Hope & the Illusion of Control

Hope Matters

Hey, Hope Buddies!

I’m glad to be back with you this week. I spent my creative energies elsewhere last week and have spent this week preparing to be and being with family. However, I couldn’t let another week pass without dropping in here.

Today’s hopeletter is about control—rather the illusion of it. My entire life I’ve heard this word bandied around in different spaces for a variety of reasons. I like to believe I have control over my life, and to a certain extent I do based on the decisions I make through free will. Yet, when I make those decisions and things don’t quite work out as planned, I have to take a step back and acknowledge Who is truly in control.

Now, I didn't show up here to get into an existential debate about control and who has it. This is personal, not between me and you. This hopeletter is based in my reality; and if it reverberates with you, awesome. If not, there are other great writers who might have written something more aligned with your thought processes and feelings. With that, I digress.

I’ll make this brief, as I don’t have much to say on the subject other than this. There have been times in my life when I’ve made plans and decisions that didn’t always result in good outcomes. Sometimes, I knew they were good ones, and at other times I knew they weren’t. No matter the decision or my plan, things always worked out as they were destined, even if and especially when I had to take the long way around.

The more I realize God is in control of my life, the more I’m able to relax and rely on Him for guidance. The more I realize He is in control, the less bothered I am about things that are happening around me. The more I realize He is in control, the more capable I believe I am to do the hard things.

As I prepare to show up in big ways for myself and others in 2025, I lay all my plans and endeavors at His feet, recognizing that God has the final say in all things concerning me. If I have to shift those plans because the Lord speaks something different to my heart, I have no problem with that. Now, I might act out a little first 😆. But I’m learning to get over myself and shift quickly with the knowledge that He knows what’s best, and it’ll will all work out for my good.

Hope Buddies, as we round out this year and prepare for the next, I hope and pray your plans align with God’s. Remember Jeremiah 29:11, but also remember verses 1-10, especially when it feels hard and things don’t seem to be working out, although you know your plans are aligned with His.

Sending love to and am grateful for each of you reading this hopeletter, and I plan to see you back here next week. ☺️

💜,

Parthenia

Coffee Matters

This week I got to enjoy a delicious new coffee with two of my coffee buddies.

Now, these coffee buddies are regular, store-buying drip coffee drinkers, who don’t typically participate in my coffee variety shenanigans. However, I just knew they’d like this one. It was a gift from a hope buddy, who supports my coffee variety shenanigans, although she’s not a daily coffee drinker.

This coffee is a special blend created by Northshore Specialty Coffee Co. for Mistletoe Marketplace, which is a huge local event that spans about a week in November.

As the bag suggests, it’s bright and smooth, which is also why I knew my coffee buddies would enjoy it. 😁 It fairly screams, “Drink me for breakfast, with breakfast, or just in the morning!” In short, a great breakfast blend for sure. It’s not available on the website, only locally. So, you’ll just have to take my word for it…or maybe if you reach out to Northshore, they’ll ship you some “All Is Bright” especially.

Are you already thinking about and planning for 2025 or just making your way through the remainder of 2024?

I appreciate you taking the time to read this hopeletter about my life and coffee. Please share with a friend who could use a little hope or coffee recommendation.