A Force To Be Reckoned With
A Force To Be Reckoned With
233. Replay: Making your Home a Place of Mission with Victoria Duerstock
When is the last time you have invited someone into your home to sit down and dive into the parts of life that go deeper than everyday conversation?
If this isn’t something that you do, or have done recently, what’s holding you back? Is it space? Is it clutter? Is it fear of what people might see when you let your walls down?
For me, at one point or another it’s been all of those things, and I know I’m not alone in that. That’s why I’m so excited to share today’s conversation with Victoria Duerstock.
Victoria Duerstock is a creative, an author of multiple books, and has over 20 years of experience in interior design. Today we are talking about the richness that letting our walls down and literally opening up our doors has on our lives---despite what they look like, how big they are, how much laundry we have piled up, or how our kids behave.
This conversation has come at such a perfect time because over the last year or so, Corey and I have chosen to finally get rooted in a town and intentionally dive deep into the relationships around us. We desired to find a community that we could do life with, and go beyond simple conversation and small talk. God has been so good in blessing us with that in His timing, and honestly none of these deep relationships would exist if our friends had not let their walls down, and invited us into their worlds and their homes.
The richer our relationships get, the more I see this lacking in our generation as a whole and it’s something I truly believe we desperately need. I can only say this because I went years believing that growing roots in a community and connecting deeper with other people outside of my immediate family had no value. How wrong I was!
Victoria is so full of wisdom even in this short conversation. Not only does she share truths about the importance of getting past trying to “appear” a certain way, but she gives tactical tips on how to style our homes and make them more inviting.
I hope you leave this conversation today feeling inspired to invite others into your world, and make your home a mission field.
Episode Highlights:
- Victoria’s journey to where she is now.
- The heart behind her new book
- Making your Home a Place of Mission with Victoria Duerstock.
- How to be more mission-minded when it comes to our homes.
- Things we can do to become more connected in this crazy world.
- Simple ways to re-decorate with what you already have!
More on Guest:
Links Mentioned in Episode/Find More on A Force to Be Reckoned With:
- Jointheforce.us
- Follow Bethany on Instagram @bethanyadkins
- Follow Corey on Instagram @mrcoreyadkins
- Find us on Youtube!
- Email Bethany at bethany@adkinsmedia.co
This show has been produced by Adkins Media Co.
We are at war and it's not against our neighbors, spouses, children, politicians or whatever else we feel like we're battling against.
Speaker 2:So the questions are who's the fight against, and are we winning or losing? We're the Adkins, and we are a force to be reckoned with.
Speaker 1:Are you ready to join the?
Speaker 2:force. Hey, everyone hope you're having a good week. I spent some time over the weekend listening to old episodes of our podcast, which I don't't really ever do, do you, corey?
Speaker 1:No, not old ones.
Speaker 2:But I was looking for a specific one that I still have been unable to find.
Speaker 1:I can't remember what we titled it have we?
Speaker 2:Well, we have over 200 episodes and I was looking for a specific episode and I couldn't find it. But how was listening?
Speaker 1:Yeah, a little bit painful. Have we aged like a fine wine?
Speaker 2:I don't know about a fine wine, but we definitely. We've definitely aged and we've definitely changed and grown and it was a little bit painful to listen. No-transcript, it's one from about three years ago. It was an interview we did with someone and I just really like the topic and we have another episode coming out next week about this topic, the topic of kind of hosting and hospitality and how that ties into living life missionally. We talked about this a lot several years ago and this was one of the interviews we did, so I wanted to. We're going to replay the episode this week.
Speaker 1:Throw it back Thursday. Except it's Tuesday. Throw it back Tuesday. And then next week it doesn't have quite the sound.
Speaker 2:We've had this episode planned for a couple months now.
Speaker 1:We just haven't sat down and actually been disciplined to outline it, don't set the high bar, like we've been planning.
