Hot Flushes & Holy Ground: A Gentle Menopause Devotional for Real Life
“Is it hot in here, or is it just me?”
Well hi there lovely Lady,
You’re in a meeting, or at church, or sitting on the couch minding your own business when suddenly…
Your face is on fire
Your heart is thudding
Sweat appears from absolutely nowhere
You peel off a layer, fan yourself with the nearest thing (latest church bulletin, anyone?) and try to laugh it off. But inside, you might be thinking:
I don’t feel like myself.
My body is betraying me.
Is this my life now?
Menopause (and perimenopause before it) can feel like your body has turned into a mystery novel with plot twists on every page. Research shows it’s not just physical; it often comes with psychological and spiritual questions too.
This devotional is a small, cool cloth of kindness for your soul.
Menopause is not punishment
Let’s clear this up: you are NOT being punished.
In fact I've written a whole book on "Taming the Menopause Monster", if you'd like to check it out...
Menopause is a normal, if sometimes brutal, transition in a woman’s life. Hormones shift. Sleep patterns go feral. Moods swing harder than a playground at recess.
In some Christian circles, women have quietly absorbed the idea that youth and fertility are “peak womanhood” — and everything after that is decline. But Scripture paints a different picture:
God calls older women to be teachers and anchors in community.
Our outward bodies may be wasting away, but inwardly we can be renewed day by day (2 Corinthians 4:16).
Wisdom, depth and spiritual authority often grow strongest in the very seasons the culture dismisses.
If your body is changing, your worth is not. Full stop.
Meeting God in a changing body
One of the sneakiest lies of menopause is: “I’m too much and not enough at the same time.”
Too hot.
Too tired.
Too emotional.
Not productive enough.
Not patient enough.
Not fun, smooth or “together” enough.
God, however, isn’t looking at you thinking, “Wow, she really needs to pull herself together.” He looks at you with the same love He had when you were 16, 26 or 36 — but with an added tenderness for all you’ve lived through.
A body-and-soul devotional moment
Right now, if you can, pause and place one hand over your heart and one over your belly.
Take three slow breaths and pray:
“Lord, thank You for this body that has carried me through every season so far.
I feel frustrated and confused by it sometimes.
Meet me here, even in hot flushes and brain fog.
Help me treat this body as a friend, not an enemy.”
Notice any tension in your jaw, shoulders or stomach. You don’t have to fix it. Just notice and imagine God’s kindness, like warm light, shining there.
Practical faith for hot-and-bothered days
Let’s make this devotional doable on the rough days.
1. A tiny breath prayer
Pick a short line you can repeat when a hot flush or wave of anxiety hits. For example:
“You are with me in this.”
“One breath at a time with You.”
“Be still, my soul.”
When you feel your body ramp up, try:
Inhale slowly through your nose for a count of 4
Hold for 2
Exhale slowly for 6 while repeating your chosen line
It won’t magically stop a flush, but it reminds your nervous system — and your soul — that you’re not without support.
2. A kinder schedule
Menopause can shift:
Energy levels
Focus
Sleep patterns
Look at your week and ask:
“Where could I build in a margin?”
“What am I demanding of myself that isn’t realistic right now?”
Maybe it’s:
Moving one chore to another day
Saying no to evening events after a run of bad sleep
Building a 10-minute afternoon “lie down and breathe” into your routine
Honouring your limits is not laziness; it’s wisdom.
3. Scripture for the foggy brain
On days when reading a whole chapter feels impossible, choose just one verse to carry:
“He gently leads those that have young.” (Isaiah 40:11) – and He keeps leading when the kids are older, too.
“I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you.” (Isaiah 46:4)
Write your verse on a sticky note near the kettle or on your bathroom mirror. Let it be a whispered anchor when your brain feels scattered.
Reflection questions for this season
Use these in your journal, or chat through them with a friend who’s also in the thick of it:
What symptom or change has been the hardest for me to accept — and what do I fear it means about me?
How have I spoken to my body this week? Would I speak that way to a dear friend?
Where can I see evidence that God has been kind to me in this season, even in small ways?
What is one expectation I could loosen to give myself more compassion?
How might God want to use my story of menopause to comfort another woman one day?
A blessing for women in menopause
“God who knit me together and has carried me every day since,
I bring You my hot flushes, my interrupted sleep, my aching joints and my unpredictable emotions.
You know this body intimately — every cell, every hormone, every shift.
Where I feel betrayed by my body, teach me to feel befriended.
Where I feel angry or sad, sit with me in the feeling instead of rushing me past it.
Grow in me a deep, quiet wisdom that does not depend on smooth skin or endless energy.
Let this season become holy ground where I learn to walk with You in new ways.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.”
You are not “too much”. You are deeply, wildly loved — even when you’re standing in front of the fridge at 3am fanning your face.
Until we chat again...
Blessings and hugs to you my dear friend,
Dianne xx
