Yes, Shawna...ALL THINGS! Happy Thanksgiving!

Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."1 Thessalonians 5:18 (NIV 1984)


I've read the scripture, I've recited the scripture and I've ummmmm failed at believing the scripture!

I'm supposed to give thanks in ALL circumstances? ALL? I mean every circumstance? Say what? But God you don't realize that a lot of my circumstances are very difficult..Yes, Shawna, I do!

I'm supposed to be thankful that my son Devin has Mitochondrial disease? That my son Brandon has bone/hip diseases? Not to mention any of my medical illnesses? Shawna, be thankful that I'm a great healer!

I'm supposed to be thankful for a painful relationship that ended? Yes, I'm molding you and preparing you for great things...you are my child and I have great plans for you! I'm also molding your husband that I'm preparing for you, Don't go out of my will and my timing.

I'm supposed to be thankful that my kids put the clothes ON the hamper and not IN the hamper? Yes, Shawna, you are blessed with a home and children.

I'm supposed to be thankful for hitting a pole and wrecking my car? Yes, Shawna, you are blessed with a car.

I really could go on and on, thankful when the dog leaves a nice big present right in my walkway? when I leave my leftovers in the car all weekend and the car smells baaddd? when my feelings are hurt? when I'm exhausted in the morning and would do anything not to go to work? when I'm running to work at 10:30 at night to print a report for my son that is due the NEXT morning? (nothing like kids waiting until the night before, right?) when I don't know how my finances will work that month being a single mom? when I feel lonely? when I feel overwhelmed? when....when....when....I mean, couldn't we all just keep on going??? BTW- God answered those questions too.

Yes, Shawna, give thanks in ALL circumstances! WOW God, Can I ever live up to your expectations?

Yes, Shawna...with Me you can do ALL things!

I'm so thankful this Thanksgiving! I'm thankful that I have 3 amazing children that know You Lord! I am thankful for my family and friends and so thankful for the struggles in my life. They've brought me closer to God, they've made me go before the throne and admit that I'm nothing without Him and that I cannot do anything without my Lord who gives me strength. 

Hope that you all have a very HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

I'm loving.......QUOTES!

I really am blogging still but I keep getting side tracked with life, kids, schedules, friends, and QUOTES!
With Thanksgiving coming up in a few days.. I WILL have a real blog before Thursday. :-)

Quotes, Quotes, and more Quotes....

Pruned and Beautiful.....

Pruned AND Beautiful....

The flowers that are in my picture are from the trashcan at work. See the guys decided to trim the bushes outside and discard the flowers. When I looked outside and saw the can full of very pretty flowers...I had to get my scissors and run outside before the garbage men came.

See these flowers were very pretty and I knew that it was time to prune them so that our garden could flourish...but I saw more beauty in them that needed to be seen by others. So as the guys laughed and rolled their eyes at me snipping in the trashcans...once I was done with the flowers and placed them on my desk...they LOVED them. They keep passing by and commenting on how I made a beautiful arrangement out of trash and that I should do that more often.

I haven't been able to get this off of my heart so I'll blog about it. How many people feel like these flowers?
People just walking past them while they are in full bloom, not really noticing their beauty.

I think that so many people and their beauty (inward/outward) are overlooked, unappreciated, and their confidence is wilted.

Sometimes we need pruning in our lives . Isn't that wonderful to know that even when we are pruned, even when we've been discarded, even when we feel wilted, that there are people out there that pick us up, nurture us, and put us in that special place to shine.



Song of Songs 4:7  "All beautiful you are, my darling; there is no flaw in you."

Mito Week!!!!!!

This week is Mitochondrial Disease Awareness Week!

Mitochondrial Disease needs a cure...unfortunately not many people have heard of it! Help spread the word of this terrible disease that has NO cure at this time.

You can go to the website umdf.org or mitoaction.org to learn more.

My son and I were both diagnosed this year with this disease so it is very important for us to reach out to as many people as possible to bring awareness to others. So many people have this and do not know what is wrong with them because it's not a commonly heard of disease.

Due to the fact that we are both sick right now, I can't write a full blog about the importance of research, funding, and moving towards a cure. Know that people spreading the word is VITAL.

Thank you for helping us move a step closer to finding a cure. muah!

He gives & takes away......

One thing that I have never really liked is....uncertainty. I like to know what's happening, when it's happening, how it will turn out, and if anything changes I have a back up plan in place. Seems tiring? It is, but I like to be prepared. Some call it OCD, some call it controlling, some call it annoying but it never really mattered what anyone else called it because they weren't suffering the consequences when things fell apart, I was.

Even with all of my planning, scheduling, preparations, and and endless thinking...things STILL do not always run smoothly. That's when disappointment sets in. I've come to learn (the hard way!) that I ultimately have no control of what happens. I can plan my course but God directs my steps. (Proverbs 16:9)

Disappointment.....ahhh that terrible feeling that we all feel when things do not turn out the way we wanted it to. I can say without a doubt, that I've been MORE disappointed this year than any in a very long time. The person that I depended on the most let me down, the plans that I made were no longer happening, my son and I were both diagnosed with a disease that has no cure, my house had to be gutted in a day and I couldn't do a thing about it, my kids lost someone that they looked up to, I came to the realization that I am not superwoman! I have more appointments in a week than most have in a year, I'm 42 and not where I thought I'd be by now. Talk about disappointments! Those are only the big ones!

So....why is my title He gives and takes away???  This is where it turns good....

God is faithful! He gives and takes away (Job 1:21) When He takes away....it hurts! We don't understand it and we may never know why but when He gives.....He gives good! Amen!

He's given me a great job! (although I have to remind myself of that when it gets tough..lol)It's been 7 years and they have supported me through some tough times!
He's given me 3 amazing kids that He trusted ME to raise!
He's given me circumstances good and bad....to help me grow.
He's redeeming me from a very bad relationship and allowing me to have the things in life that I deserve... was blinded by the devil's schemes. 
He's given me the greatest friends ever and have made some AWESOME new friendships! I absolutely LOVE the encouragement they've given. You all know who you are. xoxoxo
He's given me a mom and dad that have always adored me.


Yes he's taken away...but I don't want to focus on those things.
I want to focus on what He's given me...even during the past 3 weeks..I've had 45 tubes of blood taken...yes 45! I wanted to crack under stress and my support system lifted me back up with calls, encouragement, visits, flowers, food, prayers. OMG! I LOVE MY LIFE!

Thank you God for giving and taking away......

Warning! There is a wolf on the loose!!

I'm going to have to change my title....my daily doses of inspiration do NOT come on a daily basis. lol

I haven't been able to blog lately ..I will hopefully get back to writing soon, until then ...I am passing along some great encouragement. I hope that you enjoy them as much as I do. :-)


WARNING THERE IS A WOLF ON THE LOOSE!!!!

Stay Alert!!!!

You may not notice him at first glance because he will probably be dressed in sheep's clothing!
What you hear and see will be false! He will spitting out half-truths, distorting teachings and doctrines.

He will act upon your emotions with fear and doubt, and if possible will cause chaos in your life.

Remember, when he shows up what you hear, what you see, and think is not God's reality....so check God's Word regularly.

He will be shooting out fiery darts so lift up that shield of faith....If you get hit, act quickly!!

Take thought, repentance might be necessary.

Don't forget to put on your full armor of God daily, that you may be able to stand against the devil's schemes.

Ephesians 6:11

¹¹ Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. ¹² For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. ¹³ Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. ¹⁴ Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, ¹⁵ and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. ¹⁶ In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. ¹⁷ Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.