As I type this blog entry, I’m sitting in our sons old room, preparing for an opportunity to share my testimony tomorrow at a small group. I’m not one for self promotion but I will gladly share what God has done in my life. I have a unique story but only have about 30-40 minutes to share tomorrow. I’ve been praying about this all week and started making some notes this afternoon to guide my thoughts.
This afternoon when my husband Ron got off work I took a break and we had a late lunch with our son Joshua. We went to Bad Daddy Burger since my husband could get a free Veterans Day meal. Afterwards we went to the house where Joshua lives with some friends. It was a fun visit and Joshua and I played some indoor basketball. I stink but by the time we finished I was getting the hang of it. Once back home, I sat back down to continue preparing for tomorrow.
I know my purpose in life is to bring God glory through whatever situation He puts me in. As I sit here preparing, tears are rolling down my cheeks. It’s like a dam breaks and the tears roll down. The thing with most peoples testimony, it’s what God has brought you through. Like you have come through this and it’s because of God bringing you through. My testimony is a continuous test…. test after test after test. Seriously, it’s only because of the goodness of the Lord and the strength He gives me that I endure. His grace is certainly sufficient. His power is poured into my brokenness. It is HIStory, His strength, His everything. I am nothing without Jesus. He is faithful in all things.
My prayer is that He will speak clearly through me to encourage others. Life is not easy but all things are possible through Him. May more doors of opportunity open according to His will. Lord help me to speak clearly and from my heart to bring glory and honor to Your name. Thankyou Jesus! Amen!
You can find my autobiography Rooted by the Water on Amazon. I pray it gives you great hope and courage to surrender to Jesus. He is all you really need. Be blessed.
Some times in life you may feel the urge to withdraw. You may feel a desire to hide your true self. There is much pressure in society to accept things contrary to your beliefs. Others might feel called to pursue something but afraid to take the risks of looking foolish. Whatever the reason, you can’t hide from God. He is not in any one location. He is everywhere. Psalms 139 is one of my favorite chapters in the Bible. I have many favorites but this one always touches my heart.
“I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence! If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the grave, you are there. If I ride the wings of the morning, if I dwell by the farthest oceans, even there your hand will guide me, and your strength will support me. “Psalms 139:7 – 10 (NLT)
It’s comforting to know that God is with us where ever we are. We are never out of His reach Even in those lonely and isolating times, He is there, ready to comfort and love us. He longs for us to seek Him with all our heart.
Recently I was talking with my friend Valerie. We were talking about the sad state of our world and culture. The depravity of the world has gotten so bad. I told her some times I feel like I live under a rock because I’m not into tv, movies, or secular music. As I thought on that… living under a rock, I said, “That’s right! I live under The Rock – Jesus Christ!” A worship song is playing in my heart right now. “My hope is built on nothing less, than Jesus’ blood and righteousness. I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus name.“. (Robert Critchley Lyrics to My Hope is Built on Nothing Less. 2007) This resonates with me.
When I hear of the things going on in our society I am blown away by how far the moral has fallen. The indoctrination and grooming of children is mind blowing. Cancel culture and having unique values is like walking on egg shells. My husband recently spoke to a young man. He greeted him, “Hey man”. This is not unusual. My husband is very friendly and talks to everyone. This particular guy said, “I’m a girl”. So my husband said, “Hey girl”. He wasn’t being mean or rude but just trying to be friendly. People are so confused. It is just beyond me to understand the times we live in.
I was recently filling out forms online for an appointment I had and the questions asked were absurd. One example: What gender do you identify with? This was for a doctors appointment! I just don’t understand the confusion in our society. It’s beginning to be frowned upon to have high values and integrity. It makes no sense at all! Good has become evil and evil has become good. Don’t be afraid to speak truth in love. You can hide in Christ. He is our Cornerstone. “When darkness veils His lovely face, I rest on His unchanging grace, In every high and stormy gale, my anchor holds within the veil.” (Robert Critchley, Lyrics to My Hope is Built on Nothing Less, 2007)
I’m so thankful God does not expect me to understand but to just trust Him. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He will make your paths straight.” Proverbs 3:5 -6 NASB2020. All we can do is trust God and allow His love and truth to shine through us. If you get weary of this world just hide/rest in Jesus. Let Him renew you and fill you with His Spirit to rise up again.
Dear Jesus restore our resolve to stand firm for You in this spiritually dark world. Pierce the darkness and expose any deception. Set people free from the confusion of the enemy. We ask you to shine brightly and bring salvation to the lost that You purchased with Your blood on the cross. In Jesus name Amen.
