Thriving Spiritually in Busy Times

I couldn’t stop thinking. Just one more thing to do, then I could finally relax. But that moment never came. Life was moving fast as a wife, mom, employee, and pastor’s wife. I was constantly in motion, doing good things, but slowly losing connection with the One I was doing them for. Then came the moment that forced me to stop. In a rush to finish laundry, I slipped on the stairs and fractured my ankle. Suddenly, I was sidelined—physically and spiritually.

In that stillness, God spoke.

I had become so busy for God that I wasn’t making space to be with him. I asked myself: Had I confused doing for God with intimacy with him? Was I bearing fruit from abiding—or striving on my own? That injury became a turning point. Slowing down gave me space to listen again. It reminded me that ministry isn’t about carrying everything; it’s about staying connected to the One who does.

2 Timothy 2:3-4 says, “Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in civilian affairs but seeks to please the commanding officer.” It hit me—I had gotten entangled. I wasn’t suffering as a faithful soldier of Christ, but under the weight of expectations and distractions that pulled me away from the mission he gave me.

Yes, we’re called to be faithful soldiers. But we’re also daughters. God doesn’t just want our service—he wants our hearts. And that kind of heart connection only comes from staying grounded in him. It reminds us of who we are and whose we are. When we’re not anchored to him, we react to everything around us instead of responding from a place of peace and purpose.

What helps me stay grounded? Having a plan. Randomly flipping through Scripture just doesn’t work for me. I ask God what I need and pick a book or theme to focus on. From there, I’ve built a simple morning rhythm—just a few quiet minutes to read, pray, and journal. That small habit has made a big difference. May I encourage you to ask the Holy Spirit to show you what works for you? Focus on deepening your relationship with the Lord and finding rest in him, rather than getting caught up in rules or pressure. He cares more about your heart than your checklist.

Tessa serves alongside her husband, Michael, who is the Associate Pastor at New Breed Church in Louisville, Kentucky. As she walks with God, she’s reminded of His faithfulness, knowing everything he does is purposeful and prepares her for what’s ahead. She’s served in both small and large churches—church planting, directing VBS, leading in youth and women’s ministry, and coordinating events and speakers—while also working outside the home and raising two kids.

Encouraging other ministry wives is close to her heart, and she loves creating space for honest conversations, mutual support, and helping them grow in their calling.

Having been recently introduced to NEWIM, I’ve been deeply encouraged by the warmth and sincerity of this community. As a pastor’s wife and women’s ministry leader, it means so much to connect with other women who truly understand the joys and challenges of ministry. NEWIM has already given me fresh encouragement, space to grow in my walk with the Lord, and the reminder that I’m not alone—there’s always support, prayer, and friendship here.

Forgetting What Lies Behind

Forgetting is easier now than ever as aging kicks in, and I forget what I did yesterday. However, when I clean out a closet or go through attic boxes or the garage cupboards, I'm sure to find some long-forgotten “treasure” that will swoosh me back to a moment that evokes pleasant (or maybe not so pleasant) memories.

A few years ago, my husband was rummaging through old boxes when he found a childhood relic I’d held onto for 70 years—a hobby horse I’d won as a five-year-old in an art contest on Angel Casey’s Playhouse. Encouraged by my mother, I had entered a Crayola drawing, and to our delight, I won the grand prize. It is the only art award I have ever received.

Over time, the hobby horse traveled with me from state to state, eventually forgotten in storage. Wanting to surprise me, my husband tried to reassemble it—but to his shock, I no longer wanted it. I tossed the old, rusty pieces into the fire. A wave of nostalgia came and went, but I had no regrets. The memory, and the original drawing tucked away in my cedar chest, were more than enough.

Honestly, letting go of the hobby horse was a loss with a little “l.” But how do we handle the losses with a big “L”? In 1997, I lost my husband to a sudden heart attack. My world changed in a matter of minutes.  As a believer, I was grateful to know he was in heaven with the Lord, but at the same time, I keenly felt the loneliness and singleness of my new life. My friends, family, and church provided tremendous emotional and spiritual support, and I began to understand firsthand what Galatians 6:2 means: to have others carry my burdens. However, at the age of 47, I was reluctant to surrender my singleness to the Lord, fearing he might accept it.  No, I didn’t want to live the rest of my life without a partner to share it with, so I tightly held onto the dream of one day being married again.
 
