Something New for You

Inside: Are you hungry for more connection and encouragement in your life? I’m starting a subscriber-only email newsletter, and I would love for you to sign up (and receive a free gift in the process). ~

When I was growing up, I had to walk home from school every day.

It wasn’t far—a third of a mile or so. I often did this alone and never enjoyed it much.

On Wednesdays, though, my Catholic friends went to a weekly class at their church after school, and since the church was just across the bridge and down the street from my house, I got to walk with them partway.

Here’s what I remember most about this experience: The walk is better together.

Walking through Life

It’s the same with life, isn’t it? Seasons and struggles—and seasons of struggle—are always better when someone is there with you. You laugh, you talk, you cry, you get distracted by whatever might come into your view.

Not only does time go faster when you’re with someone, but you might enjoy it more. Or, if it’s a hard season, it’s a bit more bearable.

I think this applies to any season of life, really. Young adulthood. Infertility. Parenting children of any age. Infertility. Menopause. Helping (and then losing) elderly parents. Widowhood. Chronic or terminal illness.

IRL and Online

Life is better together, whether it’s in person or through some kind of online community. For example, the interactions I’ve enjoyed here on this blog have enriched my life in all sorts of ways.

Many of you have been here for years, some since the very first post. You’ve read along as I’ve shared observations and lessons from life as a girl mom, a helper of aging parents, a grieving daughter, a middle-aged woman, an almost empty nester.

My goal in writing has always been to encourage others who may find themselves in a similar spot, either right then or at some point in the future. And along the way, you have greatly encouraged me.

Next Step

As I’ve mentioned a time or two, I’ve written a manuscript about parent loss that I would love to see in print someday. These days, publishers want authors to show they have a growing base of dedicated readers who might buy their books when they are released.

One way to accomplish this is to offer an email newsletter that folks can sign up for (thus creating that ready-made list of potential book buyers publishers are looking for). The tricky part—besides attracting subscribers—is coming up with some kind of unique content that keeps readers on the email list once they subscribe.

There is, of course, an endless supply of articles and courses and expert opinions about the best ways to start and grow an email newsletter. That’s partly why it’s taken me so long to start one—paralysis by analysis is real, friends.

My Mission

As I considered what I might offer readers in such an email newsletter, though, I kept coming back to the mission of this blog, as spelled out on the home page of my website:

As long as we’re here on planet Earth, God has a good purpose for us. This is true no matter how old we are what we feel on any given day or what we imagine anyone else thinks about us. It can be a struggle, though, to believe this and live like it. … And so I write, one pilgrim to another, in an effort to encourage us both as we navigate the long walk home together.

Marketing—which, let’s face it, is the underlying purpose of many email newsletters—is not my forte. But connection and encouragement on the long walk home? As my dad would say, I can get on board with that.

To that end, I am starting a monthly email newsletter called Courage, Dear Heart, and I would love for you—the wonderful readers of this blog—to subscribe.

The Details

Narnia fans will recognize the title as something the lion Aslan says to Lucy when she’s trapped on a dark island in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. But I also think it’s a fitting message for all of us as we navigate the twists and turns of life in this often-chaotic world.

Courage, Dear Heart will come out on the third Tuesday of each month. It will feature an encouraging note from me (like what you normally read here but shorter), along with an occasional quote, family or writing update and meaningful link or two.

Unlike my regular blog posts, which anyone can access on the internet, the newsletter will be subscriber only. I may post the content elsewhere later, but you will see it first in the newsletter.

Even if you already receive my blog posts via email, I would greatly appreciate it if you signed up for Courage, Dear Heart too. The newsletter will replace my regular post for the third week of each month, so you won’t be receiving any additional email and you won’t miss anything either.

Click Here to Subscribe

Free Gift for You

And now for the part I’m really excited about: To thank you for subscribing, you will receive a free, seven-day devotional called Faith, Fear, and the God Who Goes Before Us. This deep dive into my favorite Bible verse (Deuteronomy 31:8) is downloadable and printable, and it will arrive in your inbox once you sign up.

Now that my parents are gone, I don’t return to my hometown very often. It’s grown and changed, as small towns often do. The bridge by my childhood home was torn down long ago, and the Catholic church is now a trendy event space.

I’ve also changed a lot over the years, but when it comes to life, I still have the same desire for walking companions that I did when I was a kid. I’m guessing you do too, and I’m so glad we’re on this journey together.

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If you have any questions or thoughts about what you would like to see in Courage, Dear Heart, feel free to contact me here or leave a comment below.

♥ Lois

P.S. I’m linking up this week with #tellhisstory, InstaEncouragements, Let’s Have Coffee and Grace & Truth.