Mathew 5:16

The past few years the weight of the world has been weighing on my heart. 

There is so much hatred. Social media was supposed to bring everyone together and it was so fun and exciting at first. I remember the very first account I ever made was for an E- mail so I could "txt" my friends. You should have seen my face when I found out about MySpace. It seems now however, it is almost as if it caused more stress and anxiety then it did good. I took a year break from Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Let me tell you how much my mind and soul needed that break. 

When I got back on I remember thinking "This is all I missed?" Facebookt fights, mother shaming, body shaming, strangers and people who were actually friends at one point tearing each other apart. Stories being shared of all the horrible things happening in the world and what the world feels like is best for you. It was a whole lot to take in and I had to pace myself back into being on my phone. 

There was a time where I could't even scroll through my phone without my chest tightening. Then our church asked to take a ten day fast from social media. My husband and I made fun of all those announcing their absence  from their networks thinking how silly it was. We took the ten days off together and If you haven't, religion has nothing to do with it, I personally just think everyone could benefit from just trying. It's amazing the phone calls you make to people you hadn't talk to in a while, or the quality time you are missing out with the people right next to you. It changes things trust me!

When I got back on to social media for the second time I decided I was going to take out all the negative. I went through and muted those sharing things that stressed me out. Anything that did not make me smile and feel appreciative was out of my feed and good riddins! I know it sounds a little wierd, like did it really have that effect on me? It did. To the point where I felt like I wasn't good enough, I didn't matter and all the horrible things of the world were right in my living room. I wasn't able to appreciate my own life because the world was consuming it. It wasn't just the social media, I took out anything and everything. Tv shows and people included too. Some people you have to love from a far and cheer them on from a distance. 

I kept thinking, all these people and all their opinions...why can't they just hurt when another person is hurting, love with the person loving and just be plain excited for someone even if it isn't something they agree with. How hard is it to treat others with respect? Family, friends, acquaintances, the dog next door, we all should be cheering each other on! 

So, I made another Instagram account because 1. its mostly pictures and not article after article of how the president should run things, or natural disasters with awful people commenting their unforgiving two cents. 2. It was a fresh start for me to chose who I would surround myself with everyday. At first it was for my weight loss, but then I realized I wanted my Instagram and blog to be so much more. 

I want anyone and everyone who visits my profile, or my blog to take something from it. I want to be a place for those who are hurting to find some relief and know you aren't the only one. I want to spread the word of God's love and how amazing Christianity is, no matter the religion, a long as you know you are loved unconditionally. I want to be a place where anyone can come and feel welcomed. The weight of the world is HEAVY. Its full of hurt. I want this blog specifically to be a place to escape it. 

I am creating this blog to share the times I felt the darkness, but found that little gleam of light that became brighter and brighter the closer I got. My life isn't perfect, its far from it. I have learned hard lessons that have been so worth the struggle. Lessons I feel are worth sharing and worth adding to someones feed. My intentions will always be to speak out for those who can't yet, be happy for those who are happy, excited for you who are excited, hurt with those who hurt and love with that person loving!

I say we all should make it a personal goal to take the world down. Punch hate in the face and gently replace it with some good old fashioned love...oooo so cheesy, but so true, right? 

-Kayleen 

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