Author: Natori

  • 30

    30

    Natori

    Thirty, Your twenties were never meant to harm you. They were meant to teach you who your Heavenly Father is. To trust Him in every season. To believe that even when He doesn’t answer the prayer the way you hoped, He is still good. He is still just. He is still God. You thought you’d… Read more

  • 29

    Natori

    Fresh Eyes. That’s the phrase the Lord has continually brought back to me during this season. My circumstances haven’t changed much. My perspective has. The Lord has been changing the way I see them. If you had asked me what twenty-nine would look like, I never would have imagined writing this chapter. It has been… Read more

  • 28

    Natori

    The one where I became a mother. I sought the Lord. He heard. He answered. Again. A promise keeper. After experiencing the heartbreak of miscarriage, I did everything I could to make sure I would never have to walk through that kind of loss again. Then, to our surprise, we found out we were expecting.… Read more

  • 27

    27

    Natori

    I see a woman who had no idea that in just a few short weeks, both her greatest joy and deepest heartbreak were waiting for her. This is the year I experienced an unimaginable loss. Miscarriage. Just eight months into marriage, I found out we were going to be parents. If you could have been… Read more

  • 26

    26

    Natori

    Looking back at this picture, I see a woman learning to rest. What I did not know was that just a few short months later, God would change my life forever. Years earlier, in August of 2020, the Lord had impressed the number twenty-six on my heart. At the time, I did not understand why.… Read more

  • 25

    25

    Natori

    This is the smile of a woman who was resting in the joy of the Lord. It was also the smile of a woman who was about to do life afraid. At twenty-four, I had already told the Lord that I would follow Him no matter the cost. I meant every word of it. What… Read more

  • 24

    24

    Natori

    I had just finished watching Joy Blair share her testimony about overcoming unforgiveness, bitterness, and resentment. Those weren’t just words anymore. They were the names of everything I had been carrying. There were no birthday dinners this year. No crowded restaurants. Just four walls, a YouTube video, and a young woman who had finally run… Read more

  • 23

    23

    Natori

    I finally looked confident. Then life revealed where my confidence was actually built. The hair. The makeup. The nails. The dress. I had spent years believing that if I changed enough about my appearance, people would finally notice me. So I tried it. And they did. Even in ways I never wanted. I wasn’t covering… Read more

  • 22

    22

    Natori

    There I stood outside Chili’s on my twenty-second birthday, just before someone took this picture. When he finally arrived, he greeted everyone else before he greeted me. Looking back, that moment said more about our relationship than I was willing to admit. When I look at that picture now, I don’t remember Chili’s nearly as… Read more

  • 21

    21

    Natori

    I was drunk for the first time. Yes, off of Sparkling Apple Cider. My parents knew that although I was old enough to drink (and I did too), I chose to not drink. Many times throughout college, I was tempted to drink, but I refused to be the girl who needed to know what being… Read more