Step of Faith

Recently I took a step back in life.  I needed to create margin to renew my mind, body and reconnect with Spirit.  From the busy day to day life as a mom and business owner to the losses I have experienced recently, I needed to get back to the solid foundation of my faith to stand on for my days.

I share this with you today in case you too are growing tired and weary in your day to day life and/or circumstances.

I invite you to join me to...

pause. breathe. pray.

May we take a step back and lay down what we need to and say no where we need to so we may renew our mind, body and Spirit. May we step back onto the solid foundation of God’s truth to bring us clarity, wisdom and perspective for our days.

Sometimes taking a step back is exactly what we need to take the next best step forward.

With love and hope,

Shawn

“A tranquil mind will give life to the body.” - Proverbs 14:30 

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Sometimes Things Don't Make Sense

Sometimes things don’t make sense.

Last week I lost a sweet friend, Amanda, after her 5 year battle with metastatic breast cancer. She was only 36.  Please wrap her husband and three children, 7, 5 and almost 2 with your love and prayers.

As much as I try to wrap my head around this loss, its a hard one to make sense of.  When someone has lived a long life, somehow we can make sense of their passing more easily.  Yet to see someone taken so soon is harder to understand.  My heart is with her husband and children.  As sad as I am for her family, I do know she is well now, which I am grateful for.

I share this with you today in case you too have had something happen in your life that you just can’t make sense of.  I invite you to join me to...

pause. breathe. pray. 

May we be transparent with God about the questions we have and expose the depths of our heart to Him.  This wrestling does not negate our faith but I wholeheartedly believe will strengthen it.  You see, it isn’t when all is well that our faith grows stronger. It’s in the depths of times like these where our faith is being refined.  We have the choice to get mad at, or talk with, God?  To question God’s character, or trust who He says He is? To walk away from God, or walk towards him.

I am choosing to talk with, trust and walk towards God.

I know my saying that doesn’t make sense to everyone. For me, and where my journey in life has taken me, including my own walk cancer, having a relationship with God, is the only thing that has truly given me peace. 

As much as we want to have answers to our questions, may we trust that someday we will see what God sees today.  And may we have faith that His plan is better than our own. 

Rest In Peace, sweet friend. We will be wrapping your family in love and prayers today, and always💕🙏💕

With love and hope,

Shawn

“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” -Hebrews 11:1

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Dedicate the Day

This morning on my walk with Georgia I saw a bench I have passed a thousand times.  I read the nameplate as I have read many times as well.

As I continued to walk, I was praying for friends who are going through a hard time.  

I thought back to the bench and how the bench was dedicated to a loved one.  I had the thought, “what if I dedicate this day to someone too?”

What if throughout my day, I held my friend so close to my heart, my words and actions were focused on living out love towards them, or for them, today?

I share this with you because I you too know someone who is going through a hard time too. I invite you to join me to...

pause. breathe. pray.

May we dedicate this day to those who come to mind.  If we have the chance to connect with them, let’s do that.  If that’s not possible, may we keep them close to our hearts in prayer.  When we have to do something mundane, may we do it for them.  When we meet an obstacle today, may we conquer it for them.  When we have the chance to lift someone else’s spirits let’s take a step to do it for them.

May our walk in life not just be about ourselves.  May we come beside others, even if we can’t physically, in prayer and dedicate this day to them as a sign of our love for them.

With love and hope,

Shawn

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Let's Be This Today

Giving.

Forgiving.

Compassionate.

Loving.

Beautiful words.  Easy to say them yet harder to consistently put them into practice.

How different would our days be if these were the root of our words and actions towards ourselves and others?

I hope you’ll take a moment to join me to...

pause. breathe. pray.

May God root these words in our hearts and minds today.  May they be the foundation from which we speak and act from. And may they transform us, and those we interact with, from the inside out. 💕🙏💕

With love and hope,

Shawn

“A man reaps what he sows.” - Galatians 6:7

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Think Less. Pray More.

Yesterday I was very messy minded.  I have a busy week and was trying to be present when my kids got home but my mind kept circling through everything I need to accomplish in the next couple of days and I was trying to figure it all out.

As I stood next to Gavin, our 12 year old, in the kitchen he looked at me and simply said, “Think less.”

I looked at him and said, “what?” 

He repeated, “think less.”

I must have looked as perplexed on the outside as I was within and those words were just what I needed to hear.  Those two simple words dropped an anchor on my thoughts.

As Gavin walked away I realized, yes, I needed to think less.  And what I need to do instead is pray more.   I have learned in life that swirling in my own thoughts is not the most productive place for me. Yet in prayer, I can invite God in to give me clarity, perspective and wisdom. 

It’s not like a a light switch that just turns off my thoughts, but having God’s word to go to as a meditation for my mind, calms the storm of thoughts and helps me come back to still, clear waters in my mind.  His word gives me a solid foundation to stand on for my days.

I share this with you today in case you too are circling in a whirlwind of thoughts.  I invite you to join me to...

pause. breathe. pray.

May we think less and pray more.  

And if prayer isn’t your thing or you don’t know where to start, please know I get it.  It was only ten years ago when I started trying prayer on for size and my prayers honestly started with, “God, are you even there?”

So wherever you are with prayer, be there.   And in prayer may our stormy thoughts be calmed and may we find rest for our souls and clarity for our day.💕🙏💕

With love and hope,

Shawn

“You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds stay on you, because they trust in you.” - Isaiah 26:3

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Undivided Presence and Time

🎉Yesterday we celebrated Stephen’s birthday🎉

Recently our youngest came down in the morning and snuggled up onto Stephen’s lap.  It was such a precious moment I had to capture it.

