Author: Brianna

Help In Troubled Times

Brianna

I have this memory from when I was just a little girl. I believe it was a Sunday morning, and I was getting dressed and ready for church. There I was, sitting on the edge of my bed, attempting to put my stockings on. When I say stockings, I mean those good ol’ pure white, nylon-like tights that matched every little girl’s Sunday School dress perfectly in the 90’s.

As a child, those things were a nightmare to get on. They were so tight, and managing to pull them all the way up your legs was like having a wrestling match with yourself. On this particular Sunday morning, I made an attempt at the trick I had seen my mother do. I bunched up one leg of my stockings from the toe to the top and slipped my foot right in there. Then I tried to pull the stocking the rest of the way up my leg.

Continue reading “Help In Troubled Times” →

Purge and Anchor

Brianna

If you’ve ever read my post from two years ago titled Goodbye To Dreams, you’ll be familiar with my little New Year’s tradition I’m about to go over again. Short version — every year on New Year’s Eve, I pull out my journal and I write an entry dedicated to re-capping my year. I start off listing significant events, and then finish off the entry with a paragraph or two summing up my general feelings about the year and any general “life lessons” I felt the year taught me.

Two years ago when I wrote that post, I shared that I hadn’t written that journal entry yet because I wasn’t sure how I felt about that year yet. That year was very significant to me, don’t get me wrong. But you know the beautiful thing about journaling or having a blog? You get to look back on times like that and think, “Oh, you just wait, sweetheart. You have no idea what’s coming.”

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Lest I Forget

Brianna

This one has been on my heart for a while now. And I’ll be honest…I’ve kind of taken my time with it, for a few different reasons. I felt I needed to let this one soak for a while.

And it has soaked — a little longer than I intended it to. But I think now is the perfect time to put this little inspiration into words.

I’ve done a few different studies on parts of the Old Testament. I’ve learned about the Patriarchs, the birth of Israel, the enslavement of God’s people, and the great Exodus and deliverance from Egypt. I’ve read of the wonders the people of Israel then got to bear witness to — I mean, the parting of the Red Sea? A pillar of cloud and fire? Manna literally raining down from Heaven? God speaking from the mountain at Sinai and doing all that thunder and lightning and smoke amazingness? What the what?

And I’ve read of how they still screwed everything up, even after experiencing all of that. And it used to baffle my mind — how could you witness the wonders of God in such a real and tangible way and yet still decide that worshiping some golden calf that you just threw together with your jewelry is a good idea?

How, after God has done miracle after miracle after miracle before your very eyes, could you do anything but devote all of yourself to Him for every second of the rest of your life no matter what?

And I have found that the answer is actually pretty simple. Continue reading “Lest I Forget” →

To Be Loved

Brianna

There’s nothing quite like going on a Women’s Ministry weekend retreat with about 90 ladies from your church. It’s refreshing. It’s uplifting. It’s fun. It’s full of laughter. And having just arrived home this afternoon from this particular retreat, tonight I’ve been dwelling on how extremely encouraging it was for me.

Now this post isn’t all about that retreat, but something that occurred on that retreat was the inspiration for this post. So just store that in your brain — I’ll come back to it later.

Everyone wants to be loved. I really think that’s true. Deep down we’re wired to desire to be loved by someone. Whether it’s a romantic love, or a friendship love, or a familial love, we desire love.

What I have always had a hard time grasping was the concept of love that never fails, never ceases, never wavers, never dies, and never gives up. It’s hard for me to grasp because it’s something that I’ve never really experienced or seen in a relationship between two people.

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Keeping Your Name

Brianna

Hi, my name is Brianna Martin. But I’m sure you already knew that — unless you’re really not paying attention to the blog that you’re currently reading. In which case, welcome to the blog site of Brianna Lee Martin — Everyday Life from an Everyday Person!

Moving on. My name is Brianna. It’s the name that my parents gave me, and it’s the one that I answer to. And I like my name — I mean, it could be a lot worse, right?

But I think that our name is more than just those letters that we put together to form a word that people say to get our attention or to refer to us. We all have another name that refers to who we are — not just literally or physically, but who we are as a person. A name that defines who we are by how we live.

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