You Are Not Alone

In all of its glory and all of its pageantry and all of its goodness and as wonderful as it can be....

For many, Christmas is a painful reminder. It arrives with unbearable grief.

It can knock the breath out of us for a number of reasons.

And our minds can know with all knowing that He is the reason for the season and it is to be celebrated.

But our hearts can be in another place.

Our hearts can bring up the end of the race some days, weeks and months later.

And sometimes our hearts just can't compete at all .

For many, Christmas is something that we have to just "get through" and cannot wait for it to be over.

It isn't because we do not love others or because we do not understand the reason we celebrate at all...

It is just for the simple reason that for many, Christmas hurts.

My beautiful friend Granny Smith Green , whom we all know and love so much,  lost her Father last year this very week.  And in all the joy and all the rejoicing of the birth of our Savior and in all head knowledge that this is truly the most wonderful time of the year...

There is sorrow.

A place in our hearts that rings with unbearable grief and a place at the table, empty this year.

A position in a precious family that can never be replaced.

In speaking with her this week, I heard what grace truly sounds like.  Beautiful, unmeasurable, grace.

So many of us are walking through changes this year that are not what we would have scripted for our life.

So many are trying to find a new normal and start over and begin again and for thousands and thousands of beautiful hearts, this will be their very first Christmas alone.

Because as incredible and wonderful as life can be....

Death comes. Sorrow comes. Divorce comes. Separation and heartbreak come. Saying goodbye to babies you never had the chance to raise, comes. Financial despair and job loss comes. Cancer and sickness and illness comes.....

It wasn't in the script or the journal or the plans.....

But it comes.

And for many, this will be a Christmas of trying to feel our way around in the dark, broken places of our heart while at the same time trying to sit up straight in the church pew and hear the gospel about the One who came to mend every broken place.

So many are trying to buy gifts and give and love and sow and bless and do for others and on the inside they can barely stand.

Many are trying to explain to wide eyed children why there will not be very, many gifts under the tree this year. Or worse, anything at all.

Unbearable pain in the midst of such a glorious season.

And the One who is the Author and the Finisher. The Beginning and the End. The Alpha and the Omega.....

He is calling the broken and the mended in every single one of us to reach out to the broken places in someone else this Christmas.

To be His hands and His feet. To be His mouthpiece. To hold the pen to paper and write His words to the heart of another. To be an earthly demonstration of His love to someone else this season, to remind a broken heart that they are not alone this Christmas.

That He is ever mindful of them...

You are not alone sweet reader. 

He is there with you.

In the midst of court hearings and proceedings.  In the midst of that hospital room.

He is there in the intensive care unit.

He is hovering over you in the midst of the separation and divorce.

He knows how difficult it is to begin life as a single parent.....

He is going before you, even now and preparing the way and orchestrating every need on your behalf....

Even this Christmas.

May we each receive the gift that is demonstrating the love of the Father to someone else this year.....

Be still and know that I am God. ~ Psalm 46:10.

A Father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, Is God in His holy habitation.
God sets the solitary in families; He brings out those who are bound into prosperity. ~ Psalm 68: 5-6

Hear me, O Lord, for Your lovingkindness is good; Turn to me according to the multitude of your tender mercies. And do not hide Your face from your servant, For I am in trouble; Hear me speedily.
Draw near to my soul and redeem it; Deliver me because of my enemies. ~ Psalm 69: 16-18

Bless the Lord, O my soul;
And all that is within me, bless His holy name!
Bless the Lord, O my soul,
And forget not all His benefits:
Who forgives all your iniquities,
Who heals all your diseases,
Who redeems your life from destruction,
Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies,
Who satisfies your mouth with good things,
So that your youth is renewed like the eagle's. ~ Psalm 103: 1-5

Gifts Without Ribbons

Gifts without ribbons.

Gifts that come in the midnight hour when there isn't a single sound except the tiny puffs of air on your neck from the breath of your newborn baby.

Gifts that come in the wee hours of the morning when chubby, little hands make there way around yours.

Gifts that come in the moments between laundry and diaper changing and bathing five babies every night.

Gifts that come when the entire Christmas tree falls over because your three year old decided to launch himself right into it.....

Moments that become gifts ........without ribbons or packaging or string.

Gifts handed to us by the One who is the giver of every good thing.

The One who knows the deepest desire of our hearts...who knows every, single need.

Gifts that come when all things have lost there relevance.

This year I received the most incredible gift...

It didn't come like I had hoped or expected. But it came.

A gift without ribbons....

He's home.

Finally.

Glory to His precious name.

The man to whom my heart belongs is home.

The father of my children is home.

The man who is the rock of this family and who is the hardest worker and the best provider I have ever known. He's home.

The man who gives and sows and loves and demonstrates the love of the Father unlike anyone else I know. He's home.

The man who has spent the last two years and four months living and working in another state and has only been home on the weekends, and many, many times it was not every weekend.

He's home.

I can attempt to describe the gratitude.

I can attempt to describe the level of overwhelming joy and thanksgiving.....

But I think my words would fail in comparison to what I feel has taken place in my heart.

I am beside myself.....

It's over.

The commuting. The struggling. The single parenting of five children.

The sleepless nights. The weight and the burden of trying to do it all by myself without an ounce of help.

The going to every school function and event and open house alone.

The trying to parent and have a marriage and relationship long distance.

It's over.

And he is never going back.

It will mean big changes for our family.

Some of which we have already been walking through the last month.

Changes that would send some people into a complete and total tailspin.

But only a wife who has prayed countless prayers for years to be reunited with her husband no matter what ~ could say it matters not financially......I'm just so thankful he is home.

It may not be a Malibu Barbie Dream House Christmas this year.

