It’s been a long time coming. This urge to write. To write through the pain. To write while hoping for change. What to write? How to write it? What could I say that would bless others?
     My fists clenched tightly crushing the beautiful petal I wanted to preserve. The pain so raw, I could not touch it with words. The grasping to control that which was slipping through my fingers.
     When and where would I begin? I tried once before but before the words were on paper, the hope and life were torn away.
     Gradually, the Lord has been putting hope back into my life. Through friends who hug and pray and love and give Godly counsel. Through Hubby, my ever-faithful support. Through God’s Word. Through prayer. And through the Presence of the Lord Himself.
     Yesterday, a friend gifted me with a journal titled “Joy Within.” She had copied Ann Voskamp’s “Take the JOY DARE” for January onto slick glossy photo paper, pasted it on the first page of the book, and wrapped it in cheerful yellow burlap tied with printed ribbon. I could feel the hope and joy begin to soothe the pain. I knew it was time to write~and to write of Joy and Thanksgiving in the midst of trial. Oh, I’ll talk of the pain, the change, the Lord’s work in me. But I’ll focus on His Joy.