November Hope Whispers

November 22, 2021 Trudy Den Hoed depression, encouragement, freedom, God gives strength, God hears our cries, God is faithful, God is with us always, God is with us no matter what, God is with us through the storms of life, God will never abandon us, God's goodness, God's unfailing love, healing, hope, hope is an anchor, hope quotes, hopelessness, Jesus cares, kindness, nature photos, nature retreat, serenity prayer, thanksgiving, thanksgiving prayer, unconditional love, you matter to God

The Serenity Prayer

“God grant me the serenity
To accept the things I cannot change;
Courage to change the things I can;
And wisdom to know the difference.

Living one day at a time;
Enjoying one moment at a time;
Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace;
Taking, as He did, this sinful world
As it is, not as I would have it;
Trusting that He will make all things right
If I surrender to His Will;
So that I may be reasonably happy in this life
And supremely happy with Him
Forever and ever in the next.
Amen.”
(prayer attributed to Reinhold Neibuhr, 1892-1971)

God’s Unfailing Love

“For even if the mountains walk away
and the hills fall to pieces,
My love won’t walk away from you,
my covenant commitment of peace won’t fall apart.
The God who has compassion on you says so.”
Isaiah 54:10 MSG

❤︎ ❤︎ ❤︎

“I cried out, ‘I am slipping!’
but Your unfailing love, O Lord, supported me.“
Psalm 94:18 NLT

❤︎ ❤︎ ❤︎

“For God so [greatly] loved and dearly prized the world,
that He [even] gave His [One and] only begotten Son,
so that whoever believes and trusts in Him [as Savior]
shall not perish, but have eternal life.“
John 3:16 AMP

Hang Onto Hope

🦋 “If you feel stuck in a hopeless place today, I don’t want to rush you to joy. Maybe you need to spend a little time letting the darkness do what darkness does—nourish, strengthen, and hold. The darkness can invite us into a mystery, a place where we don’t know the answer. We know that seeds need to bury down deep in the ground, sometimes for a long, long time. Eventually, those seeds will break open and take root. But first they have to settle into the darkness. Still, that seed carries within it a narrative of hope. It just hasn’t lived into the whole story yet.” ~ Emily Freeman in The Next Right Thing

🦋 “Without dark clouds in our lives, we would never know the joy of sunshine. We can become callous and unteachable if we do not learn from pain.” ~ Billy Graham

🦋 “Hope is like the Sun. When it’s behind the clouds, it’s not gone. You just have to find it!” ~ R.J. Palacio

Nature Retreat

“There is not one blade of grass,
there is no color in this world
that is not intended to make us rejoice.“
~ John Calvin ~

Though my photography isn’t as professional as my brother’s is, capturing nature photos is relaxing for me. This past summer was a tough one and I didn’t have the privilege of going out to some of my favorite nature spots as often as I would have liked. As I was looking through some of my old photos, I decided to share some photos of my own this month. 🙂

“Just a reminder in case your mind is playing tricks on you today: You matter. You’re important. You’re loved. And your presence on this earth makes a difference, whether you see it or not.” ~ Anonymous

October Hope Whispers

October 28, 2021 Trudy Den Hoed depression, encouragement, freedom, God gives strength, God hears our cries, God is faithful, God is with us always, God is with us no matter what, God is with us through the storms of life, God will never abandon us, God's goodness, healing, hope, hope quotes, Jesus cares, kindness, kindness matters, kindness quotes, loneliness, love is kind, nature photos, nature retreat, unconditional love, you matter to God

When Loneliness Overwhelms

Jesus said:
“A time is coming and in fact has come
when you will be scattered, each to your own home.
You will leave Me all alone.
Yet I am not alone, for my Father is with Me.
I have told you these things,
so that in Me you may have peace.
In this world you will have trouble.
But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
John 16:32-33 NIV

❤︎ ❤︎ ❤︎

“Even if my father and mother abandon me,
the Lord will hold me close.“
Psalm 27:10 NLT

❤︎ ❤︎ ❤︎

“Nevertheless I am continually with You;
You have taken hold of my right hand.
With Your counsel You will guide me,
And afterward receive me to glory.”
Psalm 73:23-24 NASB

Kindness Quotes

🦋 “The first question which the priest and the Levite asked was: ‘If I stop to help this man, what will happen to me?’ But the good Samaritan reversed the question: ‘If I do not stop to help this man, what will happen to him?’” – Martin Luther King Jr.

🦋 “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’ To this day, especially in times of “disaster,” I remember my mother’s words and I am always comforted by realizing that there are still so many helpers – so many caring people in this world.” – Fred Rogers

🦋 “Never look down on anybody unless you’re helping him up.” – Jesse Jackson

Nature Retreat

“Each species is a masterpiece,
a creation assembled
with extreme care and genius.“
~ Edward O. Wilson ~

Thank you to my brother John
for some unique views
of various species.
🙂 Please respect copyright laws. 🙂

Oh my! His lunch is so much bigger than he is!

September Hope Whispers

September 29, 2021September 29, 2021 Trudy Den Hoed encouragement, freedom, God is faithful, God is with us always, God is with us no matter what, God is with us through the storms of life, God's goodness, healing, hope, hope quotes, nature photos, Nature relieves stress, nature retreat, you matter to God, your tears are never wasted

God Is With Us No Matter What

“Be strong and courageous.
Do not be afraid or terrified because of them,
for the LORD your God goes with you;
He will never leave you nor forsake you.”
Deuteronomy 31:6
❤︎ ❤︎ ❤︎
“The angel of the LORD came back
a second time and touched him and said,
“Get up and eat,
for the journey is too much for you.”
1 Kings 19:7

🦋 Is Life’s Journey Too Great For You?
“Have you ever felt so tired of life’s journey that you wish God would just take you to Himself? So battle-worn from fighting against Satan’s persistent lies crushing you down to despair? So heart heavy with the mess this world is in and how God and love and compassion are often shoved aside?” Read More…

Hope Quotes

“He’s with us in the big and the small, leaving His fingerprints on every page of the story, forever reminding us: Remember My goodness here. Look around. Do you see Me? I’ll hang the clouds in the sky and fling stars into the velvet night all so that you remember in both daylight and darkness, I’m with you always.” ~ Kaitlyn Bouchillon

“Your struggles and tears will NEVER be wasted but will be transformed into a healing balm after your victory, release and manifestation comes. You’ve won already. Hold on just a little while longer. Everything will be alright. We serve a God whose Name is FAITHFUL.” ~ Theresa Pecku-Laryea

“To go to heaven, fully to enjoy God, is infinitely better than the most pleasant accommodations here.” ~ Jonathan Edwards

“In the absence of any other proof, the thumb alone would convince me of God’s existence.” ~ Sir Isaac Newton

Nature Retreat

“There are increased benefits of spending more time in nature and leaving technology behind such as improved short term memory, enhanced working memory, better problem solving, greater creativity, lower levels of stress and higher feelings of positive well being.”
~ David Strayer, Dept of Psychology, University of Utah