Author: Shannon k hinson

Celebrating Dad (Forrest Kenley)

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“God blesses those who mourn, for they will be comforted.”‭‭Matthew‬ ‭5:4‬ ‭NLT‬‬


On this day 79 years ago, my Dad was born. Tomorrow marks 6 months since he went home to be with Jesus. Not a day passes by that I don’t think of him.


It is amazing the comfort the Lord has brought to our family. Yes we miss Dad greatly but we know he is with Jesus and we know we will see him again. Knowing this brings such comfort to my heart.


Today is his first birthday celebration in Heaven and I know without a doubt, it’s the best one he’s ever had. I know he’s smiling BIG knowing Forrest Jr. is doing so well after his recently one year bone marrow transplant anniversary. He would be so proud of Mom and the strength and courage she has shown. He would be proud of my book “Rooted by the Water” and the spin off blog I’ve started. He told me I should write. He liked the way I put things into words on my Facebook posts. However he did tell me to not write any emotional sappy posts after he died. (his words not mine ) 🤣 He was funny and I think he will forgive this one. He would be excited to know a great grand baby is on the way. He would LOVE that! He would love hearing about the upcoming wedding for his granddaughter. And he’d be so proud of Joshua too as he shows strength and resilience in life.


Grief is a strange thing. It still has not hit that he’s really gone. I know that’s the comfort from the Lord and I’m so grateful.


We celebrate you today Dad. Your legacy of love for God, and generous spirit continues. You are missed greatly but we will see you again!

Happy birthday Dad! I love you! 😎🤟🏼 (Those were the emojis he put at the end of his texts to me).


Www.shannonkenleyhinson.com

Show compassion

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It’s been several days since my last blog. Over the last week or so I’ve just been observing and praying. With my limited vision and hearing, I often ask my husband Ron if I’m understanding right. I pick up on things others might miss; body language and frustrations. People are weary; physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. Not only are people weary, they also are divided.


I was praying this morning and then as I read in Matthew, I came across this verse. “When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” Matthew‬ ‭9:36‬ ‭NLT‬‬


While I don’t profess to be highly intelligent. I do use the gifts God has given me. As I pray for wisdom and discernment, my heart aches for people. There is mass misinformation. “Itching ears” can find information to backup whatever their view is to justify their beliefs. But Jesus has all the answers. He can solve all the questions we have. We must go to Him in prayer and read His Word “The Bible”. In John 14: 6 Jesus answered, “I am the way the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” NIV


Jesus has the answers. He is Truth. He is always ready to pour compassion on us, direct us in our confusion and lift the burdens off our shoulders. He is ready to forgive when we confess our sins and ask Him to help us change.


If you are weary and disheartened today, I encourage you to “Unplug yourself from the noise of the world”. Find a quiet place and meditate on Jesus. Worship Him and soak in His Word. As we all do this on a daily basis, I pray the Holy Spirit will pour into our weary vessels. Pour in His compassion for this confused and hurting world. Let us unite in prayer. The world is in dire need of Jesus! Times are short! Pray! Read the Bible! Let Jesus use you today!


“He said to his disciples, “The harvest is great, but the workers are few.”‭‭Matthew‬ ‭9:37‬ ‭NLT‬‬


Pictures from internet sources.


Www.shannonkenleyhinson.com

Unity

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Today I have been thinking about the word Unity and what it means. I decided to grab my Webster’s New Thesaurus and this is what I found. (I will just post a picture of the entry. The machine I use to read is a Optelec video magnifier for people with low vision )



I also went to Bible Gateway and typed Unity into the search bar. Several verses came up including these:
Ephesians 4: 1-3 NIV
As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the Unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.

Psalms 133:1 NIV
How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity.



I don’t know about you, but I see a lot of division these days. Division is a tactic of the enemy to divide us so we won’t be affective as a whole. There is discord on all kinds of current HOT topics. It troubles my heart to see opposition. There is so much information, misinformation…. opinions on anything and everything.

So what can we do? We can bear with each other in love and be patient when people don’t see “Eye to eye”. We can pray for wisdom and keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. Hold the hostility with debates. I pray our Abba Father sees us all and says “ Look at my children. So diverse and unique ….sharing peaceably their opinions with one another in humility and love.” Lets us strive to be United for the Lord.

Together we stand, divided we fall.




Www.shannonkenleyhinson.com


Happy 1st Bone marrow birthday ~HALLELUJAH🙌🙌🙌

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If you only knew the Praise to the Lord and Joy bursting from my heart today.

One year ago today my brother Forrest received a bone marrow transplant with some of my bone marrow. God has seen him through a “Rollercoaster” of a year and today he is doing WELL! ALL praise to Jesus! We give God praise and glory for all He has done. Every single detail: for the amazing doctors, nurses and medical team and especially Forrest awesome wife Jan and their kids, Justin and Lauren. Their church family and friends at First Baptist Church of Indian Trail were such a beautiful representation of the body of Christ as they offered continuous prayers and support. We are so thankful!


Mom is overjoyed to see her son thriving! It’s bittersweet that Dad is not here to witness this miracle. We lost him this past March to cancer. We know Dad is pumping his fist in the air in Heaven and thanking Jesus for bringing Forrest through.

Let me encourage you today that Miracles happen. Dark trials and storms come and go BUT GOD REMAINS FAITHFUL!

