Hope

Last week I was able to sit down with a friend and we swapped stories, our life journeys, our mountains and valleys. We traded stories of emotional battle scars, battle scars that have made us into the women that we are today.

I could see my friend's pain as she tearfully shared. I felt her pain. I could relate.

As I recall certain seasons of my life, I can now see how God was there during every step. He never left, even when I wanted to leave Him. I had Hope and I have Hope. I'm grateful for my faith because if it weren' t for that, I don't know where I would be today.

I have had some dark seasons and I desire someday to be able to use my experiences to help others so they can have a Hope when they feel like they have lost all faith.

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I'm struggling with a little case of the "blahs." Nothing major, just blah. Just in a little funk. Just enough to wipe the smile from my face but not enough to make it into a frown.

Not sure why because life is great right now! Go figure.

That's all.

Comparison

I have struggled lately with comparing myself to others: personality traits, outward appearance, material possessions, talents, etc.

Thesaurus.com defines compare as "to examine in contrast."

Synonyms for compare:

analyze, approach, balance, bracket, collate,confront, consider, contemplate,contrast,correlate, divide, equal, examine, hang, hold acandle to, inspect,juxtapose, match, match up,measure, observe, oppose, parallel, placeinjuxtaposition, ponder, rival, scan, scrutinize,segregate, separate, set against,set side by side, size up, stack up against, study, touch,weigh, weigh againstanother

It also has an added note on the site. It reads: compare emphasizes thesimilarities between or among things, though not losing sight of the differences.

"Not losing sight of the differences." I need to celebrate the differences more.

Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep

Last night I fell asleep as I was praying for my husband, my family, our church, and thanking God for all of His wonderful blessings.

At first I was thinking, 'oh great, not again, I fell asleep before I finished praying.' But then I thought, 'how beautiful, I fell asleep while praying.'

I am pretty sure that God hears our prayers even if we don't conclude with "amen."

Legacy

Sharing my story and leaving a legacy...

I have definitely been through some seasons that weren't so beautiful but with God's grace and mercy, He has turned those valleys into something amazing, something just that, beautiful.

God is really going to have to do a work in me and shatter the shy, introvert Jamie.

The Jamie that doesn't share.

The Jamie that doesn't take off the emotional mask.

The Jamie that is timid.

The Jamie that hides her scars...

the scars that He has turned into beauty.