Oh Nuts

  Here are 5 lessons from the book Forgiving What You Can't Forget: Discover How to Move On, Make Peace with Painful Memories, and Create a Life That's Beautiful Again by Lysa TerKeurst: 1. Forgiveness is a journey , not a destination. It takes time to heal from painful memories and to let go of resentment. Don't be discouraged if you don't feel forgiven right away. Just keep moving forward and trust that God is working in your heart. 2. Forgiveness is not about excusing the other person's behavior . It's about releasing yourself from the burden of anger and bitterness. When you forgive, you're not saying that what happened was okay. You're simply saying that you're not going to let it control you anymore. 3 . You don't have to forget in order to forgive. In fact, it's often helpful to remember what happened so that you can learn from it and grow. But you don't have to dwell on the past or let it define you. 4. Forgiveness is a gift yo...

  Too often, we get caught up in this need for perfection. It comes to a point where everything has to be in specific spots or look a certain way. With every I dotted, and T crossed, with every strand of hair in place. If that doesn't happen, then it is considered disorganized and messy. But what we forget is that there is no such thing as perfect.  Because of our need for everything to be perfectly ordered, we forget that it is okay to have things get messy. When we have everything in perfect order, it can often feel like a sterile environment where nothing wants to grow. Leaving the occasional mess by the kitchen sink or toys thrown across a bedroom floor is a sign of life.  Oftentimes, I think constant perfection is also a need for control. Because if we can control the environment around us, we can live the way we want. But what we need to do is r elease the need for control. Life has its own set of twists and turns, and not everything can be controlled. We need to em...

When we hear the word modesty, the first thing that comes to mind is clothing that covers everything or the majority of your body. Dressing modestly is something I have grown up with and have been around my entire life. And it can be considered a "hot topic" regarding what girls and women wear. Especially when it comes to places like schools and the workplace. But most people don't realize that modesty isn't just about what you wear; it is also about how you act around others and toward yourself.  Photo by Amanda Canas on Unsplash I am talking about this because I read an article on my Facebook feed the other day about a father who posted a picture with his two daughters in their homecoming dresses. And it was talking about his response to the people commenting on the style of the dresses. I don't remember the article's name, but I do know that it mentioned "girls to dress, so they don't distract boys," as well as saying that they are "aski...

  What if today we were just grateful for mornings. Photo by Sharon Pittaway on Unsplash  and edited by me What if today we were just grateful for nights. What if today we were just grateful for the food on the table.  What if today we were just grateful for a bike to ride. What if today were just grateful for a game to play. What if today we were just grateful for the friends we make. What if we were just grateful for a roof over our heads. What if today we were just grateful for our family. What if today we were just grateful for another day to be alive. What if today we were just grateful for everything.

  In life, we are expected to have everything planned out to the dot for our futures. But we might not realize that it is okay not to be perfect and not have everything figured out.  The photo was taken by me We need to learn and work on the fact that it is okay to feel things that are shameful, hate, and feel guilty. And we've tried to stand by the message that it's okay to have scars and show them. To show that you've been through all sorts of things and have become a different and better person because of it. It is okay to let go of anyone in your life who tries to pull you down with their own negativity.   A large part of the need to plan everything out, as well as any negativity, stems from the fact that no one likes to be wrong. In the times that something proves us wrong, it just makes us believe in it more. But we need to learn that it's okay to be wrong. As human beings, we often don't like to go outside of our comfort zone. Moving outside of our comfort zo...