Oil? Yes oil! A need for fresh oil has been a repetitive thing in my spirit lately. I’m not referring to the cooking kind, or automotive kind, but rather that of the Holy Spirit.
Last week I met with a group of friends to dig into Gods Word. One friend was intrigued about the ten virgins in Matthew 25. It was an interesting discussion as we looked up scripture related to this topic and life application. Bottom lime is, we need fresh oil to shine for Jesus. Fresh oil or anointing comes from spending time in prayer, worship and reading Gods Word.
This week I’ve been reflecting on this and coming across other bits of information that all go along together. I came across a statement that made me think. Sometimes the answer to my prayer is not what I gain but rather what I lose. When I spend time in prayer I lose anger, anxiety, frustration, dpression and hurt to name a few. Those loses are ultimately gains. Sometimes life is a big mess of frustration. I find myself often praying, “Lord help me”. His answers are not always in the way I’d like, but in one way or another, Jesus shows Himself faithful.
Last week when I met with my neighbor for our Bible study, we were analyzing scriptures about healing. One name of our God is, Jehovah-Rapha, the Lord who heals. As we were praying and sharing about different things, I told her I believe God can heal my optic nerves. I told her of my frustrations with my Optelec magnifier being broke and the parts being so pricey. The part that came in that did not fix the problem, cost $100 just to ship back. I told my friend, “ God needs to either fix my optic nerves or fix my machine! “ Yesterday my husband finally was able to get in touch with a regional person about a used machine. The man has a used one that he will sell us for $800, we just have to meet him some time this week. Thank you Jesus! That is a big answer to prayer. Of course I’d prefer healing but I’m trusting God.
I came across another thing online that really summed up my life and the difficulties I face. The post was on social media by Hannah Williamson, who I do not know. She started by saying, “Your calling is going to crush you.” I’m going to quote her here because it was so spot on true and she said she is sharing because someone else desperately needs it. I was one of those people. I read it over and over and I cried. Life is a big jumbled up frustration and I don’t typically talk about it because God is the only one who can change things. It’s no one’s fault so I push through. Here is the whole post I read on Facebook. I had trouble formatting this so everything below in gold is Hannah Williamsoms words.
Hannah Williamson, October 19
Your calling is going to crush you.
👉🏼 I have posted this before, but someone desperately needs this reminder.
💔If you are called to mend to the brokenhearted, you are going to wrestle with a broken heart.
👦🏻If you are called to heal God’s little ones, you have probably experienced your own share of trauma.
🗣If you are called to prophesy, you’re going to struggle with self-control of the tongue.
🩺If you are called to lay hands, you’re going to deal with spiritually-rooted disease.
🪨If you’re called to preach and teach the gospel, you WILL be sifted for the wisdom that anoints your message.
🪞If you are called to empower, your self-esteem will be attacked- your successes hard fought.
⚔️Your calling will come with spiritual warfare and a sifting – BOTH are necessary for your mantle to be authentic, humble and powerful.
Your crushing won’t be easy because your assignment is not easy – and you can’t minister POWERFULLY what you haven’t walked out. Read that sentence again.
🕊When you’re feeling the weight of it coming down on you, RUN to the father who longs to be your comfort. Let him whisper your true identity over you while resting under the shadow of his wings. Position yourself against his heartbeat. Let him renew your strength and set your eyes forward. No olives, no oil. No grapes, no wine.
Your oil is not cheap my friend.
Hannah’s post has been shared many times and I too shared it with friends. May God bless Hannah for her faithfulness in sharing this encouragement.
As we continue to be pressed on every side by life, crushed and in the refiners fire, don’t lose hope. Press in closer to Jesus as He renews us daily with fresh strength, fresh anointing and everything we need to walk victoriously in this life.
You can find my autobiography Rooted by the Water on Amazon. I pray it gives you great hope and courage to surrender to Jesus. He is all you really need. Be blessed.
Sometimes we need a good shaking from the Lord. A good shake will clear all the creative mess we make. If we’ve learned anything from previous explorations with the etch a sketch, after a shaking or clearing, if we leave the controls alone there is peace and stillness.
Wouldn’t it be awesome if life was that simple. Just think, when situations or circumstances become messy, just a good shake would clear it all away. That’s wishful thinking.
