Art Journal - Take 1

Something I have really been wanting to do is create an "art journal."  Simply put.  If you know me, then you know how out of control my doodles can be and how I seem to write on absolutely everything.  It's true.  I admire people who can keep up posts and journals consistently, and I want to do the same.  So, I figured that mixing art and writing would be an easy way to do this.  Just a warning, this is nowhere near what I want it to be or how I want it to look.  Some pages look quite pitiful compared to the wildly creative ones I have pinned on Pinterest.  But isn't that how it always is? :)  Here's a look at what I have going on in the art journal so far:

The cover: burlap and a pretty letter that I can never seem to get right.  This was a big decision.

The first page, also a big decision.  I went with flowers because I really just felt like painting flowers.  This "title" is taken from John 16:33.

I'm really into this rainbow/color changing thing, can't you tell?

I love this spread, from "Like Incense/Sometimes By Step" by Hillsong Live.  In the middle is actually a prayer envelope with smoke that I thought turned out really pretty.  Even if my brother couldn't tell that's what it was.  

The second page wraps up the song and kind of a crazy version of the sun.

One thing that's really important about art journaling to me is not limiting yourself to the way the pages come.  Like the envelope instead of a page, I changed it up a little for the list of favorite things at the moment.  

A far-away glance at the New Year's page, with a quick list of things I want to do or want to do better in 2012 and on the opposite page some copy to myself :). 

Another quick shot of the cover and some handy supplies.  Thumbs up if you can guess the music video in the background.

Hopefully you've really enjoyed this.  I can't wait to really get into journalling and making things really cute and creative.  I would love to see other people get into this and share pictures!  It's fun and totally limitless.

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A quick note about last night's blog:  I want to thank each and every one of you for reading and so many who sent kind words and comments.  God has just continued to show His sovereignty since posting and I loved hearing from you and the way you can relate.  I am so thankful to know people who are encouraging and eager to hear from the Lord.  If you haven't read my blog from last night on prayer, check it out!  

Like always, thanks for reading!

-M-

Quarter-Heartedly

Doesn't  it seem that we get the best thoughts in the most inconvenient places?  My best songs and Carrie Underwood high notes are in the shower without a pen or Simon.  My best jokes are when no one is around and about 5 minutes late.  And some of my best (for lack of better word, you'll see later) "God moments" happen in the car.  I know people who turn down their radio and talk to God while they drive.  For me, he has to reach all the way through my earthly cloud of iTunes and blasting heat and speak over Maroon 5.  That's some serious business.  But really, some of the most heart-tugging words from the heart-pumper himself happen in the car.  This one is no exception.

Earlier when a friend send me a prayer request, I was heartbroken.  A woman had shot and killed her husband and it was nothing short of a moment where I should have dropped to my knees to ask God for comfort for this family.  But I went back to painting in my art journal.  Mistake #19384729.  Now that I sit in my car with the radio up, I wait for my brothers who are watching a movie at a friend's.  While they finish, I go back through my messages and see the one from my friend earlier.  Re-reading it, I immediately realize that I do need to stop and pray for this family.  I mean, it's terrible.
So I rummage through a few quick words and stop after the first sentence.  Or maybe I was stopped.  Either way, it hit me, I wasn't being prayerful.  Unfortunately, that's not a first.  I realize that I just wasn't prayerful enough.  Not like I should be.  Not like He deserves.  A lot of times, it's easy for me to just ramble off words to God and then be done with it.  I wasn't praying whole-heartedly.  Not even half-heartedly.  Maybe quarter-heartedly.  But it sucks fully.

My first thought after realizing I was throwing empty words in the air and calling them a prayer was "God knows what's going on.  He's going to take care of them anyways." A big problem for me sometimes is to feel like my words don't matter.  That I'm just one person and what if God doesn't even hear me?  Of course, the Bible goes on to prove its purpose.  There are so many verses that prove me wrong.  1 John 5:14 says "And this is the confidence we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us" (ESV).  Thats only one example.  We have to believe this and know that when we truly call on Jesus, he is eager to hear from us, and takes in our every word because he poured out every drop.

