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A book for the broken hopefuls… Even If Not: Living, Loving, and Learning in the in Between

Even If Not: Living, Loving and Learning in the in Between

kaitlyn_bouch

📚Author of #EvenIfNotBook
✏️Writer: kaitlynbouchillon.com
☕️Lover of iced coffee
💻Virtual Assistant

On repeat over here: Borrowing worry from tomorrow

On repeat over here: Borrowing worry from tomorrow only takes away from today. Let peace lead the way. Go slow. Rest well. Take your time and breathe deep. You don’t have to rush. It’s okay to just be.⁣
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The first image is my own, but the others are from @andrearhowey, @margot.and.co, @morganharpernichols and @jenniferbianca.

I made a mistake last night.⁣ ⁣ I opened Twitt

I made a mistake last night.⁣
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I opened Twitter. Within 3 minutes, my heart was racing, my hands clammy. Disappointment is in the air and the entire world doesn’t know where to turn as everything changes by the minute.⁣
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This is going to sound cliché, but it’s honestly the thing anchoring me right now so I’ll offer it anyway...⁣
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I am so grateful that God doesn’t change, that He isn’t surprised or panicked, and that the world is securely in His hands.⁣
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(One of my small groups is currently studying Psalm 91. Verse 3 describes God as a refuge in the midst of a sudden, deadly disease so HOW’S THAT for timing.)⁣
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I’m a slow processor. I don’t know when (or if) I’ll wrap words around all that’s happening. But I’ve been thinking, listening, praying, and washing my hands. I’m paying attention, and this is what I see:⁣
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- Neighbors leaving toilet paper at doorsteps⁣
- Strangers sharing resources, tips and courses⁣
- Church in living rooms across the nation⁣
- Companies taking care of their employees, not the bottom line⁣
- Singles staying home, completely alone, to protect their neighbors⁣
- Families figuring out a new normal, practicing patience moment by moment⁣
- Health care professionals tirelessly working to fight for and care for our loved ones⁣
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I see beauty. I see a sense of together-ness that feels a little like I imagine the early church in Acts, a community sharing burdens and giving sacrificially out of love.⁣
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There’s loss and disappointment and fear and worry. It’s all there. I know it, see it, and feel it. But faith, hope and love are there too. And in the coming days, I want to be even more mindful of where I look and what I look for.⁣
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Where are you seeing goodness? Who or what is bringing you hope or joy right now? Tell me in the comments. Brag on your people. We could all use an extra dose of hope today. 💛⁣
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P.s. This isn’t really about Twitter. It’s a reminder to myself that where I look and what I turn to matters greatly. #kaitlynsees2020 #beautifulordinarynow

When fall turned to winter (which hello, feels lik

When fall turned to winter (which hello, feels like 87 years ago), I wrote a short “blessing for the changing of the season” for @incourage.⁣⁣⁣
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It seems like more and more changes every single day, and I’ve found myself #preachingtomyownheart as I re-read these lines morning and evening.⁣⁣⁣
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Passing them along in hopes that they’ll encourage you and your loved ones today…⁣⁣⁣
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A blessing for the changing of the season:⁣⁣⁣
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In every high and every low, may we remember that we do not walk alone. There is grace for each moment in a Guide who makes a way and a Friend that stays beside.⁣⁣⁣
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The seasons may change, but His love will remain the same.⁣⁣
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Instead of holding our breath in fear or dread, may we breathe in His abundant grace and breathe out trust in the Keeper of time. With hands open and eyes fixed, may we rest and remember:⁣⁣⁣
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For everything there is a season, and He’s with us in every one.⁣⁣⁣
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—⁣⁣⁣
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Please feel free to save (tap the bookmark) to re-read or share (tap the paper airplane) with others who may need this. The idea of us all sitting inside (please please please care for your neighbors by #socialdistancing) repeating these words makes me a little teary. God, we love You. Help us love one another well.⁣⁣
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#beautifulordinarynow #kaitlynsees2020

