Take Heart! I Have Overcome The World.

    It's been a rough week friend. I don't feel like sugarcoating it nor am I here for sympathy or a pity party. I'm just being honest. Between a frustrating, out-of-our-hands/control problem at work with bad parts and a wasp issue in our apartment. It's been a rough week.

    

    As I was sanding a part at work and thinking about all the troubles we were facing, the Holy Spirit reminded me of this verse. John 16:33, "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." The Holy Spirit reminded me and comforted me that not every day is sunshine and rainbows, and that's okay. Some days or even weeks suck. The week still sucked and left me drained in every way possible, but, I needed the reminder that Jesus has overcome the suck.

    

    At work, we received a shipment of parts from a customer that are no good, and thus, we cannot paint them. At first, it was frustrating, and of course, every department thought it was someone else's fault. Once we realized it was the customers' fault, we all "calmed down" and continued with our work. At the end of the week, and after feeling all the feelings, upper management tells us that we need more of these parts and that they may move people around to accommodate the demand. I nearly burst out laughing at our morning meeting. Because I know that a) it's not doable and b) they are just panicking. 

    Meanwhile, at home, we discovered a hornet's nest outside our balcony door, and somehow, they were getting into our home. At first, we thought they were coming through the windows. We figured maybe the sealing around the windows had some holes. So, hubby kept putting duct tape around the windows, trying to figure out where they were coming from. With no real success. We called our superintendent and told them about the problem. Turns out they already knew about it from our neighbour upstairs and were on it. They offered us a can of raid and said to spray the entrance to the nest. So we did. Oh, FYI, the nest is not visible. It's in the wall of the building. A few days go by with still no progress. A wasp was walking down our hallway one night (they hadn't gotten past the living room/dining room area yet). I had turned out the lights to head to bed and stepped on it, and it stung me. Oh my goodness, I have never experienced so much pain for so long. I had a tattoo apt the next afternoon, and all I thought about that night as I was trying to relieve the pain was, "My apt would be over by now." and "It better not hurt this much." (it didn't) I couldn't walk flat-footed until the next afternoon. Needless to say, we were getting even more upset with our suppers, who weren't doing a very good job of getting rid of them. Hubby finally figured out that they were coming in from the fan above our stove. The nest is in the walls and our fan isn't set up properly, lacking a filter of some sort, and thus hornets are entering our home. Oh, and the more time went on, the bigger they got. Up until we figured out where they were coming from, we were very angry tenants and ready to give our suppers a piece of our mind. We felt like we were prisoners in our own homes. Since hubby tapped a plastic bag over the fan we haven't had any wasps, of which we are thrilled. So between stupid parts at work and a wasp invasion, it has been a trying week friend.

    But I digress. The Holy Spirit has also reminded me over the last year or so that even on our bad days, we are still called to worship God and glorify His name. There was a time when I would pray for something, not get it and get upset with God. Mainly because I thought He was going to do something through the item I prayed for. Plus worshipping God and praising His name is not for His sake. He doesn't need an ego boost. We are called to worship and to remind ourselves that even in the hard times when things such it remind us that God is still good and worthy of our praise. I find this principle helpful at church as well. Sometimes, we sing songs that I'm not really into, then I remind myself that it's not about me, but about God instead. And yes, there are days when this principle doesn't work, and I'm just not in the mood to raise my hands. Which is also fine. I'm not going to hell for not raising my hands.

   

    Our church is doing a series on Jesus's messages to the seven churches in Revelation ch 2. Today we were talking about the church in Pergamum. Ch 2:12-17. The verse that stuck out to me the most was vs. 13. "I know where you live..." Our pastor parked on this verse for a minute and restated that a) God knows where we live. Which is an odd thing to say in a letter. Back when we regularly wrote letters and mailed them to our friends and family, we never said, "I know where you live." Obviously, you know where I live if you mailed me a letter. The next thing our pastor said was that not only does God know where we live, but He knows what we are going through. He knows about the challenges we are currently facing and wants to hear all about them. This friend was my takeaway from this morning's message. God sees my struggles and is here for me as I walk through them. A truth that I already knew, but needed a reminder for.

   

     So, friend, I hope your week was better than mine. But if it wasn't, that's okay too. Just remember that God is with you. He knows all about your struggles and wants to hear from you. James 1:2-4. "Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, lacking nothing."

