I love this word, flourish. It brings to my mind a lush tropical garden that is well-fed and bearing fruit – colors that are a feast for the eyes, fragrances that fill the soul, ripe-hanging fruit, soft flower petals, sharp thorns, deep roots, and branches lifted high. I believe that this is the kind of life that God wants to give to us as we place our hand in his and walk with him, deeply rooted and built up.
I also know that it takes more than sunny days and blue skies to produce this. For roots to go deep, it takes wind, storms, and an occasional drought.
On these pages, I hope to offer both spiritual and physical encouragement. The spiritual will come as the Lord leads, saturated with the gospel of grace and springing from a love for the Word of God. And then since it can be difficult to feel like we’re flourishing when we aren’t enjoying our own unique version of healthy and strong, we’ll also explore a well-balanced, common sense approach to better health without fads or extremes. 🙂
10 Things About Me
- I have always loved food. Any kind of food. It’s taken some time, but I’m delighted to say that I’ve actually learned to prefer the healthier foods (most of the time!).
- I’m a healthy weight now, but I was at one time around 50 pounds heavier (not pregnant!). I know what that feels like physically and emotionally. And by the grace of God, I’ve learned how to maintain a healthy weight without obsessing over it.
- I have been married for many years to a man who is about as different from me as could be. This has made for some interesting seasons, but God so knew what He was doing when He brought us together. I wouldn’t change a thing and can’t imagine life without him. Together, we had three children who are now married and live out-of-state and have given me the cutest, brightest and most talented grandchildren in the world!
- I became a follower of Jesus Christ when I was 20 years old, and He’s been faithful to not leave me to myself. 🙂
- I’ve been blessed with a good sense of humor about my mistakes – I’ve had a lot of practice! I’m learning to look more at God than at me, and that makes me so much easier to live with!
- I’m a natural dark blonde, but because I’ve never been quite satisfied and like to do things myself, my hair has also been light brown, bluish, and red!
- I like glass jars. I will sometimes buy a product because of the reusability of the jar. Some people have Tupperware, some have Rubbermaid. Well, I have jars. Goo Gone is my best friend.
- Sometimes I can chat away with strangers and leave them feeling valued. Other times I can lose all ability for small talk and not think of even one darn thing to say.
- I live near the beach but never go. We much prefer scooting away to go hiking in the woods, riding our bikes on country trails, searching out farmer’s markets, and finding great little eateries in small towns.
- I want people to know how much God loves them. How even though we don’t measure up and never will, if we are a believer in Jesus Christ, He has given us his righteousness so that we can be assured of God’s acceptance. I want women to know this!!!
And a bonus: When I was a very little girl, I used to sing (as in entertain) while walking up and down the aisle of the school bus.
That’s certainly enough about me! I’m so glad to have you here – I hope this blog can be a place of comfort and encouragement for you!
What good thing does God want to do with your life? Let’s encourage each other to flourish as we sink our roots deeply in Him at whatever stage of life we’re in.
And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.
Philippians 1:6