Happy Father’s Day to Stephen, my Dad, and to all you Dad’s out there!
Your presence and influence matter more than you’ll ever know💙🧡
With love,
Shawn
“A truly rich man is one whose children run into his arms when his hands are empty.” - unknown
Let's Listen to Others Stories
Today as I sat beside my youngest reading this heart wrenching story, the truth of Henry’s story, shipping himself to freedom in a box, grabbed the deepest parts of my heart, and my son’s. As much as I may be tempted to not share such powerful stories with my kids, I believe they (and I) need to hear the truth of other people’s stories to grow in compassion, empathy and love.
When we take time to hear other’s stories, it’s an opportunity to cleanse the lens we see through, and see life from a different angle.
I share this with you today to invite you to join me today to...
pause. breathe. pray.
May we make the time to listen to other people’s stories. May we allow their truth to help prune our hearts and minds from any thorns growing in them. May we pause to absorb the truth of the person’s story and see what we can learn from them. May we continue to learn and grow beside one another, and ask God to show us our next step forwards, together. 💕🙏💕
With love and hope,
Shawn
“An intelligent heart acquires knowledge, and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge.” - Proverbs 18:15
Build them Up
It’s officially summer break for our kids☀️
When I look at these three and think of this unique year, and their past five years, which include their Nane having cancer, our dog dying of cancer, my having cancer, and now a worldwide pandemic, I realize that I have a choice; to be worried that they may be negatively impacted by these experiences, or trust that God is using all of these experiences to help build their character, and grow their faith.
I will choose the latter.
In case you too have had thoughts of how your kids may be negatively impacted by this year and experiences they’ve had, I invite you to join me to...
pause. breathe. pray.
Rather than fast forwarding to the future, and creating stories that may never come to be, may we come beside our kids. May we turn to God to see how we can best walk (or jump!😉) beside them. May we trust He is using this to refine their character, and ours, and grow our faith. Just because we have faith doesn’t mean there won’t be more bumps on the road ahead of us. Yet may we not view every bump as a stumbling block along our path. Instead, may we, and our children, learn to view, and use, the bumps as stepping stones to rise up into who were we were made to be.
May we do our best to walk this talk before them, to help this truth grow roots in their hearts, and mind.
💕🙏💕
With love and hope,
Shawn
“We know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.” - Romans 5:3-4
Love Your Neighbor
We thought it would be fun to have an ice cream truck come and visit our neighborhood, for the kids to celebrate the end of this unique school year.
This picture is of our sweet neighbor having her first ice cream truck experience💝
There was such joy in the experience yesterday. As I reflected on it this morning, coupled with all that is happening in our nation, I realized, when we sent out the note to the neighbors about the ice cream truck stopping by, there was no picking or choosing which neighbors would be invited.
All were invited.
This is one of God’s truths. He doesn’t pick and choose who His invitation extends to, it is available to all.
I share this with you today to invite you to join me to ...
pause. breathe. pray.
May we remember this truth and be inspired by God’s word which tells us to love our neighbors. It doesn’t say to pick and choose which neighbors to love. His word says, “to love your neighbor as yourself.”
May we put this truth into action and live out His love to all. And when we do, we get to experience sweet moments of joy, like this one🍦
With love and hope,
Shawn
“Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ - Matthew 22: 37-39
Let's Not Harden Our Hearts
“Mom! Look what I found, a heart rock. Here, it’s for you,” Matt said yesterday as he handed me this rock.
I love this thoughtful gift from Matt💝
As I held this heart rock in my hands, it made me think of something that I pray over my family often; that our hearts not be hardened by all that is happening and instead be fertile soil ready to receive the love and truth God wants to share with us.
From being home for a few months, to current events in our nation, it is easy to see how our hearts could be hardened. Times are challenging.
Yet no matter the times, or the challenge, we have a hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure (Heb. 6:19); our hope in God.
If our hearts are hardened, there is nowhere for His seeds of love to take root. Yet when we choose to have our hearts be fertile soil, God’s truth and love are able to grow within us. Even in the most challenging times, we can still trust that God will use all of this for good.
I share this with you today to invite you to join me to...
pause. breathe. pray.
May we soften our hearts. May we pray for our hearts to be fertile soil everyday so God’s love can be rooted within us to nourish, and transform, us. May we allow His love in so we can grow in love in these times and love one another as we are called to.
