Motherhood isn’t just about biology or due dates — it’s about preparing your heart and spirit to receive God’s promises in His perfect timing. Sometimes, waiting feels hard, especially when it’s a promise as precious as motherhood. But the Bible reminds us that God’s timing is never late. He is always working behind the scenes, preparing you for what’s ahead.

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart.” — Jeremiah 1:5 (NIV)

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” — Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV)
“Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.” — Psalm 27:14 (NIV)

While waiting, lean into faith instead of frustration. Use this season to build spiritual strength and peace, knowing that God is aligning all the pieces even now.

Journal Prompts:

• What emotions come up when I think about waiting on God’s timing?

• How can I trust God more deeply during this season?

• What spiritual habits can I nurture now to prepare my heart?

• For married women waiting to conceive: How can I support my spouse emotionally and spiritually during this waiting period?

• What hope can I hold onto when the waiting feels long or discouraging?

• How can I celebrate the present season of marriage while trusting God for the future?

Worship Playlist:

1. Good God Almighty – Crowder

2. Promise Keeper – Maverick City Music

3. Wait on You – Elevation Worship & Maverick City Music

4. Joyful – Dante Bowe

5. Graves into Gardens – Elevation Worship & Brandon Lake

6. You Keep Hope Alive – Mandisa & Jon Reddick

7. Trust in You – Lauren Daigle

8. Another in the Fire – Hillsong UNITED

9. God Makes a Way – Israel & New Breed (feat. Cory Henry)

Biblical Affirmations:

• God’s timing is perfect, and I am exactly where I need to be in this season.

• I am preparing my heart and mind to receive God’s promises with patience and faith.

• The Lord is faithful and He is working all things for my good, even when I don’t see it yet.

• I release all anxiety and choose to rest in God’s peace and provision.

• I trust that God’s plans for me are good, filled with hope and a future.

• I will wait on the Lord courageously, knowing He strengthens and sustains me daily.

Prayer:
Father, thank You for knowing me even before I was formed. Help me to trust Your timing and prepare my heart to receive Your blessings. Strengthen my faith when I feel impatient and remind me that Your plans are always good. May I rest in Your peace today. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

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Motherhood isn’t just about biology or due dates — it’s about preparing your heart and spirit to receive God’s promises in His perfect timing. Sometimes, waiting feels hard, especially when it’s a promise as precious as motherhood. But the Bible reminds us that God’s timing is never late. He is always working behind the scenes, preparing you for what’s ahead.

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart.” — Jeremiah 1:5 (NIV)

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” — Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV)
“Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.” — Psalm 27:14 (NIV)

While waiting, lean into faith instead of frustration. Use this season to build spiritual strength and peace, knowing that God is aligning all the pieces even now.

Journal Prompts:

• What emotions come up when I think about waiting on God’s timing?

• How can I trust God more deeply during this season?

• What spiritual habits can I nurture now to prepare my heart?

• For married women waiting to conceive: How can I support my spouse emotionally and spiritually during this waiting period?

• What hope can I hold onto when the waiting feels long or discouraging?

• How can I celebrate the present season of marriage while trusting God for the future?

Worship Playlist:

1. Good God Almighty – Crowder

2. Promise Keeper – Maverick City Music

3. Wait on You – Elevation Worship & Maverick City Music

4. Joyful – Dante Bowe

5. Graves into Gardens – Elevation Worship & Brandon Lake

6. You Keep Hope Alive – Mandisa & Jon Reddick

7. Trust in You – Lauren Daigle

8. Another in the Fire – Hillsong UNITED

9. God Makes a Way – Israel & New Breed (feat. Cory Henry)

Biblical Affirmations:

• God’s timing is perfect, and I am exactly where I need to be in this season.

• I am preparing my heart and mind to receive God’s promises with patience and faith.

• The Lord is faithful and He is working all things for my good, even when I don’t see it yet.

• I release all anxiety and choose to rest in God’s peace and provision.

• I trust that God’s plans for me are good, filled with hope and a future.

• I will wait on the Lord courageously, knowing He strengthens and sustains me daily.

Prayer:
Father, thank You for knowing me even before I was formed. Help me to trust Your timing and prepare my heart to receive Your blessings. Strengthen my faith when I feel impatient and remind me that Your plans are always good. May I rest in Your peace today. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Enjoyed this devotional? Sign up now to get the full article Womb Ready: Preparing for the Promise Before the Ring plus exclusive articles, worship playlists, and more delivered weekly. Or grab a print copy for deeper encouragement anytime. Don’t miss out on all God has for you!

