Hi friend!
How’s your summer going?
We’ve been enjoying the little pleasures in life this month: ice cream with friends, summer morning walks, fireworks with family, and lots of backyard game nights.
Summer has a way of completely disrupting our schedules with all the best things, and I’m here for it.
I’ve made peace over the last few years with the reality that my summer rhythms will look nothing like my school year rhythms. Bedtimes drift later. Vacations throw off our routine. The kids are home all day asking for snacks every seventeen minutes. (And summer colds? Gah. They’re the worst.)
But even when our routines shift, we can still stay rooted in God’s Word.
It might look different from your usual quiet time (mine surely does), but even ten minutes with Jesus can set the whole tone for our day.
I keep coming back to one of my life verses:
“You will show me the path of life; in your presence is fullness of joy;
at your right hand there are pleasures forevermore.” Psalm 16:11
Whatever your summer activities look like, keep turning to Jesus, dear friend. Keep looking for His presence—with you through His Spirit indwelling you—on the hot days and the busy days and the tired days and the blah days.
He is always with you.
And when you turn to Him, all the other summer joys will glimmer with the glory of His presence.
To help you keep turning to Jesus, we’re releasing new YouVersion reading plans all summer long, beginning this month.
When I asked for topic ideas a couple months ago, our community overwhelmingly responded with this need right here. ☝️
If you struggle with emotional eating, cravings, overeating, or food guilt, you’re not alone. This 7-day devotional will help you uncover the deeper hunger beneath food struggles and gently redirect your heart toward the lasting satisfaction found in Jesus.
You can get started right away in the Bible app—or I invite you to join us for a community-wide Bible reading challenge! We’ll start Monday, July 13, and you can leave comments, ask questions, and share what you’re learning with one another right in the app. I’ll be in the comments too, and I look forward to learning together. (If you’re having trouble with the link, make sure you’re logged in, or try accessing it from your smartphone.)
My prayer is that these plans will help us bring our real struggles honestly before Jesus—not with shame, but with the confidence that He meets us tenderly in our need.
Join the 7-day reading challenge
If you’d like to be notified as soon as we release new plans, you can follow me on the Bible App so you’ll be the first to know!
And exciting news! We’re releasing reading plans in Romanian too! We’re hoping to get this plan translated and uploaded by next month, so if you’re a Romanian speaker (or know someone who is), please follow along. Just make sure your preferred language is set to “Romanian,” and you’ll know as soon as they’re live.
With all this, may I share a prayer request?
We believe that the gospel is for every tribe and tongue, so we’re asking the Lord to help us release these plans in five languages by the end of 2026. Would you pray with us that God will send us translators for our YouVersion translation team?
If you’re an experienced translator who loves Jesus and feels passionate about helping bring Bible devotionals to your language community, we’d love to hear from you. (Especially if you speak Spanish, French, German, Arabic, Farsi, or Turkish.) Reach out to us at hello@onethingalone.com.
✨ New here? Subscribe to get monthly joy + encouragement
Each month, we’re sharing a resource to grow your friendship with Jesus—plus a sweet giveaway and simple ideas to enjoy His Word.1
Summer Bible reading isn’t just for grown-ups. It’s for kids too!
If you’re looking to build a fun, faith-filled routine with your family this summer, try the new Explorer Bible Dictionary and Explorer Bible Scripture Memory Cards with us! My kids love how colorful and engaging these resources are, and appreciate how biblically-rich they are.
You can draw a Scripture Memory Card weekly to read together. Then circle back to it at the end of each day for life application & memorization. On the weekend, dig into a key term from the week’s card in the Explorer Bible Dictionary for Kids. Make this the summer your kids grow in their faith in a practical, sustainable way, no matter how many late nights or melted ice creams try to get in the way. :)
As usual, we’re giving away three copies of our featured Bible resource—this time a premium bundle!
🎁 1. Start by filling out the official entry form below.
🌞 2. Then leave a comment below sharing one Bible verse that’s encouraging you this summer.
🌿 3. Bonus entry: Reply to another reader with a word of encouragement or tell them why you love their verse.
So grateful to be growing as a community together! Y’all are the best!
Simple delights from our team to you.
I’ve been spending a lot of time in coffeeshops this summer, working on my next book. (Eek! So excited to share more soon!) It’s been such a delight to visit small neighborhood coffeeshops all around our area, supporting local businesses and sampling their summer specialties. - Asheritah
It’s simple and small, as joy so often is, but this month I’m delighting in the laughter of my nieces and nephews as we splash in the ocean, build sandcastles, and make memories I hope they’ll remember for years to come. - Kaitlyn
We have 8 chickens in our backyard, and seeing them run around brings me such joy. My three year old always goes outside, picks one up, and walks over to the window to make sure I see her. I am not a huge animal person but for some reason these chickens have really made me smile this year. - Hannah
My husband recently read Habits of the Household and it includes this beautiful “Bedtime Blessing of Gospel Love” that we have been using with our daughter as part of her nighttime routine. I really love ending our days this way. - Kathryn
If you know someone who’d enjoy this letter, feel free to forward it their way. ✨
With much joy,
Asheritah & Team
PS Don’t forget to enter this month’s Bible giveaway! Leave a comment with one Bible verse that’s encouraging you this summer—or one prayer request we can lift up for you this month. Our team reads every comment, and we’d be honored to pray for you. 💛
Join over 75,000 readers who receive this monthly letter of joyful rhythms, creativity, and encouragement.
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