With every step we are growing stronger

With every step we are growing stronger.

———

As I was watching Kate, Gavin and Matt hike, every so often I’d be the annoying Mom saying things like, “with every step we are growing stronger.” Yes, I was saying it to them but the reality is, I needed to hear it as well. Yes, on a hike with every step we are growing stronger in many ways but the same is true in life for them, and for me.

With Kate and Gavin both being in High School this year, I see how time with them at home is slowly decreasing. My prayer over our three kids is that by the time they leave, we will have done what is ours to do, to help strengthen them from the inside out, so they will be able to stand solid on their own as they enter the world. Every year we pray that they lean on us less and into who God more and more.

It’s a beautiful process to watch your kids grow stronger. Yet it is challenging too. I find that I grow stronger in this process by holding on to them less and letting go and trusting God with our kids more.

No matter your age, I invite you to join me to…

pause. breathe. pray.

May we remember that every step on a mountain and in life is an opportunity for us to grow stronger, from the inside out. May our strength grow from our trust in God, that He made us, and our children, strong enough for each step we take along the way.

With love and hope,

Shawn

His word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path. - Psalm 119:105

Pause to appreciate who and what is around you

Pause to appreciate who

and what is around you.

———

On our family hikes Matt is usually at the back. It’s not that he can’t go faster, but Matt is the one who pauses to appreciate everything around us.

He pauses to stand on the rocks and look around.

He pauses to touch the water.

He pauses to say hi to the other hikers going the opposite way and lets them know of what they can expect ahead of them.

He pauses to pick me a flower.

He pauses often to appreciate who and what is around him.

I invite you to join me to…

pause. breathe. pray.

May we too pause to appreciate who and what is around us today. We may not get where we are going as fast, yet we will be more likely to see the gifts God has placed for us along the way.

With love and hope,

Shawn

Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above… - James 1:17

Settle In The Present

Don’t miss the present moment by dwelling on the past or having unrealistic expectations of yourself, or others. ———

Four years ago we went to Acadia two months after I finished treatment. Acadia holds a special place in my heart. Our time there four years ago hold some of my most precious memories with my family and a time when I was so close to God, nothing but peace ruled my heart and mind. When we arrived back in Acadia last week, I was so grateful and excited for the time with my family. Yet when I thought about our last trip there, I started judging myself for not being in the same space mentally, physically, emotionally, spiritually as I had been four years ago. I started wishing I was who I was four years ago instead of accepting who I am today. It took me a day or so to let go of the past, giving thanks for what it was, and stop beating myself up for not being who I expected myself to be. Instead I prayed to be present, accept myself for who I am today, and enjoy my family and the new experiences we were having together. I share this with you in case you too can dwell on the past and/or have unrealistic expectations of yourself, or others. I invite you to join me to… pause. breathe. pray. May we give thanks for what was and let go of unrealistic expectations we are carrying. By doing this, may we settle in to the present moment, be with who we are with and give space for God to do something new in our lives, and in our hearts and minds

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

Look Back

Sometimes looking back helps us see how far we’ve come.

Help Others

I took this picture on a family hike this week because I appreciated how Gavin paused to help Matt.

Yet then I saw two other pictures this week that stopped me in my tracks.

In one picture I saw a boy, about Gavin’s age, on the phone while a boy, looking about Matt’s age, was next to him. Yet these boys weren’t in the woods hiking. They were on the tarmac at the airport in Afghanistan.

The other picture I saw was of a girl from Haiti who was around Kate’s age holding an IV drip of a child that looked to be Matt’s age.

These pictures captured my heart, seeing these teens, who are still kids themselves, take the role of caretaker for these younger children.

I couldn’t help but picture the children in those pictures being my own children.

Imagine if these were our kids having these experiences today?

Putting ourselves in someone else’s shoes will give us the lens to see through that will help our hearts understand deeper what others go through.

Yes, it’s easier to not think about it. Yet wouldn’t we want someone to think about it if we were the ones in need?

I invite you to join me to…

pause. breathe. pray.

May we put ourselves in someone else’s shoes today to grow in empathy and compassion for their experience. May we ask God what is ours to do. It may not seem like we can do much sometimes, yet may we remember prayer is always helpful even when direct action may not be possible. Yet if there are ways to do more than pray, may we do what we are able to, just as we’d hope someone would do for us, if we were the ones in their shoes.

With love and hope,

Shawn

Two requests:

- Please pray for a friend who has family with four children ages 3,5,7 and 11 who are trying to leave Afghanistan. Please pray for their safety as they wait and for there to be a path out for them

- A friend, Mary Lou, has a nonprofit called Helping Haitian Children. I’ve worked with her for years and know she has contacts in Haiti. Any donations made will go to help a nonprofit she’s connected with in Jeremie. To donate visit: https://www.helpinghaitianchildren.com/donate

"Carry each other’s burdens and so you will fulfill the law of Christ."

- Galatians 6:2

How to Smooth Out the Edges

I was skipping rocks with my kids yesterday. As I searched for the smoothest rocks, I thought about how the beautiful smooth stones didn’t start out this way. They became this way over time. Their sharp edges have been refined by pressure and time in the ocean.

Life has its edges and naturally I want to ask God to take them away as quickly as possible. I’d like life to be smooth all the time but you and I both know that’s not reality.

As I was praying about the edgy parts of my life, I was humbly reminded that every edgy season I have had has, in time, refined me within and has grown my faith in God. I wholeheartedly believe if you let Him, God will take the edges of your life and do the same for you.

If you too are meeting some edges in life, I invite you to join me to…

pause. breathe. pray.

Whatever the edges are we may be experiencing in life, may we invite God in to help us lighten the heavy.