Then God dropped the truth bomb, of course.  What if more and more people had the same attitude as me? What if all Christ's followers began to think "well, I don't have to really pray about this.  God knows.  Plus, there are tons of others praying about it." Actually, no.  In this case that would be false.  It's a heavy burden to think that I could cause such distress, but really.  I don't want to be foolish enough to dance around it.

So, like he always does because of his unfailing love for me, God softened this hardened heart in the prayer department.  I leave you with challenge and encouragement.  I challenge you to really observe your prayer life.  Wipe up the carelessness and pack up the empty words you may have.  And if you don't, then you're not out of this one.  Since you're such a prayer warrior (for the Glory of God of course, don't get me wrong), please pray for us who struggle.  But you probably already knew that :).  While this can be a kick in the stomach, here's a kind word to the heart.  God hears you.  God loves us.  If that weren't true, he wouldn't answer the prayers we so desperately whisper in the darkness or joyfully sing loud in the brightest light.  No, God doesn't rely on your words to know what to do.  God has done many things without you.  He doesn't have to use you.  But he chooses to.  And the radiance of the light you dance in after He does, after his glory shines for all to see because of what he's done for you, it's warmer than the summer day that I so hunger for on this late December night.

"Rejoice always, pray continually, and give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." - 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18.

What I Did Today

Since I haven't blogged in exactly two months, I figured I would have to start back to 3rd grade writing prompts.  It actually works well, because I genuinely want to tell you what I did today.

My alarm went off this morning, and considering it's Saturday, that was not supposed to happen.  I don't even know how it did, because I always have it on radio alarm and it was all the way past to the next setting where it beeps annoyingly.  I wish I could blame it on my Elf on the Shelf, but I don't have one of those.  Strongly considering, but I feel that moving an elf around my room would be lonely and creepy.  Elf for Myself.  Moving on.

When I woke up, it was 9:30 and the most ideal thing to do was get up, go get coffee, deliver Angel Tree gifts, and get started studying again.  By the time I rolled out of bed and was ready to walk out the door for coffee, I realized it was 11 and I was past breakfast mode.  Still, I went to the Salvation Army to drop off Christmas presents.

Something I had been wondering about for the past couple of weeks was what happens if or when one sibling gets pulled of the tree and other siblings from the same family don't.  Obviously, I knew that probably wouldn't happen, but I was still curious how.  When I walked in with my basket, a woman and her two girls were in the back talking with the volunteer and she was explaining to them about the families, which reminded me of my question.  When they left and volunteer came to me, I asked her about it.  She graciously took me into the back room of the office suite that was filled wall-to-wall with large brown boxes.  She showed me that every box represented a family in need and on the box had tags showing how many people were in that family.  It was so organized and a perfect system.  She told me that after the last day, all the children who didn't get gifts brought in were bought gifts by the Salvation Army using the money from the kettles by bell-ringers.  She said all of the ones on the tree were the only ones left, but when I saw the tree at Wal-Mart later this afternoon, there were still so many.  Instead of being heartbroken, my heart had so much more rest knowing that they would have gifts on Christmas anyways because of the wonderful things that the Salvation Army does.  Hopefully you want to be a part of that, too, because today I realized that even dropping a few pennies in the kettles makes a difference.

Later on, I was browsing Pinterest like I never do, and I came across all my hopes and dreams in one pin.  Not really, but kind of yes.  Art Journals.  I am so in love, and not like I need another journal, but I have to do this.  I quickly added it to the things I will be doing (aka trying to do and actually keep up with) starting at the beginning of the year.  I'm really excited about it.  It will probably serve no purpose, but at least it will be a cute purposeless thing.



