In the beginning...

2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

I always struggle with titles of blogs, not to mention blog post titles. I am hardly going to go ‘back to the beginning’ of my life or when ‘this’ started or anything. This is going to be the beginning of choosing to see the grace in all seasons of my life. It’s going to be a way to look forward.

Grace can be a tricky word to define. It can be even trickier to see it in your life. Along my journey through life, I've come to understand the notion of life occurring in seasons. Some seasons are sucky- they feel cold, miserable, lonely and sometimes never-ending. But some seasons are warm, full of love and laughter. As mentioned in Ecclesiastes 3, 'there is a season for everything.' And seasons have an ending. While there have been warm seasons that have not been enjoyable to experience end, it's brought comfort in those cold, hard seasons that there is an ending.I am hoping to use this blog to document a journey to renewal and freedom from the grace experienced. I am hoping this can be a place where I can be honest with myself and with others while also sharing encouragement and ultimate hope.

Life isn't easy. But it isn’t about how hard it can be or how many times I fall. This is about taking the step into the ‘unknown’, relinquishing control and admitting I need God in every aspect of my life. It’s about feeling the grace and love of God, a thousand times over as I let Him bring me out of any dark place and let Him use me according to His plan- not mine. It’s about taking the steps, no matter what, to remain in recovery and heal my body and my mind and my soul.

As I continue to work at putting off the old self and accepting Jesus' grace at giving me a new life, new identity and new hope, I want to show the grace that is evident in all seasons of life.