Seven Days of Hope Blog Tour!

Two sweet friends of mine, Abby Elissa and Sawyer Marie, are hosting a SEVEN DAYS OF HOPE blog tour, and I'm so excited to be a part of it here on Ellen's Musings! They asked me to share a gorgeous graphic (made by the blog tour hosts), personal words of encouragement, a quote/saying that brings me hope, and a favorite song. :) I've enjoyed visiting all the blog tour "stops" thus far, and it's my prayer that y'all are blessed by my teensy post as well. <3

QUOTE:

"I have said these things to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world." ~ Jesus (John 16:33)

A LITTLE PERSONAL ENCOURAGEMENT:

As I prayed for wisdom on what to share today, God provided that my mom published an Instagram post about hope and . . . 🦋butterflies🦋. Nothing short of miraculous, considering she didn't have the upcoming blog tour anywhere on her radar as she worked on lettering her own quote and small, hope-filled devo. And in turn, she inspired me to also use these wonderful little creatures to spread encouragement with you.

I've always had a strange obsession with butterflies. Perhaps it's because, as a younger girl, I had my own creative way of daydreaming which resembled that of a butterfly in flight. I loved to dance around the house with my arms spread out at both sides, swirling them like wings. Up, down. Down, up. 'Round and 'round again, till my breath grew short, my limbs ached, and at last, with a satisfied grin, I collapsed.

My dad, catching me running by, would smile and call me his little butterfly. The name stuck longer than this unusual dreamy habit of mine (thank God), entering into my teenaged years and turning into a Gmail address, NaNo username, etc. It's special to me, like a precious little bond between my father and me that I don't ever want to let go of.

And now, so many years later, butterflies serve as a reminder of something even more than a fond childhood memory.

Because they haven't always been full-grown butterflies, but rather caterpillars first crawling, then eating, then being bound by a cocoon until the day of final maturity arrived. 

There's a lot of growing still to be done in your life and mine. Growth that means pushing through the hard and trusting that the darkness won't last forever.

In the moment we feel like we're dangling above rock-bottom is when our cocoons grow solid and our wings develop. We turn from caterpillars on the ground to butterflies with a destiny. To soar in the sky, gorgeous wings flapping, elegant bodies a testimony to our Creator. The pain will flee, beaten by our Savior's light. Our cocoons will unwind, air fill our wings, and we'll swoop forth. Free. Beautiful. Leaving the old and finding the new. Ready to show that the darkness is but for a moment, and the upcoming splendor for an eternity. 

Friends, even during the darkest days, when your cocoon squeezes tight and everything looks bleak and without light, remember: He is our Hope. And He will bring us safely through the valley in which we're travelling. There is no storm so long the sun will not shine; no path so winding the end does not come. 

Rest in Jesus, and place your hope in Him. The Giver of life itself has promised to be here for us. Always. And He has already conquered the world and won our souls so that we might have peace. <3

TRUST HIM.

SONG:

As an unarguable music addict, picking just //one song// to share with you guys promised to be a struggle. Almost Home by MercyMe was my original choice (after much deliberation, of course). And then Amazon Music switched into auto-play one afternoon, and I felt God's nudge to do another song. One I'd never heard before, but soon fell in love with.

"I Have This Hope" by Tenth Avenue North

(for those of you on mobile phones, you can listen by clicking HERE.)

LINKS TO ALL THE OTHER STOPS ON THE TOUR:

Blessings,

Ellen S.