But it is the Christmas that my heart sang and my feet danced and my prayers were answered.

It is the Christmas that will not involve going to the airport for any reason.

It is the Christmas that I have never, ever seen my children so incredibly happy.

It is the Christmas that I feel like June Cleaver and I am twirling around in my apron .....

It is the Christmas that six babies and my husband under the same roof mean more to me than anything in the entire world.

The gift I had hoped and prayed would come.

The one without ribbons and wrapping and string.

The one that has made my heart absolutely soar and sing.

My children are finally in the arms of their Father,

and we have waited and prayed for years for this day...

No words big enough sweet friends.

Soli Dio Gloria. To God alone be the glory......

A Few Details About The Pearl Event II

Hello Sweet Readers!


Thank you all so much for your enthusiasm about the upcoming event! We are so looking forward
to this special day as well as the chance to meet and spend some time with each one of you!

Here are just a few more details that might be helpful and answer some questions you may have asked or may have wanted to ask!


Hotel Rooms:

We will be offering a block of discounted rooms at The Opryland Hotel and were waiting to see exactly how many (I've asked for more than they usually offer) before announcing that information.

There are many other hotels that we can suggest and will be offering that list here on the blog as well as on the ticket page.


Schedule:

Here is a tentative schedule and it is subject to change! This is just to give you a little bit of an idea!

This is my first experience hosting an event with other speakers (and I am so excited about it! ) Last time it was just me speaking, so please bear with me a little bit...my apologies!

9:00-9:30- Praise and Worship (TBA) and Welcome (Sibi )

9:30-10:15- First Speaker - Sarah Cantrell- Personal Testimony

10:30--11:15- Second Speaker- Jane Mathews- Personal Testimony

11:15- 12:00- Third Speaker- Paige Knudsen- Personal Testimony

12:00-1:00- Lunch - (on your own in the hotel unless my prayers get answered with sponsors! :)

1:00- 1:45- Fourth Speaker- Edie Wadsworth- Personal Testimony

1:45-2:45 - Fifth Speaker- Sibi- Pearl Teaching and Personal Testimony

2:45-3:15- Special video and the placing of pearl necklaces on each of the women (The speakers and some special "Pearl Girls" will be the ones adorning you all with necklaces)

3:15-4:00- Opportunities for prayer and meeting and hugging and possible squealing :) and encouraging!!


What kind of event is this?

This is a Christian event.   It is not affiliated with a specific church or denomination.

All are welcome! We would LOVE for you to attend!

We are all Christians. We all love the same Jesus.
We all have testimonies that many of you may be able to identify with in one way or another!

We are not "perfectly polished" speakers....We are Mamas who love Jesus and love our families and want to share our testimonies to offer hope and encouragement and hopefully, by His grace, point others to a deeper relationship with Him.


How large/small is the event and venue?

We are offering room for 200 seats.

If there is interest past this, we will have a waiting list that will pop up on Eventbrite once the last ticket is sold and will work out the details accordingly.

We have already had ticket sales and are so humbled and honored and excited that you are coming!!!

Thank you!!

I will share more information soon!  Including a detailed list of shops, and restaurants , etc and wonderful things about the area for those of you who want to make a weekend out of it!


Sponsoring the event:

If you would like to make a donation of any amount to help with the event you can do so through the
Pay Pal link on the ticket page.

If you are interested in partnering with us through a sponsorship, please email me at :
pearlsandgrace@yahoo.com



Roommates and connecting with other attendees:


If you would like to connect with a possible roommate or find out who all is planning to attend you can do that by sending out a tweet on Twitter and using the hashtag  #thepearlevent.

Blog buttons about the event will be coming after Christmas!


I hope this helps to answer some of your questions. Thank you all for your support and encouragement!


Please keep His upcoming event in your prayers!

Thanksgiving Is A Place {2011 Edition}

This is a repost of my Thanksgiving post from last year.

It is the exact same way that I feel this Thanksgiving ~ only deeper.

So I thought it would be fitting to post it once again.......


After the year we have had I've found myself this November filled with gratitude on a new level.

And it doesn't have anything to do with turkey and cornbread dressing.

It doesn't have anything to do with Black Friday . 

And really nothing at all to do with rushing the next Holiday and attempting to get the tree up and decorated.

For me this year, Thanksgiving is a place.

It's a spiritual posture that I can walk in every, single day. 

Or not.

I don't need a big meal this year, where folks eat too much and then pass out for the rest of the day to prove how thankful I am. 

I want to be as thankful on a regular Monday as I am on actual Thanksgiving.

I love the Holidays.

I mean, I absolutely adore them.  But this year it's so different for me.

I've arrived at my destination and it's called Thanksgiving.

Where gratitude and attitude are the state and capital.

It is a place. And I'm resting in it this year. 

Knowing that the Father doesn't need me to host, cook or create a huge meal.

Knowing that He is interested in the condition of my heart and what's going on inside it more than how pretty the table is set or how good the pumpkin pie is going to be.

It isn't just a day for me this year. 

It is a place and I never want to leave.

No matter what happens in life. This is where I am taking up my permanent residence.

I want to rest in this place whether God provides simple daily "manna" or whether it's a year flowing with milk and honey. I have to. I've had to walk through many valleys so that I can teach my children what Thanksgiving really means out of a true and deep heart knowledge. 

Not just head knowledge.

And I've always been thankful. But this year, it's on an entirely different level.

It's a place inside that even though everything is not perfect....

It's okay. 

And even though things can be really difficult and really hard at times... 

It's okay. 

And even though God has allowed certain circumstances and situations that are pressing and crushing...

It's okay. 

I will praise Him and thank Him and trust Him in the midst of it all.

Because my heart has a new address this year......

2011 Thanksgiving Circle.