I am grateful for this heart rock from Matt. I have put it in a place where I will see it everyday. I will use it as a reminder for myself to not harden my heart and instead pray for my heart to be fertile soil, to receive the love God is flowing towards me, so I can be a vessel of love for God , and do what is mine to do to share His love and hope with others.
With love and hope,
Shawn
“Still other seeds fell on fertile soil, and they produced a crop that was thirty, sixty, and even a hundred times as much as had been planted!” - Matthew 13:8
Surrender and Be
Have you found yourself internally struggling at times during this pandemic?
I have.
It took me a while to be honest with myself, but about two months in, I found myself struggling with my thoughts. I was snapping at things like milk being left on the counter, when that’s not a big deal.
We are healthy and have more than our basic needs met. Why would I be struggling?
Look at all the essential workers and their families and what they are going through. Look at the people who have family members who are sick, or have lost someone to COVID. Suck it up Shawn, you have no reason to struggle.
It took me some time to recognize that I was struggling with my thoughts and although my story was different than others, it was still okay for me to be struggling in this unique time.
At the beginning of all of this, the unknown, the uncertainty of everything, was like cancer all over for me.
Who is going to get it? Who gets to stay? Who will we lose?
Trust me, I know COVID isn’t cancer, yet the parallels of the experience were potent for me. I had just gone through a season of not knowing if I was going to live or die a few years ago, I would prefer to not experience that again, or have a loved one, or anyone for that matter, experience those unknowns and uncertainties.
And since I couldn’t control what was happening, I subconsciously took control of what I could, and I went into action.
From when I woke up to the moment I went to bed, inside the home I made it my responsibility to get a new routine in place, make the meals, be sure the kids are set with school, make sure everyone is getting unplugged, outside and staying connected to friends, wiping down the doorknobs, trying to spend quality time with each kid everyday, attempting to work while making sure everyone’s needs (and some wants) are met, etc.
I went into action seeing where I could live out love towards family, friends, our community, and to you. I wanted to be there to support others in this time and help meet some of their needs.
Pause with me for a moment.
Do you see what I was doing?
I was trying to be perfect at this pandemic thing. Ummmm...yep, that wasn’t working. Being perfect isn’t possible and attempting to be perfect is crippling.
From within my home to beyond, I was trying to take care of other people’s needs. Yet it wasn’t just their needs I was trying to meet, I realized I also wanted to save people from the experiencing a struggle themselves, from my kids to healthcare workers in the frontline.
Did anyone ask for me to do that? No.
It was pressure I put on myself. And it grew heavier as the weeks went on. The week where I came undone was when I needed to get bloodwork for some new symptoms I had been experiencing; one test was to see if cancer was the culprit (it wasn’t🙏). Layering the weight of wondering if cancer was back with what I was already putting on my shoulders crushed me. Rather than holding everything together, I came undone.
And that was just what I needed to do.
Although everyday I spend time with God in prayer, I recognized I no longer came to him raw hearted. Instead I was presenting myself to Him in this tidy package. Well, I tore that package open and shared with God all that was on my heart. I need help. I need my thoughts to shift. I can’t show up for everyone. I can’t live in fear anymore of the cancer coming back. I can't be in charge of everyone’s happinesss. For the love of God, I have been trying to control everything around me because I guess I feel out of control, yet I am not the one in control, God, you are.
As I cried my heart out to God, I realized I had created a protective shell around me that I didn’t let anyone into; God, family or friends.
I clearly saw the old me was back. I was holding myself to standards that were not realistic and harmful, not only to me, but they were also impacting the relationships in my home. And I had trouble writing to you because I wanted to encourage you, when in truth, I was needing encouragement myself.
I, for the bajillionth time, surrendered myself to God.
He is the one in control.
He is the one who brings joy to our hearts.
He already knows what tomorrow holds, and will hold our hand no matter what is to come.
He is the one who saves and will make good of all of this.
He is God, and I am not.
I brought myself to my knees, literally, to let go. I put my trust in God, again, and not in myself. I humbled myself to say that I needed help to get back on solid ground.
Then, I actually paused long enough from talking to hear...
“Just be.”
Huh?
“Just be.”
Huh.
I had been so busy doing, and trying to control life around me, I hadn’t paused long to just be.
Be with God.
I share this with you today in case you too have found yourself relating to anything I just shared. I invite you to join me to...
pause.
breathe.
pray.
May we choose to be. Be still with God and lay down all we’ve been carrying, that isn’t ours to carry, at His feet.