Order Print Copy

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I thought I was doing everything right. Fasting, working out, eating clean. But the weight didn’t move. The numbers didn’t change. And then came the ER visits, blood pressure medicine, and even gallbladder surgery. Still, I pushed. Prayed. Obeyed.

What I discovered? Some health battles are more than physical—they’re spiritual. And sometimes, the breakthrough comes not through intensity, but through surrender. God taught me to listen to His daily instructions and trust that He was pruning something deeper than just my physical weight.

He wasn’t just delivering me—He was delivering my bloodline.

Before jumping into the devo, if you haven’t already, check out the article it’s based on below:

JOURNAL PROMPTS

• What has God revealed to you about your health in this season?

• Are there areas where you’ve tried to control outcomes instead of surrendering to God’s flow?

• How have you been stewarding your body as His temple—not just in food, but in thought, rest, and activity?

• Ask God: What’s my ideal weight or health goal for Your Kingdom purposes? Write it down.

• Where do you need to trust God over culture or even doctor’s advice?

  ---

  SCRIPTURES TO MEDITATE ON

• 1 Corinthians 6:19–20 (NKJV) – "Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit..."

• Proverbs 17:22 – “A cheerful heart is good medicine...”

• 3 John 1:2 – “Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health...”

• Exodus 15:26 – “I am the Lord who heals you.”

• Jeremiah 33:6 – “I will bring health and healing to it...”

• (See also: Proverbs 3:7–8, Exodus 23:25, Jeremiah 30:17, Psalm 107:20)

BIBLICAL AFFIRMATIONS FOR HEALTH & WHOLENESS

1. My body is not my own—I honor God by caring for it daily. (1 Cor. 6:19-20)

2. I will not bow to the pressure of culture. I will follow God’s health instructions for my season. (Ex. 15:26)

3. I surrender my weight, my health, and my image to the One who sees the whole picture. (Prov. 3:7-8)

4. I break every generational curse of infirmity in my bloodline, in Jesus’ name. (Jer. 30:17)

5. I am healed, whole, and healthy—mind, body, and spirit. (3 John 1:2)

PRAYER
Father, I surrender my health journey to You. I recognize that it’s more than food and workouts—it’s about obedience, discipline, and breaking spiritual cycles. Forgive me for the moments I’ve allowed frustration or fear to dictate my next move. Give me clarity, strategy, and strength to steward my body well. Reveal what needs to be healed—emotionally, physically, and spiritually. Let me be the chain-breaker in my bloodline, the one who uproots the spirit of infirmity once and for all. Thank You that You’re not just shaping my body, but my endurance, trust, and faith. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

HEALTHY HABIT TIP FOR STRESS EATERS
You can’t always control life, but you can prepare for it. Keep your favorite healthy snacks nearby—veggie chips, fruit, nuts—so when stress hits, you don’t spiral into bad habits. One emotional day, I ate nearly a whole bag of cherries. And guess what? That’s okay. I was eating up, not down. Plan for your weak moments by preparing your space for victory.

Holy & Fit Apple Music Workout Playlist

Songs to move your body and stir your spirit

• Big God – Blanca

• Get Out My Way – Tedashii ft. Lecrae

• You Can’t Stop Me – Andy Mineo

• Coming in Hot – Andy Mineo & Lecrae

• Blessed Up (Remix) – Wande ft. Lecrae & Mike Todd

• Joyful – Dante Bowe

• Can’t Tell It All – Hulvey

• Freedom – Eddie James

• Your Way’s Better – Forrest Frank

• Good Day – Forrest Frank

• Celebration – Forrest Frank

• Heaven on This Earth – Forrest Frank & Torey D'Shaun

• Never Get Used to This – Forrest Frank & JVKE

• No Longer Bound – Forrest Frank & Hulvey

• Heaven on My Mind – tobyMac & Forrest Frank

• God Is Good – Forrest Frank & Caleb Gordon

My Fave YouTube Workouts

Closing Reflection
Health isn’t about January resolutions—it’s about daily decisions. And your obedience might be uprooting a demon that’s been plaguing generations. You’re not just working for a new body—you’re warring for legacy. Stay in the fight.

Have these devotionals been helping you draw closer to Christ? Share your heart with me by replying to this email.

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This reminds me of the story of Esther before she became queen. She walked into unfamiliar territory, but quickly earned favor with Hegai (Esther 2). She stood out so much that she received privileges above the other women. The first quality I believe Esther displayed was confidence. No matter what we wear, how we style our hair, or the condition of our skin when we carry ourselves with the confidence that God gave us, everything about us shines.

Here are three practical tips for maintaining healthy skin:

1. Be intentional by identifying the areas of your skin that you want to treat or improve. This will help you choose the right products to meet your specific needs. After assessing whether or not you have oily, dry, or combination skin, determine which products are best for your skin.

