Guest Post- Picking Wildflowers

Hope y'all have had a great week so far! 


Like to give a shot out to a birthday girl today. Happy Birthday Miss Chelsea !!! {aka-Pippa} 
I heart you, even though you don't like pumpkin, you weird ol lady.




Today is a special guest post from my friend (blog/real-life) Baily. This girl has such a beautiful heart. We are twins or more like sisters. We've fought. We've said some not-so nice things to each other. But in the end, we love and are there for each other. I am so thankful God has put her in my life at a time when I needed a friend like her. God has taught me a lot through her and our trials. We just get each other and there is so much beauty in that. Thanks for filling in for me Baily! -xoxo.

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Hello! I'm Baily, a real-life friend of Michelle's and fellow blogger-girl.  I am so excited that she has asked me to guest post for her while she is away "living a life of love" on her mission trip.  She is such a wonderful example of God's amazing grace and unfailing love and I hope she knows how grateful I am to have her in my life.

Our friendship was an acquaintanceship in our adolescent days.  It wasn't until we discovered each other in the blogosphere that we built a true friendship and when I moved back home to Florida last year, she and I were able to be "real-life friends."  As I look back on my journey and what has brought me to where I am today, I realize that God put Michelle in my life for a reason.   Through sharing our faith, I know she is my sister-in-Christ and I am able to relate to her in regard to our life experiences - our tribulations, our triumphs, and our yearning to live a life of love, despite somewhat jadedness.  (And that's okay, too, because I've learned that a little jadedness eventually becomes a blessing in life if you look at it as a strength and not weakness).

So, when I freaked out at the thought of what I was going to write about for this post, Michelle offered a prompt to write about the little things I am thankful for based off the book 'One Thousand Gifts' by Ann Voskamp.  I thought this was a perfect idea because 1.) I love this book 2.) I am one of those people that believes that it's the little things in life that matter the most and 3.) it's that time of year again when we celebrate all the blessings we have received.  But most of all, I thought this would be perfect because over the past year,  my life-story has been about redemption through God's grace and how to let go of MY plan and trust in His plan (regardless of how mysteriously He may have designed it).  Because of this, I relate to Ann Voskamp in many ways and find enormous inspiration in this book.  I urge you to check out the website!!

In celebration and honor of 'One Thousand Gifts' - A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are, here is a short list of just some of the little things I am thankful for.  It is powerfully healing to recognize the simple things that fill my soul with joy and it brings peace to step away from the materialized things we let overshadow the smaller things that mean much more. 

I'm thankful for:

• Supportive emails and FB messages I receive from friends of my parent's who read my blog... it does a special thing to my soul to know that I have touched someone else's. 

• Sharing my testimony while serving tables at a restaurant.  What got it started?  I was selling raffle tickets to benefit Breast Cancer Awareness and the man told me of his recent diagnosis with the same type of Stage IV lymphoma that my Dad is a survivor of.  He told me his prognosis was not the best but that he was in the care of good doctors who had a clinical trial treatment that he was going to undergo.  I smiled and told him all about my dad's treatment - which had also been a clinical trial - but what touched him most was when I told him the grace of God and His almighty power was the healer above all in my Dad's victory over the cancer.  I still get chills thinking of that convo.

• A break from social media.  Last week I sort of neglected my blog (again) and I simmered down on my I-Tweet-A-Lot-And-I-Don't-Care attitude.  I'm sort of having internet mood swings.

• Steve Jobs.  No, he's not a "little thing" but in comparison to our Creator, he is.  So therefore, let me be thankful for his innovations - he truly changed the world.  In all the celebration of his life, I have been even more enlightened to see my God so worthy to be praised.  One person's creations changed the way we live our lives and we are in awe at Steve Job's legacy and creative genius...  But let us not forget to also look at God and how in seven days He created this entire world for us.  He created man, the stars, the mountains, and oceans, and desserts, and gave us light to see it all.  What an amazing, sovereign God!

• The blogosphere.  What can I say?  I'd be lost without all the wonderful friendships I have made through blogging. 

"The brave who focus on all things good and all things beautiful and all things true, even in the small, who give thanks for it and discover joy even in the here and now, they are the change agents who bring fullest Light to all the world."  -Ann Voskamp, 'One Thousand Gifts'

I'm also for thankful for Michelle letting me share those things with y'all today!  I hope your day is full of blessings of all sizes and that you are able to see God's love in each of them.  Thanks again!

peace & love

baily