I opened two gifts this morning, they were my eyes

I pray because the need flows out of me all the time, waking and sleeping. It doesn’t change God, it changes me. -C.S. Lewis 

There is something peaceful about escaping to the sea. To the shores where your troubles wash up, and wash away in the quickness of the waters edge. Today was a day that I needed to feel him more than other days. I wanted to feel his presence. I needed to see the beauty that lay at my feet. And I did, I saw him in the bright blue skies that mixed with the raging hurricane swiftly moving in. And I saw him in the joys of my dogs as they ran so freely while exploring such a new place to their experiences. I watched as my 13 year old princess transformed into a puppy-like-spirit running and jumping through the fallen trees on the seashore. And I watched my little man who is scared of his own shadow, explore what laid in front of him as if fear had left him in that very moment. I saw the erosion of the shores where things had sadly died, but was still left to make one of the most beautiful places even when the very things that were meant to last, didn’t. I saw new things blooming in the brightest shades of green and I felt him whisper words of encouragement and peace in the wind rushing all around me. Be still he says, and so I did. I spent a lot of time talking to my father… Upstairs. I opened up my bible and just started reading. No particular place, no particular book mark. And I came across Lamentations 3:22-25. It reads “Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning; Great is your faithfulness. The Lord is my portion, says my soul, therefore I hope in him! The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks Him.” In this quiet moment I am reminded that I am his before I am anyone else’s. Life is not always easy, it will never be all rainbows and butterflies. Somedays encompass a pain that paralyzes the mind, soul, and body. There are days and chapters that you wish that you could just skip through, where we could bypass the tough parts of life and the tears. But then we would miss the most special lessons, those days that transform us into who we are supposed to be. These are the days that become some of the most extraordinary. These are the days that teach us and grow us no matter how badly it may hurt. The days that tug on our heart strings so tightly that we feel as if they will shatter us into a million little pieces. And then we keep fighting. And we are reminded that it’s his strength that will hold us tight through all of life’s up and downs. Remembering to trust always in him. Remembering that everything is for his greater glory. I’ve never met a strong person with an easy past. Goodness I am so thankful for these quiet little moments in the middle of his majestical creation. It’s as simple as that. I thank God for these opportunities. When I cry out, he answers. In more ways than I could ever imagine. The storm can be just as beautiful as the rainbow. We must honor them both.

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The McLeod's

Welcome to our blog! We’re glad you stopped by and we hope you come back and visit. We want you to be a part of our journey! We are John and Chelsea McLeod. Best friends who are embracing the most precious gift of marriage and life. On the way to be full time missionaries and currently living a life mentoring those broken by addiction from both sides of the pain- loved ones and those struggling with addiction. Here you will find our recorded histories of life, love, struggles, and the journeys that encompass our wanderlust spirits all with an unfailing love for God and His ever so perfect redemption and grace over our lives. Here lies a safe place where our minds wander off into the deepest places with documentation to never be erased. We don’t want our memories to fall between the cracks somewhere, so we write. We don’t want to forget how far God has brought us, so we make records that will prayerfully live on for generations and give others hope who have lost theirs. We met in the most divine of appointments thousands of miles apart that only God could orchestrate. Had our first date watching a fiery sunset go down over the Georgia coast, and ultimately fell in love over kindred spirits that beat for where and what God passionately filled our hearts with. Hindsight, and years later, we can see that God had big plans all along that we couldn’t see. Through our broken pasts, He was preparing us for each other and a future of redemption and testimony. {{{{Everyone has a story and this is ours:}}}}} He’s a Georgia boy, she’s a Carolina girl. ----Hi, I’m Chelsea!---- I’m a native Carolina girl who loves to explore anywhere I’ve never been. An old soul and an extroverted-introvert with a deep heart that overflows with passion and a hunger for God to use me to change this world for the better. Mysterious and meek to the eye, and particularly passionate for the very things that set my heart on fire, especially the things and people that my heart beats for. I get filled up in the untouched outdoors where I can always see and feel His splendor. I am a Master cosmetologist by trade with a BA in Social Work and Counseling. These which intermix daily. I absolutely love the career that God has placed me in and daily, it allows me to love on people all around me. If I can make one person smile a day, my heart holds a fullness that keeps me coming back for more. I believe in forgiveness and miracles because I’ve witnessed them both. I don’t want my life to be about what I accomplished but what God accomplished through me. To me, I’ve learned that in life there is good and bad, right and wrong, excuses and no excuses. But alongside of these very things is engulfed with a ton of grace, growth, and redemption. I don’t ever want to pay the cost of not following my heart, by spending the rest of my life wishing I had. ----Hi, I’m John!---- I’m a born and bred Georgia boy where my blood runs strong with salt water. I was born and raised on the coast where everything I did was engulfed with water and the outdoors. I’m a bold soul with a gentle spirit who loves to help others in any way that I can to believe in themselves and God’s plan over their lives. By trade I hold the title of professional hunter and fisher with a 100 ton captain’s license. What started in Georgia took me out to Alaska where I found my career there, then south Florida and the open blue water. I’ve seen a lot and experienced a lot of God’s beauty and I will be forever grateful for that. Today I’ve taken on the title of “Fisher of men.” After enduring a wearisome season of addiction, God called me to use my pain to help others in addiction ministry and it has become one of the greatest joys of my life. It’s what I live for in showing people they can overcome something that most think they can’t. Offering hope where there is none. Testifying that something they always thought they would be, is only a season that God is ready and wants to use. Where Chelsea serves alongside me pouring into the loved ones. It’s where my passion is, it’s where we love to help others find freedom the same way we did. Today, Chelsea and I are grateful for our struggles because we know that what the enemy meant for evil, God used for good. Here we will write and share. Not to glorify us, but to glorify Him and what He is doing in our lives. The magnificent ways that He is moving and the unfathomable circumstances that He has and will bless us with. All glory goes to Him. We hope you enjoy!!

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