I relate to Corrie ten Boom, who, speaking from the experience of a lifetime of loss, reminds us to “Hold everything in your hands lightly, otherwise it hurts when God pries your fingers open.”

Paul's words in Philippians 3:13-14 resonate deeply with me. After forgetting what lies behind, we must strain towards what is ahead.  But what is worth more than all those remarkable accomplishments? What can take the place of prizes, titles, awards, and degrees? Or on a much deeper level, what can take the place of the companionship of a spouse?

Paul tells us in Philippians 3:8—the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus as Lord.  The loss of my husband propelled me into the deepest relationship with the Lord that I had ever experienced. He was my everything. After three years, I realized that my relationship with him could sustain me, and I was able to relinquish my desire for marriage. I also became more keenly aware of many others who needed understanding and support through different types of loss.* Six years later, a wonderful Christian man came into my life, and we have now been married for twenty years. Throughout that time, God has provided multiple opportunities in different countries to share my faith journey through loss.  It’s not about completely forgetting my past but using it to encourage others who have experienced loss.

The same year I labored over that award-winning picture was also the year I invited Jesus into my heart as Savior and Lord. I have had the privilege of knowing him for 70 years now. Just as Paul confessed, I can’t say I’ve arrived or never wrestled with a desire for material possessions or personal achievement.  However, I am learning to understand better the eternal rewards of knowing Christ more intimately as I study his word and serve him in the new ministry that he has called me to. These things speak to his heart, bring satisfaction and joy, and cannot be destroyed or consumed. They are the “treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. For where [my] treasure is, there will [my] heart be also” (Luke 12:33b-34 ESV).

Where does your stroll down memory lane take you?  Although it is good to know where we’ve been and what we’ve experienced, it’s better—even heavenly—to reach forward to what’s ahead.

*Gerald Sittser’s book, A Grace Disguised: How the Soul Grows Through Loss, provided a significant foundation for understanding the tension between our spiritual knowledge and our emotional experience.

Over the years, strong Biblical teaching and ministry opportunities, both in the US and overseas, have allowed Nancy to see the Lord at work in the lives of women of diverse backgrounds.

In 2017, God put it on Nancy's heart to form the Olympic Peninsula Women's Fellowship, a non-profit organization with the vision of unifying and encouraging women in Christ at an annual Inspirational Weekend. As many as 600 women from 70 different churches across the Olympic Peninsula have gathered to fellowship and listen to a speaker share God’s word.  

Nancy and her husband Allan retired to Port Townsend, Washington, and love visits from their five children and 11 grands.

A recent attendee of NEWIM’s Springs Retreat in Three Rivers, California, Nancy was encouraged by the opportunity to connect with other women in ministry and share their vision to deepen their walk with Christ. 

You may contact Nancy by email at opwfellowship@gmail.com.

The Joys of Pivoting

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him and he will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:5-6

In August 2024, I felt God was letting me know that I needed “to be ready to turn on a dime,” or as my friend Cindy would say: pivot. Mind you, I had no idea what God was going to be doing in my life with that phrase, but he was preparing me for a lot of pivoting in the coming months. It set the tone for my fall and winter seasons and gave me advance notice in how I was going to learn to joyfully trust God.

I had prepared to change my focus from full-time ministry to running our family-owned bed-and-breakfast for three weeks starting at the end of September, as my parents were visiting family in the States. Two weeks in, I got the call from my mom: “Your daddy is in the ER; they think it might be a heart attack. There is no hurry to get here (Texas).” But the next day, I found out Daddy would have open heart surgery in two days’ time. I was in the middle of France and did not know if I could make it in time.

BUT GOD - I found tickets, the last seat on my first flight out the next morning and made it to Texas the evening before my dad’s surgery. The joy of being there for my parents and brothers was incredible. The fellowship we were able to share and the ministering to other people in the waiting room was a sweet time. Learning to trust God fully yet being prepared to lose my dad for a time was hard. Realizing, with Mom, that if we could trust God for Daddy’s surgery, we could also trust him for the finances and the work that would be waiting for me when I went back to France five days later.

