Merry Christmas ~

Hope this post finds you totally prepared for Christmas!

Wonder how many are 100% prepared? 

Gifts are finally wrapped here, been to the market in preparation for  our 

Christmas Eve dinner, and ready to tidy up the house.

I wanted to wish all of my fellow bloggers a Merry Christmas !

Praying for all who will travel to arrive at your destinations safely.

I had the best intentions of getting all my Christmas cards out, just never got them all done.

So forgive me those who haven't received one..

Next year!

We have been having cool weather, highs in the 50's many days, evenings high 20's low 30's...

that means I may actually get to wear all my turtleneck sweaters at last! 

We had several days of rain which I'm also loving, not just because we need it but 

because it's just so nice to see again!!

I wanted to share video from Khloe's Sunday School performance

They sang, Go Tell it On The Mountain.

It was adorable, a couple of joyful tears were shed...

Hope you enjoy it even a fraction of what I have :-)

All the wonder of Christmas, 

It's what echos from my heart today!

...Because I Can Still Freely Share

(Much of what I'm sharing today has been shared before, I believe its worthy of sharing again, it's a direct result of my Bible study's of late ....)

Where people get the idea that because one is a Christian,

 they don't make bad choices.

Or that because one is a Christian, they must also be hypocrites.

That because one is a Christian ________

Fill in the blank, world....

It is from my experience a few things may contribute to this thinking.

Those who really believe such things, don't understand the faith.

First and foremost, if one truly understands the Christian faith they would know,

Christians do make bad choices....yes, we too are human.

Christians can be hypocritical, it's true, as can other members of life!

It's really not easy being a Christian.

It's the most ridiculed faith, yet is is a faith that teaches above all else to love one another,

even those that ridicule, even one's enemies.

I personally believe the Bible as God Word,

His Word breathed into others, and therefore penned by many authors.

A true history of mankind.

Because I believe that, and I understand how God wants me to be toward others,

I would hope to not ridicule another for their particular faith.

I would not assume because one is a "bad" (pick a faith), that all of that faith is bad.

Yet....that is what so many do in response to the Christian faith?

The second reason I believe that contributes to this way of thinking toward the Christian faith is that people

 have had bad experiences personally with a church or those claiming to be Christians. 

Christians just as any other group of people,

have faults and are not always good examples of the faith.

(Grieves me deeply)

 For that I am deeply sorry, at the same time,  it's not the 

entire faith that hurt you in whatever way you may have been hurt.

I know some had faith forced on then as children and when it came time to decide

 for oneself you chose to be done with "that" experience.

It's really quite an incredible thing when faith is by choice, when it's really studied, when one truly understands it, and therefore truly experiences it in a personal way.

Speaking for myself as a Christian.

I am not perfect, yet I know I serve a perfect God.

I make bad choices, yet I know He is a God of grace and forgiveness.

There are hypocrites that attend church, I say, what better place for them to be in order 

to recognize it and hopefully think better of it?

I try very hard not to judge, I never know another persons full story nor have I walked in their shoes.

I don't want to criticize anyone for their beliefs that may differ from mine. 

 I do struggle with any faith that teaches the opposite of love.

Faith is such a personal choice and I can't imagine chosing to be interested in one

that promotes anything other than much needed love in this world.

As a Christian I wake up everyday with a desire to do better, to be better.

My greatest prayer is that people who claim to be Christian live a life that's reflective of

that faith.  It's a faith who's greatest commandment is to love others, are you?

How are you treating strangers, employees, neighbors, spouses, friends? 

The answer should be by loving them no matter what.

Loving, it's a verb, Christian.

This I work at daily, and I often fail. 

Yet my honest desire each day is to try again, to try and get it right.

 ~

Christian what is your behavior when others aren't watching, 

when you are away from church?

Gulp, guilty myself with just a second to think about it! 

Always something to work on.....and very important that when recognized you don't ignore it!

We've work to do if we want the world to see true examples of our faith.