Speaking of things to do for next year, I have compiled a list today:
1.  Read more books (finish my "books to read" list)
2.  Make an art journal and actually keep it up
3.  Finish my current quiet time book and start a super awesome more in-depth study.
4.  Eat better/exercise more blah blah blahhhh
5.  Talk about my feelings more instead of just keeping them inside.  We shall see.  I think no.
6.  Actually use my cupcake maker

This is probably the most awful blog post of all time and I really have no idea where it came from.  I think my day was weird.  I think it was slightly overwhelming and emotional.  Maybe.  Goooodnightttttttt.

Molly's Favorite Things

Whether you like it or not, it's finally FALL (please ignore the 80 degree weather)!  Here are a few of my favorite things for this season that I think are worthy of you checking out and some little pieces of my fall wishlist!

1.  PAN AM

I'm horrible with series on TV, but I'm actually really into this one.  Pan Am is an ABC (find it Sunday nights at 9pm central) series about 1960's airline attendants and pilots as they fly around the globe.  I love timepieces, so their fabulous clothes and the way they carry themselves definitely drew me in.  Also, it might have something to do with Frank Sinatra's "Come Fly With Me" being used in the previews.  And yes, the real Frank Sinatra ;).

  

2.  Music

Some music is just fall-ish to me, especially really chill, pretty things to ride around late at night with the windows down to.  Some of my favorites on repeat right now are:

• Dance With Me Baby/Out of My Head/Falling in Love/And Then You Love Someone - Ben Rector
• Lifetime/Hesitate/Thing About Us - Steve Moakler
• You Are More/Alive In Us - Hillsong Live
• We Owned the Night - Lady Antebellum
• My Story - Addison Road
• What I Know - Parachute
• Heartbeat - The Fray

DISCLAIMER:  I'm NOT one for country music, especially the new stuff, but Hunter Hayes has a beautiful voice and new album that I'm willing to forgive him for such a genre.  Check it.  Moving on.

3.  Pinterest

This is a very large reason why I can no longer take my computer to Microbiology or start on homework before 11:00 at night.  If you need an unreasonable amount of new ideas or a new addiction of which to spend an unreasonable amount of time, check out Pinterest.  Here you can find hundreds of pictures across the web at one time and one place.  It shows you things you might like (mine are all crafts, flowers, clothes, etc.) based on things you "like" while signing up.  Basically, it's just a virtual bulletin board that you pin photos on.  You do need a membership, but it's free and all it takes is sending in your email which later sends an "invitation."  You will find that lots of your Facebook friends are already pinning away and you can connect with them there, too.

4.  Cape Coats

This is one of my favorite things for this season fashion-wise.  How classy?  I'm glad that 30's-ish/60's-ish clothes are now-ish, but I think I can give a big "I told you so."  :)  This one is from Forever 21, but you can find them pretty much anywhere.  Yay.

5.  Raspberry Hot White Chocolate Mocha

I'm a long-time fan of the White Mocha, but drizzle in a little raspberry flavor, and I'm in love.  Playing around with flavors is so fun to me, and this one was definitely a success.  It's sweet and warm and perfect and all it needs is a drizzly chilly night to walk bundled up in.  With a scarf.  Yes.

6.  Ulta's Salon Formula Polish in "The Jungle Look"

It's hard to believe I'm into a non-traditional nail color, but I couldn't resist when I saw this.  Not only is this Ulta color $2, but perfect for fall.  I'm really into jewel tones this year and this one is great.  I have to admit, I thought it was more teal in the store, but it's definitely green.  I like it though, I think it's definitely worth a try.

