Meet and Greet Mondays....

I decided to occasionally tell you all about special people in my life....hopefully on Mondays? We'll see. I feel like their lives are inspiring and should be shared. I may not reveal all about them at once, but wanted to at least begin to introduce you to them. So, this will be the first.....

We were so blessed to have my sister-in-law, Erin, and kiddos here last week. Austin (5), Olivia (3), and Eliana (6 months-ish). The kiddos adore each other and had a blast. And Erin is....well, incredible. While the hubs can obviously lay claim to knowing her first since he is her older brother, we could argue about who loves her the most:) She is DEAR to me.

If you met her, what would strike you first is her beauty. She is absolutely gorgeous. Huge smile, bright eyes, long and lean....just beautiful. But, followed closely behind that observation would be her warmth. She's never met a stranger. She makes you feel like you are the only person in the room and that you are the most interesting person she's ever met. And all of it is sincere.

As you get to know her more you would see that she is so committed to her walk with the Lord. She just wants to be sanctified, glorify Him, and live out the gospel in her own life and share it with others daily.

She's an amazing wife to Brian. She supports him in his work, she loves him well...exactly where he is, and she helps to encourage his strengths and stand in the gap of his weaknesses.

She's also an amazing mom. She disciplines and trains her children (my sweet nephew and nieces) with gentleness, love, grace, and truth. She plays creatively and is so fun and energetic.

For all of these reasons, Erin is a hero of mine. I look to her to be challenged and inspired in my faith, and in my role as wife and mom. Perhaps, though, what I treasure more than all of that is her friendship. We have many of the same struggles, and are often walking through them at the same time. She encourages me to press on, she challenges me to dig deeper and allow the Lord to work, and she loves me no matter what. She seeks after life changing truth, is so wise, and has the gift of passing that on to others in a precious manner. She truly leaves a mark for Christ in all her relationships.

She would deny all of this....or down play it....because that's who she is....humble. I'm sure she'd like me to mention that she isn't perfect.....but, instead let me just say that she is incredible and real. No one is perfect right? But, everyone should be so blessed as to have a friend like her. And if you have the opportunity to meet her or do life with her....treasure it. She's a rare gem. And while all glory is due to Christ, and that's how she would prefer I leave this, I would like to say that she was fashioned by God in an extra special way. Love you, E!