Oh be careful little mouth what you say....

Have you ever replayed a conversation over in your mind; rewinding word after word searching for the exact phrase that either lifted your soul or tore your soul apart?  I have.

I do it in order to figure out how I can better myself and be prepared in the future.  There are so many times I've been able to just file a conversation away and never replay it again....but others - I'll wear the tape out first.  It may be a terrible habit, but I'm speaking from the heart. 

It's so important that we put a guard over our mouth when we are angry.  So often we say things we don't mean but the other person will hold on to for days, weeks and even years in some cases.  It's not easy to forget words.  The Bible tells us that from the abundance of the heart...the mouth speaketh.  So basically what ever is residing in your heart is going to come shooting out of your mouth - making it very difficult for others to believe you when you apologize for the words you've spoken.  Trust me I know this to be true because not only have I been the recipient of harsh words...I've spewed them out as well. 

Whether it's with your children, your spouse, your coworkers...choose to be kind today.  Choose to keep silent if you don't have anything nice to say.  You will save yourself and others from hurt feelings, broken hearts, and wounded spirits.  

We are all blessed with a new set of 24 hours in each day to get things right.  How about today we use our 24 hours to speak words of encouragement to one another?

Here's to starting over!

God takes care of us...

I found I needed God in a special way this weekend. As I called on God for help..I grabbed my headphones, my cell phone and turned to some of the teachings of #Joyce Meyer.  Listening to sound teaching, praying and turning to the Word of God are the tools I turn to most often.  Satan hit me in so many areas..I felt completely and utterly helpless.  Lucky for me, I have a God who holds the world in the palm of His hands.  He knows my needs before I ever go to Him in prayer. 

Satan will stop at nothing to destroy us and it's up to us to stay alerted to his tactics.  He'll use our children, our family members, our spouse, our jobs and coworkers, he'll use finances, he'll bring people into our life to trip us up...he has no respect for our lives. 

We have to turn to God instead of worrying about the situation.  We have to allow God to fight our battles and He will - He just needs us to get out of the way.

For all of us who are fighting a fight of faith - hold on.  Trust in God - He is the way maker!

Learning to sail

Storms hit suddenly and without warning.  They cause us to lose our footing, our sense of direction...storms hit believers and unbelievers alike.

God doesn't always keep us from storms, as a matter of fact...He sometimes leads us straight into the storm and at times it feels as though he's abandoned us in the midst.  Contrary to our thoughts...He's always right there - the Bible tells us about a story where Jesus was on the boat with Peter and John...the storm was raging while Jesus slept on the boat with them.  Do you think He didn't know there was a storm?  Noooo, He was fully aware but allowed the storm to rage on.  It serves as a great example of how God weathers the storm with us.  He didn't leave them...He was right there the entire time.  Just as He is with us.

I am learning to navigate through things because I trust God is with me.  I trust He has my little world, my life and my family in the palm of His hands.  So many times crisis show us a side of ourselves that we may have been blind to.  Maybe we didn't realize we had been living or believing a certain way that wasn't good for us or those around us...so instead of looking at every situation we don't agree with as a bad thing...maybe it's an opportunity for us to learn and grow; learning to trust God when life is uncertain just as we trust Him when life is calm.

Storms tend to reveal our distorted views.  So by faith I want to say that God is sovereign, has it all in control and with that knowledge I can relax and learn to sail in the midst of the storm.

Never take for granted the storms - they sometimes reveal lost treasures - start over with hope and faith that your treasures will be discovered!

Ohhh yes I am!!

This blog is about those of us who never expected to find ourselves in the place where life demanded us to begin again, but we did.

God designed a woman to be bold, confident, courageous, admired and loved.  He designed us to be a partner, someone who will assist in life's struggles, yet be able to be strong enough to stand alone.

We are women - we are sassy and sweet, soft and curvy, gentle yet strong, determined yet inquisitive, we command attention, soften the mood, we love with every fiber, we have the power to create, nurture and transform.  Women make up half of this world - and yet there is only one me!!!

I am the only Jamie there is who was formed by Roland and Margie -a beautiful mother - petite and sassy and a handsome father - tall and courageous. I am who I am and make no apologies.
I am a once in a lifetime woman!

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You may feel like you got the wind knocked out of your sails and don't see how you can ever feel confident in who you are again.  Please take it from me, you can.  Once you begin loving yourself and paying attention to who you are - you will be unstoppable.  You will never allow yourself to feel unlovable again.

Your worth isn't validated by size, color, religion, marital status or popularity.  Your worth is validated by God and you alone.  You are worthy because God says you are worthy - he has validated you!

So smile, stand a little taller and walk in confidence as you take on this day!!

What can it look like?

This blog is about those of us who never expected to find ourselves in the place where life demanded us to begin again, but we did.