His Word tells us He will lead us beside still waters. He will renew our minds and restore our souls. May we take the time to be with Him, in a raw hearted way. May we not only talk but pause to listen. May we fill up on His truth, love, Word and wisdom, so when we do move, we become His love in action; nothing more, and nothing less, with a more content, and peaceful heart.
With love and hope,
Shawn
“The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside quiet waters, He refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake.” - Psalm 23:1-3
Let’s be broken and grow together
Flowers can’t bloom unless their seeds first break open. Let’s be broken and grow together💞🙏🌷
With love and hope,
Shawn
“See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.” - Isaiah 43:19
Gavin is 13!!!
🎉⚾️Yesterday Gavin turned 13!⚾️🎉
When I see him...
I see that sweet baby boy wrapped in my arms for the first time.
I see the curious baby watching his sister play around him.
I see the calm three year old sitting still at the baseball stadium enraptured as he watched his first nine innings.
I see the excited little boy jumping out of bed every day to check the Mets score at 5 am.
I see the gentle big brother who wrapped his baby brother in his arms for the first time.
I see the thoughtful boy sitting and listening to his Great Grandpa share his stories.
I see the compassionate boy who is the first to see that someone is okay.
I see the fun-loving boy jumping off the dock with his cousins for the hundredth time.
I see the content boy playing ball in the yard for hours with his friends.
I see the boy who listens well and speaks with purpose.
I see the brave boy who had to walk beside loved ones with cancer too young.
I see the generous boy willing to give his own money to others in need without being asked to.
I see the helpful boy who lend a hand when others need it.
I see the kind boy playing games with his Grandpa.
I see the sports loving boy reading up on his favorite teams and players.
I see the humble boy who prefers to have the attention on others.
I see the boy with a great sense of humor whose laugh makes me smile.
I see the patient boy who moves at a pace in life we are all probably meant to move at.
I see the witty boy share his one liners, catching people off guard.
I see the resilient boy who grows stronger daily, from the inside out.
I see the boy who I thought I’d teach in life, and am recognizing that I am learning a lot about life from him.
When I see him, I see that sweet baby boy who has grown in to a remarkable young man.
We can’t wait to see what comes next for him. Thank you God for Gavin💙🙏💙
“Be strong and courageous do not fear or be dismayed for the Lord is with you whoever you go.” - Joshua 1:9
What Does Love Require of Me? - Andy Stanley
"Pay attention to the tension."
"There is no win in comparison."
"May we have the wisdom to know what is right and the courage to do it, even when it’s hard."
These are just a few nuggets of wisdom that have remained in my heart through the years from Andy Stanley, a pastor at North Point Church, a non-denominational church. Over the past ten years, I have listened, learned and grown from the wisdom shared in his messages. One of the most powerful messages he has shared so far is,
“What does love require of me today?”
I share this with you today to invite you to join me to...
pause. breathe. pray.
May we ask God this question. May we keep our eyes and ears open to where love is needed today. Love may require our time, our energy and/or our resources. May we be willing to offer what we can. And as much as we may want to help everyone, may we “do for one what you wish you could do for everyone.” - Andy Stanley
With love and hope,
Shawn
PS If you are finding yourself seeking something higher than yourself, but don’t know where to start, I highly recommend checking out Northpoint Community Church’s messages, specifically one called Starting Point. You can listen to their messages on their website or from their podcast. This church was specifically created for people who are curious about God, who are interested in coming back to church, or have been hurt by church in some way. Their messages were a bridge to my heart ten years ago as I came back to my faith, and continue to nourish me weekly. I wholeheartedly believe they will be a bridge to your heart too💕🙏💕
"Love your neighbor as yourself." - Matthew 12:31
Love One Another
In the midst of life’s struggles, there is one place I find comfort and wisdom; in God’s word. I have found in our ever changing world, it is comforting to go to His word, as it has never changed in all these years. Although the Bible is not a handbook of how to deal with every situation in life, the wisdom and principles in it are a guiding light. I have experienced the transformative power of God’s word in my own life, and it is the foundation I go to every morning to stand on for my days.
Today I share this truth from God’s word, as living out love towards one another is what we are called to do.
Also, God didn’t leave us to define love ourselves. He even told us what love is...
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
- 1 Corinthians 13:4-8
Today I invite you to join me to...
pause. breathe. pray.
May we be intentional and directional to live out love today to others, from our family to strangers. Often choosing to live out love, especially during challenging times, is not our natural reaction. Yet may we grow to move past our initial reaction and make living out love our response to others today, and every day.
With love and hope,
Shawn