Kristin Saatzer

Purposeful Encouragement

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Fill My Christmas Plate With People, Please!

November 30, 2022 By Kristin Saatzer 4 Comments

On Christmas Eve of 2020, we ate take-out Chinese and watched an online church service, desperately missing our extended family and our special holiday traditions together. Later, on that oh-so-strange night, I lay on the couch, tears falling, and told myself that I would never again take family and friends for granted. Or crowds, live church, in-person shopping, or in-person anything! Shoulder to shoulder, face to face, hand to hand. People.

These last few years have changed all of us.

In the curriculum called the Covid Years, I’ve learned an old lesson in a new way: relationships are vital. We all know this. And I’ve always felt this as fact but wow, was it drilled down in those weird times. I vowed then to intentionally make my loved-ones and Jesus my focus each holiday. Despite the oddness and sadness, there was a beautiful unfussiness in the 2020 holiday and life seemed slower.

Yes, responsibilities are important and necessary, and during the holidays, many of us juggle more than our typical load. So often, I struggle to get it all done while remaining present. There is a boost in my self-esteem, a feeling of value that surges when I am uber-productive. I’m addicted to checking things off my list to the detriment of my relationships. I love people, and I love God, but if I’m not careful, I’m swept up in my typical seasonal trap. Yes, most items on my list are others-focused (buying gifts, charitable giving, baking, cooking, house tasks, etc.) But I want (and need) to connect deeply in my relationships at Christmas.

Perhaps a bit of Patty (or Paul) Productivity lives in you as well?Continue Reading

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Feel the Feels

March 19, 2020 By Kristin Saatzer 2 Comments

Last Thursday, after the word came that my job is no more (for now), I lazed on the couch in my pj’s, remote in hand, and watched the news. Melancholy took over. It was a blue day for America and our family. A day of loss. As my kids called in with their reports of school and sports shutdowns, job losses, no graduations, etc., fear knocked on the door to join the disappointment. A full cocktail of emotions.

Yes, I know that we are fortunate. We are healthy and my husband is still employed, and I get to hang with my kids, a lot. We have a roof overhead and a safe place to lay our heads. But the gloom and surrealness of Thursday took its toll and I let myself feel the feels.

I imagine you are feeling them too and that is okay.

Yesterday, a friend confided that she is experiencing persistent panic attacks. She’s not alone. The bad news is relentless with daily death counts and stats of the sick. People are frightened in mass; we see this illuminated by the hoarding of toilet paper. Fear is the ruling force in our culture.

And there’s the time thing- It seems there was never enough and now I have plenty. It’s odd how it shifted so significantly in one day. As I move into this new normal, I want to make the most of this “gift” of quarantine.

Although I am still bummed (and letting myself be so), I sense a shift in my soul as I push past the malaise and grab my Savior’s hand. In almost every trial of my adult life, I’ve turned to Him (although sometimes stiff-necked), and that ain’t going to change now. God is the stability of my life. When I open the Bible, wisdom springs up via the Lord’s counsel and with courage-laced words. Therefore, I must soak up God’s truths as I entrust this weird period in our world and my own life to Jesus and ask Him to infuse my heart with help. With courage.

And with compassion toward those who hurt. Those who are afraid. Even the toilet paper-hoarders.

I want to make the most of my time by being a praying friend. If you are feeling the feels, too, I want to be here for you. Even when the gloom and unease slide back in or when I’m hiding from my family in my closet, I can pray.

So, friend, please let me pray for you in this season of instability. You can leave your request in the comments or send me a private message.

We will get through this. We will. Let’s give ourselves and one another permission to feel the feels and then hold on tight to Jesus, the stability of our times.

May God bless and keep you; may He fill you with courage and peace.

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What’s Your Story?

June 15, 2018 By Kristin Saatzer 3 Comments

My dad was in the hospital this week. Thankfully, he is out and his prognosis is good. While I hung out with Dad those two days, I was privy to some sad sights. The most tragic was the man recovering from a suicide attempt in a room close to ours. His parents, wife and tiny children sat vigilantly in the waiting room. A guard waited outside his door.

It broke my heart. Those babies and young wife. The parents, so hopeful in their shock and grief. In light of this and all the talk in society about suicide, depression, and anxiety lately, I decided to repost a blog I wrote in 2015, for incourage.me

 So many of us struggle in the area of mental health or love someone who does. It is a lonely, scary business and sometimes terrifying. A different kind of #metoo is happening, a movement of story sharing. There is a beautiful vulnerability in the telling: Those who have suffered from the blues, nudge the issue out of the dark and into the open where light can shine and hope and help can be found. If we tell our stories, it may compel someone who desperately needs a lifeboat, feels isolated, prideful (like me), or too embarrassed to reach out. A friend, acquaintance or even a stranger waits in the wings. We do not have to suffer alone. 

I do not know this young man’s backstory. Did he reach out for help? Did he feel pride and shame before it was too late? My prayer is that this is the beginning of his journey out of the pit. Please Lord, please.

Dear friend, what’s your story?

My story continues. Here is a small dose:Continue Reading

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When Joy Meets Sorrow

November 15, 2016 By Kristin Saatzer 12 Comments

autumn-1751115_1280I am not writing today while feasting my eyes on a beautiful landscape of autumn’s delights. Nor am I wearing cute boots and a seasonal scarf. I am a southern California girl, sitting outside in shorts and bare feet, feasting my eyes on a dying lawn because I’m not allowed to water in this drought.

However, the calendar tells me it is Fall. I laugh at the contradiction of pumpkins melting on porches while warm Santa Ana winds blow. We SoCal’s drink our Pumpkin Spice Lattes as we dream of wearing socks. This is the autumn season in my world.

Eventually, the air will cool and we will wear socks again and drink our lattes without sweating. A welcome change.

Sadly, a season of unwelcome change blew into my life. Into my heart. Into my home. This intruder wreaked havoc in incalculable ways. This change flooded every area of my life, seeming unreal. Impossible.

Our financial situation reversed from stable to dire. Family members moved from happy to heartbroken. My health shifted from strong to weak. In the midst of these countless trials, we experienced grief and upsets: our beloved Golden Retriever died and my second son left for college. Nothing but change, loss, sadness and pain for months.

In childhood, when I complained about an unwelcome shift in my life, my grandpa quoted an old cliché, “the only thing constant is change”. I am in a season where this holds true. I never know what will move next. Truthfully, none of us does. Change is a guarantee. Not one of us gets a pass on pain or difficult periods. No one. Jesus promised us this in John 16:33 (NLV):

“…Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows, But take heart,

Because I have overcome the world.”

As a Christian, I have a choice: will I shrivel up in my pain or will I hold on to God with everything I’ve got?

In this terrible-changing season of my life, I’ve chosen/am choosing, to hold on to Jesus.

“Immersed in tears, yet always filled with deep joy…”

2 Corinthians 6:10 The Message

The paradox of my life these days is that I’m drowning in tears, yet filled with inexplicable joy.

I wish I could jot down an easy five-step plan.  But there is no plan and it is not easy. It is messy and hard.Continue Reading

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