Brave Heart, Brave Soul. She who is brave is free.

"I try to keep it real. I don't have time to worry about what I'm projecting to the world. I'm just busy being myself." ~ Demi Lovato Have you ever stood back and thought to yourself, will the real you please stand up? And as much as we can ask that of others, how many times do we actually ask ourselves that same question? In a world so wrapped up in social media be it Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or any one of a dozen other outlets we seem to embrace the art of manipulated happiness or criticism without a second thought.  I often wonder if most of it is smokescreens and mirrors or if what we're seeing is the real McCoy. I'm pretty sure most of the posts and status updates we read are somewhere in the middle honestly. After all, we simply want our best on parade right? Or we want to shame and guilt others into feeling the same hurt or rage we're feeling. After all, it's just a  couple of sentences, a few words, and what consequences could ...

This morning as I was reading in my Bible I was struck by the power of one word…disgrace. It always amazes me how God speaks to us through His Word. I was reading in Isaiah, 25:8 to be exact. I tend to read from the Good News version because it's more of today’s English and I honestly can understand it so much better than many other translations. It says this: "The Sovereign Lord will destroy death forever! He will wipe away the tears from everyone's eyes and take away the disgrace his people have suffered throughout the world. The Lord himself has spoken.”  I was left knocked off my feet, why, because it sank in in those moments our tears aren't ours alone! His grace is absolutely sufficient (2 Corinthians 12:9) Go on sit down, pull your seat up and let’s have an honest conversation between friends. While you’re at it grab some coffee and a danish too, this may take a while.  Life Lesson #28: Forgiveness brings freedom. Most of those who know me, know 2...

To say I'm a blessed woman is an understatement. I'm always struck by the grace which abounds in my life. I realize so many of us feel we are lacking, instead of embracing the grace our lives provide each of us. Sometimes our fantasies take hold of our reasoning, the way we think and feel about those unattained desires we want for our own. Sadly many times we fail to appreciate all we have in the process. The truth is if we could just step back and take a good look at all we have, the love we carry inside us, the blessings our lives give us daily we'd find real happiness. Maybe our lights would even shine a little brighter? Seriously how many times do we actually take inventory of our own heart, our soul and spirit? How many times do we truly accept we have everything we need without longing for more than we have? Why is it we can't accept the gifts we've been given without the need to take more? As I share advice here on my blog, you should know the adv...