Thanks God...

How often do we take the time to say "thank you"?

I mean for those things we take for granted in life: A roof over my head, a job, food on the table, a man who loves me...I wake up every day breathing, functioning, and alive. These are gifts. Gifts that are so easy to take for granted in every moment of life.

Do I stop and give thanks for these blessings? Do I remember to thank God for all he's given me or am I always asking for things, complaining about things, and wondering why things didn't go my way...

I was walking today with my best friend. It was an absolutely gorgeous day and we had so much fun laughing, talking, walking, and just catching up on life. I took a moment to soak it in and to acknowledge the gifts in this day that God had given me. The friendship, the laughter, the warmth of the sun, the beauty of the day, and the joy in my heart. 

...And when I took a moment to recognize the beauty in this day, it made the joy even greater. It's the little things in life that are so easy to overlook. 

"Well you only need the light when it’s burning low
Only miss the sun when it starts to snow
Only know you love her when you let her go
Only know you’ve been high when you’re feeling low
Only hate the road when you’re missing home"     

-Passenger

I challenge you to live each day with a joyful, grateful heart. Learn to love things in each moment before they are lost in the craziness of life. See how it changes your perspective and brings out joy and the presence of God more frequently in your life. And smile knowing that you are blessed. Maybe not in the same way as everyone else, but God blesses each and every one of us in unique ways. 

You are Beautiful

I was walking out of the courthouse on Tuesday after a long day. I had been running on 3 hours of sleep after a night shift to get my number called at jury duty to go sit in the courtroom to be placed on a jury. My attitude was sour to say the least. I had the most pathetic "I'm tired don't talk to me" faces you have ever seen and thought maybe if I looked pathetic enough the judge wouldn't pick me to be on the jury. Then I learn that the lady next to me has a foster child in the hospital with pneumonia and a husband with Parkinsons...that sure put my complaining into perspective.

I breathed a sigh of relief when I was not selected to be on the jury and was able to leave the courtroom by 1 as opposed to 5. Walking out, I leaned over the railing as I sent a message to my husband to please come pick me up, when a younger man walked up the stairs and around behind me on his way to wherever he was going. I was paying very little attention to what was going on around me when I heard him say, "you're beautiful". Not in a creepy, stalker-ish kind of way, but a polite, genuine compliment. He kept walking.

I was taken a back for a minute. 1. I had rolled out of bed, hair unwashed, threw it up in a bun with a headband, had on a big comfy sweatshirt and my super comfy and warm workout leggings. I was a mess to say the least. On top of that I hadn't been feeling great about myself that day. I had bags under my eyes, hadn't slept more than 6 hours in 2 days, hadn't made it to the gym in over 3 days, and was running off of coffee. Needless to say I was not feeling great about myself. 

His comment made me stop...

I am beautiful. Not for what I wear, what I look like, how tall, short, slim or stalky I am, but because I am a child of God. This statement brightened my day but also made me realize how important that affirmation is in our society. It is the quality of our character and the genuinity of our hearts that defines beauty, contrary to what media and society tell us today.

So remember that you are beautiful for being you. There is no one else like you. Embrace who you are and let your true self radiate. 

And don't forget to tell others that they are beautiful. We all need that reminder sometimes.

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

-Marianne Williamson

A Thought About Love

I encounter a lot of different people in my line of work and most often these people are extremely stressed, frustrated, and not at their best. I plan to be in the ER three days a week, but the average person does not wake up with the intent to enter the ER doors and quite possibly have their world flipped upside-down. I see a lot of emotion, a lot of tears, and a lot of different expressions of love. One struck me in particular...

I observed an interaction between a couple. Had I seen them on the street I never would have put the two together. Of different races, heights, statures, backgrounds, and just about everything else. They had been friends for years, caring for each other for years. Only kind words were spoken about the other, and there was a softness to her face that was oddly calm for the situation at hand. 

If we could all treat each other in this way, wouldn't it be as Jesus had wanted? He  said to love each other as we love ourselves. To reach out to those in need, be kind to those around us, to extend a hand to those who are struggling, to be selfless... 

Why couldn't the kindness and dedication in this relationship be exemplified in the relationships of every couple who walked through the door? Was it because they focused on what really mattered? Was it because their relationship was built on communication and selflessness? Because they had each others best intentions at heart at all times? 

Was it because neither of them could see?


Talk about a different perspective. They lived life for what each day brought, took on each situation for what it was, and loved in every moment. They exemplified love in a beautiful way. 

How often do we let what we see in front of us cloud our opinions with judgement? Maybe if we closed our eyes every once in a while we would see more than we ever expected.

"Open my eyes, Lord. Help me to see Your face. Open my heart, Lord. Help me to love like You. Help me to love"