Speaker 2:No, I mean it's nothing special, but this week it's about just being hospitable and having your house prepped, or how to have a hospitable home and having a heart of hospitality, and next week it's going to be more specific about summer and applying that to kids and your kids' friends and all of that. So, with that said, we hope you guys will listen to this week's episode. We hope that you enjoy it and we will catch you next week. We are here today with Victoria Durstock, and Victoria she's a creative and an entrepreneur and she has multiple books. She has over 20 years Is that right experience in the home furnishing industry.
Speaker 3:I'm old and I hang out with people. So yeah, you don't look old.
Speaker 2:You look great. I was a little shocked by the 20 years yeah seriously, but anyway, you might be wondering so, home furnishing, you might be wondering what that has to do with millennials and purpose, and that's what we're going to be talking about today. So we're really excited with millennials and purpose, and that's what we're going to be talking about today. So we're really excited. I'm truly so excited about this topic because I feel like we're missing the mark on this and I can't wait to dive into it. So, victoria, welcome.
Speaker 3:Well, thank you for having me. I appreciate you both just being open to having the conversation and I'm excited to see you know what we get to talk about today Me too.
Speaker 2:Okay, so one of the favorite, our favorite things that we highlight before we get into the real topic is we always like to share a little bit of our guest stories, kind of leading up to how you got to where you are today, because I think one of the big things that millennials forget is that life is a journey and we don't just arrive overnight, and so I also I feel like we haven't had one story where we don't have a life lesson that we can take away from it. So go ahead and just start wherever you want.
Speaker 3:This could be long. I, I'm actually a trained pianist. I worked on my piano degree early on. That's what I graduated with, played classical piano and did a music education master's degree because I anticipated doing that the rest of my life. And it was really convenient because when the children were little, I got married after I got my master's degree. When the children were little, I was able to teach piano lessons, be at home. We ended up homeschooling after a little while. So it was nice because I could. I could be mom, I could do the thing I loved as well, as you know be home, um.
Speaker 3:But there was a point about six years ago where, um, I, it just wasn't quite what it had been and I felt like the Lord was just kind of like shifting things in my heart and I knew it was the Lord, it wasn't me, because that was a time where I was really digging into the Bible and really trying to understand you know what it was, that that God was doing in my heart and in my life, and I'd gotten really serious about memorizing scripture, about really being consistent, you know, in my walk, and and so I thought, well, I don't know what this means, you know, and I'd always had this dream that one day I would sit down and I would write books and it would just be this really ideal experience. I'd get to look at the beautiful outdoors and I get to put my feet up and relax and I'd write books, and people would go. Those are great books, let's publish them. And I just thought this I had this very naive conception of what publishing would look like, and I learned very quickly that's that's not the process and it's really far, far removed from actual work that takes place to get these things done. Yes, yes, and so I started writing. I started learning what I needed to learn, and platform was a big thing that kept coming up. But you know, nobody knows who you are. You have 50 Twitter followers, you know, it was just one of those things. And I was like social media who cares? You know, I got these kids to raise. I got all this stuff going on, and so I had to learn a lot of things over the last few years and the Lord just kind of kept opening doors at the right time, and the Heart and Homebook started a few years ago with just this combination of furniture experience. You say well, how did you get all that in the midst of this.
Speaker 3:Well, I worked with my husband a lot through the years because I got very sick when I was pregnant and so sick that I couldn't teach and I couldn't do music and I couldn't do the things that I love. So I ended up working over in the furniture and design industry with him and doing his thing. And you know, there were times where I was like God, what are you doing? Why am I not doing this thing that you gave me this gift for? And why am I not doing this thing that I love and I'm passionate about? Why am I doing interior design and furniture stuff and going to furniture markets, which is great fun, let's not I mean I don't want to take away from that it was great, great fun. I loved going, but it was it was really his thing that I was kind of involved in.