Life has been a bit stressful lately. What’s new? It seems like a curve ball is always coming up around the corner and catches us off guard . That’s pretty much the story of my life. This latest scenario has tested not only my patience but also my husbands.
My Optelec video magnifier that I’ve been using for 15 years stopped working. I use that machine to see recipes, directions on food packaging, paying the bills, balancing the checkbook and even simply writing. Bottom line, I need it to see for daily functional living and it’s been broke for weeks.
Ron is very mechanically inclined and usually can fix anything. He contacted the company who makes it and they sent instructions on how to disassemble it. He was excited and after talking to someone at the company, ordered the part they thought would fix it. The part was over $500 but that’s way less than a new machine. We waited a week for the part to come in and found out that was not the problem The next part to try is the camera feature to the tune of $2000. Lord give us wisdom to know how to fix this or to get a new one. We could use a good boost of endurance as Ron is doing some of the things I’ve always done.
Meanwhile life continues to happen. Ron took me to my appointment yesterday with my new primary doctor. I’ve seen the same doctor since I was in college but this new one is just two miles from us and was recommended by a friend. She was awesome. We were happy with the whole experience until checking out. Whoa what a sour grape we dealt with. Ron told me later the woman kept telling him to pull his mask up while I was telling him to pull it down. Lord only knows what she was saying to me, because she was all masked up and Ron was too, I could not follow. I told Ron he should have told me. The American Disabilities Act would have come in handy and I would have nicely given her a piece of my mind. She has to learn to be gracious to different types of patients. Communication barriers are no joke. Goodness gracious! She gave us a bunch of forms to fill out. (Remember my broken machine? ) I am in their system and have a patient portal with all my information available to her at the touch of a computer mouse.
This is life! This is us! It takes an abundance of patience. Lord help me be gracious! I spent time in prayer last night and went to bed early. This morning I spent time in prayer again. As I prayed I told the Lord there were so many things but He already knew of them all. He knows the frustrations of dealing with people. He knows the abundance of patience it takes and He knows my weaknesses. This morning I felt in my heart I was to “Be Still”. Just “be still” and worship all that He is. Just “Be Still” and know that He is God. Today is a new day with fresh mercies. It’s a clean slate. Tomorrow is gone with its troubles. There will always be people to deal with and situations to maneuver. Move on and let it go!
May God bless you today in whatever you face. May you see Him smiling and encouraging you as you look to Him. Whatever you do, keep moving forward. It is tempting to throw in the towel and say “I’m done”. Don’t do it! Our purpose is to bring glory to God. We can’t bring Him glory when we quit but we can bring Him much glory when we surrender and push through by His Spirit. Let’s hit that next curve ball out of the park! Let’s go!
If you enjoyed this blog please subscribe. I share life lessons, struggles living with hearing and visual impairments. It’s my purpose to bring God glory in my daily struggles. My autobiography Rooted by the Water cam be found on Amazon.
One and a half years ago I released my autobiography,Rooted by the Water. As I brainstormed possible names the word “Rooted” stuck in my mind. Being rooted and established in Jesus is so symbolic to my life story. Yet rooted by itself did not reflect the full picture of my journey.
By the summer of 2020 the majority of my book was finished. That summer I decided to read through the Bible in 90 days. I wish I could see well enough to read the Bible in book form but with my low vision reading from the YouVersion app was more assessable. With the font zoomed in large I read from Genesis through Revelations. As I read, I took notes on many scriptures. Searching diligently,God showed me so many scriptures I could use. In Jeremiah I came across the following verses and they stuck. “But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.” Jeremiah 17:7-8 (NIV) After reading that the name of my book took form.
My goal and purpose in life is to bring God glory. What better way to do that than to put my trust and confidence in Jesus. In all honesty, life is tough and doesn’t always make sense.
Over the course of my life many many seeds hvee been sowed: seeds of faith, seeds of trust, seeds of hope, seeds of perseverance ,and seeds of joy to name a few. If you’ve ever planted seeds, you know that not all seeds take root. Those seeds that take root and grow deep and strong are the plants that last.
Jeremiah gives us this illustration of a healthy tree planted by the water whose roots grow deep. This is symbolic of someone whose trust and confidence is in the Lord.
In John 4 Jesus is talking to a Samaritan woman by the well. “Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.” John 4:10 (NIV) When we are rooted in Jesus, the true living water, we need never to fear.
