Have you ever walked into a room and felt like everyone else got the memo, and you didn't?

Last week started there for me. That hollow, slightly embarrassing feeling of being the odd one out. Not excluded exactly. Just off to the side.

But God had other plans. By the end of that same week, Dave and I had found a whole new family. Complete strangers became beloved people, right in front of our eyes. Once again, God proved himself faithful in the most unexpected setting—a cruise ship, of all places.

It's one of the gifts we receive every time we partner with Inspiration Travel. God shows up. Every single time.

"You faithfully answer our prayers with awesome deeds, O God our savior. You are the hope of everyone on earth, even those who sail on distant seas." — Psalm 65:5 (NLT)

Even on distant seas. He doesn't miss a single one of us.

What’s Been On My Heart

For the last several months, I've been removing things from my to-do list. Intentionally.

For a list-maker, this has been a challenge. Checking items off brings me deep satisfaction. And yet God has been nudging me, sometimes not so gently, to stop filling every hour with activity and start asking a harder question:

Is this essential, or just important?

Those two words are not the same thing.

Busy is not a badge of honor. Sometimes, when walking through betrayal pain, you keep doing anything to avoid feeling the depth of it. Keeping busy provides an escape, at least temporarily.

Dear one, at the end of today, would you say your work was essential or simply spinning your wheels? How much closer to your recovery goal did you get?

Something for You

Your work matters. Listen to how God frames your work.

"Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people. Remember that the Lord will give you an inheritance as your reward, and that the Master you are serving is Christ." — Colossians 3:23–24 (NLT)

Whatever you do. The laundry. The dirty dishes. The stack of bills. Meeting that deadline. Even working through the pain nobody else sees.

Every part of your life matters to God. How can you give him glory today, right where you are?

🙏🏻 A Prayer for You

Dear God, thank you for the gift of work. Whatever Reader faces today, remind her that it is your gift. Where life feels confusing or hard, provide Reader with your peace and comfort. When she faces a challenge that feels overwhelming or impossible, remind her that you already went before her, so you know the way through. You are amazing, God. And you promise Reader that you will walk alongside her every step of every day. What a gift that is. Amen.

P.S. If the essential vs. important question stirred something in you, hit reply and tell me what came up.