Refreshed Women

I don’t know about you, but I have so much going on this summer it’s a little overwhelming. I am setting up our new home in Chattanooga (almost finished!). We…

Hi, dear friends, it’s Reen again and we’ll be discussing renewal in retirement. Retirement has been a growing trend globally since the 1920s, but the Bible does not mention it….

Hi, Dear Readers, Linda and I hope you are doing great! This month we are focusing on renewal and this week we center on renewing your marriage. After our faith…

Hi, everyone! It’s Reen again. I’m back with this week’s blog and Linda sends her love. As we consider renewal this month, one area of particular importance is spiritual discipline….

Friends, here we are several weeks into our unexpected transition and moving forward! Transition can be overwhelming and immobilizing, yet God meets every need, and miracle after miracle continues! I…

Transition is an unpleasant fact of life and facing the unknown can be traumatic. But God is in every transition, ready and willing to help us He reveals His will…

All of us face transition. Whether you are transitioning into a new job a new stage in life with marriage or the birth of a child, a move, or simply…

Happy March, everyone! Linda and I wish you a safe and happy month as we move towards spring. The last key to biblically prospering is to “Respect All People.” I…

Good day, dear faithful readers! Linda and I are writing our weekly blog this week from Myrtle Beach. We took a quick week to escape the frozen west. Prospering is…

Hello again, dear friends. Linda and I wanted to say how much we appreciate your readership. It blesses us to see weekly how many of you open and read our…

Hello dear readers! Linda and I hope you had a great Valentine’s Day! Whether you had a romantic dinner with a loved one or not…please know that you are God’s…

As Reen shared earlier, my word for 2023 is “JOY.” It’s interesting that most of us don’t normally think of Jesus as having a joyful personality in the face of…

Hello dear friends and readers. If Linda and I have piqued your curiosity with keys to being able to P.R.O.S.P.E.R. in 2023, then read on as we continue on our…

As we consider the word PROSPER in this new year, the second key is: R.-Respond to God’s promptings or “nudges.” While this may seem simple, it’s profound. Since our all-knowing…

Hello dear friends and readers. Linda and I fervently hope you celebrate your best year yet in 2023. We earnestly pray that God will do “superabundantly more than all we…

Happy New Year, dear friends! We are excited to celebrate our 10th Year helping our readers and listeners around the world live more fulfilled, John 10:10 abundant lives! In January,…

Linda and I hope you enjoyed a Merry Christmas! Christmas takes me back to fond childhood memories. One of my most useful toys was my red Radio Flyer wagon. Growing up…

Dear Your Refreshed Life Friends, Linda and I wish you all the blessings of Christ in your life at Christmas!! With joyful anticipation we are reminded of the three kings…

While we enjoy making new traditions now in Colorado Springs, one of our FAVORITE holiday traditions of all time is visiting Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia. Linda has always loved this iconic…

What a joy it was last Saturday morning to attend a Women’s Christmas Brunch at The Road @ Chapel Hills. After meeting a host of new women and enjoying a…

Hello, dear friends! Christmas is a time for making lasting memories and cherished traditions. This is Linda’s favorite time of year. Spending time with our children and grandchildren, decorating the…

Hello, dear friends! Linda and I hope you had a Happy Thanksgiving! We celebrated our Thanksgiving in Estes Park, Colorado, a quaint town nestled high in the Rocky Mountains. While…

Hello, dear friends! Linda and I are so thankful for you, your continued friendship, and your prayers! We all have our challenges, don’t we? We’ve been facing a unique challenge…

Dear Friends, I am privileged this fall to facilitate two groups of women hungry to learn more about God and ways to live our Christian life in the current culture—this…

Well, dear friends, it’s been a busy year for us, and you probably feel the same! I am thankful for Linda’s position at the Navigators and that I was so…

Sunday afternoon, as I was running errands, I came across a loud outdoor Halloween Party in a store parking lot. The bizarrely evil costumes, joyous smiles, and raucous laughter that…

Hi, everyone! While visiting Yellowstone National Park last week, we watched an intriguing video at the Old Faithful Visitor Center that explained how volcanic eruption formed the majestic area that…

Hi, dear friends! Linda and I are enjoying a restive week in Big Sky, Montana (yes, it is a real place!). As I sit at the dining room table with…

Many people look forward to October with great anticipation. If you’ve lived through a hot, parched summer, the cool fall weather that October brings is a relief! For farmers, it’s…

It can be easier to look behind than to look ahead. It’s human nature. We so often worry about past mistakes, or reminisce about “how things used to be,” that…

When we’re about to make a major reboot, we can take great comfort in knowing that God goes before us causing us to feel dissatisfied, uncomfortable, or maybe too comfortable….

