MY PURPOSE

LESSONS FROM THE VALLEY & THE CLASSROOM

This space is where I’m sharing what has guided me—through wrestling with sorrow, seeking hope, and discovering how light still finds its way into the darkness. Through wisdom from Scripture, the experiences of those who have walked before me, and the insights I’m gaining as I study the heart and mind, I’m learning how to hold both sorrow and joy as I walk toward healing. My hope is that as I share, you too will find light in your darkness, be reminded that you don’t walk this road alone, and experience the quiet but steady healing that comes with truth, and grace."

Flowers in God's Garden

The bulbs we planted last year have finally leafed out, and I can see hints of what’s to come. My lilacs have tight little buds, and the cherry blossoms—after months of dormancy—are just now showing signs of life. It’s quiet, ...

Tearful Sowing & Joyful Reaping

Not long after we lost Julian, I came across Psalm 125:5-6. Though I’m sure I’d read it many times before, suffering has a way of bringing Scripture into sharper focus. The mental picture—of someone going to and fro, weeping, ...

Good Riddance Winter!

Winter has lingered long—outside, yes, but even more so inside me. The ground of my heart has felt cold and hard, the way winter soil feels when the sun hasn’t reached it in weeks.But today I feel it. The faintest stirring. The turning ...

From Sandy Shores to Spiritual Reset

A Week by the Sea I spent the last week with family on the white sandy shores of the Emerald Coast. My mornings were spent on the 16th-floor balcony of our rental, coffee in hand, watching dolphins play in the waves. We had traveled to Florida ...

The Bridge Between Suffering and Hope

Perseverance sounds admirable—when looking back. But in the middle of suffering, it feels unbearable. If I’m honest, I don’t want to be resilient; I want life to be easy. I want relief, not another lesson in endurance.I used to ...

Beacons in the Storm

Beacons in the Storm“My grace is sufficient for you.” – 2 Corinthians 12:9Anyone can say they trust God when life is smooth sailing. But when storms roll in—the diagnosis, the loss, the unanswered prayer—our trust is ...

Meant for Connection

Grief tempts us to withdraw, to isolate, to carry the weight alone. But we were never meant to grieve in solitude. We were created for relationship—with God and with others.We Were Made for RelationshipFrom the very beginning, God established ...

Our Dwelling Place

"Because you have made the Lord your dwelling place—the Most High, who is my refuge—no evil shall be allowed to befall you, no plague come near your tent." – Psalm 91:9-10Grief unsettles everything. It changes the landscape of life ...

MOURNING WHO I WAS, EMBRACING WHO I AM BECOMING

The Weight of Change: Mourning Who We Were and Embracing Who We Are BecomingA song came on the other day that transported me to another time—a time when I didn’t carry this heavy burden of grief. And for a moment, I longed for that ...

In the Waiting: A Time to Lament

What Do We Do With the Time Between Trauma and Growth?Trauma has a way of suspending time. One moment, life feels familiar, and the next, everything shatters. In the wake of loss, disappointment, or deep sorrow, we find ourselves in an unfamiliar ...

ALL GOD'S PROMISES ARE YOURS

All God's Promises are Yours!"I will never leave you." – Hebrews 13:5No promise of God is given for one alone, but for all His children. When He opens a door of mercy, all may enter in. When He provides water in the wilderness, all who thirst ...

“Many a verse is written in secret ink that must be held to the fire of adversity to make it visible.”

C.H. SPURGEON

DAWN'S JOURNAL THROUGH GRIEF

HOPE & HEALING FOR THE HEART & MIND