Live your faith in a way that all will recognize you as light to the world.

It is my belief as I shared on Facebook this past week.

Rather you believe it or not, this world is seeing what the Bible says would happen,

 is in fact

happening before our eyes.

A result of God leaving man to their own choices.

More and more Christians are martyred for their faith every day,

 I know this will continue to be more common than not in our not so distant future. 

Today I learned the sad fact that more Christians have died because 

of their faith in the 20th century than all other centuries combined.

Telling......

I am  a Christian, I have many faults, I speak freely of my faith

 because I live in a country where I can.  

Though I don't see that being the case far down the road.

 I want people I care about to really understand they have a choice,

and for all to fully understand it before making that choice.

That choice determines eternity.

 I have said in past posts, 

what do you have to lose if you choose to believe, only to find out it's a lie?

The answer is nothing.

You have nothing to lose.....

and so much to gain.

The alternative may be worth checking out....

it's my hope for each who reads this.

I am not a holy roller, Bible thumper, Religous freak,

I just took the time to educate myself and as a result experienced

what it is truly like to have a personal relationship with God. 

It does not mean bad things won't happen in life, they have and they will.

It is, a peace in the midst of all that is happening today for example,.....and everyday to come. 

It's my future....

~

I ask that those who choose to respond to this post,

 not respond in a way that attacks something so very personal to me.

It's your choice to believe differently, you're important to me despite our differences!

I can promise, I will treat you in kind..... 

it's what echos from my heart today.

Hello .....December!

Hello, have you heard Adel's new C.D. titled 25? I love it, really love the song Hello.... I highly recommend it, she does have such a gift in that beautiful voice of hers.

December, wasn't sure I was going to make it to blog land. I have a break from 2 of the classes I've been taking so I saw a window, I'm climbing in.

I am loving my classes, it is requiring me to be more disciplined with my time.  I get any study time I can when my little grands go down for their naps...(often that is 3 hours) crazy right?

We hosted a Christmas Brunch for my siblings and their families on the 5th.  Was so great to be with them, really sorry my brother and his family couldn't make it. Those days of always being together, I still miss them.

My Sweet Beans (Khloe)

Ella Roo (Ellery)

Sisters

My Great nieces Ruby and Minnie with their cousins Khloe and Ellery.

The big deal....she loves this thing!

Sisters Deanna left, Dona on the right.

Sisters and the Grands!

L to R my niece Summer, son Brian, Niece Amanda, and son Mike (clown) with the kiddos.

My sons and my two nieces.. (clown .....always)

We had a lovely day, so fun to watch the little ones play together....the day is always over too soon for me.

Gearing up for more holiday fun and making some new memories!
Hoping you aren't letting the chaos of the world enter in....
It's what echos from my heart today.....

For the First Time Ever ~

Feeling a bit inspired to try new things?

This was a banner week for first time ever stuff, starting with Yoga.

Never taken a Yoga class prior to this week and I have taken three!

Not a fan of Yoga speak which one instructor used plenty of, I just replaced

my own words those of the instuctor. 

I don't have a third eye (?) 

and

a lotus flower between my eyebrows is not my foundation.

I have two eyes, and if something is between them I need tweezers :-)

My foundation is found only in Christ.

I'm not trying to be critical of the practice, I just modify it to work for me.

I found myself in many positions that I actually could not get out of,

other than just falling gently to one side. I'm sure it was comical to some....

I actually had some very sore muscles so it for sure is a work out.

I purchased a yoga mat and bag, and yoga socks, going to continue as long as

I feel it benefits me....the stretching and relaxation that came with it is great.

On Veterans day I spent the day with my favorite veteran,

we hit the gym and then off to the golf course.

 

We didn't actually play as those behind me would not have been at all happy.

I practiced my swing (a lot) and actually got pretty comfortable with it.

I will admit, if I had to say after day one, it may not be the sport for me...

I spent most of the hot time in the sun imagining a

 shaded golf cart and a nice cold drink

in my hand ;-)

Then we moved on to chipping and putting.