Speaker 3:But I learned a lot from the designers. The designers would do other projects and I'd hang out and I'd help them stay organized and do other things, and it was in that time that I learned a lot about design basics like flow and harmony and unity, and then I would find those same things in scripture. So when it was time to really promote and talk about a book that I wanted to write. It was really just short devotionals, that kind of talk about hey, god is a God of design, he's a God of beauty and creativity, and it's all through scripture. Look at the tabernacle. You look at the priest's robe. You look at the temple build I mean he was very specific in detail. You look at creation, right, I mean there's just story upon story where we can look at his design and that's where I get really excited because I go, you know what that's design there. But there's also this design in my heart and he made me the way I am.
Speaker 2:That is so awesome. Do you have something to add?
Speaker 1:Yeah, I'm just curious. As I was looking through the book, I thought this is a really cool, different book than what I've ever seen before, and this really. I'll just be honest, as a guy, this design and the devotions towards women isn't my area, but, um, I thought it was so cool how you integrated your experience in design with the devotions.
Speaker 2:Um, there's marriage tips in it, guys.
Speaker 1:Yeah, marriage tips for geared towards the ladies.
Speaker 3:Just saying um well, I think both can benefit. Honestly, I was benefiting.
Speaker 1:I was reading, too. This is really good, um. What gave you that idea, though, to integrate the design? I know you talked a little bit about how it integrates together, but what gave you that idea to integrate your experience and design with writing and with devotionals?
Speaker 3:weren't really like. People weren't like oh yeah, let's do that, you know. And so I was trying to find what was my, what was my toe in the door and really try to understand. You know where could I go. And I felt like traditional publishing was something I wanted to do first and then I could explore other avenues. So I had written several short devotionals with other people, I was in several anthologies and so I was taking okay, I know how to do this. Obviously, people have paid me, thankfully, you know to write these short devotionals.
Speaker 3:So I think there's something there. And then I know I've got this experience and this person who's in the industry that I can talk ideas back and forth with and HTTP is so popular Like who wouldn't want like a little short devotional that's got beautiful pictures? And you know, part of my passion too is is to try to find a way to create something beautiful to put in somebody's hand like a gift or a coffee table book or something where you could start a gospel conversation with somebody right, without it being super awkward. I want a book where maybe somebody who's not a Christian would maybe pick it up and take a look at it and then be interested in maybe reading just a little bit more and maybe getting an idea of, well, maybe that Christian thing's not so bad, and being able to open the door for the gospel conversation. So for me it just it was one of those things where the lights just kind of kept clicking for me that we could integrate these two things. And wouldn't it be really awesome if somebody got excited about it and somebody did, and that's kind of how it got started.
Speaker 3:The first book was followed quickly by a Christmas book and then it was which book do we do next? And after COVID hit, I thought you know what? Everybody's going to be home and they're all going to just enjoy their family time together. It's going to be great, it's going to be wonderful.
Speaker 3:Marriages are going to get stronger, and that's not what happened. You know, everybody's under the one roof. The fissures, the arguments, the conflicts, all kind of escalated, and so my heart was I really need to do something that's geared towards marriage, to really try to encourage marriage. People have gotten married during this time and they haven't had their celebrations, and so I just wanted to write something. Not because I'm an expert I mean, we're here at 25 years and I think both my husband and myself would tell you we are not experts years, and I think both both my husband and myself would tell you we are not experts. I'm an only child and he's a firstborn. So conflict is, you know, frequent and we have to figure it out often. But it's something that I'm passionate about encouraging because it's hard. It's hard to work together. It's hard work, and I think sometimes we have a vision of marriage that it should be easier than it is and if it's not, something's wrong with it.
Speaker 2:Absolutely.
Speaker 1:Before you say something, I will say for not being an expert. The handful of passages that I read through were dead on. They're very, very good, well thought out and really modernized, in a sense. For today, it was very good, thank you.
Speaker 2:So the title is really what drew me in and I think that it's so relevant to millennials and also for our phase of life right now, which guard your heart and home. And at first glance it's like, okay, well, how does this tie in? But thinking about so, Corey and I have traveled a lot in our life. We moved cross country. We love to travel. We moved to California from Ohio and then we moved back to Ohio from California and truly up until recently, probably within the last year, we always said, okay, we're just going to keep traveling. We can travel with kids, Our kids are, we'll just, we're just going to keep traveling. You know, we can travel with kids, Our kids are great travelers and we're just going to keep doing this.