My trust and confidence are in Jesus. He keeps me rooted and established in all I need to persevere. Life is not about me but the one who sustains me. In good times and bad he helps me flourish. Winds and storms come in my life living with hearing and visual issues, but I hold tight to Jesus. During those gusty windy times of self doubt and despair, Jesus keeps me from breaking. In the dry dark times of drought when I wonder where God is and why I am having to endure various hardships, I remain rooted and nourished by God’s Word filled with life giving scriptures.
If you have never discovered Jesus or surrendered your life to him, he is all that truly satisfies and sustains us in this life. You too can be “rooted by the water.” I have found in life that Jesus is all that really satisfies. I pray whoever reads this that seeds of faith in Jesus take root and change your life for His glory.
I welcome,e you to subscribe to my blog. You can find my autobiography Rooted by the Water on Amazon. I pray it gives you great hope and courage to surrender to Jesus. He is all you really need. Be blessed.
When you see people do you really see them? There are so many factors that come together to make people the way they are. You may be asking, what factors? The environments people are raised in, both good and bad, shape people. The types of families, patents, parenting styles have a huge affect on people. The words spoken over people both positive and negative, shape them and the way they think. Past hurts, successes and shortcomings, all factor in. Ones abilities and disabilities and societies response to those can cause life long attitudes and perceptions.
You might be wondering why I’m rambling on like this. As some one with visual and hearing limitations, I truly “See” people. People need love and acceptance.
The American culture and society right now is such a complete mess, It breaks my heart. The lack of morales and upright values is downright appalling. And we wonder why people are so messed up and hurt.
What can we do in light of our current cultural depravity? We can be a listening ear and make time to hear another’s heart. We can and should ask God to give us His perspective on whats occurring around us. We can pray! We can pray that God gives us a heightened sensitivity to what is happening around us. There is such great power in prayer. Just do it! Make the time to ask God what He thinks about what’s going on. Be part of the loving caring solution. We can’t remove ourselves from this world but we can SHINE for Jesus in the murky darkness.
I find myself praying often for children and young adults. I pray God cancels out every plan the enemy has for our young ones. I pray God will pierce the darkness and expose things hidden in plain sight. If you are a person of influence, a parent, educator, business owner, coach, mentor: what can you do to push against this negative culture? You can speak life and truth in love. Value all people. Stand in the gap in prayer and positive living. You can say one thing with your words and something entirely different with your body language and indifference.
Ephesians 2:10 says, “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” ( NIV). Will you surrender to Jesus and let Him give you a fresh perspective? “If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” Romans 10:9 (NLT)
Lord help us to make a difference. Help us to realize you desire to use us to bring about good and healing. You are El Roi, the God who sees. Nothing is hidden from you. May our surrender and obedience be an act of loving worship as you use us for your glory. In Jesus name Amen!
To read more of my story you can find my autobiography on Amazon in hard cover, soft cover and e book formats. “Rooted by the Water” by Shannon Kenley Hinson. Www.shannonkhinson.com
Recently I was scrolling through Tik Tok and I came across a Pastor who has no arms or legs. I followed him on the app a while back so his videos appear in my feed. He is such an extraordinary person with extraordinary faith. This particular video I came across captured my attention. In the video clip, this pastor with no arms or legs was saying,” When you don’t get a miracle, Be a Miracle”. I though, whoa.. did I get that right? With my low vision and hearing issues, I do often get it wrong. A few days later I went back to try to find the video to save it for future reference and inspiration. Sure enough, with my caption zoomed in large and volume on my device up, I was right. He said, “When you don’t get a miracle, Be a miracle.”
I can’t tell you how many times I have prayed for a miracle for myself and others. While I’ve seen no physical improvements in my nerves that affect my hearing and visual problems, God has and continues to give me extraordinary strength to push through. However, I have never thought in terms of, “Being a Miracle”. Okay Lord will you show me how?
How can I “Be a miracle”? This takes a big shift in perspective and active faith. I decided to get out in nature to walk, pray and reflect. I asked my husband Ron to drop me off at River Walk for some quality time alone with God. As I walked and prayed, praise and thanksgiving filled my heart and mind. Suddenly the thought “let gratitude be your attitude” came to mind. I began to thank God for the strength that He gives me every day. As I walked and prayed, I thanked God for allowing me to see the asphalt path. I had never walked this path alone. (It is safe with security patrolling) I was hoping to see a deer but I saw squirrels and a bunch of dear people enjoying the beautiful day. My senses were heightened. The sounds of moving water from the river, birdsong and rustling leaves surrounded me. I’m so thankful my Advanced Bionic Marvel cochlear implant processor allows me to hear those beautiful sounds. The warm sunshine, a refreshing breeze and smells of nature enveloped me. As I walked and worshiped the Lord I was tempted to lift my hands and sing but I didn’t. My heart was singing though. Walking more than four miles, I became weary along the way. My mind was telling me to push! Push through even through I was tired! I sensed in my spirit the Lord saying, I clothe you with strength…. Keep going!
