Paula Marsteller

Beware: I ask lots of questions. I also want to love Jesus & neighbor more. Author of "Confessions of a Boy-Crazy Girl."

[Paula Marsteller @PaulaWrites678]

What might shake loose if you dared to gift them the opportunity to trade in secrecy for honesty within the safety of your faithful friendship?

Thanks for the inspiration from your excellent book, “The Common Rule,” @Justin_W_Earley.

[Paula Marsteller @PaulaWrites678]

1/2: Some questions have the power to turn a life around. This is one of them. Oh, for the courage to ask it of others. Not as a demanding parent or a paranoid wife, but as a gentle invitation from one friend to another. You never know the dark secret one might have tucked deep.

[Paula Marsteller @PaulaWrites678]

Tell me your secrets.

[Paula Marsteller @PaulaWrites678]

2/2: Who should you fight for rather than against? Would you make this prayer your own?

[Paula Marsteller @PaulaWrites678]

1/2: I wrote this prayer in my journal in the midst of some interpersonal conflict: "Lord, take the fight out of me."

It reminds me of this quote by @jennieallen: The enemy wants to divide us. Rather than fighting for each other, he wants to see us fighting against each other.

[Paula Marsteller @PaulaWrites678]

@parshalltalk Way too good looking

[Paula Marsteller @PaulaWrites678]

If you'd like to continue following our recent story of loss, you can do so here. https://t.co/E1njf3qQfo

[Paula Marsteller @PaulaWrites678]

4/4: I pray you know your Creator and live out His purposes for you for as many days of life as He gives you.

[Paula Marsteller @PaulaWrites678]

3/4: If you’re alive today, that’s nothing short of a miracle in my mind. God chose for you to be born. Alive. Even when the odds were stacked against you. This speaks so deeply to me of the incredible value of your life. I thank God for you today, friend.

[Paula Marsteller @PaulaWrites678]

2/3: The doctor later told me: 20% of known pregnancies are lost. 50% of unknown pregnancies are lost. When you combine the two, 60% of all pregnancies are lost. I’m not ignorant of how life ends for all of us. I just had no idea that life can be so hard to start.

[Paula Marsteller @PaulaWrites678]

1/3: I was on top of the world. We'd just seen our baby for the first time: A head, a body, a nub of an arm. I had no idea the next sonogram would reveal death rather than life. I hadn't ever had pregnancy issues; It never crossed my mind that I could actually lose my baby.

[Paula Marsteller @PaulaWrites678]

2/2: An old Yiddish proverb says, "Man plans & God laughs." I laughed along with Him at the sheer surprise. “Hello, little one,” I spoke tenderly, cupping my abdomen. Tears formed in my eyes. I longed to welcome God’s plan instead of fighting it as I did with my other two.

[Paula Marsteller @PaulaWrites678]

1/2: The pregnancy test instructed me to set a timer for five minutes, but I didn’t need even one. That red line showed up immediately. 
Oh, the irony. We were just five days away from an appointment that would conclude our childbearing years & we were more than fine with that.

[Paula Marsteller @PaulaWrites678]

2/2: Just a little reminder today to assume the best of others. You might think they’re full of road rage when they’re actually making a desperate rush for life. This principle applies on the road, in the store, even at home.

[Paula Marsteller @PaulaWrites678]

1/2: Trevor beeped the horn at my urging. I frantically motioned for the car to move over. The driver wouldn’t budge. I think he or she thought we were being &@$?!@, but we were desperately trying to get to the clinic before I bled out.

[Paula Marsteller @PaulaWrites678]

Should you keep praying for a husband (or any other unfulfilled longing, for that matter) when God seems to thwart your desire at every turn? I think so. Here’s why. https://t.co/nBzq3oZcc1

[Paula Marsteller @PaulaWrites678]

2/2:
1.What do I want to leave in the prior year?
2.What do I want to bring into the new year?
3. What is the race I am called to for this year?

These might be questions you want to ask yourself. Also, if you’ve ever considered a solo getaway: Do it. 🙌

[Paula Marsteller @PaulaWrites678]

1/2: I’m proud of this one for going on a remote getaway for a couple days before busy season consumes him for the next couple of months. Among other things, he answered these questions from the @allendercenter:

[Paula Marsteller @PaulaWrites678]

Whatever problems 2023 may throw your way—and there will be plenty—you can rest in peace. God will be your Traveling Companion all year long. You've got this--this whole year--'cause He'll be with you every step of every day.

[Paula Marsteller @PaulaWrites678]

We’re celebrating all Jesus accomplished in His first visit, and longing for His second return when He “will be [our] everlasting light, and [our] days of mourning shall be ended” (Isa. 60:20). Anyone else?

Come, Lord Jesus, come. (And a Merry Christmas from the Marstellers.)