Challenges + Choices

I know, I know...like, who do I think I am coming back on the scene after all this time?! I wanted to share something God placed on my heart yesterday and there is no better place to journal those thoughts than this little blog that was once such a fun little project of mine. Who knows...maybe I'll get my thoughts together more often and post more. We'll see.

Anyway, back to God. And my heart.

So, my party of 5 stopped by a kids shoe store yesterday that is going out of business. Kendall got 2 pairs of shoes...sneakers and a dressy pair. As we were checking out, I noticed a shoe donation box behind the register, so I asked her if she wanted to donate the pair of sneakers she had on. She gave every reason to NOT give the shoes away, so I called my hubby over to join the conversation. He reminded her how blessed she is, and challenged her to think of others, and she reluctantly decided to take her shoes off to donate. She put the old shoes in the donation box then went to open the new shoe box and discovered that we accidentally bought the wrong pair! In all the chaos, she had put down the pair she really wanted and handed me the wrong box. We started looking for the right pair and realized that another little girl had grabbed them and was trying them on. We stood there for a minute trying to figure out what we were going to do, and the little girl's mom handed us the box and said they didn't want them. Even though the shoes were final sale, the salesperson let us do an even swap since we hadn't left the store.

Crisis averted.

If Kendall had decided not to donate her shoes, we wouldn't have known that we bought the wrong pair of shoes (wrong size, too) until we got home. And then it would've been too late because all sales were final.

My hubby pointed out something that wasn't obvious to me at first...but isn't that how life works sometimes? We are often faced with challenges. Hard challenges. And we have to make choices. Sometimes those choices involve great faith and sacrifice, which can be scary not knowing if going with the harder choice or sacrifice will pay off in the end. That's where faith comes in. When we believe that we don't have to walk in fear and trust that God will work it out no matter what, we are free to take risks and free to give...not holding things so tightly. And just sit back and watch God blow our minds.

So, it turns out that Kendall's shoe donation challenge wasn't just a lesson for her. It was a lesson for all of us. And I'm so grateful to be able to see God in the little, sometimes totally random, life moments.

Thanks for letting me get that out, y'all. I hope it encourages someone out there.

See you in another 2 years. Just kidding. Maybe.

For good measure, here is a somewhat updated photo of my crew. Because I just realized that the last time I posted, we were still a party of 4. Yep, had another baby & everything. Shameful.

I mean, look at her...she's a whole year old. My little Tori Elise. 

I am blessed for sure.

Happy Monday! xo