Tag: Girlfriends

April 11, 2019

- JaclynPalmer 2 Comments

Oh, Lord, how miraculous is your Name! The power that stands in the mere whisper of your name silences the sound of the rolling thunder!

How beautiful is the work of your hand! Lord, so much of your creation sings your praise, but nothing quite so lovely as the beauty of your Daughters!

I pray a bundle full of Your Blessings to be poured out over your daughters who choose to love one another as Sisters! To those who laugh with those who laugh and to those who cry with those who cry!

Lord, I love you and I thank you for your sweet, beautiful gift called Sisters!

Intentional Simplicity

- JaclynPalmer 8 Comments

Something has changed; I changed. Fear lost its power within me; unleashed truth reigns in its place. Truth statements such as; ‘It’s not your fault,’ ‘that is not who you are,’ ‘God is bigger than that,’ and ‘you have been created to choose’ poured into my soul, offering an opportunity to heal. This healing happened over time as I chose to believe these truths in place of the lies that were planted once upon a time.

I look back on the image of my broken-self, and I ponder the step by step process I took to conquer. Speaking the above truths and Scripture out loud gave truth permission to reign in lies’ absence. Upon that foundation, the step to follow required additional voices to speak truth and Scripture in my ear. In addition to refueling my mind with truth via preaching and worship, I needed Laughter.

Fear never overtook me when I was with my husband or my son. They were/are my safe places, my happy places. When they walked out the door on their first camping trip, I became vulnerable to the loneliness of fear.

I realized I had to be intentional about laughter, about friendship.

I was intentional when my husband told me I needed to find a friend. (LOL! That sentence sounds so strange; nother story, nother time). So, every time I went to church I approached a woman and asked her if they wanted to meet me at the mall. I had many shopping dates! I met many women. I learned so much about each one of them; I learned so much about me.

I had to get intentional in regards to these camping trips. So, I text out messages to my “shopping date” friends. The text was simple, Friday night? 7? My place? My boys will be gone we will have the house to ourselves for girl time. Something like that. I don’t remember how many friends showed up for that first campout girl night, but I remember how my heart was full, my house was filled with laughter, and I how I did not have to cook a thing. That’s the best thing about women. They are talented. And they love to demonstrate their talent. From cooking to baking, from bringing flowers to cleaning up afterward, talent just pours out of women. It’s what they/you/me/we do.

Six years ago, I was given the pleasure of being intentional all over again. There I was in a new town, in new churches, in new shoes;). Smiling faces throughout this Treasure Valley are soaring through my heart as I think through these last six years. Such amazing sisters that make up the body of Christ! How spoiled are we to be a member of such a vast family?!

Intentional friendship. It has to start somewhere. How about a simple, Hi. I never knew how powerful that little word could be; Oh, how I have fallen in love with its Beautiful Simplicity!

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Smile. There is power in such an easy thing

- JaclynPalmer Leave a comment

It’s amazing what happens when a person shares a smile. Who would have guessed the power behind such an easy thing to offer? It’s not always easy. Yesterday, at Albertsons, I couldn’t get one person to return a smile. It was so strange. Even my produce guy was deep in concentration over stacking those onions just so.

I hate when a place has an “unsmiley” vibe. It shouldn’t be this way. It’s unsettling when a mundane task, a fun adventure, or even a church visit is accompanied by an unfriendly vibe. We are mankind. We are Alive. We can Smile. We can Shine – even when we shop! I love shopping! Obviously. But more than my “Just Buy It!” mantra, I love chatting with employees. I love complimenting a woman on her hair, shoes, bag, smile. I love winking at “Littles” sitting in their carts staring at me from behind their moms. I love making small talk with women who (actually) know what to do with something called a Leek.

You know what I love most? I love watching a woman walk away with a smile, a head held high, and a sweet skip to her step. There is power in a shared smile, in a simple statement of praise, and in an unexpected, little one-liner.

In the end, it’s not always hard.

  • God created us with the ability to smile. To share one is free and physically easy.
  • Simple compliments make us float in the midst of a trying day, to pass on that balloon ride simply requires us to look past ourselves.
  • As for the little quips, well, not all of us can be funny on a dime. But I’m sure we could figure out something to say, like, “Hey, it’s not snowing. That’s a good thing!” Or something else that all humans like to talk about like politics or religion… I joke. See? That was my quip.  

Here’s what I’m thinking. If a smile creates a friendship and a simple word uplifts a soul, then what would happen if we practiced sharing these two gifts wherever we go? I’m thinking masks would slip. Perfection may dive off a cliff. Tears might shed. Laughter could most certainly ensue. Deep, sincere, #IcantbelieveIjustadmittedthatoutloud laughter might just about explode. And friendships, ah, friendships are bound to deepen to a most treasured level of love.

I love that we can Smile. I love that we can Shine. Don’t pass another human without acknowledging their existence, whether you know that person or not. What an empty, “Unsmiley” world that would be. Let’s share our God-created ability with someone today. 

Thank you for sharing your smile with me. Deeper still, your simple words gave me access into your heart. I value your smile, and I treasure your heart!

~ Psalm 96

~ Scripture verses regarding your smile

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