The Women We've Been Waiting For
A 40-Day Devotional for Self-Care, Resilience, and Communal Flourishing
About
These days, society tells women they can buy self-care in a store or cross it off a to-do list.
In this 40-day devotional, Tiffany Bluhm invites women into a deeper, more meaningful understanding of self-care that includes faith, rest, joy, lament, collaboration, and empowerment. Bluhm shows how self-care is critical to women's spiritual growth and empowerment to make a difference in the world.
The Women We've Been Waiting For weaves together Scripture, liturgies, and stories of historical figures to show women that caring for themselves is the first step toward renewing their own souls and tackling the social problems they care most about. Bluhm draws from her own writing as well as guest contributions from a diverse group of clergywomen, authors, and activists. Each devotion invites readers to learn from women who have managed tension, survived the seemingly impossible, and embodied a resilient faith.
Readers will emerge from their 40-day journey with a more vibrant spirituality to fuel them in their everyday lives.
Contents
Introduction 000
Part 1: Matriarchs of the Past
1. Holy and Whole
2. Last at the Cross
3. Know Better, Do Better by Patricia Taylor
4. Mothers of the Movement
5. Dreams of the Matriarchs by Ashlee Eiland
6. Birthright
7. Healing
8. Prayers of Our Mothers by Susie Gamez
Part 2: Holy Endurance
9. Advocates for Rest
10. Lionhearted Liturgies
11. Get in Formation by Nikole Lim
12. Crafting Conditions of Care
13. Lament to Heal
14. A Culture of Belonging by Lucretia Carter Berry
15. Your Beautiful Body
16. Discernment
Part 3: The Stories That Form Us
17. Gentleness
18. Reclaiming What's Been Lost
19. Befriending Grief by Keisha Polonio
20. Her Story
21. The Stories We Tell Ourselves
22. Waiting
23. Who Is Pure? by Angie Kay Hong
24. Despair and the Divine
Part 4: Formation of the Soul
25. Collateral Damage
26. We Remember You by Ariana Altiery- Rivera
27. Magnificent Refuge
28. Navigating Burnout by Kayla Craig
29. Righteous Defiance
30. Steadfast Joy
31. Carry One Another
32. Bearing Witness
Part 5: Future Liberation
33. Arrival
34. We Go High
35. The Future Belongs to Us by Pricelis Perreaux- Dominguez
36. Consent to Reality
37. Hospitality amid Hostility
38. Who Are We Becoming? by Sara Shaban
39. Love Is the Final Fight
40. Becoming a Non- anxious Presence
Endorsements
"Our collective flourishing requires a practice of solidarity, which is embodied within the very structure of this book. Tiffany invites us to celebrate historical figures and biblical matriarchs who inspire us as we wrestle with God, surrounded by the wisdom of our sisters. Individuals and communities will feel empowered as they learn from this collection of voices."
Sandra María Van Opstal, pastor, professor, and author of The Next Worship
"Immerse yourself in the stories, lives, and actions of biblical women and historical figures for healing, restoration, and flourishing. This devotional by Tiffany Bluhm is refreshing, nourishing, and empowering. Read and reflect on Bluhm's words for sustenance, self-care, and encouragement."
Grace Ji-Sun Kim, professor of theology, Earlham School of Religion; author of When God Became White and Invisible
"The Women We've Been Waiting For is a bold and beautiful reminder of all the women--in Scripture and beyond--who have gone before us in the struggle for justice and liberation. Through stories of those who exhibit both tender vulnerability and fierce strength, Bluhm and others invite us to ponder, to grieve, to celebrate, to hope, and to bring our full selves to the sacred table for the sake of our individual and collective flourishing."
Kat Armas, author of Abuelita Faith and host of The Protagonistas podcast
"Most women I know long for mothers and sisters who will walk with us, navigate challenges beside us, and offer us wisdom when we don't know which way is up. Luckily, Tiffany Bluhm and her coalition of powerhouse writers have seen that longing and answered it with a round of introductions. As it turns out, the women we've been waiting for were around us--and within us--the whole time."
Shannon K. Evans, author of The Mystics Would Like a Word, Feminist Prayers for My Daughter, and Rewilding Motherhood
The Author
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Derek Bluhm Tiffany Bluhm
Tiffany Bluhm is a speaker and writer with more than fifteen years of experience in ministry and nonprofit leadership. She is the author of Never Alone, She Dreams, and Prey Tell and former cohost of the Why Tho? podcast. She speaks...
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