Speaker 2:And then our hearts started shifting and we started just feeling like it was time for us to get rooted and we were felt like we were lacking something, but we didn't really know what and we realized that for us it was community and connection and having those close friendships where it's not just superficial, or you pat, you know they're back and they'll pat yours, but like you do life together and you take dinners to each other when you're sick, and so I feel like that really is the heart of this book, and I also think that it's something that our generation is really missing out on.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I mean, I am passionate about the idea of our homes being a place of mission, like a mission outpost, right, an extension of the church, without it being overbearing or churchy for people, and where we can say, listen, you're welcome in my place, even if you have to sit and fold laundry with me, you know. I mean, I think we are so accustomed to kind of putting up you know a mask and saying, well, I can't let you know that I'm, I don't have it all together, because then what will you think of me? Will you still be my friend? But that's where our friendships really are rooted is when people do discover, you know, like you really do have an issue, you've got 40 loads of laundry that need to be done, you know. Then then we like, oh well, me too, you know, like that me too.
Speaker 3:Moment where we realize, hey, I've got the same issues you do. We're not perfect and we're not trying to tell people we're perfect. You know, we've got conflict, or we do have dishes that need to be washed, or you know there's dust bunnies in the corner. The house isn't great, you know, but come over anyway, because I care about you. I wrote a book about hospitality last year and I said you know, a lot of times it's clutter. You know that keeps me from people, right, I'd have too many things.
Speaker 2:And then people walk in and they don't feel comfortable in the space, and you know I'm passionate about saying listen, get rid of the stuff, cause if stuff keeps me from people, then then it's. It's not right, it's wrong. Yeah, man, that's good. So do you think? Do you see? I'm wondering if you see a shift in like? Do you feel like people are less connected than they used to be?
Speaker 3:Yeah, I mean first of all, prior to COVID and pandemic and quarantine and all of the words that all relate to the last what two, almost two years of our lives? Um it, it seemed like we were all so busy it was really hard to do life together. Um, we have three children. We've gone through that whole phase where you make everybody do one activity so that you can at least have some safety in your life, right.
Speaker 3:But it's still three activities, right, we're right there Almost. And ours are not the same age. We have two that are four years apart and two that are three years apart, so it's not like they're all doing the same thing at the same time. So two of you are going in one direction and somebody's hoping that the other one can catch up at some point. I mean, three is just who planned that? You know, two would have been so much easier, maybe four, I don't know.
Speaker 3:But um, we, we went through, we've been through that. Like it's so busy. There's not a night free there's, especially if you're going to church and you're trying to be plugged in and doing church activities or we work, we're tired at the end of the day. It is hard to connect with people. It's so much easier just to come home, flip the garage door down and hide for a little while.
Speaker 3:And I do want our homes to be places where we're comfortable and we want to hide sometimes, but we can't just stay there. We can't just stay there. We can't be content, because I really do think our homes have this great opportunity where we don't have to entertain an entire plethora of people. We don't need 20 people in the house in order to consider it hospitality. We could just have another couple come over and say I'm ordering pizza tonight, you want to come over and just hang out? I mean, it doesn't have to be complicated. I think we overcomplicate. What hospitality, what home really looks like? What bringing other people into our space looks like, when we should just be just hey, come, come, hang out, come live life. We did that so much better before we got married and had kids. Right, it was we hung out with our friends. Why do we? Why do we think that it all should change at this point, that we have to have a plan and, you know, do all these things.
Speaker 2:I mentioned before we hit record. But we are currently living in an apartment, we're working on getting out of debt and I feel like I totally do use the apartment as an excuse to have people over. I mean, all the time to my friends I'm like, oh, when we get a house, I'll have the kids over. When we get a house, I'll have the kids over. When we get a house, we'll be the ones to host, I promise. But I do think that it is kind of a lie that we have to wait. So I'm wondering I'm imagining somebody out there who kind of feels the same. Maybe they already have a house, but the house isn't decorated or, like you said, there's clutter. Do you have any words of encouragement to that person who is out there?
