From a very special friend.....

There comes a time in every woman's life when she has to take a close look at herself. Not at her circumstance, not at what she did, not how unfair life is, or at who made you do it.

She has to just look at herself in all her glory and imperfection.

Have you eve r admired a woman who has been through changes in her life?

Or have you made up in your mind that she is just messed up.

Before you make this mistake, take a closer look.

A woman who has endured the most unusual life is someone of wisdom, someone who has been chosen by God to go through things that have made her stronger.

Think of all the great women in the Bible: Mary Magdalene, Ruth and Naomi, the woman with an issue of blood, and Esther, to name a few.

Mary was a prostitute, a very uneasy woman. But by the time Jesus was done with her, she was His closest follower.

Esther was unfortunate in marrying an abusive man, but by the time God was done with her, she had married one of the wealthiest men in the land.

Women are so quick to beat the next one down instead of trying to hold her up.

Before you wonder, "What's up with her?" ask yourself, "What's up with me?" That woman could be my mother, sister, aunt, in-law, stepmother, niece, grandmother, great-grandmother, neighbor, friend, or co-worker, etc. That woman could be ME.

Women are the carriers of life, not the channels of death. Let's build and encourage each other, as did Ruth and Naomi. Encourage and love, forgive and forget.

May the peace and love of Christ be upon you!