Our culture is self-obsessed – in our schedules, relationships, and especially online. (Can you say selfie?) But in this near-narcissism, people are less content than in decades past. Why? Because we forgot the joy that comes from putting others first. Doing so requires us to live alert, listening for “heart drops,” hints from those in our lives who need a helping hand or a generous dose of encouragement. Living alert lifts our own spirits, showing us that blessing others blesses us even more.
Listen, Love, Repeat offers biblical teaching and suggests doable actions that are simple, heart-tugging, sentimental, even sneaky and hilarious. This message:
• Presents scriptural examples of those who lived alert, including Jesus, who noticed those who least expected to be seen.
• Explains the role of good works for followers of Christ. They aren’t our ticket to heaven but they are our marching orders on earth.
• Gives creative ideas for showing love to friends and family, and suggests practical ways to reach out to the lonely, the marginalized, the outcast, and the odd duck. Additionally, it helps you comfort the grieving, showing what you can do when you don’t know what to say.
• Provides inspiration for blessing the “necessary people” in your life, those often-overlooked souls who help you get life done every day, and teaches you how to hug a porcupine by genuinely loving the hard-to-love.
As we scatter love, we create a safe space where we can openly share the gospel. We get to see lives changed right before our eyes. Most importantly, Listen, Love, Repeat will enable you to live a life that is full of kind deeds, not to selfishly shout, “Hey! Look at me!” but to humbly implore, “Will you look at Him?”
Karen Ehman is a Proverbs 31 Ministries speaker, a New York Times bestselling author, and a writer for Encouragement for Today,an online devotional that reaches over 4 million people daily. She has written seventeen books including Keep It Shut,Pressing Pause, and Keep Showing Up. Her passion is to help women to live their priorities as they reflect the gospel to a watching world. Married to her college sweetheart, Todd, the mother of three, and mom-in-law of two, she enjoys antique hunting, cheering for the Detroit Tigers, and feeding the many people who gather around her mid-century dining table for a taste of Mama Karen's cooking. Connect with her at www.karenehman.com.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgements 11
Chapter 1 Living Alert: How to Hear a Heart Drop 13
Chapter 2 Find Your Why: Pssst…It's All about Relationships! 35
Chapter 3 It's About Time: Giving of Yourself 61
Chapter 4 Who Makes Your Day: Noticing the Necessary People 87
Chapter 5 The Sick at Heart: What to Say or Do When You Don't Know What to Say or Do 105
Chapter 6 Chipped Crock Pots and Stained Carpets: Living a Life of Welcome 127
Chapter 7 The Lonely and Unloved: How to Be Their Family and Bless Yours Too 147
Chapter 8 The Cranky and Cantankerous: How to Love the Hard-to-Love 169
Chapter 9 Nearest and Dearest: How to Really Care for Your Clan 191
Chapter 10 Scatter Kindness: Other-Centered Living in a Self-Centered World 213