Speaker 3:Absolutely. I remember when I first moved here to Mississippi, a lot of people collected this whole pottery thing, and so there were times where I was super inadequate. It was a feeling that I had. Now, nobody told me you're supposed to have these things. It was me, it was all me, and it's an attitude of my heart, really, at the end of the day, of thinking so much about myself that I'm worried about what other people will think of me if I don't have all the right things.
Speaker 3:And it's a it's a matter of really trying to flip that perspective. If, if my viewpoint on the things that God has given me is that all of it's his and I can flip that view of I'm just using his things the way he would have me to, then it helps me say well, you know what we need to have people over, because that's what this is God's house. You know this is God's dishes, this is God's everything. And um, there are a few key things that I like to keep on hand, like whether it's lemonade mix or whether it's some cookies or something handy, so that I don't feel completely inept, you know, if somebody shows up at my door, but but I think it's more of a heart condition when I think too much about my stuff or my lack of stuff.
Speaker 3:It's really all about people and if I can, if I can ever flip my heart around, and when I do let people in, when I just say yes, even when I feel like, oh my word, you know, like they're never going to talk to me again, when I do let people in, then it's always so therapeutic for me too, and I always am happy when they leave. So I have to kind of remind myself of that, like yes, I'm stressed out, but you know they've come in and they've already seen me warts and all, and they still like me, which is a miracle. So we're just going to go with it, you know, we're just going to be happy about it.
Speaker 2:I do. I feel like there's so many benefits to just like being who you are, coming as you are. It allows you to let your walls down. It takes those relationships to a whole nother level, and I love what you said. It's like shift your focus, because when you're so worried about it, it really is kind of self-centered rather than coming from a heart of service where it's like who cares? Let's just think about other people. And if they don't, if they are not okay with there being goldfish on the couch, then Right.
Speaker 3:I mean I think we should do all we can, but at some point you know like you can only do so much. And then you say, just come on in my space If there's something about that that makes us feel known, makes us feel seen, and it makes that other person feel known and seen. And really I think that that's what I love. When I really understand how God loves me, it's because he knows me and he sees me. And when I understand that, then I can express that to other people and that's what I want them to know about God. And I think it's really hard to do that without, without gathering together and welcoming people in and just saying, hi, man, I wish I had it all together. I'm a perfectionist at heart. I wish I could tell you, you know, like the house has been ready since 8am but it hasn't been.
Speaker 3:I just got done vacuuming five minutes ago. I mean, those are the lessons that I have to learn over and over again, and it's been years and years of it, but I keep putting myself into that situation because I know that's what God wants from me.
Speaker 1:Yes, I feel like it's obviously a heart issue, but also I think sometimes it's a perspective issue too that we talked about a few episodes ago, just with our, you know, desiring to have a house over an apartment. But if you shift your perspective you know so many just in America it's like checking the boxes. Sometimes we got to have the big house and the nice cars and have all the nice things. But there are people in America that don't have that, that have a small place and don't have all the nice things that are inviting people into their home. And if you go to some of the other countries they would die to have that thousand square foot apartment and have the things that we have.
Speaker 1:And the other thing, too, is the perspective of you know everybody's doing this scramble when people are coming over, like you don't. You weren't in the house all day with the family that was getting ready for you to come over. I guarantee you they were sweeping five minutes before they came in and wiping the counters down and making sure everything was set and ready to go to. If we're all like that, then we should just have more grace for ourselves to realize that we're all doing that Right and we're all kind of in the same spot. Nobody's got it all together.
Speaker 3:We're all doing that right and we're all kind of in the same spot. Nobody's got it all together Absolutely, and I think it's important too. As you mentioned, we are so blessed already being where we are in the US and in America and being able to have the spaces that we do, big or small. One of the things I wanted in this particular book for Guard your Heart and Home was to make sure we highlight simple spaces, Because as newlyweds, as people getting started, as young couples, you can't have all the stuff.
