God is good.
People say this a lot when they hear good news. Yet I want to remind people that God is good even when we receive bad news.
God never changes. He never has. He is the same today as He was yesterday and will be tomorrow.
I share that with you having received news that my bloodwork was good. I am beyond relieved to hear this. Yet I say that with the knowing other people have received other results to their tests.
The only thing I have found to hold onto on this wavy ride in life we are on are God’s promises. They are the one thing I have found to hold onto that allow me to see the beautiful horizon, even in the midst of the largest storm.
I share this to remind all of us who feel like we are drowning at times in the seas of the unknown, whatever your struggle may be, I invite you to join me to...
Pause. Breathe. Pray.
May we remember God is good at all times and is our ever present help in trouble. May we hold on to His promises to keep us afloat no matter the tide.
With love and hope,
Shawn
P.S. Thank you for your encouraging notes and prayers friends💕🙏💝
At the Cross
Yesterday was a joyful day but here is the truth behind the celebration...
As the years move on, with ACC, the reoccurrences are more likely. The further you move away from treatments with most cancers, you are told you are in remission. With ACC, we are never told those words. I personally say I am cancer free until I am told otherwise to soften that truth for myself, and for others too.
I don’t share this for pity but to share the truth I have to live with, and my ACC family has to live with every day.
And over the past month, having lost many people in our ACC family and many having reoccurrences, fear has been creeping back in as I wonder if it will be back, and if so, when.
I know that is not the place I want to live but it is a natural place I circle through before I put my feet back in the solid ground of my faith.
I start and end my day, and my walks, literally at the cross. Prayer is my saving grace to help me move through my days with greater peace and joy, even with the uncertainty of what tomorrow holds.
In full transparency, I have to go for more bloodwork and possibly another MRI this week due to a new symptom I am experiencing.
If I didn’t have my faith to lean into, I don’t think I’d be standing.
Joy for me is in the promise Jesus gives me. Joy is not found in my circumstances.
I share this because I am not the only one who lives in this space, looking down the trail of the unknown. For those who too are on this walk with me, I invite you to join me to...
Pause. Breathe. Pray.
Although we may be uncertain of the path before us, may we be certain in this, God is with us every step of the way. He may not take away our struggles but may we trust He is using them to refine us, and others, in the process so we can live with faith, and not fear, as the foundation we walk upon each day.
With love and hope,
Shawn
Shine Bright
Happy summer friends☀️
On my walk today with Georgia the bugs were everywhere. As I swatted them away I started to laugh. I have been so ready for summer but with it comes bugs. I know it sounds silly but what I am getting at is every season has something we could complain about.
The winter is too cold.
The spring too rainy.
The summer too buggy.
The fall too short.
The same is true for the seasons of life, right?
I invite you to join me to...
Pause. Breathe. Pray.
May we enter this new season with new eyes. Rather than seeing what is wrong, may we seek all there is to be grateful for. Yes, there will always be something to complain about but our time and energy are better spent on seeing the good in the season we are in. I know it is easy to get tangled in the webs of complaining, I do it myself. But it gets me wrapped up and weighed down where there is no forward momentum.
Complaining keeps me stuck.
In gratitude there is freedom.
So may we move forward in this day and season without complaining. Instead, may we seek what is good so the darkness grows small and the light shines brighter, and brighter ☀️🙏💕
With love and hope,
Shawn
Forever Grateful
I remember a couple of years ago being on a walk with my family and watching Stephen walk beside our children. In that moment I had such peace in my heart knowing that our kids would be okay, no matter the outcome of my walk with cancer, because they had him by their side in life. It is a moment I will never forget.
I will never be able to express how much Stephen means to me, and to our kids. I am forever grateful for how he walks beside them, and me, every day, in every way.
Happy Fathers Day to Stephen and to all the Dads out there💕🙏💕
With love and appreciation,
Shawn
Rest In Peace Friends
This morning I walked in memory of Vickey and Gabriele. These two women were the first ones I connected with when I was diagnosed with ACC.
Last month we lost Vickey and yesterday Gabe passed away.
They were both initially diagnosed over 10 years ago, yet both experienced reoccurrences with ACC which caused their passing.
Gabe and Vickey inspired many, including me. They lived and loved fully and deeply knowing that tomorrow isn’t promised. They did what they could do with the day before them to make the most of their time here beside their loved ones. They both were brave and hopeful and were active in raising awareness and funds for ACC even in the midst of their battle.
My heart is sad for their families and friends, and for our ACC family. We have lost two amazing women, and we still have so many fighters in the ring with ACC😔 I hope we someday are able to find a cure for ACC. (If you would like to donate to Gabe’s nonprofit, please visit Brave Like Gabe).
Vickey and Gabe, may you Rest In Peace in God’s warm embrace. Thank you for being a radiant light of love in my life and many others. I will always remember you💕🙏💕
With gratitude and love,
Shawn
Let Them Step Up
🎉Yesterday Gavin turned 12🎉
Watching our kids grow is beautiful...and hard. I love watching them step more into who God made them to be but to do so I am seeing that I need to start stepping to the side.
