel what he's doing, but God's doing something and he's with you in the midst of it. So never lose sight of that.

Absolutely. And in this last one, number seven, it says, keep going. And that sounds so simple, but really it might be the hardest one of all. But that is what God calls us to do. He calls us to keep going, you know, keep doing the things that you know you need to be doing. Keep praying, keep reading the Bible. Keep being there for your family. Keep holding out hope that your marriage is going to get better and doing those things where, you know, you're communicating in a healthier way. Keep going to work. Keep going to work and doing the job that God has given you in this season. You know, keep. Keep going to the gym. And not only just for your physical health, but for your mental health. Keep doing the things that you know are going to move you forward. You know, there's a lot of verses about this, too, and I love Hebrews 12, verses 1 and 2. It says this, and let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. And I love. You know, there's a lot of verses about perfecting our faith. And whenever. Whenever we hear about this in the Bible, it's usually. It's usually coupled with trials because it's saying that the trials that God gives us in our lives. You know, there's one verse in particular it says, you know, kind of as a blessing when you face many trials because he's perfecting your faith. And so I know we don't want to hear that when things are hard and you're like, when is this gonna stop? When do I have to stop toiling? I think, you know, right now a lot of you are feeling, when does the toiling stop? But I just want to tell you that there's so much purpose in gaining endurance through this time of toiling. And there is another side. There is another side of this. You won't be toiling forever. You will not be toiling forever. And I hope you hear me say that, because God will bring you rest. It says that he does bring rest to the weary, so we know that his promises hold true, and we won't always have to feel this way. But in the meantime, keep going. Keep doing what you know to do is right. Keep doing the things that God's put before you in your path, and know that he is with you in it.

Man, that's so good. And those seven truths, and there are many more like that in scripture. And if you're going through a difficult season, or really in every season, let God's word be something that you turn to daily for your strength. You know, that daily bread that our soul needs just for sustenance and survival and encouragement and hope. And be reminded that God's with you in this and that he's for you and that you're going to get through this. And if you're feeling that tension and stress, like so many are this holiday season, just know you're not alone. And I hope that these seven, seven principles will just be that gift from God to you to bring comfort to your soul and that you'll do the things you need to do to rest. Make sure that even though we're saying things like keep going, which is an important truth, that that doesn't mean that you don't take time to rest and you don't take time to recharge and do the things you need to do to be at your best. And as we prepare to just close out this unique episode of the podcast, and I hope it's been a gift to you, I want to encourage you to share this one in particular. There are so many people who are hurting right now. Single people, married people, people in all seasons of life. This is one of the less marriage specific episodes we've done because we want this to be seven truths from God's word for everybody. And so if this encouraged you, text it out to that friend who's going through a hard time, you know, send it out on social media and say, hey, this really encouraged me and I think it would really encourage you as well. And before we wrap up, though, we don't usually end in prayer, but I'm going to ask my beautiful bride here to just close us out in prayer and say a prayer for you wherever you are, and just receive this prayer as a blessing. Now, if you're driving and listening, don't close your eyes. We don't want you to meet Jesus prematurely, but just pray along with us and receive this. This prayer is a blessing. Thank you so much for listening.

Yes, let's pray. Lord, thank you so much for each and every person listening to this, whether or not they're listening to this in real time around the holidays or later on years from now. Lord, we know that it's never by accident. And we know too, Lord, that you always bring us your word just at the right time when we need it, Lord. And I just pray that all these people allow your truth, the truth from the Bible that we share, to sink in the most, Lord, to know how much you love them, that you do have a wonderful plan for them, not waste their pain, and that your plans are so much greater than our plans, Lord, and that we are not alone, that we always have you with us, and that we do have the ability to Keep going with your strength and your help, Lord. I just pray that we all surrender our plans to you, Lord, our hearts fully to you, Lord. I pray for anybody listening who doesn't yet know you, Lord, to know that you love them, that you first love them and that you do have a plan for them. And I just pray that they make that choice to follow you and as they and accept you as their Lord and Savior, Lord, because I know for Dave and I both, that's been the biggest, greatest decision of our lives. And I just pray that for all of those listening, Lord. And we just thank you so much for the love that you have given us. We thank you so much for Jesus. And we just pray that in the midst of these hard seasons, Lord, that we see hope, that we see you in the midst of it and we know you're with us. We love you, Lord. We praise you, Lord. In Jesus name, Amen.

Amen. Thanks, guys. We'll see you next time.

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