With the condition of my back, being bent over just enough to kill my lower

back was required.

We ran into a friend who took the time to advise me for a good amount of time.

Bless his heart, he had to be so frustrated with me....but he hung in there as did I.

At the end of the day,

well, lets just say my body was feeling three days of Yoga and my attempt to learn golf.

I'll continue to learn the sport of golf, with a deep desire to just drive a golf cart

with a cold drink in hand.

This all got me thinking, perhaps I should start creating a list of things I want to try.

It won't be anything like jumping out of a plane or flying one, lets not get too crazy.

Any first time things you would like to try?

I would love to hear about them.

First times, it's what echos from my heart today...

Thankfulness, Create the Habit ~

So begins the month of posting something we are thankful for daily on Facebook.

Of course, we should be living a life deep in thankfulness daily.

Somehow typing it out everyday of November is good for creating 

 the habit of thankfulness if you are one who has not yet created the habit.

I encourage giving it a try if you aren't already,

its great for removing oneself from a pity party we 

may have invited ourselves to. 

Putting the focus on all that one should be thankful for,

 often times shrinks the size of the proverbial  mountain,

 formerly known as the molehill.

Granted your molehill may be one of a more serious nature,

there is still room for thankfulness. 

No where in the Bible does it say we should save our thankfulness for a particular season of

the year, but instead, it teaches we should express it constantly in speech and action.

"Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks 

through Him to God the Father."

Colossians 3:17

...

God wants to meet our needs, he tells us many times throughout scripture to petition Him with our requests.

He came to meet our needs, emotional, physical and spiritual.

Often in times of trial, we tend to respond in the form of self-pity, anxiety and resentment,

 it seems justifiable to do so!

That my friends is when Satan is attacking those very vulnerable places in our hearts, 

which then threatens our confidence in God.

His attempt is to get us to focus on what seems to us,

an overwhelming situation.

I hope you will attempt to make a practice of thanksgiving regardless of the season.

Thankful for each of you!

It's what echos from my heart today.

October Comes to an End ~

October has ended, but what a sweet ending !

Cake and Ice Cream?

 Yes please!

Ellery's Momma made the Ice Cream costume, isn't it amazing! So proud of her, it took a lot of work. So thankful she is the Momma to my sweet grands!

I continue to be very busy sometimes overwhelmed with my three Bible Classes I'm taking. Yet, after each class I know I will see it through to the end, so amazing and very timely for my life right now. God just always knows.

Christmas cards ordered, several gifts purchased in hopes to keep those last two months of the year a little less hectic. My DIL has offered to do Thanksgiving dinner at there new home, time to put that beautiful kitchen to the big test right? I am so thankful she is up to it!!

Excited to say the Core Four Cousin trip is officially planned for March of 2016. We are taking a cruise from San Pedro to Catalina Island, to Ensenada Mexico. It's my first cruise so I am kind of excited about that, a little anxious as I don't know what to expect. What I do know for sure is our time together will be amazing as always!

Southern Ca. is finely getting some cooler temps, low tonight is suppose to be 51 degrees. What so I have to say about that.... YIPPEEEEEEE!  Still, over the heat we have had this year..... I'm just to old for it....

Hoping all is well with all of you, wishing you calm as we move into the holiday season!

It's what echos from my heart today.

Things aren't Always What they Appear to Be ~

This past summer on our wonderful road trip

I shared something with a friend, something I sometimes struggle with in my life.

To my surprise,

she immediately felt better about her own situation.

She was so glad to hear my life wasn't perfect!

I was so taken back, "why would you think my life is perfect?"

 Basically she was basing it on my Facebook posts.

I assured her my life was far from perfect,

I have struggles and challenges always, and we shared

some of those things with each other, privately.
Thank you sweet friend :-)

Friends are good like that.... I love that she shared how she saw it
if even just through Facebook :-)
 It really became important to me that people know
me life is not without challenges as that is not what I desire to project.