When I looked at Matty there on Stephen’s lap it made me realize it’s how our family feels when we are with Stephen; loved, accepted, calmed, comforted and safe. I am so grateful for Stephen and who he is to me and for our kids.  By choosing to give us his undivided presence and time consistently, he lets us each know we matter without saying a word.

I am inspired by the way he loves us and wanted to share with you so I could invite you to join me to...

pause. breathe. pray.

May we too choose to consistently give our undivided presence and our time to those beside us in life to strengthen our relationships.  For the greatest gifts we can give one another may not cost a penny yet are worth everything.

With gratitude and love,

Shawn

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Take Time To Remember

pause. breathe. pray.

May we take the time to remember this day. 

May we remember all the lives lost. 

May we remember all the lives saved.

May we remember the courageous, the scared and the brave.

May we remember how we felt that morning.

May we remember all those who are still healing. 

May we remember how in one of our darkest hours,

we were never more connected with one another.

May we remember the light in the darkness, the unity we felt with others.

May we always remember the love we had for one another. 💕🙏💕

With love and peace,

Shawn

#pausebreathepray #liveoutlove 

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The Edge

The Edge

This is the place I have been living for the past couple of years; on the edge of life.

Yes, I am well yet when God walks you to the edge and shows you the beautiful view of life and gives you an eternal perspective, it’s hard to want to see any other view.

Naturally I find myself walking away from the edge some days and losing perspective.  As a mom to three kids, living on the edge makes it hard to walk beside them where they are in life.  And where they are matters. I try and shine a light of perspective their way here and there, but it’s not their time yet to live on the edge. I need to walk in a sit beside them where they are.

I am brought back to the edge often when people invite me to sit beside them on the edge; a friend battling cancer for the second time, a parent staying clean, a young father who had a stroke, a young man battling anxiety, a seven year old fighting for her life, the loss of a loved one, etc.

I am honored to be invited in, to sit beside these friends on the edge.  It is a place so many are every day.  We may walk by them, even interact with them regularly, and never know their stories. 

I share this with you today in case you are on the edge.  I am here beside you.  Never hesitate to send me a note so I can pray and sit with you.

I share this today too for those of you who are on the edge and you find it hard to function off the edge.  I see you.  I get you. I am you.

I also share this for those whose perspective is foggy right now, on or off the edge.

May we all take a moment to...

pause. breathe. pray.

May we together take a step to the edge.  May the fog lift so we may see the beautiful view from the edge of life.  The view that brings clarity, perspective, and peace. May it open our eyes to all we have taken for granted and give us a heart full of gratitude for all that we have; most importantly God and one another.

Yes, we will wander from the edge, even in the next hour I may admittedly wander. Whenever we step away and/or lose perspective, may God redirect us back to the view He gives us.  The view that brings a clear perspective to what really matters in life and a heart full of gratitude, a view from the edge.

With love and hope,

Shawn

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Beside Still Waters

Do you ever have a messy mind?

Me too.

The summer was full of joy and sorrow and everything in between. The wavy ride left me a bit messy minded. Rather than moving forward, I have been moving more in circles, feeling a bit turned upside down in the waves.

This week I was reminded of one of God’s promises which is helping me set my gaze above the waves.

I have a friend who is in hospice. As I sat beside her the other day, I read to her a Psalm that I thought would bring her peace. Although I chose this for her, as I read it, the truth in these words poured into my soul, nourishing me deeply.

I wanted to share a few verses with you too in case you too need to be lead away from the waves and beside still water…

“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.
He restores my soul.”

- Psalm 23:1-3a

Life will have its troubles. Yet the truth is, we have a choice to focus on the waves or to look above the waves, to God, who will lead us beside still waters.

If you too have been caught in focusing on life’s wavy ride like I have, I invite you to join me to…

pause. breathe. pray.

May we look above the waves, focusing our eyes on God. May we allow Him to guide us, not the waves. May we follow Him as He leads us beside still waters, and restores our soul.

With love and hope,

Shawn

Prayer Request: Please pray for my friend, her husband and their three young children during this time. Thank you.

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Speak the Truth in Love, Even if You Aren't Sure If Anyone Hears You

Speak the truth in love, even when you aren’t sure anyone hears you.

A couple of months ago I was invited by a friend to speak at a lacrosse event in memory of her son who passed away from his struggle with invisible wounds.

It was a powerful experience to be a part of. Watching my friend take her heart break and use it to speak up and out about the importance of mental health, in hopes to help others, is inspiring.

I was honored to speak to this incredible group of young men about my invisible wounds with my walks with anxiety, depression and cancer. Having been a high school coach myself for a few years, it was a privilege to come beside these guys and encourage them. To be honest though, I was a complete stranger, not their coach, and I wasn’t sure if I the message shared would resonate with them. Yet I was hopeful a seed of truth was planted in their hearts, specifically that if they were ever in need that they know there is hope and help and would reach out for it.

Then yesterday happened.

I received an unexpected call from someone who was there that day. They were reaching out for help🙏

After I hung up with them I was in tears of gratitude that the seed that was planted that day grew enough in their heart to know to reach out for help.

I share this with you today because we all have the ability to speak the truth in love and plant seeds of hope in each other’s hearts. We may think, “why would they listen to me,” “it isn’t my place to say something,” “someone else will say it,” etc.

I invite you to join me to...

Pause. Breathe. Pray.

May we each be willing to speak the truth in love to others, whether we know them, or not.

We may never know if it makes a difference, but the seeds of love we speak into hearts may just be what they need to hear, and will benefit them when the time is right. 💕🙏💕

With love and hope,
Shawn

PS Please keep this person in your prayers on their walk to wellness🙏 Thank you💝

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