Stronger....

Don't you love Mandisa??? If you don't know who Mandisa is, I urge you to Google her or look up some of her videos on YouTube. Mandisa is a Christian artist whose songs are about being down and out but being able to pick yourself up by the grace of God holding you and not letting you fall. The first song I heard from Mandisa was Stronger (and I didn't even know it was HER who sang it; all I knew was that it hit me hard). Here are the Lyrics...

Hey, heard you were up all night

Thinking about how your world ain't right

And you wonder if things will ever get better

And you're asking, why is it always raining on you

When all you want is just a little good news

Instead of standing there stuck out in the weather

Oh, don't hang your head

It's gonna end

God's right there

Even if it's hard to see Him

I promise you that He still cares

When the waves are taking you under

Hold on just a little bit longer

He knows that this is gonna make you stronger, stronger

The pain ain't gonna last forever

And things can only get better

Believe me

This is gonna make you stronger

Gonna make you stronger, stronger, stronger

Believe me, this is gonna make you

Try and do the best you can

Hold on and let Him hold your hand

Go on and fall into the arms of Jesus

Oh, lift your head it's gonna end

God's right there

Even when you just can't feel Him

I promise you that He still cares

When the waves are taking you under

Hold on just a little bit longer

He knows that this is gonna make you stronger, stronger

The pain ain't gonna last forever

Things can only get better

Believe me

This is gonna make you stronger

'Cause if He started this work in your life

He will be faithful to complete it

If only you believe it

He knows how much it hurts

And I'm sure that He's gonna help you get through this

When the waves are taking you under

Hold on just a little bit longer

He knows that this is gonna make you stronger, stronger

The pain ain't gonna last forever

Things can only get better

Believe me

This is gonna make you stronger

gonna make you stronger, stronger, stronger

This is gonna make you stronger

Gonna make you stronger, stronger, stronger

Believe me

Only gonna make you stronger

Mandisa - Stronger Lyrics | MetroLyrics 

I urge you to look her up on YouTube!

My Grief Journey....

I am a single parent with a 22-y/o special needs son, Ryan, who keeps me pretty busy. I started my own transcription business back in 2005 and was self-employed for 10 years--hours/commute were great but no benefits kinda sucked.  We moved from Naperville, Illinois to Spring Hill, Florida, in June 2007 and, aside from the extremely HOT days of the summer months, have enjoyed living here for the past 10 years. I have recently found new employment which I love which comes with great benefits! 

Things were going well until I got the rug pulled out from under me and my whole world shattered into a million pieces. 

My boyfriend of 15-1/2 years passed away unexpectedly on 6/11/14. He was not only my partner, but my best friend, lover and soul mate. He was the one person in this world I wanted to see and hear and talk to all the time. Even when we weren't physically together, we talked on the phone every single day. The fact that I just can't pick up the phone and call him is killing me right now. We lived together on and off for the first 8 yrs of our relationship when we both lived in Illinois. Then, due to loss of jobs for both of us, I moved with my son to Florida to live with my mom while he moved back home to live with his parents. The plan was always for us to get jobs, save money, and eventually have him come down to Florida to live with me. He finally came down to start our life together in July 2013--July 3, 2013, to be precise--and we lived together for almost a year. Had I known that he would be gone less than a year later, well, so many things I wish I would've done better. In early 2014, he went back to Illinois to spend time with his dad who had a lot of medical problems and he was worried about him. Unfortunately, I never saw him again after that. He passed away while home in Lombard, Illinois. I feel guilty that we were apart for the last 4 months. We were supposed to meet for a mini-vacation in Washington, D.C. for the 4th of July for a reunion in a place neither of us have ever been. Instead, exactly 3 weeks prior to us leaving, he had a fatal seizure in his sleep and passed away. 

I don't know what I'm going to do without him in my life. He was the one and only man in my life to ever truly love me for me and accept me for who I am who. I don't know what to do with myself without him in my life. It took me 25 years to find someone who didn’t care about my weight, we were together 15-1/2 years. I don’t see how I’m ever going find that again. 

But as I have learned, and I'm hoping that you all reading this will come to see, too, is that God has a plan for each of us.  I started going to church again and deepening my relationship with God. I found The Joy FM which has really been a blessing to me. I also decided to go back to school and have just finished my Associate of Science Health Information Technician degree. 

I hope whoever is reading this blog finds some comfort in knowing that God is with you and never lets go. So, if you feel yourself slipping down a wrong path, stop holding on and just let go and fall into His arms knowing that he will always be there to catch you and pick you up. 

If you have a question or comment, feel free to drop me a line! Have a Blessed Day!

Grief Bites: Day 2

Grief Bites: A New Approach to Growing Through Grief

Day 2

Devotional: Grief, loss, and hardships can leave you feeling resentful, hurt, helpless, and powerless.

During life's tough events, we have 2 choices--resent God and our grief...OR...embrace God and our grief.

When we grow bitter with resentment, we deny ourselves an incredible opportunity...the opportunity to know and understand God at a richer, more intimate level, as well as the opportunity to experience HIS hope and love that only He can pour into a hurting heart.

Oftentimes, grief feels as though we are dragging ourselves through a rugged valley with little or no relief. During these tough times, we must condition ourselves to run a good race.

Running to God during times of grief has a GREAT reward: It will lead you to His very heart and this will eventually enable you to experience greater JOY...authentic JOY!

Trust God today and embrace Him with everything you've got! He is watching over you and He will never leave or forsake you! Even when a situation seems hopeless, He always has a plan to see you through...He is there for the entire lifelong marathon.

We must be patient and allow Him to work our grief out to completion as we condition ourselves to win the race. It is very tempting to hurry our grief or try to get through our grief with our own human efforts and strength. It is vital to keep the faith ad trust God...especially if our own nature is telling us differently.

We must allow God to paint the entirety of our individual grief's picture so that He receives the credit for what He accomplishes through our situations of grief or loss.

When life doesn't make sense, pour your heart out to Him. Share with Him how you feel. He is an awesome refuge. He has the great power of truly lifting you out of the most difficult situations in life and calming all anxiety on your toughest days.

Put your life back on God's "easel" and allow Him to paint the rest of the picture to completion. Trust Him, He truly is good! He is faithful to lift you up in due time.

2 Timothy 4:7

Psalms 62:8

1 Peter 5:6-7

Psalms 34:8

Have a Blessed Day!

Grief Bites: Day 1

Grief Bites: A New Approach to Growing Through Grief

Day 1      

Devotional: Has grief knocked your breath out of you or altered your life? At some point, everybody will experience grief. Grief is simply any situation that has broken your heart, or anything that has attempted to break your spirit or your relationship with God and others.

Grief is often thought of as a destructive intruder, but few realize that grief is one of the most powerful teachers you can learn from. When embraced, Grief will teach you how to love God and others much more deeply, how to live a fuller life, and to not take life or ordinary moments for granted.

Grief is like a storm that uproots all things familiar, but after the torrential storms of grief hit, life becomes crystal clear and gives a fresh brand new perspective on God, life, and everything else for that matter.

When one goes through grief, the invaluable opportunity to understand, love, know, and experience God more deeply immediately begins. He is the key to creating a more vibrant purposeful life in spite of Grief.

No matter what you are facing today, God DOES have a plan to see you through. Don't give up...He WILL help you get your breath back after life knocks it out of you and He is faithful to show you fresh new perspectives and life lessons through any Grief experience you face.

Psalms 34:17-16