Been through a lot?

Is this not the cutest picture you've seen?!!

Now, look beyond the cute doggy- and look at the words-- they say "I've been through a lot, but I'm still smiling." 

Have you been through a lot lately? Feeling tired- worn down- just plan D O N E?? Yeah, I totally know the feeling here. You say "Oh I'm fine"- but what you really mean "AHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!" ~ Calgon take me away.... lol ~

This is my advice-- Let it all out sista!! (or bro) lol 

A couple of questions: 

• How do I smile through the tough stuff? How do I remain positive in the negative moments? 

A couple of answers: 

• How do you smile & how do you remain positive... think on good, praiseworthy, positive, happy, joyful things in your life. What are things that make you happy? What are you things you are thankful for? You don't have to be happy all day every day-- but I know there is SOME point in your day where you find happiness. Things are mucky now, whether it be finances, your relationships- family or marriage, your job... etc. but I have great news-- these times-- THEY WILL NOT LAST!!! God didn't say that these times would be easy-- but He did promise to carry us through them & give us His supernatural strength- 

Isaiah 40:28-30 niv says:

Do you not know?
    Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
    the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
    and his understanding no one can fathom.  

He gives strength to the weary
    and increases the power of the weak.

Even youths grow tired and weary,
    and young men stumble and fall; 

but those who hope in the Lord
    will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
    they will run and not grow weary,
    they will walk and not be faint.

BUT... what happens when the answers above don't seem to "work"? 

Trust- believe & know that God is moving on your behalf... like I said before in another post... a day is like a thousand years to God and a thousand years is like a day. He moves at just the right moment- never early, never late... right on time-- HIS TIME-- not ours (which is hard to understand for a girl like me trying to break the "control" I have toward life) Just because you don't see something happening right in front of you doesn't mean God isn't moving. 

I hope this helped you today-- It helped me :)

Take care of you :) 

It's between me & who?

 

Oh nooo... someone went and broke your heart... you want to curl up in a ball and cry your eyes out-- and just be left alone. Someone you love has gone and told you they don't want you anymore- they don't need you-- they found someone else-- whatever the case may be the end result is the same-- they left you. 

When I say "break-up" this doesn't have to be a romantic love- boyfriend/girlfriend relationship-- it can be a friendship or a family relationship too. Break-ups come in all shapes and sizes here. 


Know this in your pain and suffering:: YOU are more. As difficult as this may be, say it out loud with me... I AM MORE. 


Let me ask you a question. Why are you special? What makes you shine? What makes you... you?  What are your assets? What are your talents? Who are you? You are ALL of these things!! 

• I think I'm pretty, I am good at listening, Helping people makes me feel good, I think I have a good personality, I am good at being creative, Working with children makes me feel good, I am good at math, I think I am a good wife, daughter, & sister, God gave me a second chance at life curing me from cancer, I feel like I bring hope and encouragement to others...etc

The more positive you speak-- the more of a positive environment you create.

They are the ones that are missing out-- not you. They are the ones at a loss here-- not you. What will they miss about you? You say "nothing...that's why they left me." Well I say think again... what were those things you just told me about above? The things that make you special and shine? Those things, whether they realize it now or later... they WILL miss. 

Healing:: 

There is healing in all this mess-- we've already covered how to start this healing process above by speaking positive into your life. The next step is to invite God into the sticky situation. This can be the easy part or the hard part because this is the moment you LET GO-- it's the free fall moment, the step out of the boat moment and TRUST that He has you.

You're asking "Okay, so if God has me- then why all this heartache and all this pain?" That's a question that I really can't give you a specific answer to unfortunately. Each situation is different- but what I can tell you from personal experience is this: sometimes God allows certain things to happen to get you to where He needs to be- He allows suffering to draw you closer to Him- He never leaves you and never gives you more than you can handle- and as far as "unanswered prayers" that I've prayed... I really don't think that they were never "unanswered"- I think they were answered with a "no" and I just didn't want to hear it. I'm thankful a lot of them were answered with a "no"-- I wouldn't be where I am today. 

I saw a banner one time when Andy and I were visiting a church in Elijay. It was a big banner with a big red heart on it and it was broken with all kinds of cracks. The interesting part of the banner was that all of the cracks were filled in with gold! Jesus is the gold. He fills in all the crack, nooks and crannies. He is the restorer and the perfecter of our faith that we possess. That image is ingrained in my head, I think about it from time to time- especially when someone says or does something that hurts me-- I remember the heart as my heart- broken and when I call upon Jesus, He fills my cracks with gold and restores me. 

Think of the "break-up" like this-- you were wearing someones' letterman jacket... and it defined you- you thought it was who you were as a person. It was stiff at first- new- but then it got comfortable and broken in. When that person broke your heart-- they wanted their jacket back--their jacket came off- you felt alone and naked even. "Who am I?" you ask yourself. There is another jacket (the only "jacket") that you can put on that no one can EVER take off-- actually, there is an entire outfit you can wear... in Ephesians 6- it's called The Armor of God- and it goes like this...

13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. ¹⁴ Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, ¹⁵ and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. ¹⁶ In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. ¹⁷ Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

 Cool hua?! The beautiful part of all this is Jesus just doesn't just reach for the first aid kit and say "there, there my child... here's a bandaid". No, no-- He goes ALL out!! He fills the cracks!! He RESTORES YOU!! He brings restoration to your soul!! 

I hope that all this helped you out- because I know that it helped me-- and even if you aren't in the "break-up" times at the moment-- I hope that these examples will help you in the future. Because lets face it... break-ups can happen anytime- like I said earlier, it can be a love relationship (long term or short term), a close friendship, a family relationship, a co-worker, your boss, your neighbor... the list goes on and on. The fact of the matter is that anyone can hurt you or your feelings- but a quote I love is from Eleanor Roosevelt  "No one can make you feel inferior without your consent." It doesn't mean you are never gonna get your feelings hurt or your heart broken, but you have the choice to make it right- you have the choice to try to remain positive and keep moving forward- you have the choice to forgive- YOU HAVE THE CHOICE!!! 