2. We recommend at least a four-step process to your skincare regimen for 2025. While cleansing and using a moisturizer are great steps, they are the bare minimum for keeping your skin clean. Add a toner and a serum to your routine. Toners help to balance skin pH, hydrate your skin, tighten pores, and exfoliate the skin, which can help you eliminate the extra step of a separate exfoliator (just make sure the toner has salicylic or glycolic acid to maximize the exfoliation). Serums help to hydrate, brighten skin tone, reduce acne, and improve skin texture. While many people believe you have to buy expensive products to get the best results, starting with brands like Cerave, Eclat, and even Beauty of Joseon (non-fragrance brands), can not only start you on a regimen that you enjoy, but also provide you with a routine that won't break the bank.

3. Finally, apply a light, oil-based moisturizing cream and massage it gently into your face. Oil-based moisturizers provide more intense nourishment and create a barrier to lock in moisture. Moisturizing is a very important step in the process, so be sure to choose one that will give you whatever your skin needs (for sensitive skin, a water-based moisturizer may be better).

4. Bonus Tip: In order to prevent breakouts and keep your skin healthy, try switching from face cloths to throwaway face towelettes. Face cloths hold bacteria, no matter how many times you wash them. Throwaway face towelettes can be purchased from Amazon and are great to use!

Be patient with your skincare routine. No matter what routine you choose, remember the ultimate foundation for great skin is healthy skin, from the inside out. So many people focus on the external, but forget the importance of eating right to give your skin the nutrients it needs. True beauty radiates from the inside out.

Lastly, remember, just like in Esther 2:12: “Before each young woman was taken to the king's bed, she was given the prescribed twelve months of beauty treatments—six months with oil of myrrh, followed by six months with special perfumes and ointments." Consistency in your beauty routine will not only enhance your skin but also boost your confidence. When you look good, you feel good! If you have questions about how to create a healthy skin care regimen, email us at info@girlsanthem.biz.

Many of you may not know this, but for most of my life, I battled a severe mental illness. While today, more people are sharing their stories and resources are more accessible than ever, I was blessed to find the language for what I was experiencing at just 19.

If you know me personally, you might find it hard to believe once you watch this interview—you’d never guess the depth of my struggle. That’s nothing but God’s hand on my life and His grace covering me.

For years, I ran, hid, and carried shame. But today, I stand in boldness, equipped with the language and strength to share my story—because I know it will help set someone free.

Watch my full interview with Tanir of Voices of Victory below. Click the link to be taken to the video on YouTube. Let me know how it blesses you, and please share. 💛

My Mental Health Story

While I’m not yet married, one of the greatest lessons I learned in 2020 was honoring my boss (read the article in the When Fruit Speaks series here). As I shared in a previous article, I was working at a bank and worked under someone very difficult to work for. God pruned me in multiple areas in that season, but the one thing He said that made me realize just how much He expects women to honor men no matter what was: “If you can pass this test, you will be able to have a healthy marriage. Your husband won’t be anything like your boss.”

That made me realize that it’s not up to us as women to decide who gets our honor and respect. It’s a lifestyle that God expects us to live out no matter what. Speaking life and healing to our men doesn’t just encourage them, it builds healthy environments. Here’s how:

1) When we speak life, our men feel more alive. Regardless of your marital status, there’s a man in your life right now that you can honor with your words. Stop thinking you’ll do it when you get the husband or when the husband starts acting right. One of my favorite female pastors said this years ago and I’ve held onto it: My response is my responsibility. The weight of that is so profound. When we speak life, even if he’s speaking death or if he isn’t honoring me with his words, he will feel more alive. The word of God says a soft answer stirs away wrath (Proverbs 15:1). Have you ever had someone say something mean to you and you answered with a kind response? They look at you confused, but they are also left speechless. Imagine that husband, son, or even father saying something crazy and you offer kind words. Something in him will come alive, even if he doesn’t admit it in the moment.

2) When we speak a better word, our environments thrive. No matter what’s going on around us, when we speak the better word (the opposite of how we feel or a positive word when we want to say something negative), our environments thrive. Remember, as women we have a great deal of influence in the spaces we’re called to. Whether it’s your home or your workspace, we can either bring an environment up or down by what we say. Keep speaking the word of God and words of kindness and watch your environment thrive. Shift the atmosphere with your words.

