I’m sharing Hanna’s Story, written in her own words.  She’s a teenage girl that wants to tell you her tale.    I’m so grateful for a God that continues to rescue us one by one.  – Christina

Read on…

Shared via: my name is Hanna, here is my testimony.

So, here’s to my story and starting a new place to dwell and share my thoughts on my faith, feelings, and life experiences in general. I’m Hanna, a soft spoken teenage girl with a growing love for God and a past that I’d rather talk about and accept than bottle up and keep within. I live in a small town in Texas that I just recently moved to after a pretty heart and gut wrenching event. After about a year of living in hotel to hotel with my mother & stepfather, they were arrested and my little half-sister and I were taken…

I’m resharing this story here for you to find, my friends, and you’ll soon learn why.  It’s another rescue story, a story of a Saviour that isn’t afraid to walk into the darkest trenches to call us by name.   This is told in the author’s own words, and I hope it makes you smile, too.   Read on… – Christina

Shared from the original source: A Year

Two days ago marks a huge day in my life. A year ago on July 17 I had an encounter with God that would change my life forever. Not at all by coincidence yesterday also marks me being one year sober from the drugs that were controlling and killing me.

I was depressed and riddled with panic attacks. Homeless and an addict. I’d been in and out of jail. I’d seen drugs take peoples lives. By all rights I should be…

Sometimes it seems like nobody could understand what we’re going through.  I get that.  You’ll soon see why I loved this piece.   Melanie shares how writing out our stories can bring others hope.

“The thing about sharing our stories is that it’s not about us, it’s not about being known ourselves. It’s about normalizing pain and struggles; it’s about being willing to turn on the light so that someone else can see that they are not alone.”

I’ve shared her post below, written in her own words.   This is why the Hope Shack site exists.  It gives a voice, a platform, from which to share our stories and bring others hope.  She captured this purpose so well.  I hope you’ll find it as encouraging as I did. – Christina

Post shared via The Only One — Melanie Joy

Read on…

The Only One

I have a serious love/hate…

Not to long ago I was on my way up the driveway when I spotted this beautiful tree in the strangest place; it was growing in the center of a thorny Autumn Olive bush. I was so taken aback I had to go get my phone so I could take a picture.

This beautiful flowering tree made me think about the rewards that come from standing your ground and pushing through the thorns. I find that the thorns can come from many different sources; our thoughts, physical ailments, difficult people or circumstances and even well meaning friends. How many times people have told me I couldn’t do something that in the end I did and did well. I continued on in my endeavor and was rewarded with a small success, sometimes the endeavor takes a great deal of time, but those things which require great sacrifice often bring even greater…

“It’s a place I don’t want to ever go back to; a place of loneliness, depression, anxiety and that feeling of total worthlessness. It was a place characterized by fear. I was afraid of everything and everyone.” – excerpt from Paul’s Story

You know the feeling.  Hope is pulling us one way, and fear is pulling us another.  We are all geared up to do something, change something, make something and…nothing.   What happened?  Anxiety crept in and whispered, “You can’t change.  You’ll never be able to do it.  Everyone knows what you’ve done..”

do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.  And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. – Philippians 1:64:6-7

Today’s promise reminds us that we don’t have to live a life filled with anxiety…

Simple and sweet, Leya tells the tale of her dissatisfaction with life, loss of hope and depression.    Then she shares how she found hope.  Here is her story, shared on her behalf.

An account of my journey to redemption.

Source: The Storm before The Rainbow

Dating back to my pre-teen years,I was dissatisfied with my life and myself. I felt inadequate because of the standards the society around me placed. And so I was unhappy. This lead me on a pursuit of happiness, I tried so many things from boys,alcohol to numerous self-help books and articles I could find. But all was in vain,these things only gave me short term satisfaction.

By the end of 2014,I was still battling with depression and it only seemed to be getting worse. I was frustrated because I felt I had exhausted all my options.

I decided to try something new and that…

“There were only three ways out: insanity, incarceration, or the grave.”– excerpt fromScott’s Story

“And I could just remember looking at my mother’s face and seeing the disgust and the shame. ” -excerpt fromFamily Restored

”I was now risking everything in my life. Self-respect, family, friendships, reputation, and trust. All for some fantasy life.” – excerpt fromJohn’s Story

“I had really messed up. I didn’t deserve His help. Guilt and shame nowcompounded the hurtand loss that I already felt. ” -excerpt fromHope? Nope. All out of That.

Many of us have a rescue story like these refernced here. Mine is one of them. Some are more dramatic that others, telling of the damage we’ve caused or pain we have endured, and some are simpler redirects to bring us back from traveling the wrong path. All require some level of surrender on our…

Here at Fen View we have recently had a couple of puppies join our little farm.  They are sweet and fun, but they have no idea of boundaries or what their role is on the farm.  Teaching them to do the right thing, like barking to go out when they need to go to the bathroom or staying off the furniture takes time, patience and consistency.

Not unlike ourselves, puppies and even some of our plants, need training.  Each day we have to use the same words and actions to teach the puppies what is acceptable and what is not. In much the same way some of our plants need to be staked, pruned or taught to climb a fence or trellis.  Each day we must check to see that the plants are still growing in the right direction so that they can be properly supported.

People, too, need to…

Every morning, when the weather is agreeable, I start my day on my front porch.  I grab a hot cup of coffee and my devotional journal then I sit in my favorite chair to greet the day.  This spring a house wren moved into a nesting box in the tree near my front porch.  Each morning as I begin my day, I now have a very cheerful neighbor who is also beginning her day.

One thing I learned form this tiny little wren was the way she greeted the day, with a song.  Every morning she hops up on her roof and sings and sings.  It made me think about when my children were young, I always woke them up with a happy song.  Then I thought why have I stopped singing every morning?

We’ve all heard the birds sing in the morning, but not all of them wake up singing.  The…

I don’t remember the dark years.  I was afraid of everything and everyone.

I have three young kids. Recently we got talking about their teachers and that led to me talking about my teachers growing up. As I told them about each teacher through my elementary years, I could recall names, personalities, and specific memories from those years. It was great fun. Until I got to my middle school years. Things were different. No names came to mind. No positive images or memories. Just a lot of black. Middle school, high school and a few years beyond that were my dark ages. It’s a place I don’t want to ever go back to; a place of loneliness, depression, anxiety and that feeling of total worthlessness. It was a place characterized by fear. I was afraid of everything and everyone.

My jump from elementary school to middle school was like falling…