April is probably one of my favorite months of the year. Not only is it my birthday month (and that of some of the coolest people ever!) but after a long, cold, and gray winter, green grass starts to grow and the earth just smells new, fresh, and ready to come alive. Kids at school finally get the chance to play outside without their coats and the warm sun both brings out an orneriness and an exuberance for life that is unmatched during the winter months. Evenings are perfect for sitting in the sun with a good book and a whispering breeze to help sort through the events of the day as the sun heads off to bed and the moon prepares for the night shift. There's just something about the month of April! April is also Sexual Assault Awareness Month and my social media comes alive with reminders that rapists are the sole cause of rape, that chains are broken every time a survivor tells their story, and that there is so much hope and healing available for those who have been wounded by sex...
I debated for a long time whether or not to write my annual list of 100 things I'm thankful for this year. A big part of me wants to just skip the tradition and take it back up next year. But I've realized that amidst the grief and sadness and unknowns, I really do have so much to be thankful for. The events on the afternoon of August 10 came completely out of nowhere and turned my entire world upside down. In those first hours of chaos and shock, I grabbed a notebook and started to make a list of the ways God had already shown up. I didn't want to forget them as the next days/weeks/months got crazy. Some of them will make their way into my list ☺ 1) Jesus - Over the years, as I've walked this life of faith, I've wondered how people without God can have hope in this sin sick world. Since starting this journey of grief, I wonder even more how people can grieve without the hope that only comes from faith in God. He is my Hope and my Sustainer, my ultimate source of j...
"You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives." ~ Genesis 50:20 All of my tattoos have special meanings to me. My first tattoo was the word 'shadows' from a the lyrics of a song I heard only one time - "Shadows prove the sunshine." My second tattoo were the words spoken a few years ago by a dear sister in Christ as she live out her final days with cancer - "He loves us best." This week I got my third, ;50.20, and it holds more meaning than the others. In recent days God has given me the opportunity to really share my heart with a sister in Christ from my church and in return, she has shared hers with me. In sharing the struggles she has faced walking her own faith journey, she has opened my eyes to an issue I didn't realize I still struggle with regarding the traumas in my childhood - my thought process. The negative thoughts resulting from the abuse at the hands...
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