3) When we speak life, we build him up when the enemy is trying to tear him down. Trust me. Whatever you want to fuss at that man about, the enemy is already tearing him up. It would be nice if you didn’t reinforce what the enemy is saying. While men need correction (again, this isn’t just for husbands), the way we correct should be in love and not with an ‘I told you so’ spirit. This is especially true if he made a poor decision that you didn’t agree with. Honor him by being encouraging, correcting in love, and helping him get back to a place where he’s thriving in his self-esteem.

4) When we speak a better word, the enemy has a harder time breaking that three-strand cord. Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 talks about how two are better than one, but it also talks about how a three-strand cord isn’t easily broken (God is the third strand). When we speak the better word, the enemy has to find a way to get in. When he realizes there isn’t a way to get in, he goes scurrying (James 4:7). When you submit your tongue to the Holy Spirit, God can give you words that you may find hard to say or that you wouldn’t think to say. Remember, negativity comes easily but speaking kind words can take work. Make it hard for the enemy to break that three-strand cord by speaking a better word, even when that man isn’t around. Speak life into your environment no matter what.

5) When we speak life, he will want to do better. Have you ever had a child come home with a bad grade and before they even show you the test, they’ve already gone through their head on how mad you’ll be? Children should never be shocked when we encourage them instead of fussing at them. The same thing applies to our men. This goes back to point number three. He already feels bad about whatever went wrong, so why add to that? Men don’t wake up wanting to let us down. They long to do right by us. When we speak life, he feels empowered and encouraged to do his best and to get it right.

6) Lastly, when we speak a better word, his internal environment is purified. So many of our husbands, sons, fathers, uncles, cousins, pastors, and male friends are naturally hard on themselves. Add to that race, and our black men already feel inferior in a lot of ways. They wake up to a world that tries to remind them of their “place” frequently. We have the opportunity to purify their internal environment (their inner being) by what we say. This is something we can do daily. One of the things I can’t wait to do with my future hubby is leave notes around the house with encouraging words, whether he needs them or not. We have the opportunity to fill them up with words on good and bad days so that when something does go wrong, they have a full tank to pull from. When God trusts us with His sons, we’re asked to respect them. Nothing shows them more respect than the way we talk to them. Let’s honor them with our words.

7) Bonus Point for Married Women: He shouldn’t have to protect himself from you. When I went back to therapy in 2022, one of the things I worked on was being a safe space for my future husband. I remember sharing some things with my therapist and she summarized what I was feeling by saying, “I get it. You feel like he shouldn’t have to protect himself from you.” I wrote that down and have prayed into it ever since. Our men wake up often with the world on their shoulders. There’s already a world ready to tear them down and even people the enemy will use to try to steal their confidence. Build yourself up in a way that your husband doesn’t have to protect himself from you. You may need to go to therapy to become that person, but no matter what, the men in your life are deserving of it. Not to mention, your children watch how you talk to your husband. Set the right tone no matter what it takes.

For the mother wondering how this applies to her and her son, think of how many times you put him down or give him a speech when he just needs encouraging words; or think of how many times you throw that last failure in his face when he just needs silence and for you to listen. Again, this doesn’t mean we ignore correction, but there’s a way we can correct the men in our lives, and it makes them want to grow because we did it with grace.

For any woman struggling in this area, I pray that you’ll meditate on Proverbs 16:24, Proverbs 31:26, Galatians 5:22 and Colossians 3:12-13. These scriptures will help you transform your language as you navigate relationships with the men in your life. And remember, he doesn’t have to be a man of God or a Christian man for you to honor him with your words. Honor is something God values and He watches how we treat unbelievers just as much as He watches how we treat those in the household of faith.

I also encourage you to pray James 4:7 by submitting your tongue to God daily. Use all of these scriptures and write out a prayer that you can pray until you’re stronger in this area. Ask God to help you see how the fruit of gentleness can shift your relationships into a healthier space.

Lastly, if you become a safe space for the Holy Spirit, you will automatically be a safe space for those connected to you.

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To kick off our “Health Hits” section, I’m introducing Girls Anthem to some of my old podcast interviews that are no longer available to the public.

Two years ago, Kieara and I were both featured on The Woman Evolve podcast (two different episodes). But what followed next, was our very own collaboration where Kieara and I built an offline relationship that resulted in some powerful girl chats.

This episode even gave me some insight into something I was dealing with at the time. Kieara provides us all with some basic therapeutic strategies.

Check out her website to learn more about her and her services.

Check out Kieara’s favorite resources for those wanting to learn more about healing before connecting with a therapist:

Today I Affirm: A Journal that Nurtures Self-Care

Self-Love Workbook for Women

The Unapologetic Guide to Black Mental Health

PS This podcast episode was recorded back in 2022. Some of the mentioned resources may no longer be available or may have shifted. Check out Kieara’s website above for updated information.