Every year as October approaches, Breast Cancer Awareness Month reminds of my battle with this terrible disease—one I still fight today.

I don’t like to think of myself as a vain woman, but the truth of the matter is I have struggled majorly with body issues since my breast cancer battle in 2011. It is not what you might think. I have not been striving for perfection, just to not feel like a monster. Due to my nerve pain illness, I was never able to finish my reconstruction surgeries from my double mastectomies. It is something that has affected me very deeply, to my core, over the last five years.

According to sources, I am far from alone in this struggle. Many women suffer with self-esteem and body issues after their surgeries from breast cancer.

After all this time, God has been leading me that it was time to work on it. So, reluctantly, several weeks ago I went to see my Christian counselor about this. With her help, my perception is changing. I am learning to love my body again, to embrace my scars not as ugly but as different. I am different now.

Different is good, and different is beautiful. My scars remind me that I survived the breast cancer that tried to kill me. The marks serve as reminders of the terrible wounding I experienced and the miraculous healing that God brought to my body. They draw a line between my past with the disease and my glorious new future without it.

The wounding has changed me. When meeting cancer face to face, you realize just how fragile life is. It changes your priorities. I live my life differently now, living every day more fully, trying harder to make sure that those I love know it every day. There is no question that my wounds have given me the ability to love deeper. I have a deeper compassion too for other women who are wounded, who face trials, who need help.

I found that help in my life, and I want to share it. His name is Jesus. When I was at the bottom, He was there with me. He brought healing to my soul by dying on the cross for me. He has brought healing to my heart and my body during the hardest times of my life. He has carried me through one day at a time. He still does.

Recently, my friend told me about his friend who was diagnosed with breast cancer five years ago. She opted for a lumpectomy instead of a mastectomy. She passed away this July when the cancer came back. I am so sorry for her horrific struggle and for her family’s loss.

That could have been me. Gratefully, I look back at the cruise my husband and I went on in July to celebrate my five years cancer free. That could have been so different. I am so blessed, and I never want to take the precious gift of life and healing for granted.

When we go through trials, sometimes we are left feeling broken, damaged, less than we were before. Sometimes the on-going pain of it will never let us forget this, even for a second. It is a common misconception that once we become a Christian that our life gets easier. The Lord never promised us that it would be easy, but He did promise that He would never leave us nor forsake us.

Jesus understands all about our suffering. We share our scars in common with Him. Just as He overcame His scars and was resurrected to everlasting life, He wants to work a miracle in our lives too—one that is for our good and for His glory. He comforts us so that we can comfort others. He helps us so that we can help someone else.

Through our brokenness, God can create a beautiful masterpiece of His faithfulness and unfailing promises. He brings us through the fire one day at a time, so that others will see and know what a magnificent Savior we have. We give Him our ashes, He turns them into beauty. He makes us different, and that is beautiful.

Dear Lord: Thank you that we don’t have to face our trials alone, that You are working a beautiful plan in our lives always and You are always there to help us. Let us find the beauty in our struggles and the comfort and strength to take those precious nuggets and share them with others who are hurting. Please help all of those who are reading this with their struggles today. Thank You for the healing that is ours through Your Son Jesus Christ. Amen

But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on Him, and by His wounds we are healed. Isaiah 53:5

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. 1 Corinthians 1:3-4

Are you in a trial right now struggling just to make it through? Please know that God is there to help you one day at a time.

Has He brought you through a heartache that you never thought you could make it through? If so, please look for opportunities to share these blessings with someone else today who needs to hear the encouragement that only you can give. It might make all the difference in the world to them.

Thank you for reading and sharing my blogpost. Please share your comments, thoughts and experiences by replying below. May God bless you always with beauty from the ashes in your life!

Dear Reid:

You and I go back way further than the 6 1/2 + years you have been dating my son. I began praying for you when you were just a baby. I prayed that you were being loved, growing healthy, wise and strong and always walking in the light of the Lord. Through the years, I have often tried to visualize your precious little face and the sweet sound of your little girl voice. I prayed that in His time, God would bring you into my son’s life.

