Darlene Brock | The Grit and Grace Project

How to See Christ in the Christmas Chaos

I was having one of those “discussions” with myself the other day, the kind where you are mediating an internal debate. There is no one else privy to the conversation; it is merely you talking to you. I’m one of those people whose facial expressions coincide with the dialogue taking place in their head. So, I’m sure that on this particular day, anyone watching me push my shopping cart would have wondered if I was having an emotional breakdown as I went from scowling to nodding my head to grinning slightly and then back to scowling. Why Do We Put Up with the Christmas Chaos? My thoughts went something like this: I am so tired of the insanity of this time of […]

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7 Unique Holiday Traditions to Share With Your Family

By Darlene Brock / Life & Culture, Featured

One of the very best things about the holidays is not the calorie-heavy, “guilt-free” food intake, the gifts, the family gatherings, or even the “you have outdone yourself” decorating. It’s the holiday traditions you create for your family and then repeat each year, ensuring lasting memories in the hearts of all you love. Looking to start some family traditions? Here are a few to get you started: 1. Fill a jar from Thanksgiving to January 1 with special notes for each family member. Write one note a week to tell them something about them you treasure. On January 1, each member takes the notes written to them to begin the new year knowing their worth. 2. Decorate your tree with ornaments purchased from

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Thank Sarah Hale (One Strong Woman) for Thanksgiving Day

By Darlene Brock / Life & Culture

Thanksgiving became a national holiday at the height of the Civil War—a most unlikely time to set a day aside for reflection and proclamation of one’s thankfulness. Yet President Abraham Lincoln did exactly that. Indeed, he was a brave man to declare this celebration in a season that seemed to have very little to be thankful for. But what is often overlooked is the woman behind the effort to make this a holiday worth celebrating. As is often true in life there is a “behind the scenes” lady of persuasion, a humble yet determined crusader of a concept. Sarah Josepha Hale’s Pursuit of Education Sarah Josepha Hale was born in 1788 to Captain Gordon Buell and Martha Whittlesay Buell. Having been educated

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5 Tips for Mending Fences in Your Relationships

By Darlene Brock / Relationships

It’s a great time to begin mending fences. Not the ones in the back 40 of the ranch where very few of us currently live; I’m talking about the fences that require repair between us. We all experience damaged or broken relationships. Admittedly, some relationships are beyond repair, but most of the time, that’s not the case. So ask yourself, do you really want to be 90 years old, comfortable in your lift chair, and remember a relationship you once had? Pondering the friend you lost because of anger over something you can no longer recall? The sibling rivalry you never outgrew? Or the parent you walked away from? Probably not. So, how do you manage this repair process before the knees give

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A Parent’s Guide to Halloween and How to Handle It

By Darlene Brock / Life & Culture

It was Halloween day, and this was the first year my daughter realized it might just be a great event in which she wanted to participate. She was barely four years old and until that time my husband and I had avoided stepping into the chaos of this holiday. My husband’s attitudes were born out of his complete distaste for many of the things that came with this particular evening. I didn’t necessarily disagree with him, but I circumvented it simply because I had enough to do without adding it to the list! But we couldn’t avoid it this year. We desperately needed a parent’s guide to Halloween, but there wasn’t one. Our daughter wanted to dress up; she wanted to grab

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Unplanned Pregnancy—the Tale of Two Girls

By Darlene Brock / Life & Culture

I was a teen in the early years of Roe v. Wade when a significant cultural change began. I don’t think we realized then how much impact a decision made by seven Justices of the Supreme Court would have on our lives. Pregnancy wasn’t ever present in our minds, but it was something we were trying to avoid, often rather ineffectively, given this was also the era of “free love.” In those years, an unplanned pregnancy had even more impact on a female’s life than it does today. Girls were labeled, often looked down upon, which didn’t make a lot of sense since they were not alone in their activity. They merely experienced the possible consequences that many others risked. It was

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Announcing Smart Living In Small Bites Guidebooks!

By Darlene Brock / Life & Culture, Featured

Do you ever wish you had a guidebook for life’s challenges? Challenges that feel insurmountable, and you would love guidance from someone who has already traversed the road you find yourself on? Something easy to read that allows you to feel comfortable with your hurts, feelings, and thoughts? We created those books in the Smart Living in Small Bites series. The first four are on sale now in paperback and Amazon Kindle eBook. Hard Marriage, Suicide Loss, Anxiety Struggles, and Past Sexual Abuse are the first of the subjects we are speaking to. Our writers, just like you, have faced challenges with nowhere to turn. This shared experience led us to help others facing what we had already faced. Each book in the

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a strong woman shows grace and is not weak

7 Female Inventors Who Solved Life Problems

By Darlene Brock / Life & Culture

I love human history, especially the accomplishments of my gender. Yet searching what women have achieved, one often finds the most current writing focuses on a single note in the rich melody of women’s achievements—the strides made by women in advancing equality. Ladies, we have done so much more than that! It’s not a single note; instead, it’s a whole orchestral arrangement. What I also love is that not only is exploring our gender’s achievements much more than a reflection on how far women have come, but it is also rich in accomplishment that is in no way predictable, especially in female inventors. These female inventors deserve to be celebrated for what they created! The Woman Who Invented the Bulletproof Vest If

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Grace Is Not Weakness; It Requires Strength