Whether you are in a relational, health, financial, career, or spiritual reboot, there are three important keys to move your life forward: This week we discuss the most counter-productive thing…

What image comes to mind when you hear the word, “reboot”? Do you recall the unpleasant memory of a frozen computer and the crucial time required to restart? Or a…

Linda and I want to wish you a safe and Happy Labor Day! We’re so glad you join us every week. For us, this Labor Day will be spent in…

It’s hard to live in Colorado Springs and not think about flying. Especially when Linda and I live across the valley from the Air Force Academy, complete with its own…

Gazing out our back window at the towering peaks of the Rocky Mountains, Linda and I look at each other in utter amazement that God orchestrated our move to Colorado…

Hello,  Dear YRL Friends! As I sit at a folding card table in our nearly empty new home in Colorado Springs, I look out at the majestic mountains and am…

Linda and I finished our 1,700-mile drive across America to Colorado last night! After packing, selling, consigning, and donating so much, we earned enough to buy the essential items needed…

Hi, this is Reen! Freedom brings many thoughts to mind. When you watch television, read magazines, or wander the aisle of the grocery store the word “FREE” is everywhere: It seems…

What permeates your world? The constant reminder of evil, violence, angst, and upheaval seen on your local TV station? Or the peace found by resting and trusting God amid the…

This month we’re talking about the freedom we can find in many significant areas of life. Financial freedom is one of these. It’s a hot topic today with rising gas…

Hi, it’s Reen. On several Sundays during the lockdown, I observed an older man on the outskirts of our outdoors “socially distanced” church service. He seemed as skittish as a…

At Your Refreshed Life, we believe faith is foundational to living a fulfilling life. So let me tell you a little about a story. After 10 years of infertility and…

In 2007, Willow Creek Church Senior Pastor Bill Hybels stunned the evangelical world by sharing that despite his church’s annual multimillion dollar budget and “seeker-sensitive” approach, his church had miserably…

Hi, it’s Reen writing again. “Help me get one more!” was the heartfelt prayer the unarmed medic and conscientious objector Private Desmond Doss fervently prayed more than seventy-five times after…

Hi! This is Reen and I’m writing about encouraging one another (as I continue encouraging Linda by writing the blogs this month!). We all have spiritual gifts that God equips…

Moody Radio personality Janet Parshall shared that our greatest mission field is between our two feet. Where you live, shop, work, and play are unique locations where God has positioned…

To our very valued readers and friends: As my gift for Linda this Mother’s Day, I (Reen) will be writing the blogs this month—so you’ll notice an obviously masculine tone….

Reen and I are celebrating! We are moving into our 20th year of marriage and ministry together! And what an exciting time it is! When you think of a celebration…

What does it mean to live a resurrected life? Resurrection refers to something or someone rising from the dead into new life, an actual rebirth. As Nicodemus in the Bible…

Recently, the Pentagon released a report on a very strange and unexplainable phenomenon…alien sightings. I have no intention of speculating on the meaning of these. At the same time, there…

This week I’m sharing (above) one of my all-time favorite Easter songs! It is a true celebration of the unique resurrection Easter is all about. Why do we celebrate Resurrection…

As I sat thumbing through recent magazines and catalogs, it struck me that Easter is only two weeks away and all I could find in these current commentaries on our…

Reen naturally possesses a tremendous gift that I acknowledge and seek to emulate daily. Without effort or prior consideration, Reen speaks encouraging words every day in almost every circumstance. We…

It’s funny we most often think of a “Time Out” as only for children. When they misbehave or disobey, they are sent to a location to sit silently and think…

