A month ago, I hosted a contest on my blog with the theme "Why do we have hope in tomorrow?". Today the results are finally being published! ...thanks to all who participated in this contest. I think it's really important to verbally express what we believe, and this was a big question but all of you had such beautiful, heart touching answers. Your answers made me stop and think about life. And isn't that what writing is all about?
So I'm really proud of you two winners...
*drum roll*
Ivie and Lisa.

♡ Ivie - You wrote a beautiful discourse. It was real and heartfelt and it was alive. As I read your entry I felt guided through a cycle of life that I myself have gone through. Especially because I was discouraged, your story slammed things back into perspective and your word were a shining light to guide me back on God's path. I am honored to publish your story on my blog. Thank you so much for entering and sharing your heart and God's truth with us, you really packed a punch in that 500 word limit!

♡ Lisa - Your story grabbed my attention right away, because I have found myself at the edge of that cliff. The way you portrayed love, hope, light...was achingly gorgeous. As I reached the end, I realized...this isn't just a story. It is what goes through many of us each day...as we fall down in the mess of our mistakes and problems, the only thing that can help us out is looking up to Him...Our Sun. For 500 words? Honestly, all I can say is...wow. Great job Lisa!



The Pain ~ By Ivie Brooks


 The Pain. It would hold me, bring me to my knees in tears. It wasn't a physical pain. It wasn't completely mental, either. It hurts the heart, breaks the spirit, leaves you feeling crushed, but never truly leaves. It stays. It waits for you to have a good day so it can ambush you.

 When you think you've gotten rid of it, when you think you're safe, it returns with a vengeance. It takes control of you. You become addicted to the pain. Addicted to how you feel. You make it normal. It has a name: Anxiety.

Depression sets in. Stress moves in. The anxiety grips and shakes you. You're pretty much consumed with pain. It flows completely inside you.

 Now all you have is pain and tears. You let the pain take control and you end up lashing out at others, the ones you care about, until you're all alone. But that's what you wanted, right? To be left alone to wallow in your misery?

 It's all gradual, but it happens. You feel no purpose, no point, no hope, hurt, lost, and depressed. You're not at a point of ending it all, nor will you ever be ... but you wonder what your point is.

 Why are you here? What was the plan? Why are you alone?

 But ... you're not alone. There's Someone who's been through it all before you did, and He did it to save you.

 You know you are loved. You know there is a plan. You know there is a purpose made by an all knowing, all loving God. But the pain is still there. It will take time. It will take healing. But you'll get there.

 This is why you should always have hope for tomorrow. Another day to get it right. Doesn't mean you will, but everyday can be better. He placed you here for a purpose. There is a reason why you are here. Everything will fall into place.

Look for tomorrow. The fresh page. The new day. You'll find your purpose if you keep pressing on.

_______

The Sun is Still There ~ By L. E. Long

When he reached home, he found there was a message from his sister, scrawled on a piece of paper: “I’m not coming back. I’m can’t do it anymore. I’m sorry - so sorry.”

 And that was it. Then he was running; he really didn’t know what he was doing, but he was already out the door, running for her.
 . . .

 She was running. She didn’t know where she was going, but she didn’t care anymore. The forest was foggy; the ground was wet. The overcrowding branches slapped her face. She had fallen again and again; she was filthy, covered in mud.

Thunder clapped overhead, and tears blurred her vision.

 Then she broke through the trees into clear air, and suddenly she was tripping, slipping, and sliding over the grass.

 She found herself hanging off a cliff, her fingers, raw and painful, somehow having gripped the sharp, rocky edge.

 “God,” she whispered, and closed her eyes.
 . . .
He shut his eyes against the rain. Where would she run? Then he remembered. She used to pray on the edge of a cliff that overlooked the river and the city on the other side.

“God,” he breathed. “Don’t let her do anything stupid.”
 …
She breathed raggedly, crouching on a narrow ledge below the cliff’s edge, staring at the sheer drop below her. The river churned, and lightning flashed.

 She remembered the agony on the faces of the starving children. The man with the knife. His cruelty. His threats. Their bodies on the ground. The floor soaked red with their blood.

 She shuddered. She heard someone frantically yelling her name.
 …
 “Adrienne,” he called, as gently as he could. “Come back. It’s not the end.”

 She didn’t move, and replied almost too softly to hear, “Yes it is. It’s over.”

 “Adri,” he said, “ remember when you told me you would do what was right, whether for better or for worse?”

 “It was for worse... worse than it has ever been! I killed them all, Cay!” She screamed then, and it ripped his heart. She gripped the ground with her hands like claws. “He killed them all because of me! And I promised I’d save them!” Her voice died in a whimper. “I’ve failed.”

“Hey,” he said, “remember, the night is always dark, but tomorrow brings the sun. It’s not the end of hope.”

 “Tell me how!” she demanded. “Evil doesn’t just disappear.”

 “The light chases it away. Remember how you wanted to shine and change the world?”
 He heard her sob. “But I didn’t. I don’t shine. I’m not the sun...”

 “But you were not asked to be the sun,” he replied quietly. “You were called to be the moon. You were meant to reflect the sun in the night.”

 For a long time she just crouched there, until the sun peeked through the grey. Then finally she rose, and looked at him.

 “God is our sun,” he whispered. “ And he never changes. He’s the same forever. Hope remains, because he is our hope. ”

_______




 Please go check out Ivie and Lisa at their blogs and follow them! 
 Let's Talk! <3 Why do you have hope in tomorrow? What did you think of the stories?
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Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses,
 let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.
 And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us,  
fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. 
For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, 
and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.  
Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners,
 so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
(Hebrews 12:1-3)