And So It Begins!

Welcome to the Embracing Free Blog! As the saying goes, "a journey of a thousand miles begins with one step." Here goes the first step!

Embracing Free has been on my heart for a while, and I am so excited to see this blog come to life! Let me tell you a little bit about my story.

My name is Jennifer. I have been married to my amazing husband for 14 years and we have 3 kids, a 9 year old boy, 6 year old girl, and our littlest guy who is 4. As one who walked through a season of infertility and miscarriage in the past, it is truly my great joy to be a mom of these little blessings (although some days it's crazy no doubt)! We have a 2 year old dog named Barkley, a Goldendoodle who fits our family well. We live in the Denver area having moved here from the Dallas area 4+ years ago. We love it here, enjoying the seasons, the outdoor life, the access to natural beauty and the continual opportunity for adventure. Before having kids I had two jobs, first I worked at a church in the student ministries department and then I went on to teach high school (world history) for a few years. When I had our oldest son I transitioned to being a stay at home mom and have been a full time mom of littles for the past almost 10 years. As our youngest approaches kindergarten, my role is transitioning from "mom of little ones at home" to "mom of kids in school." I am looking forward to this new season and excited about the new endeavors God will bring my way (like blogging)!

Most importantly, I am a follower of Jesus Christ. While I would have identified myself as a Christian for much of my life, it was really the summer before I left for college that truly I trusted Jesus to be my Lord and Savior. As I describe it, this is when God went from being "a spoke on the tire" of my life to being "the hub of the wheel". Rather than me being in control, I asked Christ to be in control of my life and it has been the greatest adventure living life with God these last almost 20 years (yikes, how time flies!).

Over those years I have learned and continue to learn how to trust Him, how essential His Word is in my life, and Who this great God is who pursues us with His unrelenting love. He is completely Good, Faithful, and True. He is a God we can fully rely upon, fully hope in, and fully love.

This was't an overnight lesson by any means, trusting the character and heart of God, and it is something I must continue to press into daily. I have been prone to fear for much of my life, and fear of the "what if" can paralyze you. Fear (I'm talking unholy fear) is a glutton that wants to invade every corner of your life and leave you ineffective, afraid, and in bondage. It will strangle the life out of you and cause you in turn to strangle your family. God has done a work in my life to show me another path, a path of freedom, fullness, and fruitfulness. Maybe for you it's not fear, but there is something else that is paralyzing you, hindering your life and keeping you in bondage. Together we'll press into God's Word to discover what it means to "embrace free" in Christ and how to live like we are truly free on a daily basis.

So where does this blog come in? Am I a trained writer? No. Am I a person who loves "techy" things? Double No. Do I excel in photography as it seems many successful bloggers do? No again. See how I convince you of my qualifications! The reason I am writing this blog is because I want to share with you (and document for myself) the things that God is teaching me. I am not a person who has it all together that I have come to teach from my exalted platform. Rather I am someone just like you who is in the middle of this thing called life. I hope that Embracing Free can be a place where we can learn and grow together. Where we can discover more of who God is and how to take God up on the abundant life He wants for us in His son Jesus. May we learn how to live as if we are Free Indeed in Jesus...together.