Books I want to read:

• By the Time You Read This - Lola Jaye
• Never Let Me Go - Kazuo Ishiguro
• Fearless - Max Lucado

Movies I want to see:

• Continue with watching all of AFI's list of 100 movies everyone must see (http://www.afi.com/100years/movies10.aspx), only 79 more :|.
• Crazy, Stupid Love

Fall bucket list:

• Try a polka-dot cake
• And then 3 other new recipes
• Study more
• Stress less
• Start the "Beautiful Things" art project
• Finish the two books I started (Redeeming Love and Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire)

Stories

True Story:  This was an awful week.  I really haven’t even decided why I began to make that conclusion, but I did.  I knew it was going to be full of commitments and lots of the way too many things I throw myself into because I think I can do everything.  But I really wasn’t prepared for my brain to be completely fried and to eat my first kind of real meal today.  I had a developmental test Tuesday.  Over 4 chapters.  I found myself scrambling to find all the answers to the study guide late Monday night and early Tuesday morning, only halfway paying attention to the last two.  I had a Microbiology test today.  Enough said?  And surprise, surprise, I got half of my World Lit II mid-term sprung on me for tomorrow.  All of this happening at the same time that I had the privilege of doing Homecoming flowers for my high school.  I was supposed to leave early Friday morning for delivery, but that’s changed since the test is at 8.  Worship band practice was not a success.  In fact, it was almost a nightmare.  Our brains were not functioning and it had been a crazy week for everyone.  Being in the weirdest mood ever didn’t help either.  I just didn’t want to get out of bed.  I didn’t want to see anyone or talk to anyone or leave my room.  I love life, but that might be what a depressed person feels like.  Oh yes, and I realized that either I left my straightener at home or just flat-out (no pun indented) lost it.  Either way, my hair has been curly for two days.  Sad story.

True Story:  A couple of weeks ago, my director from this summer asked me to share on the CentriKid blog as a guest blogger.  I was so excited and debated forever on which amazing “God story” from this summer to share.  I chose the coolest moment ever with a kid named Jessie, who also lost her father.  The date for the blog to be posted was determined weeks ago, and today was finally the day.  To me, it was just sharing an awesome moment God had specifically put in my life and talked about the importance of, none other than, sharing your story. 

True Story:  This morning my phone was filled with messages from my teammates from this summer.  I miss and love them so much.  It was like a mini CK text reunion and it was the most beautiful thing.  They had read the blog and they were so encouraging.  There really isn’t a way to describe how good (good isn’t even the word) it was to just hear from all of them, especially ones I haven’t really talked to since camp.  This whole thing was exactly what I needed just to get up and do something halfway productive this morning.  Like studying for Micro.  Saying that I studied enough would be telling a story.

True Story:  After taking my Micro test, I was walking through the biology building and got a message from Jessica, my director, telling me to go look at the blog comments.  On my guest post, someone had posted a comment.  It turned out to be the group leader that came with the girl and his words were so perfect to my heart.  He was touched by the post and didn’t realize how blessed we as staff are to get to spend the week sharing the Gospel with the kids.  It’s so true.  Reading that, walking outside in the 85 degree October, I got chills.  It was becoming such a full circle.  I learned to share my story at camp.  That group leader learned something from my story OF camp in that post.  It was so apparent to me how all our stories are so interconnected and I just thought to myself “what awesome proof this is that God really did created all of us,” because there’s no other way we could all be so fitting for each other’s lives.  My heart was so overwhelmed and overflowing with the joy and knowing that God is so faithful.  He’s pretty good at writing a story.

True Story:  The joy that my teammates bring me is immeasurable.  And getting to talk to Kaci so much is a huge blessing.  Today, she told me a story about her and a girl she met at school.  She had no idea why and asked God over and over why He had placed that girl in her life.  Kaci told me about how they met and conversations they had and how confused she was about why all of it was going on.  I didn’t really have anything to say to Kaci, and I hated it.  I hate not having something to say to someone who needs answers.  I don’t like an open-ended story.

