The first chapter is called "Awakening: God Calls Our Hearts". Gitzengirl (Sara) wrote a post about this chapter that was really good, but also kind of made my brain hurt trying to come up with answers to the questions she posed. (On a side note, this post was also thought-provoking and kinda made my heat hurt too!)
Here are the links to Angie and Jessica's video, followed by the discussion questions:
Strong Women, Soft Hearts Chapter One
Strong Women, Soft Hearts: Chapter 1 Discussion from angie smith on Vimeo.
1. How do you approach relationships? Do you choose to not have relationship or dive in 110%?2. How does your personality impact your relationship with others?
3. What is a dream you had at one time in your life that didn't play out as you hoped? How has God still used that dream?
4. Have you ever built a monument to woundedness in your life? How has this impacted you?
Yeah, definitely not your average coffee shop/lunch discussion! This is really tough and I kind of want to just end this post now without writing anything about myself and my thoughts...ha!
The chapter starts with this quote: "In the end, it doesn't matter how well we have performed or what we have accomplished--a life without heart is not worth living. For out of this wellspring of our soul flow all true caring and all meaningful work, all real worship and all sacrifice." ~Brent Curtis and John Eldredge A sentence I like that Jessica and Angie didn't mention was in reference to the journey of the characters in The Wizard of Oz and why that story resonates with people of all ages and has for over a hundred years: "Somehow we sense that becoming who we really are means that we also must discover our mind and heart and courage, or something crucial will be missing."
1. How do you approach relationships? Do you choose to not have relationship or dive in 110%?
I definitely don't think I'm in the "choose to not have relationship" category...except, I suppose, when it comes to the "dating" category. In many cases, I'm a dive in 110% get to know as many people as possible, spill the beans kind of person. However, I do know (and that knowledge was verified in my Dale Carnegie class) that I have a lot easier time having relationships with people who are not my work peers. With that being said, I had lunch today with one woman who became my friend because I sent her a card thanking her for a story she did about our patients. I had no idea that one kind note would be the beginning of a wonderful friendship. The other woman I met because she came to a meeting I attended and I recognized her as a (former) local news reporter. I was "star struck" and pretty much spewed off her news bio to her during our first meeting...yeah, embarrassing, but we can laugh about it and it didn't stop us from becoming good friends. So, I'd have to consider myself the latter...even when it is relationship with families whose children may not go home with them.
2. How does your personality impact your relationship with others?
I think I sort of answered this in the first question. I LOVE people. I love talking to people, I love encouraging people, I love spending time with people, I love learning about other people's lives. I care a lot about other people and it shows. People are usually comfortable talking to me, and I've had a number of people share things with me that they haven't shared with (m)any others. However, this "friends with everyone" has been a struggle for me "my whole life", even now. It's definitely better now that I am older and being invited to birthday parties and slumber parties and to the movies and the mall doesn't define "friendship". Still, though, since I went away to college, lived away from home for a year, and have made friends through blogging and with families not from here, sometimes I am "alone" even though I have TONS of friends. I think I need to make more time for the friends who are not on the other side of the computer because as much fun as the people here are, and as much as I enjoy my "alone time", actually being with other people and having face to face conversations is a good thing :)
3. What is a dream you had at one time in your life that didn't play out as you hoped? How has God still used that dream?
I guess this one is easier than I thought. I've dreamed of taking care of children my whole life (since my "baby" sister was born when I was 23 months old!) I started baby-sitting other people's children for money when I was eleven. I worked at a day care for children with special needs in high school and college. In college, I also did some work with MOPS kids and in a NICU (and baby-sat). I've been a pediatric nurse for eight years now, taking care of some of the sickest children in the country. I have my foster parent license and some day hope to have a child placed in my home. I help take care of my nephew when I visit him. I definitely thought I would be taking care of my own children by the time I was thirty, but there is still plenty of time for that. And, I guess my "dream" wasn't necessarily to take care of my OWN children, so even if God's plan takes me to a place where I never mother a child I carried inside of me, my dream will have been reached because I have cared for more children than I ever could have imagined when I was dreaming about my life. Not only that, but I have been given to opportunity to help carry them through the toughest times of their lives...and some through to Heaven.
On page 11-12 of this book, it says, "That is what each of us needs to be able to say--I am doing what I was born for. And that requires a trip inside, into the world of the heart..." I feel blessed to say that right now I DO feel like I am doing what I was born for...and that does feel fabulous :)
4. Have you ever built a monument to woundedness in your life? How has this impacted you?
I think this post is long enough...and has definitely taken me long enough to write! I don't think I am quite ready to answer this question in this capacity (even though like two people will read it...ha!) I'll try and remember to come back and answer it (Jessica didn't answer this one in the video either...can that be my excuse?!)
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I stayed up much later than I should have considering I have a busy day tomorrow, but I'm glad to have finally written about this book. They have posted the video for Chapter 2, but I think I want to re-read the chapter before I watch the video.
Good night.