By Darlene Brock / Faith, Purpose

Defining Grace Grace is the anchor of our faith, the reason for the confidence we have in a God of mercy. It’s what is extended to us through a relationship with God established by the sacrifice of Christ. When we accept it from our Creator, it seems it should be such an easy thing to extend because he does it so magnificently. But for us to live our lives offering the same grace to others is anything but an easy task. Living a life of grace is very often misinterpreted. Some believe it’s an indicator of weakness. In the eyes of many, extending the truest form of grace, which is forgiveness, means giving up. Others believe grace is automatic and easy to

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5 Ways to Love Your Single Life

By Darlene Brock / Relationships

So a large majority of your friends are married, and you are not. Do you celebrate because you dodged the bullet, or do you pine because you hate being alone? Do you dread the next plus-one event, or do you land at the door ready to have a good time, with or without that extra human by your side? Simply, do you love your single life? Being single is neither a malady nor a deficiency; it’s just a place in life. And it can be a really good place. Here is how to make sure that it is. 5 Ways to Love Your Single Life 1. Don’t wait for life; live life. Remove the sentence, “I will (move, travel, buy a house,

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The Beauty of The Declaration of Independence

By Darlene Brock / Life & Culture

Here at Grit and Grace Life, we want to take this opportunity to share the document that paved the road to the formation of The United States of America. The Declaration of Independence was written in July of 1776 by a group of men who fought valiantly against rulers who wanted to usurp authority over the forming nation. This document is worthy of review, and we do so in remembrance of the sacrifices made and challenges overcome by the brave husbands, women, and children of that day… The Declaration of Independence IN CONGRESS, July 4, 1776. The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America, When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the

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Take It Easy—On Your Kids

By Darlene Brock / Motherhood

So you want to be a great mom. I’m sure there are some days you think the world expects you to be a perfect mom. Well, some people do expect that from you, those silly folks. They will also tell you that your child needs to tow the line with the expectations placed by the powers that be. But I’m telling you, no they do not. While we want to help our children grow up to be productive, loving, kind adults, we don’t want to force them into a one-size-fits-all little person. There are some things that the clamoring masses tell us we should deal with in our children that just aren’t true. The challenges you face with your little person may well be

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Can We Know God Loves Us?

By Darlene Brock / Faith

I have walked with God for a good many years. I met him as a child, ran from him as a teen, surrendered to him as a young adult as he relentlessly pursued me, and I have sought to follow him since. There have been seasons filled with faith, believing every promise, and feeling so confident in my purpose and the warmth of his presence. I have also had seasons when I felt as if I was drowning in heartbreak, despair, and discouragement, wondering if he was even there or heard the cry of my heart. Wondering as I have believed if God loves us. In the discouraging times, when God felt so absent from my life, I immediately thought that I

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What My Faith Says About My Purpose

By Darlene Brock / Faith, Purpose

I know that a woman of faith probably shouldn’t admit she thinks any book of the Bible is depressing, but there is one that I truly believe is! I realize there are some pretty troubling stories and incredibly sad scenarios written in God’s Word, but before you get all weird on me, thinking I am speaking badly about the Bible, hear me out. I find it easy to believe that God would agree the stories are both troubling and sad. Much of what is written reveals our human failure and our pursuit of selfishness and sin. These words also reveal God’s righteous intervention as He offers His mercy and grace with the goal of rescuing us from ourselves. It is when I

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Let Us Remember, This Memorial Day

By Darlene Brock / Life & Culture

Today is Memorial Day, the day that we mindfully set aside in order to honor those who have paid the ultimate price. Today we lay wreaths on graves and place flags in the ground, recognizing each gravesite of both men and women who have fought and died for the greater good. These courageous soldiers have battled against evil while defending those who could not defend themselves. Today it is our duty to remember the fallen. There have been hundreds of thousands of Americans who’ve died in war since the very first was waged, the American War for Independence. The countless lives lost in each battle, from the American Revolution through today’s wars in the Middle East, have left behind mothers, fathers, siblings, wives, husbands and children. It is not only

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College Graduation Fear—7 Ways to Know You’re Ready

By Darlene Brock / Life & Culture

We have had the pleasure of having several college girls intern with us at Grit and Grace Life and had the pleasure of working with them the year they graduated. Shortly after their college career came to a close, we had a team meeting which they attended. A few minutes into the meeting I was reminded of the seismic life shift they were facing. Watching their facial expressions as they discussed the future spoke every bit of their college graduation fear. The overwhelming, yet excited, panicked, exhilarating, and dreadful emotions they were feeling. The experience made me want to take a few minutes and tell all college grads this—take heart! You can do this! Yes, it’s true what you have known in

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Memorial Day, a Day of Honor, But Why?

By Darlene Brock / Life & Culture

Every year, near the end of May, Americans get one of those great three-day weekends. Historically marked by trips to the beach, picnics in the park, and friends and family get-togethers, Memorial Day launches the beginning of summer. This is the weekend that officially ends the winter blues, and the fun-in-the-sun begins. There’s something many of us may not know, or perhaps we don’t take the time to ponder, that Memorial Day a Day of honor, but why? We may not fully understand the origin of this day or the gravity of its inception. But remember, we must. This day was created to honor those who died in military service and those who lost their lives while standing for what they believe,

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