I pray this post blesses and encourages you in whatever way you need today.

God Bless

~Hannah

Thank goodness for photo editing, because like this week, my fall photos from Friday night did not turn out very nicely.

Getting Our of My Comfort Zone

    For the last several months, I have watched my husband diligently work with his therapist on a handful of topics. One of which is his comfort zone. Every day, I am amazed at his progress and am blessed to enjoy the fruit of that labour overflowing into our marriage and all the other areas of our lives.

    Watching him move further and further away from his comfort zone and become an even more amazing man than he already was has encouraged and challenged me to get out of my comfort zone. I have spent the last few weeks thinking about what area of my life I want to get out of my comfort zone first.

    Recently, I have been a little frustrated with the lack of hours I get at my second job and have been pondering changing my second/part-time job to something with more hours. I have applied to a handful of businesses with no responses yet.

    Last week, I drove a coworker home and told him about my desire for more hours. He said the way to get more hours in this business is to be trained in more departments. One problem, I don't want to do other departments. I just want to do the dishes. As I finished driving home, the Holy Spirit nudged me and told me that this would be a good first step to getting out of my comfort zone. I wrestled with the idea a little more and then decided to step out of my comfort zone and be trained in a new department. I thought I would do the chicken wing station for the takeout window. It would be a good first "safe" step. I decided I would text my boss after my birthday weekend and see about learning this new skill.

    The weekend ends, and Monday arrives. It was a busy day, so I didn't get a chance to text him. Finally, this morning rolled around, and I know it's time. I'm nervous and anxious, but I know it's the right thing to do. I texted him and made my request. He responded a little while later and said I could learn the phones and salad station instead. Taking orders over the phone, or in person for that matter stresses me out. But getting out of the comfort zone is supposed to be uncomfortable. When I read the text from my boss, I thought, "Okay God, guess I'm jumping out of my comfort zone with both feet and not just one at a time. Despite the anxious feelings I had after reading his text, I knew it was the right thing to do. I have also learned that when God tells me to do something, I can either be obedient and do it or squirm in my uncomfortable feelings and torture myself until I decide to be obedient and do what I have been told to do. Also, be careful what you wish and pray for because you just might get it.

    In saying all this, it makes God sound like a dictator running my life. But He isn't. He gives us free will and a choice, but actions and choices have consequences. Sometimes good and sometimes bad. The thing is that God loves me and wants to bless me and give me good things. And like any good earthly father, He wants to reward and bless us when we are obedient and follow Him. God only wants good things for us. He wants us to grow as men and women of God and for me, it means getting out of my comfort zone in this particular area of my life.

What areas of your life is God calling you out of your comfort zone friend?

I pray this post finds you well this Tuesday evening and blesses you in whatever way you need today.

God Bless

~Hannah

Calm before the Storm

Be Like Jesus

    It's a thought I have been wrestling with for a few months. Over the last few months, when someone hurt me or acted unkind, whether they intended to hurt me or not, I would think, "I don't want to be like them." Then Holy Spirit corrected me and said, "Be Like me." To which I responded, "Okay." So I worked on focusing on Jesus and less on other mistakes and how those mistakes can hurt others. A week or so later another person did something silly that also irritated me and again I thought about how I don't want to be like them. Again, Holy Spirit reminded me to be like Jesus instead. Be like Jesus because Jesus is God in human form, and therefore a human example of what God The Father desires from His people.

    In my Bible reading plan, I am currently reading through the Gospels and Jesus's earthly ministry. I have also been watching "The Chosen." Watching this series has been a beautiful visual of the Gospel, and I feel it adding to and strengthening my relationship with The Father.

    All this to say that it got me thinking about what passages in the Bible speak of Jesus's character and write them down for myself and share them with you. The first one that most will think of is Galatians 5:22-23 "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things, there is no law." When we have an active relationship with God and are actively growing in our faith, these are the signs that the world around us will see and know that God is real and loves us.

    Philippians 4:8-9, "Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable- if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or soon in me - put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you." We are to spend our time, energy and thoughts on things of God and not of the world. Now, neither of these passages are describing Jesus. But like I said a minute ago, they describe what we as believers ought to focus on and demonstrate to the people around us.

    "Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him." 1 John 4:7-9.