If someone would have asked me 6 years ago if I could see myself remarrying, anytime soon - I would have said no.  Not yet.  I didn't trust any man, let alone want to take a chance that it would all end again some day.  I went through periods of happiness, personal growth, spiritual healing and restoration and sadness.  I had to go through all the emotions that come through the healing process before I would ever be close to ready. It wasn't easy - it took time!

As my fiance and I approach our wedding day, my mind goes over every final detail.  

This day isn't just about me, it's about two people who've made their mind up to love and cherish each other, to work together to build a great life.  It's about two people who have known what it's like to be lonely, what it's like to settle, what it's like to sacrifice, what it's like to make mistakes and live with the consequences, what it's like to find a jewel and realize you never want to live without each other.  We are not looking back at what might have been - we are looking forward to what OUR life can be.

Please don't give up on yourself or those in your life because you can't see the beauty which lies in front of you.  Sometimes it just takes....time.  Time to heal, time to grow, time to make necessary changes that allow something beautiful to grow.  

Starting over with a new frame of mind - looking forward to a life with a beautiful man - a man who loves me.  How blessed am I to be able to see how wonderful life can be!

Thank you Mrs. Jones

The 92 year old petite, well poised and proud lady, who is fully dressed each morning by eight o'clock, with her hair fashionably coifed and makeup perfectly applied, even though legally blind, moved to a nursing home today.  Her husband of 70 years recently passed away, making the move necessary.

After many hours of waiting patiently in the lobby of the nursing home, she smiled sweetly when told her room was ready.  As she maneuvered her walker to the elevator, I provided a visual description of her tiny room, including the eyelet sheets that had been hung on her window.  "I love it," she stated with the enthusiasm of an eight year old having just been presented with a new puppy.

"Mrs. Jones, you haven't seen the room...just wait."

"That doesn't have anything to do with it," she replied.  "Happiness is something you decide on ahead of time.  Whether I like my room or not doesn't depend on how the furniture is arranged, it's how I arrange my mind.  I already decided to love it.  It's a decision I make every morning when I wake up.  I have a choice; I can spend the day in bed recounting the difficulty I have with the parts of my body that no longer work, or get out of bed and be thankful for the ones that do.  Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open I'll focus on the new day and all the happy memories I've stored away, just for this time in my life."

She went on to explain, "old age is like a bank account, you withdraw from what you've put in.  So, my advice to you would be to deposit a lot of happiness in the bank account of memories.  Thank you for your part in filling my memory bank, I'm still depositing."

And with a smile, she said:  "Remember these five simple rules to be happy:

1.  Free your heart from hatred

2.  Free your mind from worries

3.  Live simply

4.  Give more

5.  Expect less."

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 May we all follow these simple rules.

Here's to starting over - seeing from the heart.

This story is not my own - I found it on the internet and am sharing with you all...too beautiful to keep to myself.

Empathy

Do you know what it means to have empathy towards someone?

It means to look at something from their eyes, hear something from their ears and try to feel the way they feel...work to understand them, their pain, their fears, feel their heart.

Last night I received a text from a dear friend of mine who was hurting.  As we text back and forth the phone rang and we began to talk.  We both shared from our hearts...each of us opening up as friends do - listening and understanding - because we have empathy towards one another.  We love each other and hate when one or both of us are facing difficult situations.  How terrible it would be if we tried to talk and words fell on deaf ears because there was no attempt to understand or feel what each other was feeling.  Guaranteed our friendship would be shallow and not last a lifetime.  Thank God our friendship is strong and we can be there for one another.

We will all face trying times. Try to place yourself in their shoes and do your best to understand what they are going through.  I have and I'm sure will face many more trials in my life that will knock the wind out of my sails...maybe they are all just moments in life's classroom that help prepare me so I'm better able to understand someone else's pain in the future...whatever it is...I pray someone shows empathy towards me.  We need each other.  Everyone is facing something we know absolutely nothing about...practice being empathetic today, it will help you in starting over and perhaps someone else.

I pray God gives us all an extra dose today.

Brick by brick

This morning as I sit here thinking about what's on my heart, I have to think about what got me to this point.  My foundation had been destroyed after my divorce.

 I realized there are two kinds of people in life - those who knock you down and those who lift you up. It's funny because the majority that threw bricks were in church - judging the situation without knowledge of what was truly happening because I did not talk about it.  I just kept to myself for the most part.  It wasn't until later down the road that I opened up and shared....by that time, I'd found out who my true friends were.

Today I know who I am as a woman.  Today I stand tall in God's grace.  I know the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords is my fortress and holds me in the palm of His hands.  I know God to be my sure foundation no matter what storms blow my way and can testify to others that if you just hold on He'll bring you through - you can use each brick thrown at you as a stepping stone.

Keep your chin up, pray for those who are against you and keep walking forward!

Here's to starting over - brick by brick!!!