Happy weekend, everyone!

Welcome to another round of Five Minute Friday! If you’re new here, you can learn more about this fun writing challenge and community by clicking here.

This week I’m thrilled and honored to welcome Trillia Newbell as our guest writer!

I had the pleasure of interviewing Trillia back in June 2015 when her second book, Fear and Faith, was released. Sharing again here so you can catch some of her enthusiasm and passion:

 

 

Then God orchestrated a way for her to attend the Five Minute Friday retreat in Nashville two months later to share a morning devotional with us! Her presence was such a gift!

 

 

And now here we are approaching December 2016, and Trillia has a third book that is about to release!

It’s called Enjoy: Finding the Freedom to Delight Daily in God’s Good Gifts.

Here’s a synopsis:

Enjoy is based on the premise that God is an awesome and incredibly generous creator. He has given us all we need for life and godliness as well as good things for us to enjoy for our benefit and his glory. From human relationships and spiritual joy to the texture and taste of chocolate cake and the wonder of nature, we have so many reasons to delight in our gift-giving God. Enjoy explores in-depth what it means to live and walk in this fallen world while, at the same time, appreciating the abundant gifts God invites us to be thankful for, to celebrate, and to enjoy.

 

Right now, when you pre-order Enjoy, you will receive a free advent devotional. To learn more about Enjoy and this giveaway, please visit trillianewbell.com or http://www.trillianewbell.com/preorder/.

 

 

In honor of Trillia’s new book, this week’s Five Minute Friday prompt is:

 

 

[Tweet “Join us as we write for five minutes on the prompt, ENJOY!”]

 

And here’s Trillia’s five minute post!

Five Minute Friday: Enjoy

by Trillia Newbell

 

Right now I’m sitting in my car at my children’s school waiting to partake in my second Thanksgiving-style lunch.

 

It’s sunny, uniquely warm for this time of year, and I’m writing on a pad of paper, and timing myself to write about Enjoy is difficult. How do I sum it up so quickly?

 

I’m grateful. I’m thankful for the chance to sit across lunch tables as my children share about their day and join in laughter with their friends. One of the kids begged me to let him come home with us. Before I left, he asked, “So, are you going to text my mom?”

 

The contents of our special Thanksgiving lunch were good—though not spectacular. But I was glad to be able to thank the principal and security guard as they dished out turkey, stuffing, green beans, and sweet potato casserole. I sat and savored the green beans. They reminded me of Thanksgivings growing up and that soon I would be with my mom and sisters, which is always a blast. Such joy and laughter, even as we mourn the absence of our father and oldest sister. Sorrowful, yet always rejoicing.

 

My five minutes are almost up. Bummer. I’m enjoying this exercise.

 

Today, I’m thankful for the little things that I get to enjoy. From the sunshine, to the laughter of pre-teen boys, to the anticipation of time with loved ones—these are all gifts from God.

 

For five minutes I’ve been reminded that God is the giver of all good things, even the little things. May I remember his goodness, today and every day.

 

STOP.

 

What about you? What are you stopping to ENJOY today?

 

Trillia Newbell is the author of Enjoy: Finding the Freedom to Delight Daily in God’s Good Gifts, Fear and Faith: Finding the Peace Your Heart Craves (2015) and United: Captured by God’s Vision for Diversity (2014). Her writings on issues of faith, family, and diversity have been published in the Knoxville News-Sentinel, Desiring God, Christianity Today, Relevant Magazine, The Gospel Coalition, and more. She is currently Director of Community Outreach for the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission for the Southern Baptist Convention. For fun, she enjoys group fitness (she used to be a fitness instructor!), cycling, and listening to a variety of music. Trillia is married to her best friend, Thern, they reside with their two children near Nashville, TN. You can find her at trillianewbell.com and follow her on twitter at @trillianewbell.

 

And … before we go — as promised, we’re celebrating GIVEAWAY MONTH at Five Minute Friday as a way to express our gratitude to each of you for your presence here!

 

 

This week I’m thrilled to share that KraftyKash has generously donated a beautiful necklace to offer as a giveaway!

I just adore KraftyKash products, don’t you? (By the way, you can use code katemotaung at checkout to get 10% off your order! Can you say Christmas shopping?) 😉

 

 

This weekend, KraftyKash is offering this MOTHER necklace to one winner!

 

(I think the anchor on this one might be my favorite part because it says so much about what a mother is!)

Enter to win using the Rafflecopter giveaway below:
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Giveaway ends Sunday night, November 20th at 11:59pm EST. Winner must have a U.S. mailing address.

 

Affiliate links were used in this post.

 

Oh, and by the way — we *will* have a link-up next week, even though it’s Thanksgiving weekend! I have some more fun surprises lined up for you, so don’t miss out! Have a happy and blessed Thanksgiving, friends!