Never give up on God because He never gives up on you!
Keep the faith! Keep praying and Believing! God gets the last Word! I PRAISE HIM! Www.shannonkenleyhinson.com

Finding Gems in the Word

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During my quiet time this morning I read 2 Corinthians 4. Found some “gems” and thought I would share. 

“We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair. So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.”‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭4:8, 18‬ ‭NLT‬‬

“For God, who said, “Let there be light in the darkness,” has made this light shine in our hearts so we could know the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ.”‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭4:6‬ ‭NLT‬‬


Yesterday a friend texted me that she was experiencing a sense of heaviness. I shared with her that I too felt that way. There is so much going on in the world and so much misinformation. I reminded her that we are surrounded by the Lord. He will get us through.


Today is a new day. Let’s choose to Fix our eyes on Jesus. He is Victorious! This is not our home, we are just passing through.

Today Shine for Jesus. The world is in desperate need of His Glorious Light and Salvation.


Have a blessed day.
Www.shannonkenleyhinson.com

Preparation for the daily grind

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It’s a great morning. I’m back on my back porch in my “quiet place/ prayer outdoor room”. Ive missed this! While last weeks Girlfriends beach trip was a blast and I was able to really think on the Lord in His beautiful creation, it was difficult to find blocks of “Quiet uninterrupted time” with God.
I missed this time to unplug myself from people and just soak in Hs presence. My back porch quiet times are filled with Soft worship, praying out loud as that helps me to focus and reading the Bible using You Version app. I wish I could se well enough to read an actual Bible but I can only do that with my video magnifier in the study room. I’m grateful for a refreshing time away but am ready to get back on track.

Thankful for a beautiful time with the Lord this morning to prepare me for the day ahead.
I hope everyone has an awesome day. God is so good and faithful… Always! Www.shannonkenleyhinson.com

Be still and Know

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Today was our last day on the beach and it was beautiful before the storm came in. As I sat at the waters edge I was drawn in by the beauty of it all. Nature declares the glory of God. As I sat there a song began to play in my mind. I think the lyrics go something like this; “When the oceans rise and thunders roar, I will soar with with you above the storm. Father you are King over the flood. I will be still and know that you are God. Find rest my soul, in Christ alone, cover me in quietness and trust. When the oceans rise and thunders roar I will soar with you above the storm. Father you are King over the flood. I will be still and know that you are God,”. As this played over and over in my heart, I felt such joy and rest knowing that my Abba Father is in control. There is nothing outside His reach. He sees and knows it all! I can’t even wrap my mind around that truth.


As I sat there in my beach chair, just drawn in , I was digging in the sand and found so many broken shells. It crossed my mind that at one time the shells were beautifully “whole”. Not broken. As I reflected on that I thought of the irony, how people are like these broken shells. With the storms of life, pressures of circumstances, we often find ourselves broken. It warms my heart to know God can fix anything. Nothing is too difficult for Him. When I see shattered, He sees whole. when I see broken, He sees beautiful. I’m so thankful for these reminders.


Tonight we were given the perfect ending to our girlfriends week away. There was a full moon and it radiantly reflected off the ocean water. It was glorious! I’m thankful for this week away with friends. ( two weren’t able to come and we truly missed them). God blessed us with a wonderful, refreshing, relaxing week. We are heading home tomorrow with hearts full and more fun memories made. God is so good and faithful…always. Www.shannonkenleyhinson.com

Amazing Fun

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Yesterday I finally went kayaking while down at Cherry Grove. I did this last year with friends on a two seater kayak. This year I wanted to prove to myself that I could do it. I was so thrilled that I could indeed do it solo. The weather was perfect with gorgeous sunshine and blue skies reflecting off the water. It was so peaceful and relaxing… the first half 😁
At half way point we got lost in a maze of tall sea grass. We also came up on some shallow places where we had to turn around. Truth be told the maze of sea grass was a bit intimidating. I’d say a silent prayer, “Lord help us find our way out”. I would laugh and sign to my friend we were going the wrong way but she got us out.
Once we were out of the sea grass, we were hit head on with incoming high tide. Oh my goodness. It was like paddling hard but making no progress 😳🤦🏻‍♀️ We made little goals: let’s make it to the dock over there then rest, then have another goal. I lost sight of my friend a couple of times so I’d turn around and find her. I wore my old Harmony cochlear implant processor so I could hear her if she called since I couldn’t see her sign to me. I can’t see far 😂At one point I thought, where in the world did she go. She had gotten tired and decided to take a short cut through some sea grass and another friend pulled her out onto the road in front of the house 🤣 I couldn’t see what she was signing but I knew they could see me so I signed “ I’m going around on the water to the dock”. God gave me another burst of strength to get through that last bit of incoming high tide before reaching the canal behind the house. I was thankful to get out of that kayak. It was a BLAST but I had used up all my energy and was so tired.
Thank you Lord for a great learning experience. I will have to think on this one. I know there are many hidden lessons to learn from. I did prove to myself that I can indeed do it! But with God’s help of course and a buddy system. Hopefully we can find a place to rent two more so our whole group can go together.
If you’ve never kayaked the coastal waters of SC I highly recommend it. It’s so beautiful. Gods creation is stunning.
Www.shannonkenleyhinson.com