Today I want to begin to introduce you to the team of women who design, create, implement, administrate, manage, and advise this blog we call He Speaks In The Silence. These are women who pray, asking God for wisdom, then use their gifts to craft beauty for all of us. And I think you need to know them!
So… for the next many weeks we’ll be posting a fun profile of who they are, what they do, what they love, who they love, how they live and lots more delicious details.
If you want to take a peak at the list of questions we all got to choose from, here it is.
BETHANY ALLEN
I live in:
Southeast Portland, in the Mount Tabor neighborhood
I contribute to the blog by:
I (try) to contribute to the brainstorming and dreaming in our creative meetings and hope to provide support and input whenever and however I’m able.
This year, God is revealing Himself to me as:
Husband. As cliché as it sounds, this year God has been teaching me not only about His faithfulness as a husband who provides, protects and surprises, but also what it means for me to be wife (without actually being one).
Jesus is continually challenging me live (today) as though I am deeply loved, seen, and invited on an adventure. As I have learned to really believe these truths, the way I view myself and others has changed. There is a profound confidence and grace that comes from believing that you are loved perfectly.
My Meyers-Briggs is:
ENFJ (“The Giver”) and my top two love languages are physical touch and quality time.
My favorite spots in Portland are:
Breakfast: G R A V Y. Hands-down one of the best breakfast spots in town.
Lunch: Por Que No? I’m a huge fan of Mexican food…and it doesn’t hurt that Bryans Bowl is one of my all time favs.
Dinner: Screen Door. Best southern food in town. Always a win.
Dessert: YoCream. I’m a froyo kind of girl and they have the best in town.
When I was young I wanted to grow up to be:
An Animal Trainer at Sea World. I grew up in Florida and thought it would incredibly cool to swim with whales and dolphins all day.
(Plus I’d have access to the park all day, every day! I was a smart kid.)
The person who has had the biggest influence on me is:
My sister. She is the bravest and strongest woman I know. She has always lived a life of incredible faith and trust. My earliest memories of her always involve her doing something brave. She has an amazing ability to make others feel seen, heard and loved. Every person she meets is invited into a conversation that quickly moves beyond common politeness to sincere connection. I have learned more about Jesus from my sister’s life than I have anyone else.
Rebekah continually gives her life away in the name of Jesus and if I can grow up to be half the woman she is, I will have lived a worthy life.
One of my life scriptures is:
“The Lord makes firm the steps of the one who delights in him; though he may stumble, he will not fall, for the Lord upholds him with his hand.”
Psalm 37:23-24
Psalm 37 was a passage of scripture I read over and over again during a hard season of my life. This verse still brings me crazy amounts of hope and assurance.
My favorite question to ask people is:
What’s your story? You can learn a lot about someone by his or her response to this question.
What I really want for every woman to know is:
That you bear the image of God and that you have been invited into an incredible story that supersedes a specific role and is inherently linked to your God-given identity.