RESOURCES from 4word

4word Blog

The Relationship You’ve Been Waiting For

We blinked and February is done! It's been so refreshing to see the response to this month's discussion on relationships. As we shared back at the beginning of this month, relationships are something to think of beyond the constraints of romantic love and Valentine's Day. Our lives… Read More

Why Love Takes Work

Every February, we’re inundated with messages about love, and the focus is almost always on romance. While loving and serving our significant other is important, God has blessed each of us with many different types of relationships and calls us to love others as He has loved us.… Read More

I Never Wanted To Be Divorced

When it comes to “relationships,” women tend to throw more of their time, energy, and even money into the ring to keep things “just right.” Chances are, you are one of these women, and chances are, all of your efforts are going to waste. Catherine Gates, Director of… Read More

Is This Why Relationships Fail?

If you had three seconds to state your most important relationship, what would you come up with? If you're married, it would likely be your spouse. Single? Maybe your best friend, sibling, or even parent. No matter which life stage you're in, "relationship" is an evident… Read More

Finding Strength in Friendship

Are all friendships equal? Do Christian friendships have an edge over your other friendships? Author Beth Hicks weighs in on the uniqueness of Christian friendships and how you can benefit from them. ------ 4word: What led you to become a Christian author? Beth: I became a Christian… Read More

Run to Him for Rest

“Rest” and “peace” are noticeably absent in almost everyone’s lives, and yet, they are vital to being at the top of our game. Susan Thomas, author of The Best Life and Girlfriend Revolution, and co-founder of Keystone Church, shares her advice for finding and maintaining time to rest.… Read More

Eating Lunch Alone at Your Desk

Who in your workplace do you consider to be a friend? When we say "friend," we don't mean someone who works on your floor that you see every morning for a few minutes before the craziness of your day starts. We're also not talking about the team member… Read More

Let’s Take the Time to Get Down & Dirty!

What is keeping you from building deep friendships? One of the key pillars of 4word is building connections between women. Authentic, supportive relationships with people who “get you” and can speak into your life in myriad ways. In fact I devoted an entire section of Work, Love, Pray to… Read More

Are You a Yucky Friend?

When is the last time you spoke with your friends? It can often be difficult for working women to make time for friendships, especially if you’re married or in a serious dating relationship. And if you add kids to the mix, friendships can become even harder.  The truth… Read More

Put Your Cell Phone Away

On a scale of 1 to 10, how much of a multi-tasker are you? Honestly? I’m probably an 11. And I’m not entirely sure how my life would work if I weren’t that way. Sometimes, doing two things at once is the only way I get anything done… Read More

Mentoring Outside the Box

As a professional Christian woman who started 4word to minister specifically to professional Christian women, the most likely scope of my mentorship is pretty clear. Over the past few years though, I’ve had the unique experience of mentoring someone whose life looks almost nothing like mine. Nevertheless, I… Read More

Advice to My Younger Self

As part of an ongoing series, NPR has been asking working women to offer advice to their “younger selves.” It’s great to look back and really think about what kinds of things I could have done differently or realized earlier. If I could go back to when I… Read More

Where Does God Run?

What a week this has been. I arrived in Boston last Wednesday night for the  Salvation Army National Advisory Board meeting, already shaken from news of the Boston Marathon bombings. The next morning I woke up to hear about the devastating explosion in West, Texas.  By Friday we… Read More

The Simple Secret to Building Successful Relationships

I’ve been thinking about relationship-building a lot lately. A few weeks ago I explored how Facebook can help you build stronger relationships. Then last week I had the honor of attending and speaking at Co-Lab, a conference for a diverse group of Christian ministry leaders including Nancy Ortberg… Read More

How Facebook Can Improve Your Relationships (Or Ruin Them)

Okay, I’m not what you might consider a “Facebook expert.” And I never really intend to be. As I mentioned last week, there's a lot I'm still learning about social technology. While I think it's important to understand how it works in business, parenting, and even church communities,… Read More

Feeling Isolated in the Workplace

Do you have any friends at work? I’ve noticed that, even though more women are in the workplace now than ever before, many of us still eat our lunches alone. The guys have their little clubs that hold “official” meetings during their lunch breaks, but we women still… Read More