I know you are hurting,
hiding with your shame and sadness.
I know you are coming apart,
breaking under the weight of this life.
I know you are about to give up,
drowning beneath the pain and despair.

But hear now, dear one -
Lift up your face, lift up your eyes.
Lift up your soul, lift up your heart.

There is mercy greater than your sin and shame.
There is grace greater than any of your mistakes.
There is hope, there is rest.

So come as you are, broken and hopeless.
Come as you are, fragile and fractured.
Come find mercy and grace,
come find love greater than anything you are.

There is sadness buried in her heart,
broken dreams and frozen hopes
shattering a wounded soul.
But all she says is, there is still hope.

Because broken, frail and torn
is where God makes us anew,
and sometimes it takes darkness
for us to finally see the light.

Now there is laughter in her eyes,
joy in the way her mouth curves up in a smile,
a sparkle so bright
it leaves a trail of light after her.

it's the end of the year
when I ask if you would change anything
of what you have gone through
and you laugh with a little shake of your shoulder

saying that you learn your greatest lessons
when you hike through the muddy waters
and you know how to breathe
only when you realize no fear can hold you back

that you still remain alive
after your heart has been torn apart
broken piece by piece at a time
by those who you loved

that you learn your worth
only when you ask people to stay
and watch who walk away
knowing that you now have to give up on them

I was asked, why do I write and all I could think of to say,
was because I believe.

I believe looks matter.
There is
healing in a look of compassion,
love in understanding,
comfort in tears cried with me.

But one look away, ignoring
can break a heart.


I believe touch matters.
There is
care enclosed in a hug,
relief in a hand placed on a shoulder,
encouragement in a touch on the passing by.

But pulling away, distance
can break a heart.


I believe words matter.
There is
acceptance in words of forgiveness,
restoration in mercy and grace,
healing in kind, soothing whispers.

But one word out of bitterness, hatred
can break a person.


I write because I believe words matter.
I write because I believe you matter.

Sometimes it takes
thousands of words
to heal a broken soul

and I want to tell you,

I will write
word after word,
paragraph after paragraph,
page after page.
As long as it takes,
I will write until you finally believe
that you matter.

I think of you
and I cry, even after all this time
because you stole pieces of me
and my heart will never be the same.

There are still days
it feels like I am learning to breathe
under water, the waves crashing over me
and I wonder,
if I will ever find my way out of the water.

But I have found so much better now —
His grace gently washing over my soul,
soft whispers of peace in the wind,
rays of light waking my heart,
and I hold on to hope.

So I still cry,
these broken tears shaking my heart
but it is only so that I can let go —
less of me, for more of Him.

Some days I wonder
if you are holding on to those pieces of me
or are you trying to forget them, too.
But I know,
God is turning my darkness into light
and I am better off now
than I was before.

Today, tell your soul: His grace is sufficient.

In my weariness, His grace is sufficient.
In my brokenness, His grace is sufficient.
In my failures and fears, His grace is sufficient.
In my storms, His grace is sufficient.
In my illness, His grace is sufficient.
In my loneliness, His grace is sufficient.
In my hopelessness, His grace is sufficient.
In my weakness, His grace is sufficient.
In my hurt, His grace is sufficient.

I am still afraid
to look you in the eyes
I know it has been months
and I tell myself, I tell everyone

the hurt in my heart is fading
the scars on my heart are only skin deep

but I am still afraid
to look you in the eyes
and remove the walls I built up
because I know you will see

the hurt lingering in my eyes
the pain I try to hide behind my smile

and I am still afraid
to look you in the eyes
because I might find out
that you don't care anymore

golden fields of wheat
spread under the blue skies

hundred shades of green
in the forests of the land untouched

pastels turning into deep blue
in the lakes calmed down

in the middle of nowhere
is my favorite place to be

In the silence of Your grace,
in the stillness of Your presence
and Your loudly beating heart,
I sometimes forget.

How the lost find their way
and the wounded get healed.
How the brokenhearted are mended
and the broken are made whole.

