Compassion

I don't think my parents get enough credit for the amount of sacrifices they continue to make for me and my siblings. I don't even know where to start, I have a mother that sacrificed over a decade of her life to home school her kids, I have a father that has faithfully provided for my family for as long as I can remember. Throughout all the tremendous lessons I learned from my parents one that stood out to me the most is that I must die to self, I have to starve my flesh. I must be willing to put others before myself. My parents continue to lead by example, I stride to follow in the path God laid out before them. When I think about how my parents raised me and my siblings with true diligence I have this ignition to do the same for my future family. My parents go above and beyond to show me life is a learning experience and I must make the best of it. When I reflect on the many blessings God showered down on me, my parents are at the top of the list. They showed me what its like to have a heart of a warrior, they had many downfalls but continued to rise up stronger, to be equipped soldiers for Christ. I did not see how much my parents impact my life until I started attending public school, for the first time I saw how privileged I was to live with both of my parents. Many of my classmates switched back and forth between their mother and fathers home. Other students acted out in school because of troubles they endured in their own home. I started to see how beneficial it was to live in a home with a strong foundation. My household was not perfect, but the morals were present. I knew right from wrong, I might not have always followed my parents standards but I never had to stress over not having food, or a home to stay. I was assured I had a home to sleep in with loving parents and siblings. However, I had to face many downfalls to get to the place I am today, I went through a season of feeling lost, confused, and unworthy. I look back on the rough patches and I am grateful because if it was not for the confusion I wouldn't know what its like to have clarity. If it wasn't for the season of feeling lost and unworthy I wouldn't know how much I am loved not only by my parents but God. God has His ways of turning ashes to beauty. There were many times I looked back on my life with regret but pushing forward helped me come to the conclusion that everything happens with a much greater purpose. My pain turned to purpose, I am at a place where I can finally see God moving wonders throughout me and my family's life. The problem was me looking back on things that were not hopeful, I can look forward with joy because I am assured there is hope for the future. The reason I say this is because regardless of my foundation much was lost for me to be found in Christ, I look back and know that it was all worth it. I want to give a special thanks to my parents because it is not often they receive credit for their tremendous work. If I can be half as good a mother and wife my mother is, I am blessed. Shoutout out to my parents for never settling for less than what they deserve. Thank you God for loving me so much to bless me with phenomenal parents that show me what it is to love, show generosity, and never fail to draw forth compassion.