May 2024 Newsletter
Courageous Girls: The Armor of God
Dear CG Mamas,
Happy Belated Mother's Day!
What you give to your daughter (and other kiddos) often goes unseen and underappreciated. That's parenting. I am sure God feels this way often, but because He's God, He can stay focused on the truth of who He is and who we are. Let's follow His lead in remembering that the role of mothering is leading our daughters and responding to their perspectives. They need us to be a non-anxious presence: setting boundaries, tuning into their emotions, staying steady while they ride the roller coaster of hormones, having on-going conversations about the good and hard things of life. In the words of play therapist, Dr. Gerry Landreth, we can be thermostat, not the thermometer. We set the temperature of our relationship.
Our spiritual enemy, what the Bible calls the “deceiver” or “father of lies”, will do anything he can to make us (and our daughters) feel alone and isolated along our journeys. He knows that once we are isolated, we have fewer defenses against his tactics and become easier prey.
That’s why God (and neuroscience) says we are better together. We cannot do this life alone.
I just want to remind you, in the midst of so many messages trying to get your attention, that your daughter needs you to fight the good fight. She needs you to stand up against the father of lies and to only listen to voice of Grace, who decided a long time ago that YOU would be her mom.
For such a time as this.
Stay connected to your CG mamas this summer. Continue to stay connected to God’s heart for you. Pursue your daughter’s heart. Don’t isolate. When you are weary, and the enemy is whispering you should give up on Courageous Girls because your too busy, not a good leader, not like everyone else in the group, (name your poison), don't give in. As the founder of Courageous Girls and leading two groups for a total of 11 years, I have considered quitting a time or two myself. The temptation is real.
Fight the good fight. Not only for her. But for you.
Don't let busyness, distraction, or your own unresolved wounds get in the way. Let God use you, your CG group and the ups and downs of mothering a daughter draw you nearer to His heart and His gentle voice of Grace.
With you,
Terra
Words of Love
Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.
Ephesians 6:14-18
Words of insight
A Courageous Girl is strong in the Lord and His power. When we hear lies from the enemy (you are too much or not enough), we need to actively speak against them and refute them with the truths about ourselves that God assures us in the Bible.
The enemy comes to kill, steal and destroy anything that is good. Look around. You’ll see it everywhere, but we are not powerless. In fact, we have been given a full ARMOR for the battles of life. It will keep us safe physically and spiritually — remain ALERT! Assertiveness is another way a Courageous Girl demonstrates confidence in who she is, her value, and what God says about her.
Parenting Tips
While it can be scary to think about the idea of being attacked, research shows that women and girls who have practiced what to do in an unsafe situation, will be more likely to be more alert, draw less attention from potential predators, and be less afraid to fight back.
Part of the skills we are building as moms and daughters in Courageous Girls is finding and using our voice so we can not only stay safe but help others when they are in danger (both literally and spiritually.)
A fun and practical way to grow these skills is by signing up for a self-defense class in your community. This is part of the CG curriculum in year 4 and a fun way to grow our confidence as girls and do prevention with our daught
For more parenting tips and insight, check out Episodes 221, 222 & 223 of the Living Wholehearted Podcast. on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or YouTube
Updates
We are looking for financial partners.
Has Courageous Girls impacted you and your daughter? Would you like to give back?
Consider giving a ONE TIME gift or being one of our monthly partners. Donate today and receive a free Courageous tote bag and a personalized note from founder, Terra Mattson.
Help us help you! Here are four key projects we hope to fund in 2024. We trust that if God provides the funding, we can press go and bring you more exciting resources!
📱 Building a Courageous Girls App where you can access all the curriculum, share prayer requests and poll your group. This will also be a launch for more real-time integrated website and app resources.
$350 a month or $4200 per year
🎧 Starting a Courageous Girls podcast, where founder, content creator, licensed marriage and family counselor and author, Terra Mattson and guests will share what moms and girls are needing most today.
$750/month or $9,000 per year
👭 Forming Courageous Girls Leader Cohorts which take 10-12 leaders through an intentional process to help create healthy and sustainable CG groups for the long-haul.
$3,000 per group per year
📖 Creating CG journals for Courageous Girls to use each year. Designed by the woman who created the She Reads Truth Bibles, these customized journals will be a special keepsake for you and your daughter.
$7,000 - 9,000 for project, printing, etc...
Our total goal for 2024: $25,000
Another way to fund CG is to through our Merch Store!
Spring Merch Sale!
Visit the CG Shop and use code SPRING40 for 40% off everything.
CG books not included
Hurry! Supplies are limited.
Monthly Challenge
Pray for each mom and daughter in your CG group throughout the month. Pray specifically out of Ephesians 6, inserting group members’ names in the scripture as you pray. This will be a powerful way to assert the armor of God; pray to be alert for one another.
If you have not already, moms might consider starting a group text for a prayer request chain. Girls are welcome to share theirs with one another as well. We would not encourage a group text for the girls, but they can run their prayer requests through moms as way to continue to stay connected and in community.
Our Favorite Resources
Have you or your CG group read Courageous? This book is for you!
Terra Mattson’s book, Courageous; Being Daughters Rooted in Grace, takes women through a process of growing in grace and identity so that moms are better equipped to raise confident and healthy daughters who know God and are able to trust His ways throughout life's messy journey.
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