~

To be clear, I have thought about it several times since.

I try very hard to not share negative thoughts or negative feelings on Facebook.

If someone upsets me I don't post it on Facebook.

You will not know if a friend has hurt me,

if I'm upset or disappointed with a family member.

If my hubstir and I have had a disagreement.

I try not to let people know when I have been let down.
I will not share financial worries.

 Yet all of these things have occurred or may occur.

 I will share on a negative subject if I believe it may help someone
by doing so.
Sometimes it's good to know we aren't alone in the muck.
Okay, I may share how over this hot weather I am.
Over and over and over, I may share it :-)

~

Facebook for me is a place to keep up with my friends and family,

where I'm able to keep up to date on their children and grand children. 

A place I can follow road trips others take and live it vicariously through them.
Especially Judy and Elmer :-)  

Facebook for me is a big Namaw's brag book where I will flood you

with photos of my little loves and I will tell you how much joy they bring to my life.

I will post photos of my friends, because they are forever memories that I choose
 to relive often by a quick glance at a post I've shared. 

 It's a great way to share the memories with those in the photograph as well.

I will post photos of the beauty I often see, when I take the outside in.

Older people (such as myself), become much more aware of God's beauty each year we remain.

Anyone else notice this??

I will share my faith because it is what's most important in my life.

 Share, not insist you believe the same so please don't think otherwise, or feel you need to 

defend yours, or attempt to tear mine apart.

My page, my share :-)

I will share funny stories or thoughts, because humor is good for everyone!

So, life is not perfect based on the joy I share on Facebook or otherwise.

Many like myself choose to keep private things, well private.

Not everyone needs to hear my woes, my anger or my disappointments on Facebook

Not everyone needs to know when I've had a hard day or week, when some have hard lives.

The world has much to much negative to toss at us daily, I choose not to add  to it.

It will never mean my life is perfect.

I am not immune to fears, stress, worry or cellulite :-).

I'm living a real life, and that comes with stuff.

If something is happening in life I may ask for prayers for myself or for others.

If something is happening in your life, I hope you will ask the same from me.

We're all in this together.

~
My intent is never to project a life other than what it is,
it's just a portion of my reality I share publicly .....

Problems, Joy and all other nouns that describe life,

 its what echos from my heart today  :-)

What's the Rush?

I'm not sure why it surprises me ever year that right next to the blow up pools that are now on sale

(we splurged for three) in August, are all things fall and next to it Christmas decor!

I mean can't we just enjoy the month we're in what's the rush?

Are we a society that is in such a hurry that we need to decorate for an October holiday as soon

as August comes to an end?

Typically, I decorate for a holiday once the month of the holiday arrives.

Once it's officially February (insert hearts), Spring, Fall, and Happy Birthday Jesus month. 

Not before.

Seeing it up in stores so early kinda stresses me out, as if its 

shouting I need to hurry!!!!

I don't want to hurry.

The days of hurry are gone for me.

I missed too much of the good in life because of the hurry syndrome. 

I confess I started Christmas shopping in September, quite leisurely I might add.

 We have cut back on that holiday budget, most of us have more than we need.

 I try and buy a little something that I know a person might love..

I prefer sailing into the holiday without the rush of having to rush to shop.

It's much more fun for me this way :-)

~

I was curious so I looked up the word rush...

 In red is how I see it....

verb: rush; 3rd person present: rushes; past tense: rushed; past participle: rushed; gerund or present participle: rushing

1. 1.

   move with urgent haste.
   

   Urgent haste....okay, in an emergency I will rush.

2. 2.

   dash toward (someone or something) in an attempt to attack or capture them or it.

   I did run the 50 yard dash in 6th grade... 

   I captured my hubby, though he was willing to be caught....

   
   

   I've been known to dash toward the voice of a grandchild as they wake from a nap, 

   
   

   in order to get them first.

   
   

noun: rush; plural noun: rushes

1. 1.