God, it seems like fear is spreading faster than a

God, it seems like fear is spreading faster than a virus. We’re walking straight into the unknown, holding more questions than answers in the hands we’re washing meticulously over and over again. ⁣
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We don’t know what tomorrow will bring and honestly, it feels a little bit like the world is spinning wildly out of control.⁣
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But the news is not new to You.⁣
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We’re so used to worrying and hurrying. Remind us how to rest well. Grant us wisdom to do the next right thing, no matter how small. Teach us to choose “even if” instead of “what if.”⁣
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Show us how to grieve the losses that will continue to appear before us in the coming days, and give us eyes to see the blessings in the midst.⁣
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You told us to love our neighbors and to be a light in the darkness. When the pews sit empty and we who were made for community willingly choose isolation out of love, not fear, remind us that you are with us in our loneliness.⁣
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Practicing #socialdistancing is a sacrifice. Love is costly and often inconvenient. But it’s a price worth paying, and You know that better than we ever will.⁣
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May we be a people who love well and wait well, who hold tightly to hope even in the unknown, who believe that the God who sees is greater than any invisible disease.⁣
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May love, peace, hope and kindness spread faster and farther than any virus ever could. ⁣
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Empty pews, or light in the darkness? God, give us eyes to see.⁣
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#beautifulordinarynow #kaitlynsees2020 #thenextrightthing #stayawaketolove

This. Right. Here. “Kingdom success is not about

This. Right. Here. “Kingdom success is not about financial security, retweets, political power, large conferences, book deals, follower counts or talent — it’s about faithfulness to Christ.” (Am I still reading and re-reading this quote from one of the sermons at church last month? 100% yes. I mean 👏🏻)

One Word can change everything.⁣ ⁣ #evenifnotb

One Word can change everything.⁣
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#evenifnotbook #faithoverfear ✍🏻: @cellardesigns

Hi, it’s me. Standing outside with blue light gl

Hi, it’s me. Standing outside with blue light glasses on to make an announcement. Two, really.⁣
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1. I'd love to make a (free) custom lock screen for you. Watch my IG Stories today for all the info.⁣
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2. Somehow I made it to March 4th without telling a soul my word of the year. (Do you have a word for 2020? Tell me below!)⁣
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Every year, I write a letter and tuck it away to read again as the year ends. WITHOUT FAIL it makes me cry. Dear future Kaitlyn, just go around and prepare yourself.⁣
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Here's an excerpt... visit KaitlynBouchillon.com (linked in my bio) for the rest, and to read more of why the word I didn’t want for 2020 — see — became my word of the year.⁣
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“The promise is true: one day, our faith will be made sight. But that day is not today. And so here and now, in this in between, there’s a question you must answer. What lens will you look through?⁣
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There’s meaning in the mundane. Don’t rush through and hurry quite so fast to the other side or you’ll miss the miracle in the middle. It’s going to take time, probably more time than you would have chosen, but God is never late so you might as well slow down and look around while you’re here. Don’t be fooled. There’s beauty in the ordinary.⁣
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When it seems like no one sees you, when you feel like unwanted leftovers, overlooked or picked over, know that this is true even if you can’t see how just yet: you are never hidden from His sight.⁣
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And when you can hardly see or hear or feel Him near, remember that just because you can’t clearly see something doesn’t mean that it doesn’t exist. It’s okay to ask “where were You?” He won’t shame you; He’ll show you.⁣
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There is One who never takes His eyes off you, who just can’t bring Himself to look away. You are seen. All of you, every worry and fear and inch and tear and smile and sorrow and freckle. His name is El Roi, the God who sees, and He will see you through."

It’s been a heavy week and it’s only Tuesday.

It’s been a heavy week and it’s only Tuesday. In Nashville, in Birmingham, maybe where you are too…⁣
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“That looks like a blanket,” I thought as I looked up and saw a deep, dark blue stretching across the sky. But as I look at it again now, I can see something else: a shield and a promise.⁣
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We fought in church on Sunday.⁣
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And I don’t think I’ve ever loved my church more.⁣
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I have too much to say about it for an Instagram caption, but let me be clear: fighting doesn’t just mean arguing. It also looks like prayer. It sounds like worship.⁣
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We publicly called Satan on his own game. We talked openly about mental illness and depression, about spiritual warfare, about the increasing amount of targeted public attacks and the silent battles so many are facing.⁣
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Chairs screeched against the floor as we formed circles and prayed together, all these voices rising up at once to fight back. To pray. To worship.⁣
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It’s one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen.⁣
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But the fight isn’t over. Oh, the war has been won. But for now, the battle continues.⁣
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And so I’m extra grateful tonight for clouds that cover like a shield and comfort like a blanket.⁣
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He sees and He knows and He cares. He’s here in the unknown and the in between, in the chapters we didn’t see coming and the darkness of night. Even here, light is poking through. Dawn is already and always on the way.⁣
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“His massive arms are wrapped around you, protecting you. You can run under his covering of majesty and hide. His arms of faithfulness are a shield.” - Psalm 91⁣
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#prayfornashville #evenifnotbook #spiritualwarfare #beautifulordinarynow #kaitlynsees2020

Do you ever read a verse and see something brand n

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