#GiftingGrace

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Last week I was on Instagram and I came across a photo in my news feed from @ShutterSisters They were starting a new project #GiftingGrace inspired by the authentic and abundant beauty of Bella Grace Magazine. The idea is sharing and dedicating your own grace inspired photos with a community of people you want to encourage and inspire. All you have to do is tag your post, dedicate, tag and share.  

 This is easy! It is the anniversary week of my brother's entry into heaven. I could choose any photo of him. His story is profound and has touched so many. As I was looking through my gallery of photos, I cam across this one of my grandmother who just celebrated her 98th birthday. The matriarch of our family. This woman who loves Jesus. A woman who prays for us. A woman who will hug you harder than anyone I know (Except for my dad. I guess that's where he gets it from. :) ) She is amazing!

This photograph was taken after the celebration of life service for Doug. Her grandson, 43 years old. My aunt drove from Wisconsin to Ohio to pick up grandma and drove to Virginia so that she could be there to celebrate with us. She has outlived her husband, her two daughters and her grandson. I love this woman and I wanted to celebrate her.

Grandma and Me

Later that day, Shutter Sisters send me a note congratulating me on winning a copy of BellaGrace Magazine and my image is featured on the Shutter Sisters website. They said my image was gorgeous and thanked me for for #GiftingGrace.

I was pretty excited and in honor of a wonderful lady. My grandmother. 

Love you Gram!

A year already?

in

April 8, 2014. 1:28am.

I can't believe that Doug has been in heaven for a year! It is insane to think that is possible. A year ago my family sat around my brother's bed, trying to make him comfortable, we laughed, we cried, we had "sleep overs", we joked, we played music, and we prayed. 

It's interesting how your prayers change from, God we beg you for a miracle, for a healing to take place to God take this child because his pain has consumed every part of his physical being.

Some people tell me it will get easier and thinking about him every day will become less painful as the years go by. It is true that this day last year I could not comprehend that I would be where I am today but I have thought about Doug in some way or another, every day! Sometimes it is in the form of laughter. Some through tears! Sadness. Happiness. Thankful that I had 43 years with this soul but the pain is still there. Sometimes it doesn't seem real. But it is SO real. 

Sometimes it is the smallest things that will trigger a memory. I was in Target the other day and at the end of an isle there was a display of small fans. I immediately texted Melissa a picture. Melissa purchased this fan for my brother to keep on the table next to his bed. The air circulating on his face helped keep his breathing under control. The fan was a part of his collection of things he had near him like his flashlight and lip balm. :)

I am most grateful for Doug's testimony and his love for Jesus. The little brother of this big sister prayed for me to be at peace when I wasn't. Prayed for me to not be angry with God. There was a time when Doug was very far away from the love of God. Thank God he was the one not far from Doug. Because of Doug's surrender he lives in heaven today with Jesus. 

Thank you to our faithful family and friends that prayed Doug would see Jesus for who he was. Faithful. Loving. Generous. Forgiving. And...Healer. Not necessarily the way I wanted him to be healed but in God's perfect healing and timing.

I miss you Doug just as much today as the day you left us here on earth. The day you were healed and made perfect. I will never let your memory fade away. I promise! 

April 24, 2015 we are participating in a relay for life at Lilburn Park at 5:00pm. If you would like to contribute to cancer research in honor/memory of Doug, please click on the link to donate. main.acsevents.org/goto/DougHale

Relay for Life

in ,

I can't believe that Doug has been in heaven for almost a year!

April 24th I am participating in a Relay for Life hosted by the American Cancer Society. I have mixed emotions. I want to participate and I want everyone to know what a fighter Doug was but I also know this is going to be harder than I think. Lighting a luminary with his name on it will be so emotional and at the same time I will be a very proud sister. I had never seen so much strength in such a physically weak body. Doug will always be the best brother a sister could ever have. He will always be my hero for living out his testimony in the crappiest circumstances.  

I want to make a difference. I want to raise awareness for cancer in general but specifically for Esophageal Cancer. If you want to make a difference in cancer research or you and your family have been affected by this dreadful disease I urge you to click on the link and consider donating.

Thank you for my friends (who are really family to me) for you contributions already. I love you all dearly!

main.acsevents.org/goto/DougHale


Seeing beauty

in ,

I was in Augusta GA this weekend to photograph a retirement and do some filming for work. To say I wasn't looking forward to it was an understatement. I wanted my weekend for me. To do what I wanted.  

I arrived Saturday afternoon with a few hours to relax before I had to go to the venue for dinner and the retirement program. When I got to my hotel room I opened the door and it was a corner room. One set of windows overlooked the front of the hotel and other side overlooked a beautiful riverwalk. The sun was shining, the air was warm and creation was gorgeous. I didn't come prepared with my Nike running shoes or workout gear but I could not just sit inside and not enjoy the day God created for me. 

I needed this time to clear my head. I couldn't change my circumstances but I had to make the most of it. Something good was going to reveal itself.

I worshiped at The Salvation Army Augusta KROC Center. Major Vick gave a beautiful testimony. It touched my heart. She used the first two verses from Romans 12.

So here's what I want you to do. God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life - your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking around life - and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don't become so well adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.

Later Major Street brought the message. He spoke from Revelation 3.  He said, "God has called us to be authentic."

What does God want from you? He wants you be AUTHENTIC.  

 

Photo Credit: lauradake

Photo Credit: lauradake

Photo Credit: lauradake

Photo Credit: lauradake

Photo Credit: lauradake

Photo Credit: lauradake

Photo Credit: lauradake

Photo Credit: lauradake

Photo Credit: lauradake

Photo Credit: lauradake

Photo Credit: lauradake

Photo Credit: lauradake