A Life of Gratitude

  As I sit here for my infusion therapy, which helps with Ankylosing Spondylitis, I am grateful for the opporutnity to reflect over the past couple of weeks.  I have been amazed by God's faithfulness to be a refuge in times of trouble, to provide all that need, and to shift things around me---including the way I'm thinking about myself.  I decided to make a list of what I've learned so I'll have it the next time I need these reminders. While this list is technically for me, I'm guessing I'm not the only one who has a hard time focusing on these truths when the storms of life rage. So, this list is also for you, for when you forget.  Over the past few weeks I've experienced the sting of rejection and betrayal. While I know I am a child of God and I've done nothing to deserve this treatment, somehow I forgot my identity when someone chose to look at me differently and speak poorly about me. I allowed my heart and mind to get sick with saddness over the si

Last week Bryan and I were sitting on the couch when I looked over and saw him wearing a pair of tiny red Barbie doll glasses.  After busting out in laughter, I had to take a picture!  Over the past week, I've kept thinking about those tiny red glasses. They remind me of how people often "look" at one another. It's easy to stare into someone's life and their circumstances and think we really see them, but we don't. We focus our eyes through a tiny lense and only see bits and pieces of someone's story. And sadly, we are often quick to judge, criticize, and say hurtful things based on what we see through those tiny frames.  People often like to tell others what they observe about others through those little frames too, and the ones that hear those assumptions often consider it fact, believing whatever was said to be true. But you know, even those who wear glasses on a daily basis so that they can see clearly have to wear different prescriptions. So why would