Take care of you :)

A hair in a biscuit?

I am so over tired!! Tired of being sick-- it's one thing after another it seems.


Being stressed out and over worked led to Bells Palsy- which led to Prednisone- which led to being on too high of a dose-for too long- which led to weakness, fatigue, swollen neck and face, and very high blood sugar- which led to more medicine & more rest. Okay-- so not to mention... finances and separation from Andy is SOOOO hard!! Can you say OH MY GOODNESS?!!!!

Lord Jesus SAVE ME!!! 

What happened? I thought the hard part was over. Dealing with the Bells Palsy was so difficult- but now... finding out I was on too high of a dose for WAY to long and now bad side effects set in... HOLY COW & how can I not blame myself for checking sooner? 


Well, now... I can sit here and say... I CANNOT keep looking backwards... there is nothing I can do about it... the only thing I can do is KEEP MOVING FORWARD-- & trust God and keep my spirits up. I won't lie and tell you that it is easy because IT IS NOT-- it has been emotional and just down right lousy. It's so hard to keep looking up when it's so easy to look down. I cannot sit here and blame myself- I cannot go in a whirlwind of "If only... or what if I". I CANNOT CHANGE THE PAST-- & stressing about it has NO positive effect on my life. It doesn't bring honor and glory to God when I get anxious and stress out. It DOES please Him for me to hand it all over to Him and let Him takeover the situation.


You know, the devil constantly moves around you like a roaring lion-- he wants to destroy us and everything we believe in and hope for. 1 Peter 5:8 niv: Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Crazy right? But have no fear because Jesus is here! He came and saved you!! He rescued you! Isaiah 41:10 niv: So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Encouraging right? Much better than the alternative!! 


Please don't be fooled here... talk to Andy or one of my best friends-- I have had SUCH A not good week... this is a lot for me to sit down- get near to God- and share this with you all. I needed SO much encouragement this week- and then... TA DA!! There goes God showing off again. He brought different people into my days to brighten them up- or a phone call from someone asking how I was & them loving on me- or a sweet smile from a cashier- just the little things that are SO BIG. 


So, what am I saying here? Let me break it down...

• Even though things seem tough now... keep moving forward- God is carrying you.
• When you feel like you are down to nothing, list out loud things you are thankful for... 

• Im thankful that my bells palsy is clearing up, thankful I am weening off the nasty medicine, thankful that I have Daisy to lift my spirits up, thankful for the love my husband shows me even when he is far away, thankful the swelling is going down- slowly but it is, thankful for no nasty side effects of the new medicine- even when some people have them, I'm not in Jesus name, thankful for friends that lift me up when I can't seem to lift myself. 

• In Galatians 6:9, Paul simply encourages us to keep on keeping on! Don't be a quitter! Don't have that old "give up" spirit. God's looking for people who will find the courage to rise above all the negative and pursue the positive. (From Joyce Meyer devotions)
• When your mind is full of positive things, it helps to make you have a more positive day.

Hang in there like a hair in a biscuit- whatever you bake in the oven- whether its a cake, muffin, cupcake, biscuit-- get a hair caught up in it-- it is not coming out peoples!! So just like that hair is holding on for dear life- baked in that batter- you hang in there!! Don't let go-- God isn't.


Take care of you :)

Hard Times... OH POOP

These are the times that you wish that would just GO AWAY and STAY AWAY-- It's really hard to go through and experience these nasty days. Only one moment can set it off-- and BOOM!! There it goes..... kaplunk.

It's really difficult to know that you bust your butt working day in and day out- and all you ask at the end of the week that the bills are paid and the family is taken care of. Well, it's really hard when that hard, long, long work week comes to an end and you find out the bills are paid-- but how much is leftover? Yes, the bills are paid PRAISE GOD- and then it comes to getting the things you need for the week... ummmm food? With me at home-- it's easy... $10 bucks and I'm okay (enough to get salad and veggies & then I can eat on stuff at the house) Andy on the other end... he's out on that long hot road daily eating what he can-- but when you go to the store and get a pack of water, canned items, tuna, crackers, snacks... the $$ adds up. It's so hard-- we gotta get those bills paid and get my meds and my acupuncture... things that are super important... but they are swallowing us!!! OH MAN I AM READY FOR A BREATHE please GOD save us!!!

I lay all that ground work to say something that bothers me from time to time-- I know Im not the only one... When I think about not feeling good, or being sick, or whatever--- it makes me think about my past. Having Leukemia & a Bone Marrow Transplant {okay that is a blog in itself for later :)} and being sick all those years... makes me so upset sometimes. I feel like something is ALWAYS wrong-- it's so annoying- I guess if I took more care and payed more attention to health and myself I could prevent all this CRAP-- GRRRRR!!!!

But then- just then... I have a bright light turned on-- all of my suffering- all of my pain-- God is with me. ALWAYS wit me-- always plowing the way-- always providing for us-- no matter what the circumstances look like-- He WILL COME THROUGH.

It's so difficult sometimes to see the silver lining isn't it? So HARD-- and it doesn't always work out as we want it to either-- and THAT itself is hard.

So---

• Thank God in all circumstances
• Ask Him for help and guidance 
• EXPECT Him to help you, uphold you, and give you HIS SUPERNATURAL strength
• Remember that not everyday is a good day-- but you can choose to have a good day
• Think positive and keep moving forward

Hope this helped someone!! lol

Take care of you :)