    "When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. Where have you laid him? he asked. "Come and see, Lord," they replied. Jesus wept. John 11:32-35. You can read for yourself the rest of the story of how Jesus raised Lazarus from the grave.

    When Holy Spirit first told me to write this entry/post about the characteristics that Jesus demonstrated. He told me that the first one was compassion. Which is demonstrated in John 11:32-35. When I googled the definition of compassion, it says, "Sympathetic, pity and concern for the sufferings or misfortunes of others." I think Holy Spirit is trying to send me a message. 😉 Haven't been as compassionate with hubby as of late. Today, though He gave me a few chances to show him compassion and for that I am grateful.

    What messages is He trying to send you today friend? And are you willing to listen and obey?

    I pray this post finds you well rested and ready for the next week and blesses you in whatever ways you need today.

God Bless

~Hannah

Following Jesus down the path of life.

Thankful This Thanksgiving

 

1. Jesus died and rose from the grave and saved me from my sins. The older I get and the more I get into God's Word and strengthen my relationship with Him, the more thankful I am that He died on the cross for me and that death could not contain Him, and he rose from the grave. It also makes me realize that if He can do that for me, then I can do the hard things in my life that I don't want to do and do them to serve Him.
2. The Holy Spirit. My connection to God The Father until I get to heaven. I am so thankful that I do not have to go to the temple/church and talk to a priest like they did in biblical times and talk to God whenever and wherever I want.
3. My husband. The leader of my home. My favourite pair of arms to hug. He found a new therapist about six months ago, and it has been a joy and a blessing to watch God change him personally and enjoy the fruits of that overflow into our marriage. He is my favourite gift and the biggest earthly blessing from God.
4. Blessing. Our four-legged furry child. My photo adventure buddy and favourite running companion. My sweet girl.
5. My job. I am grateful that I have a job to go to every day that helps me pay the bills.
6. My health. I'm thankful that I am an able-bodied person with overall good health.
7. Good friends. God has blessed me with friends over the years and a few precious ones that have walked me through difficult seasons. 
8. My camera. I have wanted a DSLR my whole life. Hubby and I bought one a few years ago. I love developing my skills and learning new things about photography every time I take it out. I found a beloved hobby in my camera and some self-confidence.
9. My sewing machine. My mother gifted my sister and I with sewing machines years ago. I have had a love/hate relationship with mine for years and did not touch it. I recently decided to start working through that relationship to figure out what has caused me frustration all these years. God has used my sewing machine to teach me to deal with my frustration in a more healthy way, and as a result, I now enjoy sewing and am excited about all the projects I have on my mind.
10. Podcasts. I was introduced to them several years ago but didn't get into them. Finally, in the last year, I started listening more frequently and have since broadened my list of shows and topics I enjoy. I find they pair beautifully with my mundane sanding job. I enjoy a handful of ministry podcasts that bring the Word of God and a few personal interest podcasts. I get to learn more about God and other fun topics, all while sanding car parts.
11. The colour pink. My happy colour. I love wearing it and feeling pretty and girly in it. It has a calming effect that I enjoy. 
12. ASL Bloom app. After a conversation with my husband about bucket list items last week, it inspired me to make my bucket list items a reality. Learning Sign Language is the next on my list. It is a language I have loved since I was a kid and have on and off worked on my vocabulary. After our discussion, I decided it was time to stop making excuses and start learning this beautiful language. So I went to Google and found "the best" app to help me. It is well-designed and encourages you while you learn the language.
13. Our home. I am thankful that I have a place to come home to every day that is clean, warm and safe. I know not everyone has that blessing, so I am very thankful that we have it. 
14. Our car. It needs a little work, but she faithfully takes us everywhere we need to go.
15. Technology and Social Media. I'm thankful that I can send a text to my parents and other loved ones, and in a matter of a minute, they will receive the message and can instantly respond. Social Media and other such technology do have their downfalls for sure, but when used properly, they are helpful.

    The list could go on, but I don't feel like doing that. Besides, I don't believe the act of stopping your day and writing down a list of things you are thankful for is about the length of the list. It's about being thankful for all the blessings God has given you. Happy Thanksgiving friend.

    I pray this post blesses you in whatever way you need today.

    God Bless

    ~Hannah

Beautiful Clouds

Saturdays Are No Longer Scary.

