My mission is to provide you with inspiration and encouragement to live everyday to it's fullest. I do this by sharing the simple things in life such as recipes to the most difficult of things such a life. We all know life is a struggle and many days a balancing act, but I am here to inspire you to do it well. Everything I write about is designed to inspire as well as encourage you to be a "better" you that you can be. Everything I share is raw and real. I do not cover up or sugar coat what I write about. This would benefit no one. My goal is for you to walk away feeling uplifted and encouraged after leaving my page. Lastly, I am here to remind you that you are… enough and beautiful… just the way you are.
Are you waking up exhausted physically, mentally, or emotionally, from a hard week?
It is my prayer this encouragement will serve as a means to refresh you and remind you no matter how difficult or stressful life might be that you are special and important.
No matter how beat up or unimportant you may feel, you are not!
No matter how unappreciated you may feel, you are not!
No matter how insignificant you may feel, you are not!
No matter how unworthy you may feel, you are not!
My friend, you matter more than you know!
God made you special and He didn’t make any mistakes.
Big Hugs to anyone who needs one today.
If you would like a safe place to land to vent or share or cry out I am here.
Just leave a comment below and I will read it. If you wish to leave it personal, I will not make it visible.
I wanted to remind you there is power and strength in “hope”.
I recently realized the strength, power, and encouragement in the words grace, mercy, and faith, but hope tends to be neglected.
I recently felt God nudging me to share this story with you since He rejuvenated us with the power and strength of “hope”.
My daughter has struggled with a health condition that she was born with. It took me years to get the doctors to listen to me to get her the treatment she needed to live a relatively “normal” life, but it was not easy. It took the power of determination and perseverance to get her a treatment plan that worked for her.
Unfortunately, something changed this past January and her condition took a turn for the worse. She called me on my way home from work with fear in her voice that something was wrong and this is not something she does.
With all of her medical conditions, fear is never something she displays because she has a strength that only God created in her to gracefully deal with everything she battles.
So I took her concern seriously. I took it so seriously that I had her contact her primary care doctor who referred her to a specialist, who was not able to see her in a reasonable amount of time, so off to the emergency room we went.
The emergency room was not able to offer her any assistance and referred her back to the specialist.
This was when the waiting “game” began. As the months passed her problem did not go away, but her faith began to waver during this trial.
The pain began to overshadow her faith because no one was helping her.
She went through two appointments that were a waste of time. She was not able to get a new diagnosis or treatment plan, instead she was told she needed to wait an additional six more months. This was a very discouraging and defeated day for her.
This past October was when she finally got another appointment because I got tired of seeing her suffer in pain and began fighting for her, yet but again.
Do not underestimate the power of a mother when she fights for her children.
She was thankful, but yet nervous and apprehensive to go to it, as every appointment before now ended in great disappointment.
I wasn’t able to attend this appointment with her due to Covid 19 restrictions, so all I could do was pray for her and the doctor she would be seeing and be available for a face time call if they needed to talk to me so she went to her appointment alone and called me after it with a very upbeat voice on the other end.
God answered my agonizing prayers because she had a great appointment with a doctor who finally took her new condition seriously. He did not need her to go back to the very beginning of this problem because he had already done his homework and research.
My friends, he gave her hope. He gave her a new treatment plan and this plan will include a new diagnosis of what has changed as well as a new plan with the hope to give her a life without pain again.
Do not underestimate the strength of “hope”.
HD Benson
God truly was in control over this appointment. She has help now and for this I am excited to the point of tears.
We learned a valuable lesson in how hope is critical to our existence. When you loose hope, you begin to loose faith. This is what creates hopelessness (which we hear about more often).
Once you loose the strength of “hope” you loose a lot.
Today, I want to call attention to the strength of being hopeful brings and the weight it holds.
Are you struggling with something in your life?
Be encouraged my friend. I am sharing with you the gift of hope.
God sees your pain and your struggle. He has not left you, just like He didn’t leave my daughter. He wants you to feel hope in your situation and be encouraged this hope will replenish the faith you may have lost and may be struggling with now.
My friend, it is my prayer today that you will receive the same peace we received when the strength and power of hope was revived in my daughter’s situation.
I am offering hugs and prayers for those of you who may be experiencing the same struggles in life.
