Our life’s experiences can either lead us into despair or into the arms of grace, into the arms of Christ. As I look at my life, I can either hide away my weaknesses and my failures or I can be honest about them with myself and others, I can choose to identify with people in their pain and struggles or I can open up, be painfully vulnerable, share myself and willingly enter into their experiences, their pain and their joy, and experience the salvation and grace of Christ for them and myself. To walk with others through hard times causes a gratitude and a well of love to flow from our hearts, but it’s a journey and in this journey called life nothing is guaranteed, well except maybe pain. But then there’s a sweet promise from God that joy will come in the morning and that He is big enough to turn the ashes of our lives into something beautiful.
One man’s life is spent opening up to teens about the realities of sexual integrity, being honest about past failures in valuing himself and those he’s in relationship with, while attempting to engage with a generation of teens who are pressed from every possible angle to do what feels good to them and explore wherever their emotions are interested with no real understanding of the dangers and pitfalls and heartache to accompany this endorsed behavior of promiscuity.
photography | relationships
She was caught in the perfect storm, and she caved. Knowing that she was the one person who could protect her baby, with dread and tears she willing allowed his very life to be “scraped out of her.” Unparallelled despair from the overhwleming experience of abortion she finds forgiveness and healing in the arms of Christ and the truth of the Bible. She recounts to me “crying so hard I couldn’t feel my fingers or toes, just calling out to Jesus… this overwhelming peace came over me…” She not only begins experiencing a beautiful and radically full life she felt unworthy of but is filled with gratitude for the gift of healing and counseling so much so that she begins pouring out her life and love into the pain of others.
photography | relationships
There is someone who needs you. There is someone who needs the hope of your story, there is someone who needs your understanding, your love, your life. There is someone, somewhere who is walking through something that needs you, a friend, someone to listen, someone to be willing to let go of comfort and so engage with them and somehow find a way to understand their struggle. We need each other, profoundly, deeply, undeniably.