   A sudden quick movement toward something, typically by a number of people.

    Seriously, I'm 59 (not rushing to 60) there are no longer quick movements to speak of. 

    Doing so would likely cause some type of injury and then I would

    (see verb) be in an urgent hast to get to an E.R.

That said, no Turkeys until the Halloween candy is gone... (may possibley rush to help finish it) 

:-)

Turkeys are for November.

No Ho Ho man or Elf on a shelf until December.

No colored Eggs until we receive the invite to my sister Deanna's for Easter Brunch.

~

I do fly my flag everyday,

I do not wait for Flag Day, or the anniversary of 9/11

I thank Veterans each time I see one,

I don't wait for Veterans day.

Neither are a rush, just habits I wish to keep.

If in a rush  = I'm not enjoying the moments.

I confess, I will rush toward a big Papa bowl of Rocky Road Ice Cream....

and enjoy everymoment!

Avoiding the rush, its what echos from my heart today.

24 Beds

Often times in my life I have learned things the hard way. 

Rather it be a stubborn will, or a lack of complete trust,

it's in the hard I learn.

My spiritual journey for most of my life has been one of 

relying on God until things are good again.

I would get to a good place and I would basically think I 

could now do this thing called life on my own.

All the while still believing in Him,

but as the song goes,

I did it my way.....which never worked.

~

When I rely on self or put my faith in others I am often disapointed.

When I rely on God, 

It brings peace, full indescribable peace.

It wasn't until my late 40's that I was fully committed to  

never walking away and relying on myself again.

It has been an incredible journey once I surrendered  it 

all to a God bigger than any issue I may have had.

~

My faith was recently tested in a very big way.

I am the retreat coordinator for our annual Women's Retreat.

 Every year we contract a low number of how many we believe will attend

with the knowledge we can always add.

This has worked well  for the last four years, at minimum we only pay for the number in 

the contract.

Two weeks prior I make the phone call to turn in our final count, 

this year it was 84!  Myself and the team that makes it all happen, worked

very hard and we were sure God would be doing great things on our weekend retreat

that would benefit the women of our church.

We were very excited about what God was going to do.

Little did we know......

I actually sent my contact at the retreat center our final count of 84 via text message.

I didn't hear back that day which was unusual, so I copied the text and emailed it the 

following day.

I heard back right away...

" I'm afraid I have some bad news.  This year we can only provide you the 60 beds that were in 

the contract. We have never had a situation like this in the past, but a mega church

came in two days prior and bought every last bed on site and off site.

I am trying to figure something out and will be working on that until 11::00 P.M. tonight.

I can't even offer you one extra bed at this point."

To say I was shocked would be a complete understatement.

My heart immediately heavy, as I went into a very sureal state.

How do I tell 24 women they can't attend after all?

Oh and God, I have information on some that I know need this retreat more than ever,

the timing was so perfect for them!

I emailed three praying friends and asked them to start praying...

I made phone calls to local hotels and motels in the vacinity of where the conference center is.

Everyone, booked solid that weekend.

Really God?

How do I attend and remain upbeat about the weekend?

Some would be told that someone they were counting on being there with them

will not be there at all....

Oh boy, it was heavy friends.

It was a very long 24 hours.

One P.M. the next day I called, I just needed to know now so I could notify the church and

begin the unfortunate task of notifying those that could not attend.

The voice on the phone tells me my contact is in a meeting, in fact the whole office is until 2 P.M.

I privately thought, perhaps they are all brainstorming trying to find away?

I wanted so badly to remain hopeful but that negative voice would remind me, 

you are expecting 24 beds, pretty impossible.

I thought, I know I believe God can do anything but, perhaps a bed or two.

He could help them find one or two but 24? Well that would require a miracle of sorts!

As I wait for the hour to pass and the chest pains began...

my thoughts ranged from, how do I face anyone after this...as if I would wear the scarlett

letter to church every week so everyone would know....

 the big R on my chest

 (retreat fail).