    For seven years, I have hated Saturdays. I wanted to enjoy them, but I didn't. So much so. That I would dread Saturday arriving. Thursday was my "favourite" day of the week for most of these years because it meant that the weekend "aka" rest was on its way but hadn't arrived yet. 

    At first, it was because my husband had hobbies that he enjoyed on Saturdays, and I didn't. Leading me to feel jealous that he had something and I didn't. Of course, I didn't have the language to understand or express my feelings for years. He understood and tried to encourage me, but it never worked. This struggle lasted several years. You can imagine what it did to our marriage as well.

    Fast forward a few years. Now, I have hobbies that I enjoy. I'm not passionate about them yet. One of my struggles at this point is that Saturdays have no routine or schedule. Both of which I love and thrive on. Monday - Friday, I had and still have the same routine. Get up, do housework and get ready for work. After work, I make dinner and walk Blessing. But, no matter how hard I tried, nothing worked. It could be 6 a.m., I've been up for less than an hour, and something has gone "wrong," and now my whole day has been ruined, and I feel depressed. My other struggle during this season is that my self-worth comes from working and earning a paycheque, so if I'm not at work earning a paycheque then I have little to no value. I want to believe I have worth outside of work and simply "doing," but I don't. This season also lasted a few years.

    Finally, fast forward to somewhere in August 2023, when everything changed. I'm not sure of the exact date, but that doesn't matter. Hubby and I went out for the evening with family. Because of my self-worth issues, I said a few stupid things that hubby wasn't happy about, of which he was correct. I decided that night that it was time to start pressing in and asking God to fix my broken heart, and He did. He showed me my God-given value and has been helping me to allow His goodness to flow out of me instead of the muck that used to flow out of me. I've now had almost a month of good Saturdays. Now, I enjoy most of my hobbies every Saturday, including my newest addition, sewing. More on that later. It's been amazing watching God do a miracle in and through me. I believe one of the reasons why they always went "wrong" was because Monday through Friday, my morning routine starts very early and is very strict and rigid. I wanted Saturday to be the same, but struggled to get out of bed at three or four a.m. when I had nowhere to be, even though I wanted to get up that early. But Saturdays have a more relaxed "vibe" than Monday through Friday, and struggled with the different emotions involved in these days. Also, words and language that I struggled with/ didn't have and therefore couldn't connect the dots in my head and heart. It's funny how once we have the words/language to communicate how we are feeling, we can process them and act accordingly.

    I know that a lot of my issues including my ability to enjoy Saturdays, stemmed from my lack of self-worth and not accepting my values as a child of Christ. But I had no idea how much my life would improve once I started living out my true identity and not worrying about what the world thinks or feels about me.

    I wish I could explain exactly what happened, but I cannot. Looking back on these last few months and all the work God and I have been doing to heal my broken, self-conscious heart, I suspect that enjoying my Saturdays was simply going to be one of the many benefits and blessings of accepting my true identity in Christ. Makes me wish I had worked on these issues years ago. I also know that God knew when I would turn to Him for healing in this area and that I would struggle for years with not believing that I was worth anything more than simply a paycheck.

    It reminds me of the scene in Shrek where Shrek is comparing himself to an onion to Donkey and how Ogres have layers like onions. Similarly, as God heals one aspect of my self-worth another layer is revealed to be healed and blessed by God.

    When I started down the path of healing with God, my main intention was to stop disliking myself, okay, fine, stop hating myself. Yes, hate is a strong word, but that's how I felt about myself. My hatred of myself caused me to project all my negative emotions on those around me, and I was getting tired of it.

    But God has healed me, and I no longer project, or at least way less than before, and I now get to enjoy my Saturdays.

     All I know for sure is that God is good and faithful.

    The moral of the story friend, is that we need to accept and believe in our identity in Christ because everything stems from it. So much of how we interact with the world around us depends on how we feel about ourselves. If we choose to believe what the world says, our worth will go up and down with the trends. But if we believe what God says, our identity will never change because God doesn't change.

    Praise God that in a constantly changing world, God never changes. With so much inconsistency in the world, it brings me peace when I remember that God doesn't change

    I pray this post finds you well and blesses you in whatever way you need it to tonight friend.

God Bless

~Hannah

Practicing Self- Portrait Skills