Hi! My name is Shari and I am so honored to be able to write for Debi in her absence. I love blogging and have 'met' so many great people. I enjoy Debi and certainly have learned many lessons from her. I appreciate her! :-)A Beautiful Life!
That can be described very differently by many different people. However, I would like to share with you what I consider A Beautiful Life.
When I married my husband in 1996 I was not prepared for the Beautiful Life that God would give to me. To be honest, I did not know much about how to be a wife or a mother. I came from a home that was riddled with abuse and ugliness. But I was determined to have my life change and learn what I needed to learn to achieve my goals as a wife. And, since we were told I would never be able to conceive children we would focus on our Beautiful Life together as a couple and trust that God knew best.
I used to sweat the small stuff all the time. I would get upset over how a towel was hung up and think it was the wrong way. I would get upset if the laundry was not folded just right. I would get upset if the dishwasher was not unloaded when I wanted it to be. I then realized that I was sweating the small stuff in my marriage. The Lord quickly showed me that I needed to change my attitude and my way was not the only right way. Other ways can achieve the exact same goal. Boy, did this really get to me. I couldn't understand why things could be done differently and still achieve the same success.
So to achieve the Beautiful Life I know that God wanted me to live I had to change my ways and look to Him make sure it happened. I worked hard and did my best. It was two steps forward and two steps back sometimes.
Then the inevitable happened. I thought I was sick with a horrible case of the flu. Can you see what's coming? I went to the Doctor to see why I was so sick. Ahem! I was not sick! I was pregnant with our first child. You see God blessed us and He performed a miracle for us! We were so excited and realized that we were chosen to parent this child-to-be growing inside of my body. I had a great pregnancy and we delivered a baby boy in March 1999. Guess what I did after this baby was born? I was sweating the small stuff again. I hung my head and realized I still had more changing to do.
Moving on, the Lord blessed us with two more baby boys in Septembers 2000 and 2002. The Lord was transforming our life together into a more Beautiful Life than what we had already had.
I used to sweat it when my kids' hair was not done or they had a little food or drool on their clothing. I had to look perfect and matching when we went out. Then one day the Lord in His still small voice said, "Shari, it's OK to be more lenient. A little dirt is OK and who cares if their hair is standing up." He made it clear I needed to see what's important in life.
Our Beautiful Life had to be achieved with me being willing to change my ways that would hinder our marriage or me being a good wife or mother. God does promise to help us and He promises to help us change what needs changed. But we also have to willing to work with Him for this to happen.
I challenge you today. Do you have a Beautiful Life? What does it look like? Are there changes that need made? Are you willing to make those changes? I know it can seem scare-y and uncomfortable, but most changes happen outside of our comfort zones.
I am a work in progress. I know I will not arrive until the day I meet Jesus. It's then and only then will I be called perfect. In the meantime, I will be living and working on my Beautiful Life!
Blessings until next time.....
When I married my husband in 1996 I was not prepared for the Beautiful Life that God would give to me. To be honest, I did not know much about how to be a wife or a mother. I came from a home that was riddled with abuse and ugliness. But I was determined to have my life change and learn what I needed to learn to achieve my goals as a wife. And, since we were told I would never be able to conceive children we would focus on our Beautiful Life together as a couple and trust that God knew best.
I used to sweat the small stuff all the time. I would get upset over how a towel was hung up and think it was the wrong way. I would get upset if the laundry was not folded just right. I would get upset if the dishwasher was not unloaded when I wanted it to be. I then realized that I was sweating the small stuff in my marriage. The Lord quickly showed me that I needed to change my attitude and my way was not the only right way. Other ways can achieve the exact same goal. Boy, did this really get to me. I couldn't understand why things could be done differently and still achieve the same success.
So to achieve the Beautiful Life I know that God wanted me to live I had to change my ways and look to Him make sure it happened. I worked hard and did my best. It was two steps forward and two steps back sometimes.
Then the inevitable happened. I thought I was sick with a horrible case of the flu. Can you see what's coming? I went to the Doctor to see why I was so sick. Ahem! I was not sick! I was pregnant with our first child. You see God blessed us and He performed a miracle for us! We were so excited and realized that we were chosen to parent this child-to-be growing inside of my body. I had a great pregnancy and we delivered a baby boy in March 1999. Guess what I did after this baby was born? I was sweating the small stuff again. I hung my head and realized I still had more changing to do.
Moving on, the Lord blessed us with two more baby boys in Septembers 2000 and 2002. The Lord was transforming our life together into a more Beautiful Life than what we had already had.
I used to sweat it when my kids' hair was not done or they had a little food or drool on their clothing. I had to look perfect and matching when we went out. Then one day the Lord in His still small voice said, "Shari, it's OK to be more lenient. A little dirt is OK and who cares if their hair is standing up." He made it clear I needed to see what's important in life.
Our Beautiful Life had to be achieved with me being willing to change my ways that would hinder our marriage or me being a good wife or mother. God does promise to help us and He promises to help us change what needs changed. But we also have to willing to work with Him for this to happen.
I challenge you today. Do you have a Beautiful Life? What does it look like? Are there changes that need made? Are you willing to make those changes? I know it can seem scare-y and uncomfortable, but most changes happen outside of our comfort zones.
I am a work in progress. I know I will not arrive until the day I meet Jesus. It's then and only then will I be called perfect. In the meantime, I will be living and working on my Beautiful Life!
Blessings until next time.....
10 comments:
Hi Shari, nice to meet you, a lovely heartwarming post to start my day, thanks for sharing xxx
Great to meet you Shari and what a beautiful post. So true - we are all just a work is progress.
I feel like I know you - because I also used to fuss over insignificant points. It's hard to change, but the change is worth it. Thanks for your beautiful post.
Hi Shari!
I used to sweat the small stuff and stress over things that were NOT in my control. Then, God grabbed me and showed me myself. He had bigger and better plans for me, but I was holding him up.
I enjoyed reading you today!
Hi Shari, Nice to meet you!
Wow what an awesome lesson to learn and to continue to learn. We could all use a refresher in that one.
Thanks for the reminder! I, too, sweat the small stuff . . . way too much!
What a beautiful post and lesson for us all! I try to be a generally positive person, but I, as does everyone, have my moments when I need to remind myself to be thankful for what I have an enjoy the moment!
Thanks for the reminder...
Shari, great job guest-posting! It's a humbling lesson for us all, and usually taught to us by our own kids! ;) Thanks for sharing your heart with us and helping Debi out today.
Oh dear sister, I SO connected to this post and sweating the small stuff...One day I plan on writing a book. God and the Taming of the Shrew..yepper,,I WAS the shrew,,like you sweating the towels that weren't folded properly..I had to laugh at that one because my husband would say to me,,'why does it matter how I fold the clothes, I'm folding them"..lol
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