A Season for Everything.....

Ecclesiastes 3-14

If you haven't read Ecclesiastes 3, I encourage you to do so. For the purpose of this blog today, I have attached a part of this heartfelt scripture that I've been focused on for the last month.

For those of you who don't know, I have completed the process of publishing my first novel. The transparency of writing and promoting a book can be both exciting and overwhelming. While "Normal is Different" is not a memoir, it delves into bits of my personal journey with alopecia, relationships, illness, and brokenness. For me, my journey was personal..at least that's what I thought. But once I realized that I could no longer live under the radar, so to speak, I made the decision to just be. What exactly does that mean? For me, it means removing things that prevent me from being my best self. It means fighting for my peace and moving forward. I decided to live my normal, no matter how uncomfortable it seems in the moment. Some days it's removing my hat in a crowded building or going out to dinner without covering my head. Other times it may be educating a stranger who is unaware that alopecia universalis is not a death sentence and we can live a perfectly healthy life. Whatever the circumstance, I am learning to live my normal and find joy within it, one day at a time.

When I think back over the past several years from when my hair loss first began, followed by the years of breast cancer treatments, infertility, and divorce I experienced many different types of emotions through different seasons. There was a time that I preferred to be alone and silent, a time of weeping, a time of mourning the loss of loved ones and my former self, a time of love for what I missed and a time of hate for the pain I felt. At times I was disappointed in myself for having these feelings, constantly reminding myself that things could be so much worse, and I should count my blessings. Then, I came across this scripture again. I don't know about you, but it doesn't matter how many times I read my bible, a scripture can touch my spirit, making me feel like it's my very first time reading it.

"There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens:

2 a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, 3 a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, 4 a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, 5 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing, 6 a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, 7 a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, 8 a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.

9 What do workers gain from their toil? 10 I have seen the burden God has laid on the human race. 11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet[a] no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end. 12 I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live. 13 That each of them may eat and drink and find satisfaction in all their toil—this is the gift of God. 14 I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it."

What does this mean to me? That there is a time for everything. It's okay to hurt, it's okay to heal. It's okay to feel nervous making social media videos for the first time, or maybe that's just me. It's okay to be patient with myself through the different seasons of life. Why? Because God says that no matter what we go through, in him we find joy. In him we find peace. One of my favorite songs is called A Time for Everything by Anointed. I am sharing it with you in hopes that you enjoy it as much as I do.

Until next time,

Lati...

References

Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide

A Time for Everything · Anointed If We Pray ℗ Word Entertainment LLC, a Curb Company Released on: 2001-01-01 Artist: Anointed