Blessings Or Lessons? A Look at the Relationships God Has Give YOU {Illustrated Faith Monthly Devotional Kit Review} #IllustratedFaith #Biblejournaling

** As part of the Dayspring Illustrated Faith Launch Team, I received this month's devotional kit 'Blessings or Lessons' in exchange for this post. All thoughts are 100% my own. Post contains affiliate links.**

Do you have people in your life that you know can only possible be in your life with a little divine intervention? So often I look at the relationships in my life and find myself thinking,

'This can only be a God thing!'

God just has this way of putting the people you need most in your life at just the moment when you need them most. One of my high school best friends is prime example:

I grew up in a Christian home and always believed in God without question. I followed the rules, did all the right things, but honestly really didn't have a true relationship with Christ and wasn't a huge fan of church for the most part. So, when a dear friend asked me to go to a Christian camp with her one summer, it probably didn't seem like a very good fit. If I wasn't a fan of church in general, why would I want to go THREE times a day, every day? I was afraid of heights so most of the camp activities weren't for me either- their giant swing, zip-line, rock wall...after years of camp, I never touched them! But I felt something pulling at me to go, so I went. It was there that I truly began to understand what being a Christian was all about. It was an experience that shaped who I am as a Christian today.

It was also where I met many amazing friends, including that high school best friend I mentioned earlier. We met during year two of camp when we just happened to pick the same room. She was a few years younger than me, but we instantly connected and became practically inseparable. I don't know what it was that drew us together but we just clicked. After camp was over that year we stayed in touch, but really only ever saw each other that one time a year. During our times apart, we discovered that while we didn't know it at the time, we were actually quite alike. We shared a common battle that not many others knew about. To this day, it is something I have only shared with VERY few, but at that time, despite seeing each other just once a year and really not knowing each other THAT well, I felt the need to share my story. So, I did. She was going through it too. When I look back on this time, I honestly don't believe I would have made it through without her there by my side going through it with me. And to think it was all because of taking a chance on an invitation that didn't make sense, but following God and trusting in Him, even if I didn't realize at the time that that was what I was doing. He knew I needed her, and he put the pieces together to make it happen.

This is only one example, when I look at the relationships in my life, I know that only God could have written these stories. How else could a small town girl have fallen for a Marine from across the world? How else could opposing views on which autism organization to support turn into a lasting friendship- not just for myself but giving my son his very first friend too? How else could a group of impatient Thirty-One consultants who joined a spoiler group to get sneak peaks turn into one of my closest groups of girlfriends, who have been there for myself and my family despite their distances? How else could a group of Bible journaling ladies with a desire to bless others turn into a daily source of encouragement and a little pick me up just when I needed it most? There is no way that these were merely chance meetings, they truly were the work of God, putting these people into my life because he knew that I would need them. I could not be more blessed.

But not all relationships in my life have been good ones. In fact, quite the opposite. There have been many people that have let me down and hurt me throughout my life. While I will admit I didn't always understand it at the time, I now have come to know that God put even the bad relationships in my life too...not to hurt me, but to help me learn and grow. He used those less than awesome people to bring me closer to the only relationship that matters, my relationship with Him. From those toxic relationships I learned to be stronger. I learned to be more sympathetic. I learned to forgive. I learned to lean on God. I learned to appreciate the GOOD relationships in my life. It could be easy to dwell on all of those negative encounters, but instead I choose to look at them as lessons. These lessons can truly help us to be stronger Christians, if we let them.

Whether they are blessings or lessons, all of the relationships in our life are there for a purpose. This is what the newest kit from Dayspring & Illustrated Faith is all about: Blessings or Lessons.

Each month Dayspring & Illustrated Faith offer a new monthly devotional. Each kit contains a short devotional to study throughout the month with journaling supplies that allow you to incorporate what you are reading into your journaling.. Let's take a look inside this month's kit:

• 1 devotional booklet (14 devotionals). This devotional is all about human connections and will inspire you to think about all the relationships in your life- the good and the bad! From family to friends to spouses and even coworkers, it serves as a beautiful reminder that each relationship in our life is there for a unique purpose and may just help you to discover what that is!
• 1 stamp pad. If there is one thing that I find myself using OFTEN in my Bible journaling it's a classic black stamp pad, so this is definitely a great one!
• 1 clear stamp collection with 1 sheet of cut outs enclosed. These stamps are absolutely beautiful and truly go perfectly with the devotional. I have several other stamp sets from IF but these may be my favorites! And the cut outs are AMAZING! You can see these throughout my photos in this post... offering some of the same great messages as the stamps, but in a fun colorful package!
• 1 roll of washi tape. Washi is one of my favorite journaling supplies EVER, and this might very well be my favorite thing in this kit. Featuring the phrases 'A friend loves at all times' and 'He is the ultimate bestie', it's not just super cute and fun--- it also serves as a fantastic reminder too!
  
  
  
  
• 1 package of 3 Scripture sharables. These are so much fun! They make great tip ins (using washi to add to your journaling so that you can flip it open/up allowing you to read the scripture on the other side), but are also really fun to pass along as encouragement as well. For those that send Happy Mail, these are ideal! The envelope they come in could also be really cute for storing them in your Bible, or for prayer requests too!
• 1 sticker. This is such a cute sticker and can be fun to jazz up a notebook or planner...whatever you like! I will say if used in your Bible journaling, it is wider than the typical margins, so you'll want to find an end page with more open space unless you're using an interleaved.
• 1 bow clip. I absolutely, positively love these fun decorative paper clips! They are great for marking where you are reading and can add a fun bit of detail to your pages too! I often find myself using these in my planners too!

This truly is a wonderful devotional and I loved journaling through it in my Bible. It truly made me stop again to think about all of my past and current relationships, and thank God for each and every one of them. I look forward to seeing what next month's devotional brings.

To purchase your own 'Blessings or Lessons' Kit or to see more great Illustrated Faith products from Dayspring, visit the link below.