God got me back to my starting point. After sitting down on some steps, I texted Ron and told him I was ready to be picked up. Physically wear, I came away refreshed in spirit. To “Be a Miracle” you need only to focus on Jesus with a grateful heart. It’s easy to look for God in the supernatural, but He wants us to know Him on a personal level. When we choose God daily, He allows us to find the everyday miracles. As He leads us forth, He enables us to “Be a Miracle” through His power made perfect in our weakness. Trust Him! He’s got this…whatever this is!
To read more of my story you can find my autobiography on Amazon in hard cover, soft cover and e book formats. “Rooted by the Water” by Shannon Kenley Hinson. Www.shannonkhinson.com
Last Sunday was a busy day at the apple orchard in Spruce Pine NC. This was my first experience in an apple orchard and I marveled at the fact I could see many apples on many trees. Having low vision all my life, I’m not used to seeing such detail. I went with four friends and we decided to take a wagon ride through the orchard first to learn history of the area and the orchard itself. All the friends with me are deaf but one can lip read so well, she interpreted what the tour guide said. We all listened with keen interest but once the tractor had pulled us into the orchard I turn around and just absorbed the beauty of the experience.
The orchard has a gorgeous backdrop of mountains. I was sitting in the front corner of the wagon and turned staring in awe. Tree after tree covered with a variety of apples. Some were red, green and yellow. Some sweet and others tart. After the wagon ride, I bought a bucket so I could experience harvesting apples. The guide explained how to know if the apples were ready. Apples ready for picking came right off once I pulled and twisted the steam. I came across some that were not ready and some trees we skipped completely because that particular variety had a different harvest time. It did not take long to fill my bucket with apples then I headed back to meet my friends.
There are some life applications that I gleamed from this experience. If you want to be part of the harvest, you have to participate. You will have to endure the elements to achieve the goal of picking apples. It was a warm day and I broke a sweat trudging through the uneven, rocky slopes. There were weeds and grasses growing in various places. With my low vision, it wasn’t the easiest task maneuvering over the uneven ground. However, I desired the apples more than the hassle it took to get them, so I pushed through.
Every beautiful experience has positive and negative aspects. The trick is to keep your eyes on the prize. In the beginning, as I rode on the wagon through the orchard, my eye was drawn to the fruit. The grassy, rocky slopes weren’t a problem until I was on foot trudging through it. I grasped the beauty of the apples so the negatives of the elements didn’t bother me because my eye was on the goal.
Another life application is, you reap what you sow. Our orchard guide told us about the man who planted the orchard. He put lots of effort into his goal and years later the orchard continues to produce beautiful tasty fruit.
Last but not least, I pondered on how those many apple covered trees represent humanity in need of some one to pick them and bring them in to enjoy. If the apples aren’t picked, they eventually fall and rot on the ground. In Luke 10:2 it says, “These were his instructions to them: “The harvest is great, but the workers are few. So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his fields.”(NLT)
Our communities, schools, neighborhoods, business are full of apples (people) waiting for someone to see their value. So many want to be “picked and cherished”. Let’s pray and ask God how we can be useful in the greatest harvest ever. It will require a willingness to participate but we won’t be disappointed in the results.
To read more of my story you can find my autobiography on Amazon in hard cover, soft cover and e book formats. “Rooted by the Water” by Shannon Kenley Hinson. Www.shannonkhinson.com
Just got back from a long weekend in the NC mountains with my deaf girlfriends. Quick side note about the name- we have an ongoing chat group and one friend wanted a name for us. Some of the suggestions were; Sassy Chicks, Hear no evil Chicks and Hot & Sassy. You can insert my eye roll on the last suggestion made by one of the girls Italian husband. Go figure! 😂 Since 2019 we have gone on one trip each year. This year it was hard to get everyone’s schedule together. We had talked about a day trip to pick apples but we ended up having a long weekend.
We rode up on the first day of Fall and came home on Sunday. We had perfect Fall weather. We stayed in a small place in Blowing Rock NC that said it slept 6 people but I don’t think it meant six women and a BIG sweet “Doodle-Dog”. There was just one bathroom, but it was fun and we made it work.
