I gotta be me!

One of the most painful realizations I made in the course of my marriage was that it didn't allow me the freedom to be who I am. I was constantly worried about saying or doing something that would displease my husband and prove to him that I simply wasn't good enough. A lot of the time, I walked on eggshells and I put up and shut up. I did it so much that it drained me both emotionally and spiritually until I had no more left to give.

Once I got out of that situation, the drainage stopped and my spirit started filling back up!

I am determined not to allow myself to get back into that kind of a situation again. Letting me be who God made me to be is an essential component of any friendships and romantic interests in my life. Real friends accept that I'm not perfect and love me in spite of it. They appreciate the eccentricities and other unique things that make me who I am. They encourage me to grow in my weaknesses, but they don't expect me to change just to please them.

"Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God." (Romans 15:7 NIV)