Friday Favorites with author Wendy Speake, co-author of Life Creative: Inspiration for Today’s Renaissance Mom.
In our social media age of handcrafted children’s parties, artistic Instagram photos, tutorials for renovating old furniture into new treasures and blogs filled with poetry, prose and other expression, clearly a brand-new generation of inspired women is rising up. It is a renaissance born not in Italian cathedrals or Harlem jazz clubs, but in kitchens, nurseries and living rooms around the world. However, when Christian women become mothers, they often feel expected to give up their creative pursuits to parent properly.
Wendy Speake and Kelli Stuart know that struggle. While they acknowledge some seasons of mothering require setting artistic pursuits aside, they also argue these seasons don’t have to last until empty nest time. Instead, mothers with creative gifts are called to use them actively to bless their families, their communities and everyone they encounter. “Life Creative is not a book about raising children,” Speake shares. “This is a book for moms, written by moms and including the stories of other moms . . . on a journey to embrace our God-given design in the midst of motherhood!”
In this book, the creative mom will discover:
- Why the world needs her art
- How this Life Creative begins at home
- When art can turn a profit
- Her part in this modern day Renaissance
Wendy Speake is a trained actress and heartfelt teacher. She ministers to women’s hearts through storytelling and life applications. During her career in Hollywood, on shows such as JAG, Melrose Place, Star Trek Voyager and Roswell, Speake found herself longing to tell stories that edify and encourage women. She is the author of Triggers: Exchanging Parents’ Angry Reactions for Gentle Biblical Responses (BRU Press, 2015). Speake is a wife and homeschooling mother of three boys.
Find Speake online at wendyspeake.com, on Facebook (WendyJSpeake) and on Twitter (@Wendy_Speake).
Kelli Stuart is a writer and a storyteller at heart. She has written for several websites including The Huffington Post, 5 Minutes for Mom, The MOB Society, (in)courage and Compassion International. Stuart is the author of three books, including Like a River from Its Course (Kregel Publications, 2016). Stuart is a noted speaker, sharing her encouraging message never to give up on your dreams and passions with mothers who often feel lost in motherhood. Stuart her husband live in Florida with their four children.
Visit Stuart’s website at kellistuart.com or follow her on Facebook (KelliStuartAuthor) and Twitter (@kellistuart).
Inspiring and encouraging, Life Creative celebrates the ways mothers can live their art in the midst of mothering. Speake and Stuart share the stories of women such as author and speaker Angie Smith, recording artist Ellie Holcomb and jewelry designer Lisa Leonard, who are balancing their unique talents and giftings with the daily demands of motherhood. By following God’s leading to embrace His gifts, renaissance moms can model the joy of obedience for their families. Life Creative is part visit with a good friend over coffee, part muse of inspiration for the tired heart and a masterclass for start-up home businesses rolled into one.
Learn more about more about Life Creative at www.lifecreative.me, and join the community on Instagram (@lifecreative).
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