This could get a little awkward...

That's not only the title of the post, it's a warning. Ready?

Some unpleasant things have happened to a few dear friends of mine recently. I won't speak of their situations specifically, but I will say that the things that have taken place are unpleasant enough for me to go to a prayerful state of mind. Yes. I pray.

I pray to a God that I fully believe in. I consider myself to be a Christian. I'm not always good one, but I do try to be. I attend the same non-denominational church I've been going to since I was young. I've attended other churches with friends, but ultimately found that I don't agree with what those churches stand for as much as I agree with the one I currently attend. Though, if you take away nothing else from reading this, I hope you will remember the following: I do not agree with everything my chosen church teaches. I don't not think that my beliefs are absolute and everyone else is wrong. There are a good many points I take issue with. Over the past few years, my faith has been even tested by members of that church. But I press on because that's just how I am. I enjoy the company and fellowship of my fellow church members and it's a place where I feel safe. I don't talk about faith and religion much. It's a very private part of my life; not because I'm ashamed, but because I don't feel the need to put it out there to be judged. I also believe that if you so chose, you should find your own path to God. You don't need to follow mine. So I keep to myself. I'm happy to answer questions or direct you to a person/place where you can find answers, but I'm not an evangelist. I make far too many mistakes and am not comfortable enough in my spiritual and biblical knowledge to be a leader of any kind. I honestly don't want that responsibility.

All of that aside, the most important aspect of my personal faith is prayer. Praying helps me collect my thoughts, it calms me down, it gives me comfort, and I can do it when ever and where ever I want. Most of the time you won't even know I've done it. And hey, if it turns out that I'm completely wrong about God, then my thoughts and wishes are still sent out into the universe. I'm confident those thoughts and wishes will find their way to the person that needs them one way or another.

I understand that faith, spirituality, religion, and/or prayer isn't for everyone. I'm okay with that. As much as I may disagree with someone else's beliefs, I'm certainly not in any position to judge them. That's not my job. I've come to the conclusion that my purpose in this life is pretty simple. I'm here to be a friend, a wife, a daughter/granddaughter/niece/cousin, a mom, and a good person. I'm here to try to make the world a better place. That's it. In it's most basic form, that is my purpose. One way I know to achieve that is to pray.

This is going to get mixed responses; mostly silent ones. Some of you will just go, "Okay." Others will be disappointed in me. A few may appreciate what I've said. You don't have to like it or agree with it. All I can ask is that you respect it. Whatever your reaction is, thank you for taking the time to read this.

Elle