Hello friend!  How are you holding up?

I’ve missed you… I pray these last few months have been kind to you, and that you are safe and well, and like me, you are eagerly awaiting Spring.   

It has been an interesting time since we’ve last shared together.  I am officially an empty nester, as my youngest daughter, about to finish her first year of teaching, spread her wings and moved uptown a short while ago.  In addition, my eldest daughter and her husband are preparing to welcome their first child, and my first grandbaby.  I’ve also been working on a new project, and its going well.  So many emotions, so many blessings. 

Life comes full circle again and again and again.  God’s hand is always at work, and we realize that nothing is random. 

Sometimes, we go about thinking our lives are linear.  We get up and go to the same jobs, live in the same house, love the same people… We think of life in terms of just one steady stream of events.  Some people dip in or out.  The background changes.  Our fortunes dwindle or grow.  We celebrate and we mourn.  

But I’ve come to see that life is truly made up of circles, not lines.  It’s a dance, and as we twirl, our faces change a bit more in the mirror from one year to the next.  Maybe we kick up our heels a bit less, or the music changes from fast to slow. But it’s always beautiful.

God has a purpose for each and every one of us.  We contribute as we go, and when we do it well, we get to see it come around again in our children and grandchildren.  We get to see what we have taught others, come back to us in the understanding that we meant something to someone… We get to see that love, like God’s word, does not return void. (Yes, even when it seems it does.)

What I’ve come to understand, is that you can’t break the circle.  It’s when we try, that we get into trouble.  What goes around, comes around.  Always.  So, when we are unkind, unfaithful, unappreciative… When we prioritize things over people and relationships, when we neglect our responsibilities, when we don’t say the things we need to say, the circle doesn’t break – we do.  Because it always comes back to us somehow.

The smallest gesture can mean the world to someone who needs it.  A five-minute call to tell someone that you care, can help them carry a life-altering burden through another day.  Choosing patience over anger, a compliment over a complaint, forgiveness over bitterness… All put into motion the same spirit of love that will arrive back at your own heart one day when you need it most.

Everything we do, is like dropping pebbles in a placid lake.  You don’t see the ripples forming into waves, but they are there, and they always make it to the shore.

God is constantly calling us into His circle.  He wants us to live fully, whole-heartedly, abundantly in His love so that we may give it out to others.  When we do life without Him, when we think it’s all about us and what we want, we draw lines that go nowhere.   

Draw big, glorious, goofy, fun-filled, happy circles, girl.  Give it all you’ve got.  Be generous.  Take a chance.  Say you’re sorry. Lend a hand.  Try again, and then again once more, to conquer a fear.  Tell someone you love them. Give that gift that God put inside of you the opportunity it deserves to grow.  Open up your arms and give a hug to someone who needs it. 

It is my prayer that you always know that God is for you.  Life is not always easy; we make mistakes, we hurt.  But we need Him and each other to keep the Circle of Life going.  

Even when you think it won’t make any difference at all, do it anyway.  

Just wait and see. Love, and life, always come back around.

Do it well.

A Note Regarding My Blogs ~ I will be publishing every other Sunday starting today. Thank you as always for your kind messages, love, and support.  It truly means a lot.