Real Love

When I was expecting my oldest, my son, I was amazed by the bond that we created while he was still growing inside me. When he was restless and bouncing unmercifully, I soon learned that when I sang to him, he would grow still. It was that way even after he was born. As a baby I could sing the silliest of songs and it would lull my baby boy to sleep.

When I learned that I was expecting baby Kerrington, I went into a panic! I had so much love for Kevin that I was uncertain how well I would be able to love a new baby. After miscarrying, I felt that my son had saved my sanity. He saved me, his mommy and didn't even know it. So we shared a special kind of love--my first born. I was afraid that I didn't have the capacity to love them both equally and fairly. I worried about that the entire pregnancy.

After she was born, and as we grew together, I learned that not only was I capable of loving them both completely and fully but also separately and wholly. They are the best parts of me...one with an eye for fashion, the other possesses an artistic flair. Both of them lovers, sensitive, articulate and bright. One is moody, the other is pensive and observant. Male and female, one is left-handed the other right. They are both so different and still so much the same. Both deserving of the love that only a mother can give. And I am happy to oblige them, they are my delight, my gifts from God.

My friend, this is how the Father loves us, separate but equal. We are without a doubt different in almost every way possible and still He loves us just the same. How awesome is that? As a young mother, I feared that there was not enough of my love to go around. I have found that not only do I have enough, God has graced me with more than enough. Scripture says in 1 Corinthians 13:4–8 "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails ... "

True love, be it eros (erotic love), friendship (brotherly love) or agape (divine love) is a gift from God. Embrace it, cherish and revel in it.

Here's Our Prayer:
Father in Heaven, thank You for Your love for me. And for the love that You have shown to me, through human touch. I am ever grateful that I have been loved wholly and completely. Help me to extend Your love to others, so that we may touch the world and affect them with the love of Your Son, Jesus. Amen.

Treadmill Wars...

This blog has NOTHING to do with devotionals or the spiritual trek that I've been on. This isall about this new "healthy lifestyle" I'm living. I've said in my devotionals before that after my daughter was born I had some unexplained health issues. It took over 10 years to get it right! Good grief!

But, we're here now, in a healthier place--thinner, happier and smiling broadly. Let me be very clear--I DO NOT like exercise. It isn't my favorite thing to do, hence the name of this blog. Some mornings when I wake up and walk downstairs to the freaking treadmill, I spend the first minutes just looking at it. In my head, I'm saying, "Really? Are you still here? Didn't someone have the foresight to throw you away last night?" LOL

But, here's what I've learned guys, although I still take my medication for thyroid, I don't rely on it to help me lose weight. While I can't stop taking this particular medication, I also eat differently and war with my doggone treadmill. 

As my "Bob Greene," Tierra would say, "I'm on a journey" and I'm enjoying it. As with every change in life there are highs and lows, good days and bad ones. But, take a singing lesson from my girl Latrice Pace and "Don't Give Up!" I'd like to encourage you (especially women) to invest in yourself.  Too often, we live for the past...leave it there! The 20 year old me, who was a size 10 with no stretch marks and perky boobs, she's gone! LOL! Yep, I just said that. But, I embrace the beautiful, curvaceous woman I am today. I'm a wife, a mother, a daughter, a sister and most importantly I am a woman--worthy to be celebrated and so are you!

I'm going to toss in one scripture--Psalm 139:14--I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. So girlfriend, get up! Get moving! Change your life for the better...you can do it, I believe in you, now it's your turn to believe in yourself!

Gain inspiration from these women who inspire me on a weekly basis. Visit www.tierragoesgreen.com, follow her on twitter @tierragoesgreen  or email her at TierraGoesGreen@gmail.com for the best detox you've ever experienced. It's more than worth it...don't buy a pair of shoes and invest in your health.  Also, be inspired by Latrice Pace—her journey has inspired me and her music is the soundtrack to my treadmill wars.  Check her out on twitter @latricepace and www.latricepace.com 

Living & Loving (The Fragility of Love)

I had fibroids. I also have a condition called poly-cystic ovaries syndrome. For all intensive purposes, I should not have been able to get pregnant as easily as I did without the help of doctors. However, I have two beautiful children for whom I am eternally grateful. I had a miscarriage before our son Kevin was conceived and it is believed that I had another one when he was about a year old. I say "believed" because I never went to the doctor to confirm the second miscarriage. I couldn't bare it. 

My husband is a musician and we were going from place to place in his home town promoting his first album in the fall of 1998. During one of the sets I started having excruciating abdominal pain and I remember thinking to myself that I was going to have a difficult week navigating shows, church and "womanly issues." After the shows for that day were done, we stopped at my parents hotel because we hadn't seen them. By that time, I could no longer keep my brave face on, my pain was almost unbearable. The details of how things transpired will always be a little "fuzzy" for me because I was lightheaded. To me, that bathroom was reminiscent of a scene from CSI. It was messy, gory, painful and heart breaking.

My mother and my husband didn't bat an eye. They cleaned me and the bathroom completely up and never minced words with me--a very tearful and bewildered young woman who had no idea what was really happening. That day will forever be etched in my memory, though because I experienced two kinds of love. My mom went into a fierce, mother-bear, protective kind of love that wanted to reassure me that I was okay. My husband, on the other hand, took a different approach. He upheld me with a quiet strength and never let me go until we were back in our own room, when he laid me down and let me rest. I was shaken and fearful that this would be my life during my child bearing years, afraid I'd never conceive again. 

Life and love can be just as messy as that awful day. We raise our children, build our careers, seek higher education and grow ministries. And often, living can get in the way of loving. When I asked some friends their concept of love, some gave generic answers while others had meaningful and heartfelt answers and sadly, there were a few who didn't know what to say at all. I submit that if we are not careful, the latter will be the epitaph of many marriages.

Beloved, its easy to allow ourselves to turn our backs on each other in marriage, especially when there has been damage done to the bond. We learn to live for the children or concentrate on breadwinning. The focus of passion, love, marriage...its lost.

Ephesians 5:25--Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church...I love this scripture because it speaks to us about "giving up" something for someone whom you love, just as Christ did at Calvary for us. If you find yourself in that 'living versus loving chasm' don't worry it's not necessarily irreparable. Get in the trenches and get ready to go to work--seek wise counsel, go on dates, spend time talking...it doesn't have to be too late.

Our Prayer:

Lord, You said in Your Word that it wasn't good for man to be alone. You created us to live with and love one another. Help us to remember that love and passion that we felt for one another in the beginning stages of our relationship. We want to be in Your will and find happiness in the mate that You gave to us. Amen