True Story:  BCM was beautiful.  During prayer time, a couple of my band mates shared that some of their family members were going through cancer-scares or other sicknesses.  I immediately thought back to my post and lesson that God had taught me about our stories and sharing them.  Even in these rough situations, it’s really cool to be able to share with them and let them know that I had gone through the same thing and could be there for them.  And really mean it.  The message was great too, about the Parable of the Sower that Jesus told (Matthew 13).  He emphasized how important it was to throw and sow our seeds EVERYWHERE, because we never know how the ground (other's hearts) will be where they land.  Cool story.

True Story:  This horrible, no good, very bad week has ended on the most beautiful, heart-filling, God-created note ever.  It’s practically Friday.  My psychology and micro test were both (drumroll) incredibly comfortable.  Even the last page of notes I didn’t have time to cram about DNA were brought back to my memory of taking AP Bio in high school.  My mid-term will only be 8 questions.  I get to go home after that.  I am almost finished with homecoming flowers (I’m really soaking in this fresh flowers in my room thing).  My blog is posted.  It touched at least just one person, and that’s all that matters.  I was encouraged the most when I needed it the most.  Worship band went 100 times better and we felt that much better about it, too.  The Parable of the Sower came in need.  Earlier I said that I had no idea what to say to Kaci about her new friend.  I realized right then that that was totally cool, because God was going to give me the words later.  I told Kaci about throwing her seeds of the Gospel all over the place.  I told her we might not understand why God brings certain people to us, even when we feel inadequate.  It’s because we don’t know if their hearts are thick soil or thing soil or covered in weeds or prickled with thorns or dry and thirsty.  So to make sure they hear it, the most important thing they ever need to hear, we have to just toss out those seeds.  I hope it helped her as much as it blessed me.  All because Jesus was really cool and knew I would need to hear that parable {a story J}.  Oh yes, and he gave me a pretty cool story, too.  And you.  So share it.  Because no one else is like you.  No matter what has happened, no matter how many pages have turned, no matter if you wish you could tear out a few chapters along the way or if you feel like you’re getting ready for the fairy tale ending, you have one of the most beautiful things from the most beautiful One: a story.

Doesn't Stop There

Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and your lives will produce every kind of good fruit. All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better.
- Colossians 1:10 NLT 


It's September (almost October, almost November, almost CHRISTMAS!) and now I can officially say that the pure joy I had planted deep  in my heart from camp was not just a "camp high."  Even for a staffer I could see where this could be a problem, not just for kids.  But over and over, our director reminded us how our ministry should continue, how it doesn't stop there.


Being back in the "real world" has been a crazy-amazing blessing.  I miss my kids like crazy and I think of their sweet faces and jokes and stories often, but I am glad to be going through my normal college-coffee-Christ (yeah, I just made that up) routine.  And not in that order, mind you :).  Why in the world would I be so happy to be back to stressful nights of studying, yelling at Blackboard, and getting up for 8am class?  Because God has seriously been BLOWING MY MIND!


For once in my life, I feel like things are coming together.  Granted, every time I think I have God figured out, He throws some fun little surprises in there, but still.  I really feel like He's seriously constantly at work.  Aren't we all always supposed to know that?  Yes, but wait until you really know it.  Wait until you feel it.  


So you probably know I changed my major (again).  It's funny how you say you'll NEVER 1.) be a teacher and 2.) major in anything to do with art.  Bummer.  Because you'll come right back to it. I gave up becoming a nurse and an occupational therapist for something much less cool-sounding, but I don't care.  I can honestly say I've never been happier about my career-to-be or been so sure of it.  PLus, I don't know if they'd let me Bedazzle scrubs.  God provides calling? :)


Something else that has been pretty cool is that I have been blessed with the need and want to grow within our BCM (Baptist Collegiate Ministry).  What's even cooler is that at the same time God laid getting super plugged-in to college ministry by BCM on my heart, they felt the need to form a full worship band.  Crazy?  Yeah, I know.  I have been graciously blessed with the opportunity to lead worship with a group of beautiful people who are so willing to give their hearts and time for the glory of Christ and becoming men and women of worship.  They are SO awesome!  I am so thankful for this.  To me, it's a perfect picture of the sovereignty of God and His plan...even when I don't deserve it.


