Taking Faithful Steps

      Let me tell you about my best friend. Well, another best friend. I met this woman when I was in my 30s. We had been in Florida for about a year, and I was chaperoning one of my son's kindergarten field trips. Her son was in my son's class, and she just started chatting with me. I'll be honest, I wasn't really looking to make friends at the time. I know that sounds terrible, but my focus at that time was just enjoying my son because I had been working so much. I chatted with her because I wanted to be polite. At some point she kind of just announced that we were going to be best friends, and in my head I thought "Yea, ok."     A few weeks later she invited me over for coffee, and fast forward 13 years later and here we are- best friends! She and I just started getting together fairly regularly- she was a stay at home mom, so she invited me over pretty much any day that I was off. We just started sharing our stories- husbands, kids, etc. She's about 10...

      Let me tell you about my best friends. Yes I have more than one. No, I don't think you can only have one.     There are 3 women in my life who have played a significant role, and I am so thankful for each one of them. I don't know how I would have survived various trials and sometimes life in general without each of them.     In chronological order, the first one I'm going to talk about has been one of my best friends since college. We were sorority sisters and we just clicked. She was one of my favorite people then, and she still is. I was shy and quiet, she was outgoing and funny. I was self conscious, she was so confident. She just has this amazing spirit and I have looked up to her for 25 years.     Now that we are adults in our 40s as opposed to young adults in our 20s, one thing I love about her is how strong her faith is. This woman has been through some STUFF, but no matter what, she points her eyes and her heart back to God. Sh...

      I remember when we were going through the "after" phase of the housefire. We were displaced in temporary housing for as long as we needed to be ( there are still good people out there!). But, my husband and I were anxious to get in to a home of "our own." We didn't want to take advantage of the people who opened their home to us, but there is also something to be said for having our own place. I was convinced that somehow, when we were settled in to our own place, my heart would find peace and the healing could begin.     The process of finding our next home proved to be a longer one than we had anticipated. Insurances take forever (as I'm sure some of you know), I was still recovering from a hysterectomy, which means I was on short term disability, and we still technically had a mortgage in our names. This was not a smooth-sailing process and it left me feeling unsettled at times.     All I wanted was a home of our own where we could settle in t...

      When I was spending time with God and he was showing me things I want versus things I need, he also showed me that I can have a spirit of discontentment. That is really embarrassing and difficult to admit about myself because I never wanted to be "that person." But, I've also learned that God can't heal what we don't reveal. And secondly, there is power in releasing what was holding on to you.      I did some reading and research on biblical contentment and discontentment because I wanted to know what I was dealing with. Discontentment is a spiritual issue that stems from unbelief and ingratitude. It sets your heart on earthly things and it's a pathway to jealousy and bitterness. It's a fruit of unbelief and a manifestation of pride that says , "I deserve better."      Now, while I have never stamped my feet in anger and said, "I deserve better than this God!", or said, "God, I know you can give me more", I'd also be...