Today is my 100th blog post! The timing of this celebration blows me away. I just returned from a vacation in the mountains of Estes Park, Colorado. He knew! He knew before I even took my first breath that this week in time would align with this 100th post of encouraging others. As the winds whistled through the trees I heard Him whisper sweet and tender things to me. I started this journey on January 1, 2015 almost 2 year ago out of an obedience to The Lord. My family had just picked up and moved. We had left everything and everyone we knew behind us. We had said YES to The Lord, and He wanted me to share some of my journey with YOU…to encourage you and to testify to you that He is GOOD. I stand in AWE of what He has accomplished through this broken vessel over these past two years. Together we have reached 16,827 views in over 60 countries with the good news of Jesus Christ. This my friends is worth celebrating!

The whole experience has come full circle for me. As I hiked through the mountains, I recalled my very first blog post. (You can read “A Real Journey” by clicking here.) The Lord had given me an experience with my grandmother that I will never stop praising Him for as long as I have breath. He allowed me to see Him through her REAL journey home to Him. I was the only one in the hospital room with her when she asked me if she would know when she made it to the top of the mountain. She described it as the most beautiful and pure white that she had ever seen. She saw her mother and her brother there…smiling at her. She was not having a lapse in memory as Alzheimer’s had robbed her so many times before, she was really experiencing her journey home. I remember tears falling down my cheeks as I rubbed her hair and held her hand. She was so peaceful and so ready to make it to the top of the mountain.

Friends, we are all on our journey towards our forever home. Only God knows when we will make it to the top. Until that moment comes LIVE and LIVE WITH ABANDON! After our hike we started our way back down to the village when this song came on the radio. There He was speaking to me again right through the radio waves. I believe every word of these lyrics. I hope it inspires you too.

So what’s stopping you? Every single day we are given is a gift straight from above. Make it count. Our callings are different, but we are all the same in how we are loved and are to give that love away. On our flight home yesterday I saw it lived it out so well. There was a precious couple in front of us. They looked to be in their 70’s. The flight attendant had made her way to their row to ask if they wanted to purchase a snack. The gentleman nodded with a yes and ordered. The African American pregnant lady next to him asked for a sprite only she did not have a way to pay for it. The sweet gentleman told the flight attendant her snacks and drink were on him. He told her to order whatever she wanted.There wasn’t a big heroic celebration. No one else really knew that it happened, but he was living with abandon. He was showing love and offering it to someone he did not know nor did he expect anything in return. He simply gave it away.

So how will you give love away today? How will you live with abandon this coming year? Do you have new goals in mind? I hope you do. I hope you draw closer to our Lord. Spend time with Him daily. His Holy word is a comfort and a lifeline to my soul…may it be the same for you. Give Him thanks daily for your many blessings. There are many even in the midst of suffering and adversity. Look for them. Praise Him for them. You’ll be amazed at how your perspective changes and you will feel lifted above the mire. Share His love with those you know and those you don’t know. Be the gift! Live with abandon!!!

“May the God of hope fill you with all JOY and PEACE as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with HOPE by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Romans 15:13.