Showing Up Brave

Claire was newly married, new-ish to Seattle, and searching for resources to feed her relationship with God when she saw an advertisement for Live Salted’s Reimagine Conference. “I went online and looked up ‘women’s Bible studies’, and Live Salted came up. I thought, this looks cool. They have all kinds of resources and all kinds of folks in the pictures and hey … they have a conference coming up!” 

So she went, leaning into the Spirit’s nudging rather than the apprehension she felt about stepping into a room full of women she didn’t know.

But, it wasn’t God’s intention for her to experience Reimagine on her own. “I walked in the door at the same time as this other gal. The woman at the door asked if we had come with a group and both me and this gal Ashley said we were on our own. We both just looked at each other and said, ‘let’s be friends today!’ So we got our coffee and sat down. I found out that we had a lot in common. We both had brothers, both were newly married. And I thought, I needed something like this!“

“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” – Philippians 4:8

The rest of the conference left Claire in a place of wonderment. “Seeing women in all walks of life—young and old, middle-aged mothers and not yet mothers, folks of all colors and in all stages of life—and all seemingly wanting to be there! There was this constant sense of community that I could see and I could feel! It was a good experience.”

Claire says as a newcomer to Seattle, she’s been joining various events and meet-ups around the city to make friends. The problem is, the interactions often leave her feeling depleted, rather than filled. “Not because of the activity itself, but because I feel like I have to be a certain way—upbeat or whatever—but you can be your genuine self at Live Salted events. Automatically knowing we have Jesus at the center makes the connection more supportive and renewing.” Someone Claire feels she can be herself around is her first friend at Live Salted, Ashley, who is now a close friend. “We have met quite a few times since Reimagine. We’ve even met each other’s families. God brought us into each other’s lives for a good reason.”

“Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind.” Philippians 2:1-2

Choosing to Stay Connected

Since the conference, Claire has attended more Live Salted meet-ups and attended our weekly, online summer Bible study series. Not only is she gaining scripture knowledge and building up her community of faith, she’s learning how to live intimately with God on a daily basis. “We share what we’re grateful for, and then sit in prayer. We have a moment of silence for God to say something to us—lead us in the direction we’re going to read. Having the study each Wednesday morning spurs on the rest of my day. It gives me a faith connection throughout the week.”

Claire’s story is a beautiful reminder that when we nimbly react to God’s nudges, we will find more of Him and His people on the other side. We’re so excited to have Claire as a part of our Live Salted community. If you’re also desiring more connection with kingdom-minded women in the Greater Seattle area, you can find our events calendar here and see the current events online.