 It may be easier to change churches never to be heard from again!

I wish I were kidding, these are real thoughts I was having.

Crazy but real.....

2:09 

My phone rings and I can see it's my contact from the conference center,

ugggh...

Upon hearing his voice I break, he says,

"you don't sound so good"

I of course replied, I'm not doing to good.

He continues;

"Well, I can't explain how because last night and today I have looked over rooming charts

for all the churches attending 50 times if I did once!

I have some good news."

I pipe in, did you find us any beds?

"yes"

How many?  I asked....(knowing I'd still have the same problem even if he found a few.)

" I found you 24 beds, exactly the number you needed! " 

As I totally break into tears of joy, 

"are you kidding me?"

He assured me again unable to explain, yes 24 beds!

I could tell he was as relived as I, he has such a heart for what he does.

I immediately confess, I feel so badly that I doubted God.

But I did. 

Really, 24 beds were just going to appear???

Why yes, all 24 of them.

Again I'm reminded I serve a God bigger than any issue that comes my way.

As I hung up I immediately text my prayer buddies and let them know the good news!

Then I went directly to Mark 9:24,

A father says to Jesus,

Immediately the boy's father exclaimed, "I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!"

This was me, I do believe, yet I had to overcome my unbelief.

I have.

After the 84 women were welcomed to the retreat,

you can bet I shared my story.

Barely able to speak as it was just so amazingly big!

I ended it with, if anyone has any complaints this weekend,

I will remind you, 

You have a bed!

I'm so glad I choose to share my story of unbelief (doubt) with them, I trust many will remember it

at some point down the road when they experience something they believe may be 

to big for God.

Many times throughout the weekend when something amazing was shared and women were 

needing to hear just whatever it was, I would break into tears at the thought,

they may have missed this special time......but God!

As women left on our last day, many of them shared with me that 

they will never forget the story of the 24 beds!

Praise God for that!!!!

My hope is you too might remember when things seem too big for hope,

24 beds......

its what echos from my heart today.

 

 

s

Summer Was Here for a Minute, Already into Fall ~

It was just summer, I look up and Fall has arrived!!

It has been a very busy September to be sure.

I kept meaning to sit down and blog, it just never happened.

Busy with Ms. Khloe and little Ellery, the time flies by.

I stepped down from the Women's Ministry Team, freed myself up to

take some classes, I do love the study of my faith.

On Monday evenings I'm taking a class called The Way of the Heart, taught by the Pastor of my Church.

Course Description:  

The Way of the Heart Course is designed to be a robust and extended training in the Christian life.  It is an eight-month experiential, communal, and theological journey into the depths of our call to participate in the Triune life of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  It is the intent of this course to see our individual stories as sharing in not only the stories of others but the grand story of God Himself, and this will be accomplished through in depth reflection on the Christian life, open and honest sharing, and a furthering of the prayer life.

Big commitment but I'm loving it!

On Tuesday mornings I am taking my very first BSF class, (Bible Study Fellowship) and I'm very excited about it. The study is of the book of Revelation. I believe a seven or eight month commitment as well.

On Tuesday evenings Bob and I are back with our original Small Group doing a study on the book of Hebrews. So happy to be back with our old friends.

Whew....little overwhelming to see it all laid out together....

I have also been on the journey of planning (along with an amazing team), 

 our 

Women's retreat for the last 6 or so months.

The First weekend of October is the big event and I sense it's going to be awesome.

It's such a blessing to be a part of blessing the women of our church with a weekend away from  their responsibilities of home. A time where they can actually retreat, relax enjoy the hot springs, pool, or taking some long naps!  We also have an amazing speaker lined up, Carol Hopson, who spoke to us last year and was very well received.

Not gonna lie, I will be glad when the weekend arrives,

and glad to have another one in the books and behind me.

The two weeks leading up to the event is full of last minute details,

Little bits of stress here and there, all the while hoping we haven't forgotten a thing!

