I Owe an Explanation – Revisiting Refine

You may have noticed I’ve been less responsive or slower to respond over the past couple of weeks. Or you may notice I will be slow to respond over the next couple of weeks. If you’ve sent me an email or message that hasn’t yet gotten a response I’m sorry. I’m trying to catch up!
A couple of months ago I shared a little glimpse in my post I Want to See Redemption Win, which I actually edited after I received unsubscribes. I realized it went out on a Wednesday, which is when my weekly newsletter goes out, so it is typical to get more unsubscribes on that day than other days, but what can I say? I’m sensitive. Based on comments, I feared it was taken as a “woe is me” post, but the intention was to be a post a hope. To sum it up I was trying to say, “things are hard, but I know how far I’ve come, and I know God will get us through this. I can see redemption win every time I look in the mirror.”

I said this year I would work on word of 2014 – Refine. Trials are part of this process. I think worrying about how a post is received is actually the opposite of what my goal should be. I need to keep my eyes focused on Him. I wrote that post from my heart – both the hard parts (some of which I deleted) and the positive parts. If I don’t share it all, I’m robbing you of the experience. Not everybody is going to like what I write all of the time. That is just a fact of writing. I have favorite writers, and I don’t always like everything they write, either. Nobody is perfect, but I think they should be true to themselves.
I have continued to work on refining the content here on Pea of Sweetness, which has been more difficult than I imagined. I have redirected some reviews to Deals of Sweetness that I felt aren’t a good fit here, and I’ve just chosen not to include certain content I feel isn’t a good fit. Once I make it through this hard personal patch I also plan to keep a more specific calendar as well that I think you will enjoy! Please bear with me as I make a new transition in my life.

I know I have started (and stopped) various series, and I can’t guarantee that will change. I have SPD and Fibro. I can be a flake. It doesn’t mean I won’t add to the series randomly, though! 🙂 I do plan to keep a more regular calendar as I continue to work more on my time management, homemaking, homeschooling, etc. and share them with you. It’s going to be raw and real. I have a long way to go in my journey, but I want to share it with you anyway! I took away Weekly Wrap-Ups because the top part of the posts were a post of their own, and I’m going to post more like those, but without the wrap-up part below! If you like the wrap-up part, consider subscribing to my new Monthly Newsletter (if you’re already a subscriber you can update your options)! My “making a house a home series” never made it to the blog for a very serious reason – we never made this house a home (more on that below).
I think refinement here on Pea of Sweetness also means refinement in my life. Things ARE hard right now. Our family is going through a lot. I debated on even sharing this, and I eventually added a fundraiser I was having to my sidebar to raise money to get a new place because we are getting evicted. We tried so hard to make ends meet on my husband’s VA disability, the little I make on my blogs, and my freelance work as Social Security is still undecided for my husband. Sometimes I work through the night just to make extra money (much like tonight), and it just wasn’t enough. We reached out to Disabled Veteran organizations including the Veterans Homeless Prevention Program to no avail. We didn’t meet our goal in our fundraiser, so we were unable to get the rent to own home, but we were blessed that a friend is willing to let us rent their home while we help fix it up as well.
We are SO grateful for your donations, your support and prayers through this! We will be moving this week, so if I am even more distant or distracted, it’s because we are busy with the move and transition. I will still be posting both here and on social media, but my response times via email and social media may be slower, but I will try to get to them as soon as I can! I do appreciate your prayers! If you have children, you know how tricky it can be to move with children! Please pray it goes smoothly and we can get settled quickly!
So yes, I am going to share my heart. Life isn’t always easy, and I think there are people out there who feel discouraged and are seeking inspiration from someone who has “been there.” When everybody’s life looks “picture perfect” it can leave us wondering where we went wrong. There is no wrong answer. Everybody’s journey is different. Some journeys may be harder than others, but they’re our own – nobody else’s. If your journey feels like a struggle remember that with God, there is always hope.
How can I pray for YOU today?