Crazy things are happening in my life and I love it.  This is really what it's like living for Christ!  I don't want you to think I'm bragging or boasting or blogging (alliteration not intended) just to show you "how great of a Christian I am."  Psh.  I will never be able to say that, nor do I ever deserve to.  But maybe sharing will let someone, just one person, see how important and beautiful and AMAZING it is to grow in Christ.  It reminds me of a time God slammed a pretty little lesson right in front of me.  I was going through a friend's photos on Facebook a year or two back.  She was young and still in high school, but she had a baby.  As I clicked through the pictures of the day her baby was born, I was thinking about her whole situation.  It had to be scary.  It surely wasn't right.  I would never make a decision like that.  But then right in the middle of my judgement that wasn't even mine to do, I saw it.  The expressions on her face, on the father's face, were so priceless as they gazed at their newborn daughter.  It was just a look of pure love.  That's when I realized, even while I'm disagreeing with and judging what other people are doing, even when I'm living just a normal life, God is working still.  He was still working all around me, even if I wouldn't let Him work in me.  Truth bombs.  Since then, I have never wanted to stop growing in God.


I think that the verse at the beginning sums it all up.  You didn't have to even read my rambling to understand the awesome-ness of God's word He revealed to me today.  Revel in that verse.  Soak it up.  Dance around the room to the sound of it.  And grow.

Don't Miss It

Photo by ingridtaylar on Flickr

I don’t know what goes on in dental school.  They obviously have to talk about teeth, and how to fix them and whatnot, but sometimes I seriously think they have lessons over the most awkward times to start a conversation.  Like when they’re about to put their hands in your mouth.  It never fails.  Every time the hygienist takes you back to the room and seats you, you get comfortable, she grabs her tools, and right before she starts to work, she asks you something kind of important.  For instance “did you do anything fun this summer?” 

I’m sure you all know that I have just had the most amazing summer of my life sharing Christ with kids at camp.  I was even sporting my orange OMC shirt that day.  That seems to be the perfect question now, but for me to even try to tell someone about my summer could take hours.  There are so many stories, so many awesome moments that God was so clear, that I could talk for days.  So as she asked me the question, I contemplated how to answer.  Of course I told her that I had just gotten back from an amazing summer working Centrikid, a kid’s church camp.  She asked for the usual details, like where we went, what we did, and I quickly wrapped up those general things while still wondering if she understood how cool it was.  It didn’t really matter though, because she was already making her way to the x-ray machine.

As I drove away from the dentist’s office, I realized the opportunity that I had to tell her about Christ.  Maybe not full-on “Jesus died for your sins and if you don’t believe that then, well, I can tell you where you’re going!”, but just telling her how my team and I served God this summer by telling kids about Him was just a way to show an example of His love.  It wasn’t much, but you never know if that little bit could get someone thinking.  Telling her about camp didn’t send her to her knees, but what if it planted a seed?

One of the things I knew I would miss about camp was the easy opportunities we had to share the Gospel, to openly show those campers how much God loves them.  But the truth is, those opportunities are still all around us.  I told my kids every week that we had to remember that there are people all around us, who live beside us, who see us every day, who sit beside us at school who don’t know Jesus.  Camp has been an easy lead-in to sharing Christ, because it’s easy to share the amazing God stories since there were so many.  But lots of other people don’t have camp to lean back on for sharing Christ to others.  I want to encourage you that even if you didn’t have a crazy summer like I did, you still have a crazy amazing story that you can tell.  If you’re a Christian, then God HAS done something amazing in your life.  Maybe that time is when He changed it.  That’s what you get to tell other people.  Jesus commands us in Matthew 28:19-20, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”  It’s our job as Christians.  The opportunity is all around you.  Don’t miss it.


lovelovelove
-m-