Speaker 3:There's not enough money necessarily for most folks to start their lives together and to have what they had at home growing up, because it took years to accumulate that. It took years to get to that point. And sometimes we get married and we get started and we think, oh, we've got to have it all right now and that's really not the way it should be. You know we should have to work towards that and get there one day, if that's the plan, but we don't really have to have all that stuff either. I think we just need to free ourselves from some of those expectations and it's a financial stressor, right? I mean, if you start to spend too much money then then everybody's kind of a conflict as well, because of finances and who wants. Who wants to argue about money.
Speaker 2:I mean, that's that's not fun, Right beauty and peace in your everyday life, and I know we talked about this all because I think that the decoration, that's the beauty part, and then connecting, but ultimately I feel like the connection is what leads to the peace.
Speaker 2:That's what, at least, how I have felt over the last year, as we are getting rooted in Ohio and really finding that deep connection.
Speaker 2:It's just made life so much richer, and so I feel like almost in every episode I'm preaching this because I do think that it's this. I hate to say it's just millennials, because I really don't think it's just millennials, it's just this social media mindset where we connect online, we message each other online, maybe we meet up for a brief coffee day after six cancellations, but beyond the coffee date. That's where we need to go. We need to go beyond the coffee date. We need to invite people into our homes and share our hearts with people and do life with people, and I think that is when the peace comes, because, as you've said throughout this whole episode, yes, connecting is important, but ultimately we're sharing our hearts and we're sharing Christ and we're sharing what God is teaching us, and we can share that with with each other. You know what I mean and so, um, I don't really know what my question is, but uh, you have anything you want to say about that Cause.
Speaker 2:It's just something I feel so passionate about and I don't really know how to verbalize the importance of it.
Speaker 3:Right, I, you know, I one of my mission statements. My mission statement is create beauty, cultivate community and leverage all the resources to impact the kingdom. So I mean it's right, that's right what I'm trying to do with, with whether I'm writing a book or I'm playing a song on the piano or whatever I'm doing with my family I'm trying to figure out ways to create beauty, because we're all inspired by it, we love it. Some of us more than others, some of us are drawn visually to beautiful things.
Speaker 3:Not that we need to buy them, but we can create beauty around us too, and beauty and peace kind of go hand in hand, especially if we've decluttered, if we've removed things that are in our way of hindering that just that moment in our home where we can be together, where we can be home. And so, you know, I want to create beauty, but I want to cultivate community too, because that's really where we, like you said you know we want to live life together and we all crave that, said you know we want to live a life together and we all crave that. And I think, now more than ever, you know we were, we were limited and I thought, oh, this is great. You know our families are going to be stronger and tighter and everybody's just kind of itching to get away because they all want to be with their people and and hang out and and I get that too we, we, we crave that community, that connection where we can just kind of be. We don't have to be somebody else.
Speaker 2:Yeah, okay, this is a more lighthearted questions, a little bit selfish too, but do you have any tips that we can take away? So maybe budget friendly, easy changes that we can make within our houses, or even just stuff that we can do with things that we already have, to make our house, um, you know, more of a haven?
Speaker 3:Well, I think you know. First of all, don't discount bringing the beauty from the outdoors inside plants and flowers and these things are not only fun to try to keep alive.
Speaker 3:I'm not always sometimes you have to find the right, the right plants. You know that you can keep alive, but there are succulents and succulents, seem to, you know, survive almost anything. So don't discount bringing the outdoors inside, because there's just something really soothing about that as well. It's like having nature inside your home and being comfortable. But I love just the concept of shopping your house. You know even the panels that are behind me today. They've been in different places all around our home. They're not just fixed into one room. The room stays this way forever. Uh, we, we move things around frequently and I think a lot of people forget they can do that, whether it's small accessories or a chair or blankets and pillows. Instead of going out and buying brand to a different spot, move things around and it feels. It feels like new again and don't be. I mean, the biggest thing you can do is clean up a room and paint, and that sometimes is the cheapest. Uh, update, refresh that you can do without having to spend a lot of money.