May we recognize that the smoothness we are seeking in our lives isn’t something that happens externally, like with the rocks. Instead it’s an internal smoothness we are seeking that will come from our relationship with God as He refines us from the inside out. God we will give us the peace we are seeking and perspective we need to meet our edges with more grace and clarity. So even with edges in our life we will be able to be present in our day with who we are with and enjoy the beautiful moments before us, like skipping rocks with our children.

With love and hope,

Shawn

I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble.

But take heart! I have overcome the world. - John 16:33

Don't Answer Before Listening

Yesterday I was in the kitchen getting breakfast ready before bringing Matt to camp. Matt came up from the basement and said, “Mom, I found a fan.”

I simply smiled at him and said, “nice,” before putting my head back down to the meal I was making.

He came beside me and said, “it needs 4 batteries.”

I said, “okay” thinking we would find those later on.

He continued, “Mom, it needs 4 aa batteries.”

I paused and opened the cabinet nearby where the batteries were.

We put them quickly in the fan and I went back to making breakfast.

When I looked up, I saw that Matt had taken the fan and had attached it to his camp backpack. He had created a way for him to stay cool at camp on a day it was suppose to feel like 100+ degrees.

I share this with you in case you too find yourself brushing aside people when they say something to you. I invite you to join me to…

pause. breathe. pray.

May we take the time to pause and listen. When we pause long enough to listen to others, they may open our eyes to a new way of seeing things and we may just learn something from them.

With love and hope,

Shawn

“If one gives an answer before he hears,

it is his folly and shame.”

- Proverbs 18:13

Wholeheartedly Trust God

Friday was scan day for me. I am grateful to share that all is well, thank God! As I have shared before, some of my scan days I am fighting off anxiety, and other days, like Friday, I have a peace that’s beyond understanding. I am able to lay, pray and rest trusting God with whatever the outcome is. This is the MRI machine I was in on Friday. It’s a unique one because when you open your eyes it has a mirror that reflects a video image that’s on the wall behind you. It is meant to make you feel as though you are not enclosed in the machine. Usually I close my eyes yet on Friday at one point I opened them. When I did there was a video playing of the ocean.

The video showed a fish that looked like an oversized stingray with a little fish swimming under its belly. I immediately thought how the little fish was me and the stingray was like God, covering and protecting me. Yet as I looked at the fish more closely, I asked myself, is the little fish swimming to find cover under the stingray or is the stingray swimming to keep the little fish covered?

When the video continued the next shot was of the little fish upside down having somehow attached itself under the stingray. It laid there at rest is was guarded and protected as the stingray took it for a journey.

After seeing those two videos, it made me realize how often I am the little fish in the first video, going on my way, doing life and God is following me trying to keep me under his cover and care.

Yet as I laid there on the MRI table I realized why I had rest in my soul. It was because I had attach myself fully to God that day and trusted God, no matter the outcome.

I share this with you today for whatever journey you are on. If you are like me, most of the time trying to get through things on your own strength, I invite you to join me to…

pause. breathe. pray.

May we be like the little fish who attached itself to the large stingray who was able to have rest on the journey. One of the gifts of a relationship with God is when we truly are able to trust him with all our heart, soul, mind and strength, we can receive rest within, even while on a crazy journey, like waiting for test results.

I would not share this if I didn’t experience it myself and know it is possible. I won’t pretend I stay in this space all the time, yet having experienced it again during these scans was a reminder to stop trying to do life on my own and to wholeheartedly trust God, with the big and little things we face everyday.

With love and hope,

Shawn

PS What made the moment even more beautiful was the song that was being played at the time I saw this video is called “Hold On To Me” by Lauren Daigle

“God is my refuge and strength, an ever present help in trouble…” - Psalm 46:1

Something Beautiful Is Waiting For You On the Other Side of the Storm

Recently I was driving to see some girlfriends. The drive was about three hours. An hour in a storm rolled through and I could barely see in front of me. My anxiety ramped up and I thought how it would be easier to just turn around and go home where I felt safe and secure.

Yet I was driving to see four of my soul sisters, two of whom no longer live nearby, and one of them I hadn’t seen in two years.

As my heart pounded I knew turning around was safe and comfortable, but if I didn’t drive through the storm, I wouldn’t get to visit with my friends for the day.

So I prayed to try and release my angst as I white knuckled it through the storm.

Eventually the sky cleared up and the sun shined through. I got to have an amazing day with my dear friends.

I am sharing this with you today because this story parallels with so many of our lives. If you can relate with wanting to avoid the storm and retreat to what is safe and comfortable, I invite you to join me to…

pause. breathe. pray.

Whatever storm we may be facing, if God hasn’t directed us to stay in our comfort zone, than it must be a storm we need to move through. May we pray to let go of what is comfortable and secure and trust that God will be with us through the storm. And although we don’t know how long we will have to endure the storm, may we trust that in time the sky will clear and there will be something beautiful waiting for us on the other side.

With love and hope,

Shawn

…you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. - James 1:3-4

Pause to Listen

Yesterday I was with Gavin and Matt and I asked them a question. Before they responded to my initial question I asked them another one, and then another one.

After the third question I just stopped speaking because I recognized that I was talking at them, not with them. I asked them questions but didn’t give space for them to reply and listen to what they had to say.

I share this with you today because my prayer life can be a lot like this moment I had with my kids. Often I will talk to God but I don’t always give room to listen to God.

Can you relate in any of your relationships?

If so, I invite you to join me to…

pause. breathe. pray.

In our relationships, including ours with God, may we remember a productive conversation requires us to talk and listen to one another. May we be quick to listen and slow to speak, so we can deepen our relationships by giving room to hear what others have to say, especially God.

With love and hope,

Shawn

“Be quick to listen and slow to speak…” - James 1:19