Our first day was gorgeous and clear skies. We took advantage of the perfect weather and went to Grandfather Mountain. Ome of my friends had never walked across the swinging bride so that’s the first thing we did. We all crossed the bridge, looked at the beautiful views, took pictures and sat on the rocks overlooking the mountainside. We also saw the animals. With my low vision I could not tell where they were but a friend took pictures and videos of the black bears, cougars, bald head eagles and river otters. It was such a perfect day.
The second day was overcast with a few showers. We decided to visit the old Mast General store in Boone. The scent of old-time fresh popcorn greeted us as we walked into the old store. One friend and I had a friendly game of checkers. The playing pieces were bottle caps. It was a bit hard for me to see but I managed and won! There were barrels full of various candies and a OLD tractor outside. I sat in the drivers seat and we took a group picture. Later on that day we went in some shops on Main Street in Blowing Rock.
Our last day we went to an apple orchard in Spruce Pine. This was my first time ever being in an apple orchard. It was amazing to me to be close enough to see all the MANY apples on the trees. We took a hayride and learned the history of the area. It was a neat experience. I think I will write a separate blog on that.
I don’t have any biological sisters but God has blessed me with some wonderful friends who are like sisters. This one particular group is a special bunch. We are all deaf. We all lost our hearing at different ages and stages in life. Three of us have cochlear implants. Two are incredible at lip reading. I’m not one of those. Low vision hinders that. We have the common connection of hearing loss and a special bond. I’m so thankful for these girls and making memories together.
When they dropped me off at home on Sunday I was exhausted physically, visually and mentally. I’m not used to watching sign language continuously for days. My husband was surprised at how tired I was. I unpacked my things, took an epson salt bath and went to sleep. So A vacations you need a vacation to recover from. That was one of those. It was an awesome time though. Fun memories made with special friends. Until next time….
To read more of my story you can find my autobiography on Amazon in hard cover, soft cover and e book formats. “Rooted by the Water” by Shannon Kenley Hinson. Www.shannonkhinson.com
For several days now I’ve been meaning to sit down and write this. In the process, I’ve typed a few notes to hold onto until I could find time to get my thoughts together.
How can people find beauty in the ashes? As I have reflected on this, several things have come to mind. Don’t despise the hard things. Hardships make you stronger and equips you to help others.
Finding “Beauty in ashes” is like gleaming diamonds in dirt. You may wonder, “Why am I going through this difficult season in life?” Is God possibly preparing you to encourage others with the same comfort you are receiving? 2 Corinthians 1:4 says, “He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us.” (NLT). Gleaming beauty from a hard situation could be being able to encourage others through their difficulties because you have been through it as well. Empathy is beautiful.
Let’s check out another verse. Romans 15:5 says, “May God, who gives this patience and encouragement, help you live in complete harmony with each other, as is fitting for followers of Christ Jesus.”(NLT). Patience is beautiful! Encouraging others is also a beautiful thing to experience. Being able to live in harmony is wonderful. The ashes of difficulties make us more sensitive to allowing God to work through us. What about compassion? There have been some really genuine people who have forever touched me with their love and compassion when I was struggling. You can pick up on it when someone is real and truly cares. Having experienced this genuine love and concern makes me want to do the same for others.
I’ve had several opportunities recently to minister encouragement to others in trying situations. I will share one with you. One friend is experiencing some lapses in memory. It’s been my pleasure to listen and learn. I listen to her tell me stories. Some times she repeats them. But I listen to them however many times she wants to share. I know it touches my heart when others take time for me so I want to do the same for others. Recently she was helping me pronounce words correctly . I pronounce words the way they are spelled and sometimes that just does not work. She would spell the words out according to what it sounds like. I sure was way off on some of them. It was funny and we both enjoyed it. We have a true friendship that is beautiful .
As God molds us through our difficulties we are being changed to be more Christ like in character. One might think of a hard season in life as, Lord just get me through this! I really believe it’s not about us getting through but rather how we come out. Do we come out stronger? Do we come out tender to the needs and hurts of those around us? Everyday is an opportunity for God to mold us into the image of Jesus. My prayer today is, Lord help me to be more like you and less like me. All for the glory of God! Amrn!
To read more of my story you can find my autobiography on amazon in hard cover, soft cover and e book formats. “Rooted by the Water” by Shannon Kenley Hinson. Www.shannonkhinson.com
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