Never Give Up

"But the Lord stood with me and gave me strength." 2 Timothy 4:17

NEVER

GIVE UP!

We have troubles all around us,

but we are not defeated.

We often don't know what to do,

but we don't give up. We are persecuted,

but God does not leave us.

We are hurt sometimes,

but we are not destroyed.

2 Corinthians 4 8:9

Have you ever felt like giving up? You know, just throwing in the towel and saying the heck with it all! Maybe you started a project and it proved to be too challenging for you and you stopped it only to never to return to it again. Maybe you started to train for a marathon and it proved too much work and you decided to give up that dream. Maybe you started going back to school and the homework and trying to run a household proved to be too overwhelming and you quit. Maybe you hit a rocky patch in your relationship and you decided it was too much work and you didn't think it was salvagable or you didn't want to put in the hard work it was going to take to try and renew it and save it. We are here to tell you that if you put your mind to something, you can acheive it. Do not give up! You can make it and you can do wonderful things in your life. You have to have faith and believe. We believe in you, even if you don't believe in yourself. We are here to tell you, NEVER GIVE UP!! YOU GOT THIS!

From my last post, you can probably see that I was more than excited to share with others what I learned from the movie "The Secret" and I also wanted to tell everyone about The Five Languages of Love. I shared my vision board with Mark and told him what I had learned from the movie. I talked about both of these to people at work. I talked to my friends about both the movie I had seen and the book we had read. I had all my children take the quiz to see what their primary love language was. I loved the book so much that I ordered a daily devotion that is written by Gary Chapman called The One Year Love Language Minute Devotional. Mark and I added this devotional book to our nightly reading routine, and we love it!

Mark hit 60 days of sobriety on June 8th, 2021. The following is from my journal entry.

"My Dearest Mark, Congratulations on 60 days of sobriety. I love you so much and I couldn't be prouder of you. You are so determined. You inspire me. you have taught me so much these past two months and continue to teach me daily. I am honored to have you as my husband. Your determination to be the best version of you inspires me to be the best version of me. Today I felt peaceful, happy, and loved. I feel loved which makes me feel secure and this, in turn, helps to restore my trust in you. I feel your love radiating through my soul. "But the Lord stood with me and gave me strength." 2Timothy 4:17. I received a noted from a coworker and a small gift today. The note said, "You are an inspiration." The gesture put a big smile I my face. I feel the need to reach out to people. I hope someday we can tell our story together and inspire others." I love you to Maui and back! Love you forever girl-Chel"

The beginning of this week, I started printing out positive quotes and I hung them on the outside of my office door and a few inside my office. I was starting to post positive quotes on social media also. My boss saw what I was doing and liked the idea, and it was announced in morning report that several positive quotes had been printed out and that she wanted managers/supervisors to take what they wanted and place around the building. I was taken back. Maybe some of what Mark taught me and I was trying to practice was making a difference. Were people noticing these changes? This made me feel good. It made me feel appreciated and this made me feel more positive and confident. Do you see the correlation? When you are positive and spread this positivity, it rubs off on others and it can change their frame of mind. Some days it may be harder than others to do this. As Mark taught me, focus on one positive thing, and don't let your mind wander to past negative thoughts or future worries. Once you focus on this positive thing, continue to stay in the moment and focus on the good. The past is lost, and we can only control the present time, and this is our chance to make a new beginning. "He performs wonders that cannot be fathomed, miracles that cannot be counted." Job 5:9

Bailee and Tristan decided to take a quick long weekend trip to Dallas. They left on June 11th. She called me from the airport in Dallas and was so upset and nearly in tears because everything had gotten messed up with their rental car and they didn't know what to do. She was very anxious and stressed out. I calmly asked her if she was with anyone she cared about and if she felt safe. She said, "Well yah. I am with Tristan." I told her to focus on being with him and feeling safe and that she would be fine." She told me she felt better after our call. I had to chuckle when I got off the phone. I guess Mark's advice and postive words were sticking with me and I used it and it worked.

That day I treated everyone at work with Prairie Inn caramel rolls. Doing something positive like this always makes me feel better and the night before, I had a bad night. Several staff members thanked me for the roll and told me that I made their day. Doing something as simple as this can change your day and someone elses. Why not spread the love, even if it includes spreading some extra calories with that love? I wrote about this in my journal. I also wrote the following. "See Mark, I was listening to you and I even used what you taught me (referring to talk with Bailee during her mini crisis in Dallas). I do believe in us and I know that our marriage is reborn and is and will continue to be stronger and better than ever. I really mean it when I say that your positve change and positive outlook truly inspires me. Mark-you inspire me. When I tell you that I love you, I'm not saying it out of habit, I am reminding you that you are my life!"

You attract the energy that you give off. Spread good vibes. Think positively. Enjoy life.

By this date we had finished days 31-35 of the "Dare to Love." Most of those days are self explanatory. Day 34 we complimented each other on something we did that exemplified Christian character.

Here is a link to the devotional book that Mark and I read out of daily.

The One Year Love Language Minute Devotional (One Year Signature Line) https://smile.amazon.com/dp/1414329733/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_ARG1ZDT1DC5F9V72A678?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1