Friends, I have been thinking about this conversation ever since I spoke to Tabs. She has been fighting for joy in motherhood, and if you have ever thought, “I want to treasure these years but I don’t know how to do that when my toddler keeps kicking me!” then this conversation is for you. It was honest and convicting but not in an I’m-the-worst way, but in an I-could-do-that-too way that makes you want to pray, pick up your bible, write verses on your windows, and take in all the goodness you can from all the crumbs of scripture you can smush into your day. Tabitha Versluis is married to Lars, and they have four children: Olivia (10), Asher (8), Ezra (5) and Lottie (3). She is an Intensive Care Nurse who homeschools her children and is a part of Gosnells Baptist Church. She talks about the losses of her mother and father-in-law; fighting for gratitude, joy, and contentment; the comfort of Scripture and women in the season ahead of you; and what it’s like to work with people who are in comas and dying on a daily basis. (Ps. Please forgive the sound quality - I am learning to use a new fancy microphone 😅)Mentioned in this episode: Ann Voskamp - One Thousand Gifts: A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are and WayMaker: Finding The Way to the Life You’ve Always Dreamed Of The Diary of Sarah Angus Prine (1881-1901) by Nancy Turner “Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” (Matthew 11:29 ESV)“But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim); because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.” (Romans 10:8-10 ESV)She Reads Truth bible studies She Reads Truth podcastHannah Le Cras’ reviews of John Owen’s Mortification of Sin for The Gospel Coalition Australia - Part 1 and Part 2. The hymn with the lyrics “prone to wander” is Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing “But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.” (James 1:14-15 ESV). “You shall therefore lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul, and you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall teach them to your children, talking of them when you are sitting in your house, and when you are walking by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates, that your days and the days of your children may be multiplied in the land that the Lord swore to your fathers to give them, as long as the heavens are above the earth.” (Deuteronomy 11:18-21 ESV)“As a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him. For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust.” (Psalm 103:13-14 ESV)“I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is your keeper; the Lord is your shade on your right hand. The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life. The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.” (Psalm 121:1-8 ESV)If you liked this episode, please consider giving us a rating or review in Apple podcasts and/or Spotify. Your reviews help women find us 💛 Music: Orleans and Come Back by Ketsa. Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thesundaymorningsnuggle.substack.com