 I haven't managed to get to enjoying all of your blogs as much as I would like...

maybe October will allow more time to visit you and to blog my thoughts.

(Seems I said this last month?)

This life is a journey glad to be on it with each of you !

It's what echos from my heart today....

Hello September ~

Well another August in the books.

Too many hot days and very happy to be entering Fall!

We did our 2nd annual Moonlight Ampitheater night with 

my son and his family.  This year it was Shrek and I can tell you

the adults enjoyed it as much as the children!

Picnic dinner,and birthday cake before the main event, 

our little Ellery Grace turned two!

This is her trying on the dress Namaw bought her, she is a girly girl!

 We sang happy birthday, several in the audience joined in and made it extra special.

This Khloe girl turned four (can't believe it) while we were on our trip.

She is a fan of the programs, she studies them as if she can read, it's adorable to watch

her study each page so carefully ;-)

Such a special time with them, I love it!

We have had some very hot days so we traded in our little round wading pool

for one this Namaw can enjoy as well!

Couple of beach days...

Several dress up days...

 Ellery walks around with her arms up so her bracelets don't fall off ...

Khloe and Ellery's Momma is back to teaching so hanging out with the girls and Pa...

Pa bought himself some golf clubs and is very excited about playing 

more regularly!

I hope the fall season brings you a slower pace, and peace and calm into your lives.. 

It's what echos from my heart today!

Marriages In Crisis ~

First a disclaimer, my intent is not to be insensitive to any who have divorced,
in fact I am one of you. For me it was a decision about self....as in selfish.
It took me years to realize that about myself, and I know I wouldn't have thought
so at the time if someone suggested it was the case.
I am not saying that this is always the case so please don't take this as such.
It is however, more common than not.....

I have seen more times then I care to count in life,
how vulnerable those who struggle with marriage are
to the deceivers that will fill them with lies.

When marriages are in crisis, the weak are the most vulnerable to deception from another.

All it takes is for a willing listener (many times from the opposite sex),
and it's most assuredly a guarantee they will tell you every thing you want to hear.

The same one who don't want you in their future, but are using you for the now.....
These types of people don't want your baggage, your children etc....

They will likely agree with your frustration in your marriage, they will likely even help you 

justify why you should leave.

There are also, so called friends that will also encourage you to walk away.

I will be the friend to encourage you to stand by your vows.

I have learned so much about the importance of vows, the hard way.

....and after hurting many in the process.

I can tell you this, those who encourage you to walk away from a marriage are not with you down the road as you attempt to do this alone.
 When you need emotional support, help with children, finances etc...

I find it oddly ironic those same people wouldn't walk away from their spouses in a similar situation.

It's always so easy to say they would, when it's not their family being torn apart.

Men (or women) who flatter and deceive you while you are in a tough time of your marriage....

are not the men (or women) who have a vested interest in you and your children....

they tolerate them at best and generally not for long.

(Obviously, this is not always the case.)

Too often divorce is selfish...

often it's only one of the parties wanting it.

Children never get a vote.

How sad is that, they never have a voice in regard
to the family, they didn't have a voice of becoming a part of in the first place.

We choose to create the family with them..
only to take them away from it :-(

Children of divorce are affected in so many ways....

What we should want is our children to see grown adults,

choosing to fight for their families.
If a family with faith in God,what an opportunity to show your children
what God can do to restore a marriage!

Because, families matter.

You be the parent that never quit,
it will mean something to your children down the road.....

 I highly recommend a book called, The Divorce Culture.

I sincerely  believe I never would have divorced if I had read this book.

The main reason being,  it really spells out how selfish the choice to divorce

generally is and how it really does affect our children.

As a Mother I never could have moved forward had I known just how

much they would miss,  how much they would have to deal with, how I took
away there vote! 

Often marriages go through really tough times....it's a matter of not quitting during that time.
That is what makes for a stronger marriage,
 making it through the hard.....
a marriage
when nobody quits. 

It echos from my heart today..