I will never forget the first time I met you. Scott and I and Bradley were picking Taylor up from a Drama presentation at Pickens High School. You had been in the play that night and you came out of the school with Taylor. Your pigtails were bouncing in the breeze and you were wearing lots of stage makeup, rosy cheeks and red lips. As cute as a button, you hopped up on the running board of my SUV, poked your head in through my open window and said, “Hi, Taylor’s family!”

That night, I knew there was something very special about you—full of confidence, full of life, full of sweetness. Not long after that night, I asked Taylor about you. At that point, he said that you were just friends. I knew better. Moms always do. Soon you were dating. See … like I said, moms know.

I liked you from the start. You are just the kind of girl every mom dreams about for her son. I knew that for sure the night I overheard you and Taylor reading scripture together on the phone as I passed his room all those years ago. You have always invited Christ along in your relationship. He has and will bless that in your life and it will continue in your marriage.

I always thought I would have a daughter. Now I know that is you. And just like my sons, I have prayed for you. In the Hawkins’ family, there is a long line of boys only. I’m so glad you are joining me as a Hawkins woman. Hawkins women are special. We come from a long line of awesome Mother-in-laws too. I plan on being a great one to you just as mine is to me.

You are a rare and precious godly woman, Reid. Your eyes have become Taylor’s peace and your heart has become his home. Scott and I have raised him to forever cherish the gift of you and your love, to understand your value, to honor and respect you, to love you as Christ loves the Church. You will make a great wife for our son. You build each other up, support each other, care about each other. In just three short weeks, he will make his forever promise to you as you will promise your life to him.

And on that day, the wedding party will enter, the stage will be set. All eyes will turn to you as you enter the church, cued by the music. I will recognize that cue too as my time to step aside. You and Taylor will step out to build your life together. It is just as it should be, as God planned it. We thank God for the blessing of your becoming a precious part of our family. We thank Him for this new time of life, to make new memories, to drink His bountiful blessings in this way as our family grows. And in that moment, you will forever become our daughter.

For now, I am off to meet you for your final wedding dress fitting. Thank you for loving me as I love you, Reid.

Love, Your New Mom, Sharon

Dear Lord: Thank You for the gift of marriage and for sending Reid to become Taylor’s wife. Please grant them happiness and contentment as they establish their new home, create a new family and explore the depths of their love for one another and for you. Bless their home as a place of peace and love. When challenges come, help them to always remember the love that brings them to the church on their wedding day. Amen

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her. Ephesians 5:25

Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. Genesis 2:24

Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken. Ecclesiastes 4:12

Thank you for reading and sharing my blog. Please share your comments by replying below. May God richly bless you and your family today.

Have you ever just wanted to give up? Boy, I have.

Do you ever feel like you just don’t have one more thing to give anybody else? Just then, you get your second wind. You try again. Or you don’t.

There have been many times that I felt God calling me to more. Sometimes I pushed through and I did it. I was faithful. Sometimes I didn’t, and I let Him down.

When I did it, I felt victorious. When I didn’t, I felt defeated. So why don’t we always push through?

Life is hard and it often takes all we have just to get through our daily grind. To do more, well, that takes more. That takes something that comes from a different place.

Albert Einstein once said, “Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving.” Sometimes it is uphill though. Sometimes it is through the rain though. Sometimes through the wilderness though. Sometimes through the storm though. There are a million “thoughs” that make it harder than just riding a bike. It is a daily choice to keep pedaling.

I learned a long time ago that I cannot do this life without God’s help. But if I give God my weakness, He will give me His strength. And He has, many times.

Psalm 121 is a beautiful passage that promises that His children’s help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. He is our Shade from the sun, our Protector. He will not let our feet slip. He watches over us and never sleeps. The Lord gives us the strength to do it anyway, even when we don’t feel like it. When we can’t, He can.

Mother Teresa’s poem describes our struggle. With God’s help, we can do it anyway.

People are often unreasonable, irrational, and self-centered.  Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives.  Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some unfaithful friends and some genuine enemies.  Succeed anyway.

If you are honest and sincere people may deceive you.  Be honest and sincere anyway.

What you spend years creating, others could destroy overnight.  Create anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, some may be jealous.  Be happy anyway.

The good you do today, will often be forgotten.  Do good anyway.

Give the best you have, and it will never be enough.  Give your best anyway.

In the final analysis, it is between you and God.  It was never between you and them anyway.