Speaker 1:That's awesome I love that and we've experienced that because we. The first thing we did actually was we uh pulled up some old carpet that was in our basement, put some other stuff down, painted and it brightened it up and rearranged some things, and then recently, after about two years, we shifted.
Speaker 1:there's really only two ways you can put our living room, but we shifted it to the second way and decluttered a few things and now it's like way more open. You can roll around on the floor with the kids a little bit more and it's yeah, we went from.
Speaker 2:We got to get out of this house. Now we've been house hunting. We need to move, like yesterday and then we moved the living room.
Speaker 3:We're like maybe we could stay and save up for another year that's super important too, because the rooms that we have in our house, we don't need to listen to anybody else else Tell us what needs to happen in that room. Um, I have a friend and I who talked about this all the time. The room actually needs to work for your family in the season you're in right now. As if it doesn't, then what are you doing? You're just trying to fake it or trying to make a room because you're supposed to have that. When, in reality, you took your living room, you made it a space where you guys can play on the floor, where the kids are going to have great memories from that in the future, and I think that's so wise. I don't know why we don't do that more.
Speaker 1:For sure. Before we end, I want to give a guy's ringing endorsement of this book. I just, I'll be honest, I just looked at it today, but I was reading through the passages. First off, it's just a different book than I've ever seen before, because on the outside it looks like it would be purely like a design book. And you open it and there are design elements intertwined, amazing, which you know as a husband. You kind of let your for me at least, it is, kind of let Beth design what our house is going to look like, not girl it up too much and keep things clean. But if you're even a guy, that isn't is living on your own, like you know the stereotype of guys living on their own with apartments or houses look like like.
Speaker 1:this gives you some good design tips, and I know that devotionals are geared towards women, but a lot of it is just speaks to anybody. So it's really good advice and tips and it's a cool thing, just like you said. That was an interesting thing. That you said for your thoughts on the book was if you just have it out, this is a book that you can have out. It's beautiful. Somebody might pick it up and think it's just you know it's a design thing and they open it and then you can expose people to Jesus, which is really cool. And the devotionals, like I said earlier, are very. They're really good. They're quick, but they're deep and just very well thought out. I really enjoyed the at least the small amount of time I've looked so far, victoria, it's really really good.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and I have had it because I'm a book hog and have been looking at it for the last couple of weeks. But I will say it's a great gift, especially with the holidays coming up. If you're looking for a gift for your mother-in-law or for your mom or whoever. It's such a pretty gift and I don't know. I'm all about gifts that have purpose and don't just add to the clutter, because I hate clutter and I feel like this is like right on the mark and it serves multiple purposes. Yeah.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I appreciate that it's. It's a. It's been a fun project, you know, to work through. I've got some great Instagram friends that have contributed Um, and you'll see their names in there as well. They, you know, blend faith and family really well on their Instagram pages and their blogs and they're just so gracious to share some of their really great photos and their tips. We got design tips and marriage tips and just, you know, just practical everyday things that sometimes you don't think about. And and having a short devotional, it has one, you know, scripture passage and one prayer. You know that's my goal is sometimes we can't keep up with the three point, you know outline. We've got to have one thing and then we can meditate on it. I think it just facilitates being able to actually think through it during the day and really be able to meditate, and I hope that it will be an encouragement for sure.
Speaker 2:It definitely will. I totally believe that. Thank you so much for coming on the show today. I don't know. I love this conversation. I feel like I want to go remove, like move around the living room again and get an end table.
Speaker 1:It would just go back to where it was, because we only got two ways we can shift it.
Speaker 2:Victoria, thank you so much. We appreciate you and your time and we'll put the link to all of your information and where you can get the book in the show notes.
Speaker 3:Awesome. Thank you guys so much for having me. It was so fun.