24 comments

Paula Hendricks

Celebrating Five Years: A Mighty Big Deal

Posted on 01.01.13 by Paula Hendricks | Twitter: @PaulaWrites678
Topics: Impacting your world

Dear True Woman Reader,

It feels a bit surreal to write this post. You see, this month the True Woman blog turns five. Five! That might not sound like a big deal to you, but I think it’s huge.

See, five years ago when this blog first opened its doors and turned on its lights, it existed to do one thing: promote the True Woman ’08 Conference. That’s all. Its team of bloggers consisted of one: little ’ole inexperienced me who had never written for—let alone followed—a blog in her life.

For one year I did my best to create “buzz” about the conference. Then, the following January, our blogger team tripled in size when Kimberly Wagner and Mary Kassian jumped on board. Since then, we’ve had around fifty bloggers post on this site (with lots more to come in the future!). And while we still promote True Woman Conferences (here’s a little shout-out for Revive '13: Women Helping Women!), this blog has taken on a life of its own, producing (I hope) practical, life-giving hope and truth five days a week.

That, my friend, is a God-thing. Totally beyond me. Worth celebrating, don’t you think? God has been overwhelmingly good, once again. 

To mark this occasion, for the next three weeks, we’ll give something away each day. We’ll also feature the “best of” blog posts from the last five years. Check back each day and encourage your friends to come on over and see what the True Woman blog is all about—as well as win free stuff!   

Also. There would be no reason to celebrate if you weren’t right where you are reading this now. Thank you for making this blog a part of your very important day. Please leave a comment below and let us know how we can better serve you as we head into our sixth year. What would you like to hear and read and see this year?

All ears,

Paula

Comments

  1. Praise God for you Paula. Stepping out in faith to begin something new. Thank you for your honesty and for especially glorifying God in the way He has accomplished all. The blog is something that is looked forward to each day. Many times passed on to sisters helping each other. What an encouragement to each one of us.
    posted by Marilyn
    on Tuesday, January 1, 2013 at 9:36 am
  2. Congratulations on your 5th anniversary! I haven't been reading that long but do check out the blog each day. I'm an empty nester, but do enjoy reading all the posts even those that apply to young Moms and older Moms with kids at home. There is always something to glean from the post. I live overseas and can't watch most of the videos that are posted because of slow internet connections so that is the one downside for me.
    Keep up the good work and Lord bless you!
    posted by tricia
    on Tuesday, January 1, 2013 at 10:18 am
  3. How exciting! Congrats! :)
    Http://intentionalbygrace.com
    posted by Leigh Ann @ Intentional By Grace
    on Tuesday, January 1, 2013 at 11:09 am
  4. I read the blog everyday and thank God for your encouragement to go deeper with Him. I will often forward these posts to my daughters who live in another state. Hebrews 10:24-25 come to mind: "And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together...but let us encourage one another--and all the more as you see the Day approaching." Thank you for writing and for spurring us on!
    posted by Brynda
    on Tuesday, January 1, 2013 at 11:19 am
  5. Congrats on the five! I hope one year to be able to actually go to a True Woman conference.

    One of the things I love about the TW blog posts is I can trust they're grounded in the Word. I know it's good to read everything with a discerning eye, but I can't remember a post where I thought, gee, I don't think that's biblical. It's the *Truth* Woman blog for me :)
    posted by Diane
    on Tuesday, January 1, 2013 at 11:30 am
  6. In a busy world, this blog is a blessing. I cannot count the number of times my daughters have been blessed as well with what I have forwarded to them. It is my #1 site to pass on to family and friends. Thank you for the ministry and word fitly spoken! God bless yo!
    posted by kathy
    on Tuesday, January 1, 2013 at 12:14 pm
  7. This blog is a blessing! Congrats! :)
    posted by Noel Kline
    on Tuesday, January 1, 2013 at 12:40 pm
  8. Congratulations on the 5th year! I have enjoyed the blog so much.

    My suggestion is that once in a while you post book and material suggestions/reviews for different issues that concern to women's lives. I know you have done some reviews of Nancy's books and some books that other bloggers have written and I have appreciated those.