Pivoting was not a lack of planning; it became a way of peacefully and joyfully doing the good works that God had placed before me. It became ministering to my parents by taking care of the business so Daddy could heal before coming home to France. It became putting my writing and studying on the back burner to do the work needed. It involved trusting that God’s timing was good and perfect.

This complete lack of control over my circumstances was very freeing. If I was frustrated at first, I soon found a rhythm with God and a joy of seeing what each new day would bring. My husband and I became intentional in our talks and spending time with our kids. I refused clients when I saw our employees were tired, and quite frankly, so was I.

Our church services continued, just a little differently, and with a lot more involvement from the people in our little congregation. But I will admit that I missed my routine of studying Scripture with deep dives and long periods to do so.

When my parents returned, we found new rhythms again. I was able to go back to ministry, dream of the next steps for our congregation, and plan silent retreats for women here in France. I am excited to see what God is going to do in my life and the lives of the women he will bring to our next retreat.

Pivoting can be a physical action, but it is also a mental and emotional exercise. Above all else, it is an exercise in trust. When we took our second daughter to the States in August to go to college, we were exploring the idea of going back to the States to live. I was gearing up for the move, thinking of different possibilities for the coming year and how to leave France well.

My thoughts and plans were interrupted by the pivoting God had me doing. I don’t know when we are moving; I don’t know where we are going; I don’t know what we will be doing, yet I am ready for this pivot. I am ready to joyfully follow my shepherd and trust that his plan is so much better than my own.

God has used these verses to encourage me through these pivotal moments:

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Ephesians 2:10

For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Matthew 6:21

Kristin Isaac has a Bachelor of Engineering Degree from John Brown University. She has translated many Bible Studies and books for various individuals, ministries, and pastors. From teaching children and adult Sunday school to being involved with and starting student ministries, choirs, and women’s Bible studies, Kristin has served and led in just about every area of the church!

Kristin, her husband and their four children are full time missionaries currently residing in central France. As a family they enjoy reading, hiking, and watching TV. They’ve even had the opportunity to hike the Alps together!

Kristin discovered NEWIM in 2023. She joined the NEWIM-Fuller cohort which has deepened her trust in how God is operating in her life and the “good works” he has called her to do. 

My Conductor

Several years ago, I attended a concert, a community band comprised of accomplished musicians who simply enjoyed playing, with a friend. I was blessed by the music, but something else spoke deeply to my heart throughout the evening. I saw in this band a picture of our lives with the Lord.

The musicians, seated in their positions on the stage, each warming up and preparing their instruments. Wind instruments were assembled. Basses tuned. Percussion instruments adjusted to the right tone. Cymbals hung on a rack, ready to be used. Music stands adjusted. Random notes played, each individually warming up, creating a clamor of noise.

Then, the conductor walked onto the stage. Immediately, the orchestra was silent and still. Eyes locked on the maestro, his eyes sweeping from side to side, making contact with those before him. The rise of his baton brought the rise of the instruments. The musicians’ eyes still locked on their conductor. At his cue, the music began.

Each musician intently looked at the music before them, not just reading it but allowing it to direct their every movement. They weren’t distracted; they didn’t look around at anything else. They kept their eyes only on the music and the maestro. They weren’t looking at the audience, though they were aware of them.

This wasn’t new to them. Years of practice had prepared them for this time.

They didn’t compare themselves with others in jealousy. What if the percussionist wanted to play as much as the trombone? Can you imagine the chaos if the cymbals played constantly? The beautiful music flowed from a group united in purpose and focus and willing to do their specific part. What if one, even once, had decided he didn’t like that song and decided to play one he liked instead? Can you imagine how it would have ruined the music?

I see such a beautiful description of our lives with the Lord in this picture. He is the conductor, the maestro, and the one who wrote the music and created the song for our lives. He’s written it out, note by note, for us to follow. The Bible contains everything we need for the beautiful music, the plan he has for our lives. And as our eyes are locked on him, our focus solely on his lead, we know what to do, when to do it, following the notes he’s written, glancing up at him to maintain the rhythm. Being content to play the part he’s given us, not jealous of another’s instrument. Being surrendered to play the music before me, not thinking I have another song that I’d rather be playing. Joining my little part with those around me, working together under the direction of the Master, creating music that brings joy to his ears, and touches the lives of those who hear.

Playing my life to an audience of one. And recognizing that others are also watching and listening.