Happy Hour #125 : Renee Swope

My guest for The Happy Hour #125 is Renee Swope. Renee is a Word-lover, heart-encourager, story-teller and grace-needer. She’s the best-selling author of A Confident Heart and A Confident Heart Devotional. Renee served as Executive Director and as radio co-host at Proverbs 31 Ministries for 20 years. She is a writer for (in)courage and contributor to (in)courage’s first book Craving Connection: 30 Challenges for Real-Life Engagement. Married to her favorite person on earth, Renee and J.J. live in North Carolina making memories with their three kiddos: Joshua, Andrew and Aster (their adopted daughter from Ethiopia). Renee loves pouring into, praying for and loving on women, in real life and online at www.ReneeSwope.com . I first met Renee by interviewing her for The Influence Network Podcast and fell in love and immediately invited her to join us on The Happy Hour. If I could describe Renee and this conversation with one word, it would be wisdom. This is the kind of interview that you'll want to grab a pen and piece of paper and take some notes. She shares some really valuable wisdom on using her gifts and skill sets in her home and with her family, when she was so used to using them in the workforce. Renee recently stepped away from her job to focus on her family, specifically her daughter with special needs. She shares about that decision and what she has learned along the way. Most of our conversation focused on Renee sharing about a difficult season with their middle son, as he shocked his parents by claiming atheism. Renee's wisdom and her patient self-control completely blew me away. I know some of you are right in the middle of these seasons, or for some of you, they are coming. The Spirit of God in Renee is so illuminating and inspiring. But, what I realized as I have thought more about this conversation is that it's easy to listen to people like Renee who are good with words, good with people, and think "I could never do that with my kid." And I want to encourage you that if you are in Christ, the same Spirit lives in you. My heart feels heavy today for those of you that are hurting because of difficult seasons with your kids. I hope Renee's experience and her wisdom is like water to your soul today. {You can listen to the show HERE. And of course, I would love if you would share with your friends. Just use the FB & Twitter links at the end of this post!} Links from the Show The Influence Network Podcast #49: Jamie Ivey & Renee Swope Proverbs 31 Ministries Fly A Little Higher by Laura Sobiech + Love Does by Bob Goff + The Broken Way by Ann Voskamp + Ridiculous Faith by Shelene Bryan What Renee is loving: Tazo Tea Zen Green Tea with Lemongrass & Spearmint, her new dog, Writing Down to the Bones by Natalie Goldberg Music from Jason Poe Connect with Renee Facebook // Twitter // Instagram Connect with Jamie Facebook // Twitter // Instagram Sponsors: Stephanie May Wilson Having just moved to a new city, and busy with work and family, author Stephanie May Wilson knew there had to be an easier way of creating deep friendships as a busy adult. So she wrote out some questions, invited over a few girls she barely knew, and as they answered the questions, they began to share their stories. That first night they laughed, cried, and spoke God’s truth into tender areas of each other’s lives and before they knew it, strangers became friends, and friends became best friends. Those questions became a 6-week small group guide that has achieved the same friendships in communities all over the country. Whether you're looking to start a cooking club with old friends, to go deeper with new friends, or to help a group of girls you lead connect in a deeper way — our lives are so much richer when we have best friends to share them with, and this guide is the perfect way to get there! Click here to download a free copy of the first week. 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