You’ve got this! Hopeis being renewed for you as well!
With Thanksgiving knocking on our door, I am inspired to be mindful of being more thankful for the little things around me.
Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things.
Robert Brault
One of the little things that comes frequently to mind is the sense of financial stability.
This came in the form of having our Military job. When my husband was deployed, we never had to question when we would get paid.
Likewise, when my husband was younger, before he began struggling with PTSD, I never had to question if he would be going to work. He just did.
This financial stability seemed so routined and normal, but now our life has changed so dramatically, life is no longer “normal”.
Our financial stability has improved, even more so since I got a job, but it is still stressful at times, as my husband has many health issues that prevents him from going to work consistently.
Although, financial stability would seem to be normal to most people, our reality is that it really isn’t.
I have learned a pay check is something you should not take for granted.
“The grass is not greener on the other side, instead, take the time to tend your own.”
Unknown Author
Before you envy the life of others, take time to tend to yours because you have no idea what is hidden in theirs.
Unfortunately, we find it easier to be frustrated with our own life and envy others as well as long for what they have.
This is a dangerous way to live because many people have the ability to keep their difficulties masked behind a smile or a blank look.
You have no idea how difficult of a life they are living because they have mastered the art of living a life with a mask on, so you do not see their reality or their truth.
Instead, God encourages us to not envy that which is not ours.
“For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice.”
James 3:16 NIV
When you look to others in an envious way, you will be met with constant disappointments because God promises to not bless us.
Instead, take the time to cultivate what you have in front of you. Take the time to build your own home, family, and relationships.
When you do, God will bless you in areas you didn’t know was possible.
He will bless…
… your family … your relationships … your finances … your health
He will bless you everywhere you need a blessing.
Be happy with what choices you have made and be encouraged to accept what your difficulties may be because you may find yours are better than those who you envy.
“Pride only breeds quarrels, but wisdom is found in those who take advice.”
Proverbs 13:10
Is this an area you are struggling with in your life right now?
If the answer is yes, try making a conscious effort to break this cycle.
I am going to give you a word for the day to serve as a reminder to ponder through out the day and to prepare yourself for when you encounter prideful situations.
Word of The Day
Wisdom
Instead of starting a debate or a quarrel with someone over an issue, take a step back and say, “No!”
This is not worth my effort.
I am going to refuse to be prideful right now.
I don’t need to be.
I don’t need to prove my point to this degree.
I refuse to look badly in this circumstance.
No, instead I am going to make a wise choice to just walk away.
Choose wisely what choices you make.
Seek God’s direction in how to best handle your situation.
Not every situation needs an immediate open mouth insert foot response.
Instead, remember to do this;
Stop… Pray for wisdom… and Allow God to show you how to respond.
If that does not work there is always the distraction method.
Stop… drop… and roll only because that is the one we all remember best.
They may think you are a weirdo and may need professional help, but one thing is for sure… you won’t come across as prideful in your situation. 😂
I’m sorry! I couldn’t resist.
The important key to remember is this, God looks down on those being prideful.
Instead, He wants us to choose wisdom because for every wise choice we make in our life, we will be in His favor and He will bless us for the decisions and choices we make.
I hope this helps for you to start your day with some inspiration, motivation, and just a tiny bit of humor for your day.
Let’s all make wise choices today and say, “no” to anything prideful.
Let’s make an attempt to live intentional this weekend.
I am going to present a life challenge to all of us.
Life moves fast and if we are not careful, fall will surpass us all and the holidays will be here.
My challenge this weekend is to do something this fall that makes you happy.
What this looks like will be different for everyone.
Does it mean buying mums or pumpkins for your porch or setting a fall scape for your dining room table?
Does it mean taking your kids to a pumpkin patch or picking apples at an apple orchard?
Does it mean going for a drive through the country side or enjoy making s’mores outside at your fire pit?
This challenge isn’t meant to be a competition, but is meant to give you the motivation to make the time to stop living the busy, the chores, the errands, but to live and relax for a meaningful moment this weekend.
Please feel free to take an extra moment and share your experience below. I would love to share this moment with you.
Happy Fall Y’all! Take some time to enjoy it this weekend.
Home Life & Encouragement 