    I really enjoyed the Lullaby CD review and have purchased and listened and given that CD as a present. I would not have heard of it if not through this blog.

    Thanks,

    Rachel
    posted by Rachel B.
    on Tuesday, January 1, 2013 at 1:44 pm
  9. Five years ago next month my husband uttered a sentence that pierced my heart like nothing else: "I"m afraid to do ANYTHING for you because it's always WRONG!!"

    Those fateful words rang in my ears for days, and I knew without a doubt he was absolutely right. For 16 years I had nearly paralyzed my husband with my "helpful" criticisms of his every move.

    Within days I came across Nancy's teaching on Revive Our Hearts about biblical womanhood and she announced the True Woman '08 conference. I immediately knew I needed to go and made my reservations! The months leading up to it were spent listening to the liberating Bible teaching on womanhood and pouring over this blog. It was the beginning of an amazing transformation!

    As God has shown me the pattern for womanhood from His Word, He's changed my life, and this once paralyzed man is growing in ways I only dreamed about! He is now reading Scripture and praying with me on a regular basis. This is something I doubted would ever happen.

    Thanks, Paula and the entire blogging staff, for filling this space with sound teaching and incredible hope! I tell everyone who will listen about the True Woman message.

    Happy birthday, and may God continue to use this blog to give women the direction so desperately needed in our culture! My love to you all!
    posted by Kari W.
    on Tuesday, January 1, 2013 at 2:38 pm
  10. Congratulations on 5 years! Thank you so much for the True Woman blog. I'm a new reader here, and I'm so thankful to have a blog I can read regularly that has good, solid, biblical content. Thank you for all of the work you put into blog posts!

    I would love to read blog posts that deal with being a wife/mom/biblical woman while also dealing with a disabling chronic illness. This is something I would personally benefit from, and I know of others who would as well.

    I've been ill for most of my life, but it didn't become really disabling until 2004. I had learned a lot throughout the years at church and in Bible college about how to be a godly wife, but no one ever taught about how to be a godly wife if you physically can't do what most wives are supposed to do. This is something I've had to struggle through, study the Bible, and learn on my own. I'm considering tackling the subject on my blog this year, but I would love to read about it here too!
    http://www.cranberryteatime.com
    posted by Rachel Lundy
    on Tuesday, January 1, 2013 at 4:56 pm
  11. CONGRATULATIONS on blogging for 5 years!!!! THAT IS a BIG DEAL!!!!!! It takes ALOT OF WORK! :) AND I KNOW you've BLESSED MANY women with your words, including ME! :)

    What I'd like to see in the coming year? Maybe, a running study of THE WOMEN OF THE BIBLE? (I'm NEVER GOOD at coming up with things like this! I USUALLY have to THINK ON THINGS! LOL And MAYBE, in those five years you've already done this! :))
    http://tladydesigns.blogspot.com/
    posted by Becky Green
    on Tuesday, January 1, 2013 at 5:41 pm
  12. Congrats, Paula! This blog has been a blessing. I would ask that there be no more rapping Nancy. :) I would like to read more from Karen Waddles.
    posted by Jessica
    on Tuesday, January 1, 2013 at 7:32 pm
  13. i love the encouragement you give to be Godly wives...more of that please. I am in a very difficult marriage, married to a man who says he is a believer, but whose actions do not match his words. I need the encouragement to keep loving him through my hurt, so he can see the face, hands and feet of God in me. When we are Godly wives, it makes us better women, friends, and mothers. Let's change the world one woman at a time!
    posted by m
    on Wednesday, January 2, 2013 at 10:04 am
  14. This blog has been such an encouragement to me. I keep on referring others to it. It is a real blessings. May God bless all of you.
    posted by Heidi
    on Wednesday, January 2, 2013 at 10:55 am
  15. Thank-you Paula for all your hard work and for stepping out on a limb for God. I love reading this blog daily and I am always challenged and encouraged in my walk. Keep it up!! Love it.
    posted by Kim Zolman
    on Wednesday, January 2, 2013 at 2:21 pm
  16. I was blessed to attend the first True Woman conference in'08! Sadly, I have not been able to attend any others, but was blessed by the live feed this year....thanks so much. My only regret was that I couldn't sit by the computer the entire conference. Maybe the conference is on DVD, etc. and I am not aware of that. That would be my suggestion for the future, so that those who cannot attend can purchase the DVDs and be blessed by
    "attending" that way or by having a "conference" in their own homes/churches to reach out to other ladies.