For example, Gav got this pitchback for his birthday and started setting it up himself. I wanted so badly to step in to help him yet, in spite of my strong desire to go close, I knew it was best for him for me to say, “You got this. Reach out if you need a hand.”
So I said that and stepped aside. Although my outside was calm and confident, internally I was aching to lend him a hand and be doing the project with him.
Yet he patiently persevered and put it together himself, step by step. He had to undo and redo things a couple of times, but rather than stepping in to fix it for him, I watched him from afar work it out in his own. At one point he did reach out for a hand when an extra one was needed and I was grateful that he asked, and that I was able to lend a hand.
I won’t pretend I do this perfectly all the time but my hope is that I give our children space to rise up, and mess up, and rise up again so they can nourish life skills they will need as future adults.
I share this because I know I am not the only parent who struggles stepping aside to help our kids grow. If you can relate, I invite you to join me to...
Pause. Breathe. Pray.
May we recognize that sometimes helping our children means stepping to the side. Doing so won’t always feel right in the moment, but may we trust it’s the right thing in the long term. May we walk beside them as they grow and do what is ours to do to help them grow into their best self, which sometimes means not doing anything at all but being a supportive fan from the sidelines.
With love and hope,
Shawn
Treasure What You Have While It's Here
Today was a gift as my parents are back in town visiting and we were able to celebrate my Dad’s birthday with him🎉🙏💝
The little moments together, like this one, are ones I took for granted when they lived close by. Now that they live in NC, I am recognizing that every bit of time I get with my parents, and being able to celebrate birthdays beside them, is truly a gift🎁
I share this with you today in case you too have taken a relationship, and/or time with a loved one for granted. I invite you to join me to...
Pause. Breathe. Pray.
Whether we are near or far, may we treasure the gift of time we have together. May we be present for the moments we get and celebrate one another, on birthdays - or on any day for that matter!
As always, it’s easier said than done. Yet the saying is true, “you don’t know what you’ve got ‘til it’s gone.” May we realize what we have while we have it. And even when we don’t get the quantity of time we desire, may we make up for it in the quality of our time together💗
With gratitude and hope,
Shawn
God's Path
Walking along the trail this morning with Georgia I saw the fence lining this portion of the trail. It reminded me to stay on my path in life because recently I have felt like I am detouring a bit from where I am supposed to be.
It’s easy for me to look around and see what this person is doing and what that person is doing and have thoughts that stray me off course.
I share this with you today in case you are able to relate to seeing other people’s paths and taking a detour from the path you are meant to be on, personally and/or professionally.
I invite you to join me to...
Pause. Breathe. Pray.
May we recognize God gives us each a path to follow. On that path is where we will thrive in life and become the best version of ourselves.
May we look to other’s paths and offer them well wishes but let’s not take on their path as our own. It is important to give thanks for the path we have been given and continue to follow it.
May we recognize we were each given certain gifts from God we are meant to use. By staying along our path we can fine tune those gifts instead of detouring and mistaking other people’s gifts as our own.
May we come beside one another along the way and offer our gifts to each other. By doing so may we sharpen and refine each other into better versions of ourselves so we may use of gifts well.
Today let’s give thanks for the path we’ve been given. May we not look to the left or right wishing to be on someone else’s path. Instead may we walk the path before us, with solid, faithful steps. May we invite others beside us to help us grow into the best version of ourselves. And may we give what we have to offer to help others grow into the best version of themselves along their path as well.
With love and hope,
Shawn
Some Gave All...
To those who gave their all while serving and protecting our country, we will never forget what you and your family sacrificed🙏
With gratitude, love and respect,
Shawn
(Flag made by veterans at @flagsofvalor)
Abundance of love
Yesterday was filled with simple moments. From meals around the table together, yard work, a drive to pick up plants, a couple hours at the ball field, these moments may not seem like much but to me, they are everything.
This spring season has been busy. Maybe you can relate. Yesterday we were intentional and directional as we went slow. We had present moments beside one another. We even had margin to stop along our drive to take this picture.
The more I live, the more I see that life is found in these simple moments beside our loved ones. We are not always together so I am trying to capture the moments with who I get to be beside.
I feel alive in these moments, knowing that who I am with and pouring love their way is truly all that matters.
There are so many other responsibilities and commitments that can pull me away from being present in these precious moments and living in this simple truth.
I share this with you today in case you needed the reminder as I did to go slow, be present and enjoy the simple moments beside your loved ones.
I invite you to join me to...
Pause. Breathe. Pray.
May we go slow enough to be able to say no where we need to do we may say yes to who and what matters most. May we be with who we are with and enjoy these fleeting moments beside one another. May we schedule in time around the table with our loved ones to pour our time and energy into who matters most in our lives.
From the outside looking in it may not seem like much. Yet from the inside out, we will be living in abundance, an abundance of love.
With love and hope,
Shawn