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Truly Yours, Jen

God's love

The Most Beautiful Love Story of All

God Is For the Messy And the Complicated And the People Who Make Bad Choices. He’s For All of Us.

Made to Wait

Worthy of Love

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Hi there! I’m Jen, and I am so glad you are here. I write about faith, family, parenting, friendship, forgiveness, and my own struggles and joys in life (with a few recipes and decorating tips thrown in for fun). I hope my writing is like reading a letter from a friend, and that it brings you encouragement. Life is messy. We are all a little messy. Thankfully, God loves us through it all. Thank you for being here!
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Truly Yours, Jen – Jennifer Thompson, Writer

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Love this post from @faithinthemessbymelissaneeb 💗💗

I made this cake for my husband. He requests the s

I made this cake for my husband. He requests the same cake every year. It’s a family recipe, handed down for generations. Chocolate cake with homemade caramel icing.

It was his special day.

I know it’s been a hard year, with the loss of his dad, and this is the first year he wouldn’t receive a call. It was the first year he wouldn’t hear his dad’s voice singing him Happy Birthday.

I wanted everything to go right.

Only it didn’t.

We went to breakfast. A place he chose because he was craving something special, and they were out of his favorite item.

I had ordered his presents well in advance, still none of them had arrived.

We had plans to go to my mom’s for a special Birthday dinner that he had been looking forward to all week, and my sister called letting us know she had tested positive for Covid.

And the icing on the cake, was the cake.

The icing sets quickly on this cake, so you have to move fast. As I was icing the cake, it began to crumble and fall in on itself and as I tried to repair the damage, the icing continued to set, making it impossible for me to do anything but watch as it crumbled and the icing stuck in unattractive globs.

Oh no.
This couldn’t be the cake.

But it was.

I wanted the day to be perfect, and instead, it was a comedy of errors. One thing after another went wrong.

And this is how it is with life, isn’t it?

We can make our plans and we can try, but sometimes life just doesn’t go as planned.
We can hope for a perfect day, and then the reality of imperfection sets in.
We can try so hard and still come up against roadblocks and things we can’t control.

But in the mess and the setbacks, there is still beauty. There is still goodness. There is still joy.

His presents hadn’t arrived, so I wrapped up items that were like the ones he would be receiving for him to open. Little glimmers of what’s to come. His Birthday is going to be extended.

We couldn’t go to my mom’s, so she packaged the food and I stopped by to grab the containers. I placed a tablecloth and candles on the table and we ate in our dining room by candlelight.

(Continued in captions)

These two have become inseparable. And it makes my

These two have become inseparable. And it makes my mama heart so happy 💗💗

#siblings #bestfriends #inseparabile #friendsforlife #summertime

Some woke up today excited and eager to face whate

Some woke up today excited and eager to face whatever comes their way.

Some woke up today tired and wanting to crawl back under the covers and into their bed.

Some are feeling heartache and pain like they have never felt and are wondering how they can possibly get through this day.

Some are anticipating a day filled with joy and excitement and memories that will last a lifetime.

Some people’s hearts are grieving. Others are joyous. Some are anxious. Others are depressed.

Some woke up today facing trials and pain and longing and struggle. Addictions. Financial struggles. Marital problems. Sickness. Hospitalization of a loved one. Broken relationships. Uncertainty of how to move forward when their world seems to be falling apart.

Some woke up today with their hearts filled with excitement and possibility and joy for all that has happened and all that is about to come.

Friends, we are all facing something.

Joy. Pain. Happiness. Struggles.
They can reside so close to one another, as life takes unexpected turns.

I pray whatever you may be facing today, that God comforts you as only He is able. I pray for the grieving hearts and the hearts filled with joy.

I pray your needs are met. I pray you are surrounded by loved ones. I pray for peace to fill your heart and flood your soul. The peace that surpasses all understanding.

Friends, let’s give kindness today to all we encounter.
Because unless we know someone well, we don’t know what they may be facing.
And for some, today may be the greatest day.
And for others, the hardest.

So let’s move forward in love and kindness and empathy and prayer.

To all we encounter.

Truly Yours,
Jen❤

#speaklove #bekind #everyoneisgoingthroughsomething

So grateful God takes what is broken and makes it

So grateful God takes what is broken and makes it new 💗

I am on my way home from Michigan with one husband

I am on my way home from Michigan with one husband, four children, and two cats stuffed in a minivan overflowing with more stuff than I knew could possibly fit inside.

Oh, and strapped to the top of our clown car of sorts, there’s a turtle top and a large duffel bag with straps that slap against the side every once in awhile to make sure we are staying alert and awake.

There are bags under my eyes and some remnants of smeared mascara from the buckets of tears I cried this morning when we left and I hugged my dad and had to tell him goodbye.

He texted me about 20 minutes after we left and told me he couldn’t stop crying.

Because that’s my dad. He cries. Openly and unabashedly. And that’s one of the millions and millions of things I love about him.

I told him how sad I was, too.

I am sad to be leaving today.

I am tired from packing and a little emotionally weary from the goodbyes and the reality that we won’t be returning for a while.

But more than anything I’m grateful for the time we’ve had. With family and with friends. Eating and swimming and laughing and just being together.

It’s hard to leave people and places we love.

But how fortunate are we to have had the time together at all.

How very fortunate.

#homewardbound #gratefulheart #itssohardtosaygoodbye #upnorthmichigan

The other brings peace 💗

The other brings peace 💗

We have talked for years about going to the U.P. a

We have talked for years about going to the U.P. and today we finally made it.

It did not disappoint. 💗

#upperpenninsula #tahquamenonfalls #nature #goodforthesoul

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