It is only by Your scarred hands,
in the small whispers of mercy and grace
and encompassed in the gentlest love
that we find our own beating hearts.

I look at the old scars
faded on your wrist now
and I pray you come to realize
you already made it through one time

Now your new scars
the wounds gaping open in your heart
and I pray you choose to believe now
you can make it through this time

A broken heart can heal with time
wounds will close
scars will fade
but memories can be the most painful of all
so you have to choose to push them away

Yet there is a promise to hold on to
that there is Light to see you through the pain
He will not leave you, He will not change
He is here with you
God, He remains

come as you are
out of your hiding place
out of your captivity

for your heart is safe
in the hands of Him who made you
broken
and beaten
lost and as if worthless
He will hold all the pieces

because see, you were bought at a price
He called you chosen on the cross
and He knows
your shame, your mistakes
your hurt and your pain
you are precious in His sight

so come out of hiding
let go of your fear
take refuge in His strength
and call yourself free,
beloved

Through the summer breeze
and the warmth of the sun blazing gold,
the shining creation would come to life.

Through the leaves changing colors
and the crispness of the autumn mornings,
the world would slowly quiet down.

Through the cold air turning fingers numb
and snow falling like an endless cloud,
the old things would come to an end.

Through the broken ground defrosting
and soft beacons of light coming through,
the new life would take hold of hearts.

I watched the seasons change,
I watched the seasons remain.
I grasped the wonder of God's grace:
never alone though never the same.

Some mornings you wake up
the ground beneath you shaking
and you are afraid,
to face the day standing,
to carry the weight of sorrow once more.

Some mornings you wake up
the world around you crumbling
and you are afraid,
to face the people who hurt you,
to brave a new hope when all has been broken.

Some mornings you wake up
the world a deep, thick fog
and you are afraid,
to face your fears yet again,
to try to break free of the chains you can't see.

And yet
these are only some of the mornings,
washed over with gray
and sometimes, with grief or shame.
Not all mornings are like these.

Some mornings you wake up
the light breaking through the darkness,
and there is no fear,
for chains cannot hold you down
and hope can never be conquered.

Can you break a heart
that has never been whole?
Can you crush a soul
that is already torn?

But this is a beating heart;
this is a living soul.
There is so much left to unfold.

Sometimes the bravest thing is to show up
and you, my darling,
have been so brave
showing up and saying that you believe
there will be better tomorrows ahead.

Sometimes the bravest thing is to fall apart
and you, my darling,
have been so brave
crying through the nights alone
yet fighting your fears every day.

Sometimes the bravest thing is to open your heart
and you, my darling,
have been so brave
smiling through your tears and hurt
still trusting in the One who made you.

so you stand there
with this quiet ache in your soul
of confusion, losing your way
wondering if you ever can find
the right place for you to stay

and I want to tell you
I know it can be so hard
feeling lost and nowhere to be found
thinking you are the only one
who ever lost the sight of the ground

and I want to tell you
I have taken wrong turns too
down the paths of regret and shame
but it isn't too late now
your past and future are not the same

so stand there for a while
be still, lift up your eyes
I know the journey can seem so long
but you are not walking alone
there is a place where you belong

in the silence of a fire burning bright
the missing beat of a heart
how frost can take over a world so alive
and all that is can fall apart

like summer rain pouring over bittersweet love
streaming down a soul these tears roam
and there was never a question
whether the fall would take home

but what I was waiting for
was the winter of my heart

somehow I missed it
how it was written between the way
your lips curved around my name
and those small touches barely there

three simple words, too great to say
I love you

somehow I missed it
how it was always there
when you asked how my day was
and believed in me when I didn't

three simple words, too great to say
I love you

I see the scars of your soul
the pain reflected in your eyes
of all the moments
in your past
how you were told you'd never last

but I also see your heart
the gentle love pouring out
still standing without looking down
though you might fall
you are the bravest one of all

I know it's easy to believe
in this damaged world of deceit
that you are not enough
but hear now, hear me this time:
**you are worthwhile