Celebrations and Reintroductions!

Happy 4-year anniversary to The Will to Wake Up!

Whether you are new to this community or you’ve been here since the beginning, I am so incredibly grateful for you. I can’t believe how much has changed in my life and my perspective since I began this blog, and I hope that it’s brought you much joy and comfort along the way.

As we celebrate together, I will share a few reflective journaling prompts for you, and a reintroduction to this blog and me!

A Little About Me and This Blog

• I actually began this blog during a rough season in my life. On September 21st, 2019, it felt like the whole world was crashing down. My heart was shattered by multiple experiences, and I didn’t want the darkness to creep in. The light that came out of that darkness was God prompting me to start this blog. I realized the most important thing to know when you’re going through a tough time is that you’re not alone. This blog is meant to be a reminder that there is a reason to wake up each new morning. God is our will to wake up. With Him and each other, we are never alone.
• Over the past two years, I’ve been pursuing a degree in creative writing. Becoming a writer has been my dream for my whole life. I feel most connected to God when He inspires me creatively. During that time, I’ve experimented with different writing mediums, such as self-publishing an encouraging picture book, submitting a screenplay to a drama competition, and working on my first real novel. There is also now a Youtube channel connected to this blog as God has inspired me recently with filmmaking. I don’t know where God will take me next, but I’m excited to find out!
• Other passions of mine include photography, working with horses and kids, and spending time in God’s creation. With every sunset, I am reminded of how we are meant to be still in God’s presence. He loves us enough to add beauty to our lives and be there with us through it all.
• Here are the top three things I’ve learned since the creation of this blog:

1. Courage is not the absence of fear. It’s being afraid and doing the right thing anyway. We may not always feel courageous, but that’s okay. Following God’s will wherever it takes us is an incredibly brave act on its own.
2. Every person is meant to teach us something. While they may only be in our lives for a season, cherish them for that season. Listen to them with respect, even if you don’t agree. If you do, you will come out of that relationship a stronger person.
3. Rest is essential to our wellbeing. Rest can take many forms, but it often involves setting boundaries, prioritizing our mental and spiritual health, and being willing to disappoint some people. But the fruit of rest is joy and peace, which are so worth it.

Reflective Journaling Prompts:

1. How have you changed in the last four years?
2. What is one thing you are proud of since 2019?
3. What is one thing you would’ve done differently since then, and what will you learn from that?
4. What is one way you can pursue rest this week?
5. Who is a person who has brought you joy recently? How can you express your gratitude towards them?
6. What valuable lesson has helped you in life? Who taught it to you?
7. What is one thing you are afraid to do, but know you should do? What is one step you can take today towards that goal? (Remember, it is okay to pace yourself. You don’t have to accomplish everything in one day.)
8. What do you want to tell God today?
9. And finally, what do you hope is true about your future or outlook a year from today, when we celebrate our 5-year anniversary? 🙂

Thank you again for being here. You are so needed and loved. Have a blessed rest of your Thursday! (How fitting our anniversary falls on a Thursday this year, our day of encouragement!) ❤

“They will be my people, I will be their God. I’ll make them of one mind and heart, always honoring me, so that they can live good and whole lives, they and their children after them. What’s more, I’ll make a covenant with them that will last forever, a covenant to stick with them no matter what, and work for their good. I’ll fill their hearts with a deep respect for me so they’ll not even think of turning away from me.

Oh how I’ll rejoice in them! Oh how I’ll delight in doing good things for them! Heart and soul, I’ll plant them in this country and keep them here!”

Jeremiah 32:39-41 (MSG)

And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

Hebrews 10:24-25 (NIV)