    I have recently been listening to Nancy's CDs THE POWER OF WORDS. I am writing down the Scripture references so that I can review and apply them to my life.

    Nancy and her ministry have introduced me to some awesome Christian women whose Bible studies/songs/etc. I have collected and enjoyed listening to. I am currently doing Liz Curtis Higgs' THE GIRL'S STILL GOT IT.

    I have taught ladies' Sunday School classes in the past and always encourage the ladies to listen to Nancy's radio program, check out her books, etc.
    posted by J Adams
    on Thursday, January 3, 2013 at 6:16 am
  17. Congratulations! I have thoroughly enjoyed reading your blogs. They have been a great blessing. Thank you and praise God!
    posted by Donna Eckman
    on Thursday, January 3, 2013 at 7:57 am
  18. This blog has been a tremendous encouragement to me. God bless all at True Woman & Revive our Hearts.
    posted by Margaret
    on Thursday, January 3, 2013 at 10:42 am
  19. I've only discovered the True Woman blog over the last month when i came across the book True Woman 101 Divine Design. i must say the book has been amazing and I'm not even half way through it. The "table talk" videos are great and i can't wait to get into this blog and hear how other woman are being challenged and rewarded for being woman after God's own heart.
    Thank you so much for putting tools like this out there for woman all around the world to benefit from.
    May God ever richly bless you.
    posted by Mandy
    on Thursday, January 3, 2013 at 11:18 am
  20. J. Adams,

    Thank you for sharing our ministry with the women you know! We are happy to tell you that all the plenary (video) and breakout (audio) sessions from all of our conferences have been captured and are under the resource tab at the top of our blog. The sessions are available to watch online or you can purchase the entire set for group viewing. We even have a TW event kit that will help you plan an event for the women in your church. We hope you find this helpful!

    Serving Him,
    Lorree
    posted by Lorree, with the TW Team
    on Thursday, January 3, 2013 at 12:17 pm
  21. Paula, congratulations! I check in with the True Woman blog often. I like that it's an encouraging website, and that the messages presented are Biblically-based, not like the typical Christian women's websites filled with self-centered fluff. Thank you so much!
    posted by Lindsay
    on Thursday, January 3, 2013 at 5:16 pm
  22. After the creepy election year, I can no longer watch the news. The good seems to be overcome with evil. Thank goodness for this hopeful blog. Truly good news for a refreshing change. the perspective is that God is in charge, revival is possible, and God can bless us one home at a time, (regardless of what powerful wicked people do in government.) Joy and delight, laughing at the future, that is the true woman's movement. God listens to the humble, we can have perfect peace in tumultuous circumstance. God bless this ministry. hooray for the wise women who encourage us on the home front.
    True woman
    posted by R. orenson
    on Friday, January 4, 2013 at 5:07 pm
  23. I'm so grateful for your encouragement and ideas, ladies! Thank you.

    J Adams, you can listen to and/or purchase the True Woman '12 messages here:
    http://www.truewoman.com/?id=2204. Enjoy!
    posted by Paula Hendricks
    on Tuesday, January 8, 2013 at 9:48 am
  24. Today,True Woman 101 bible study will be starting here in Miami, FL with the first bi-lingual True Woman Bible study for women. We will be teaching it in both English in Spanish. The women of this culture here in Miami speak something called Spanlish! This is were we speak both languages in the same sentence. Hence, to be a Latino in Miami, we are very familiar with this new language. Daughter of of the King / Hijas del Rey will continue to grow and deepening our faith in Christ through this wonderful study of GOD's Divine Design.
    Karla Rossi-Gonzalez, DOK Ministries.
    posted by Karla C. Rossi-Gonzalez
    on Tuesday, February 12, 2013 at 3:44 pm

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