Years ago, Linda and I discovered we were sinking into a subtle but potentially harmful pattern in our communication style. We noticed we were adding subtle negative comments to the…

So, how are you doing dear friends? As winter continues, I know many of us look forward with hope and anticipation to Spring. Our area is uncharacteristically supposed to reach…

“But it’s our Date Night!,” I thought.  I looked forward to this weekly tradition particularly since the Pandemic struck. Throughout our days, Reen busily worked in one room of our…

Even if “Quality Time” were not my Love Language (as we discussed last week), spending time together is another key to building a meaningful relationship. Building the most important relationship…

What makes you feel loved? Is this what makes others feel loved? Maybe not. Many years ago, I was introduced to a classic and best-selling book, “The Five Love Languages.”…

Sitting in Red Lobster recently, waiting for the waitress to take our order, I watched Reen as his thumbs tapped his smartphone. Head down, eyes glued to the device, he…

I love a New Year! It’s a wonderful time to reflect on the past year and determine how to make this year even better. What goals do I want to…

Whew! The big day is over. Relatives return to their homes. Children play with new toys. Leftovers fill the refrigerator. I imagine it was wonderful, hectic, exhausting, joyous… and now…

As I continue to speak to women across the nation, the impact their fathers had on their lives never ceases to amaze me. My father was a very rigid, withdrawn,…

Attending a very traditional church as a child brings back memories of sunshine streaming through stained glass windows depicting images of Jesus at different points in His life. The high,…

Is the holiday season difficult for you? Are there individuals you don’t look forward to seeing or situations you dread facing? Have you ever wished that you could sit down…

Dear Friends,If you are like me, Christmas letters can often seem outdated and simply a competition to keep up with the neighbors. But this Christmas letter written by my husband…

Christmas is almost here! Are you ready? It’s hard to imagine that in only a few days we will be celebrating the joyous coming of God Himself in the flesh…Immanuel,…

After reading a wonderfully encouraging email from one of you, my dear friends, I decided that I want you to know this Thanksgiving… I am exceedingly thankful for you! As…

When was the last time you remember having laryngitis? I cannot remember the last time I lost my voice, but 10 days ago it happened again. One day I felt…

Last week we discussed the process in determining direction for next steps, new beginnings, or our “Second Act.” It excites me to know that every day is a new opportunity…

After traveling all day two Sundays ago, we flew into Colorado Springs long after dark, headed for the Glen Eyrie Conference Center. Checking into the Oaks Lodge, we tumbled into…

October offered a full month of activities and events this year. We experienced a wedding, entertained two different sets of visiting friends, and attended a fabulous production of “Esther” at…

“If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude.”- Maya Angelou “I’m bored” was an expression my mother never allowed in our home. Boredom…

“To change one’s life, start immediately. Do it flamboyantly.” -William James Last week we began our month’s theme a little early, “7 Positive Results of Change” with Positive Result #1-…

Red, yellow, orange, and green leaves flutter downward encircling us in the confetti of fall’s beauty. Crisp, cool air splashes our faces as we set out on our morning walk….

A friend recently posted a poem that really caused me to ask myself, “What does success mean to me?” In our culture we often base success on our accomplishments, our…

We all grapple with it at some level, don’t we? Fearing the unknown is described by some as the foundational fear that underlies all fears. It is defined as the…

Reen and I stepped out today into glorious sunshine, cool breezes, and the whisper that fall is in the air as we started our morning walk. So refreshing. So hope-filled…

This month we’ve been looking at the cultural wars raging around us. It’s startling and frightening to watch the portrayal of evil and violence on the nightly news. Whether drive-by…

As the world is opening up again, we are starting to celebrate in person with family and friends. I’ve always been a big advocate for something I call “Set the…

Yesterday my daughter-in-love, Amy, sent me a photo of my grandson, Wyatt, standing by a very large wooden engraved road sign reading, “Seaside, Oregon.” They found a way to escape…

We so often think of war as the bloody battle between nations and peoples, heroes and enemies. But another war wages around us that is much more subtle, is sometimes…

As I persisted in evaluating my time, commitments, choices, and motives in seeking to know God’s will for my life (following my Hodgkin’s diagnosis), He taught me a third lesson…