Dear Lord: Help us to have the resolve to persevere when it is hard, to work harder to bring You glory. You created us for more. Help us to strive for that. When we want to give up, please give us Your strength to do it anyway. Amen

And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.  Ephesians 6:9

I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. Psalm 121: 1-2

Please reply to share your comments. Thank you for reading and sharing my blogposts. May richly God bless you and your family today.

My son, Bradley, went to Youth Camp last week. It was so great to hear from Bradley and all those who went, what a great week they had. I heard stories about eating 100-year-old eggs and getting ice cream and chocolate syrup poured all over you, and that was from our Youth Pastor. I’m sure our kids got into even more fun stuff. I’m scared to ask.

I am so thankful for all the adults who sacrificed their week and invested into our kids. New friendships were formed. Life decisions were made. God was honored, and the Holy Spirit moved in a mighty way drawing these young people closer to Him. The kids came home drenched in more than chocolate syrup. They had been soaked by a generous dousing of Living Water.

As a mom, my heart cries out, “Why can’t we just stay at this place?” Ready or not, school is about to start back. And with the new school year, come new challenges and change for our kids, new challenges and change for our entire families.

There is no question that there is a battle going on for our kids. The Lord has great plans for our kids. “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. (Jeremiah 29:11)

Satan also has his plans for them. “Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.” (1 Peter 5:8) He thinks our children are the easiest prey so he pursues them relentlessly. We have to fight to help protect them.

Things are very different from when I went to high school back in the dark ages of the 1980’s. Today, there are more temptations for our kids and bigger consequences. They are on the front lines of this battle every day. As parents, we have to work hard to help them fight back. Here are five ways we can come alongside our students to help them succeed.

1. Be involved in school. Be there when you can for their activities. Get to know their teachers and their friends. When you are able to have a relationship with others in your child’s life and understand and see what is going on at school for yourself, you can, hopefully, better understand where your child is coming from, and help them with getting back on track when they need it.
2. Read the Bible daily with them and discuss it. Perhaps the greatest verse we can teach our children to help them in school is Mark 12:30: Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength. We are going to make it our new theme verse for the 2016-17 school year at my house. When we love the Lord deeply and we care about His perspective, we can navigate through the hardest challenges with rock-solid confidence. That’s true for all of us.
3. Communicate with your child. I think it is safe to say that our boy is going to make mistakes and wrong choices at times, he has before. So did we when we were in high school. I hope we will always talk to him and try to hear his heart. Our goal is to nurture the life and power of Christ within him so he can stand against negative influences, and even shine God’s light in a dark place.
4. Involve them in Youth group and encourage Christian friendships. We have the greatest Youth group at our church, Blue Ridge View Baptist Church. I cannot put words to the gratitude I feel for how much Christian friends and Christian leaders have positively impacted our sons through the years. If you don’t have a church home and a Youth group for your child, find one today. It can make all the difference in helping your child handle the challenges of school during their teenage years. A friend loves at all times, And a brother is born for adversity. (Proverbs 17:17) Accountability partners walking down the halls of the school with your child are beyond priceless.
5. Pray for them. Prayer changes things. I believe this from the depths of my soul. We need to pray for protection for our children, and for courage for them to stand against the enemy. We should ask for clear discernment to help us understand what they face, and compassion to forgive and encourage them when they fail, and compassion to forgive and encourage ourselves when fail as parents because we are going to. Parenting is the world’s hardest job. It’s okay to pray for help. We are going to need it, and so are our children. We are in a battle, and we need to put the armor of God on every day. (Ephesians 6)

Dear Lord: Thank You for loving us all. Please be with our children as they start back to school. Help them to take a stand for You, to be godly leaders and not followers of this world. Protect them, guide them, give them Christian friends to help hold them accountable. Help us as their parents to nurture Your flame that burns in their hearts so that it will grow beyond them to bring light in dark places. May they grow to be the mighty men and women of God that You have planned for them to be so they bring You glory always. We will thank You in advance for all You are going to do in their lives this school year and beyond. Amen

Thank you for reading and sharing my blogpost. Please join me in praying for all the children who will be going back to school this month. If you have some encouragement to share, we would love you to reply below. May God bless you and your family.