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I hope you find here a place to rest, a place to ponder, a place that leaves small talk behind, and ultimately, a place that tethers you to the things that matter.
~ Emily

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That time when your best friends SURPRISE celebrate your husband for his 40th. I thought I was surprising him with a quick and sweet getaway with our dear friends at their beautiful new home, and could not have been more blown away when we opened the garage on the “house tour” to discover the rest of our crew who had secured sitters, had flown and driven hundreds of miles, and made for the most glorious weekend celebration we could have asked for... we laughed and played and ate and prayed and my heart is overflowing to have such rich and beautiful friendships. Happy 40th to my favorite. @marshalljamieson you’re worth it.
Lettering has become for me a practice of slowing my external landscape to bring peace and space to my internal landscape. I had a sweet conversation with my friend, Emily (@jonesdesigncompany), who is doing a daily sketch (Follow her! She is wonderful and lovely and you will indeed be inspired.) and we acknowledged how you can’t be “elsewhere” when you are creating something. Creativity demands your presence. It does not allow your mind to drift or your body to wander. It seems to be the best way I know how to “be still and know.” And so even if I am borrowing inspiration (like I did here from @lindsay_letters - thank you!) to practice, the goal is presence. And as I still my heart and move my hand across the paper, the intention behind the words somehow seeps up through my fingers and burrows into my heart. Time slows, and I carry that posture with me for hours afterward. What are you doing to create? You were made for it. Whether with a pen or a paintbrush, with phrases or with furniture, with codes or cumin, what is drawing you into the present moment to be the vision of who God created you to be? It is not for the excellence of outcome, as I am by no means a professional, but for the practice of presence. I am learning to create not for the world to critique and consume, but merely because there is something in me that finds so much joy in the process and sees the steady improvement over time as I commit to doing something I love. There is a little thrill when we fire the inner critic and listen to the voice that excitedly whispers, “well done.” For to create is to reflect the one who made us and to be fully alive.
It’s gonna be a good day. 🏃‍♀️
Raising 4 boys. It kicks my butt most days. I feel a failure constantly because I can’t give them all what they need (or want) at the same time. And yet it is probably the best thing for them and me to know that no one person is all-sufficient. And that there is beauty in community as they learn to meet each other’s needs. And that both love and patience are acts of sacrifice. Love rarely is ever clean and perfectly fuzzy and easy. Like this candle I lit that promptly exploded with black ash all over my freshly drawn letters, the unexpected sideways moments of life must spark me to breathe rather than to react. The things that do NOT go as planned and the moments when I DIDN’T please everyone carry the greatest lessons about myself and about what God wants to heal in me. The disappointment is actually the invitation. To breathe is to make space, to create room for perspective and to remember that this life - every breath of it - is sustained by one who is more than I can ask or imagine, the same one who breathed me into being and inspires me still.
The sweetest of Christmas gifts was commissioned by our dear friend and former basement dweller @kristahengesh and has got me reflecting through that shiny glass... In short, this house has been a miracle house. In the 16 months we have lived here, its walls have seen more transformation, laughter, tears, breakthrough, worship, intimacy and shenanigans than one could imagine. We have sloughed skins of fear and control here, with more to come, I am sure. We have grown in trust and grace here, with more to learn, undoubtedly. We have had 7 amazing young women live here for months at a time, each of whom we have developed deep and wonderful friendships with as they grew personally in the midst of loving our family and embracing the crazy. We have seen our sweet Finn go from saying only “big boat” to quoting movies and bossing around everyone that lives here; Wesley has bravely started elementary school and lost all his front teeth; Bennett has overcome major anxiety and migraines and now whenever he prays tells me “God says I am smart and courageous”; and Tucker, that oldest that we cut teeth on, is growing into the delightful witty old soul he has always been - brilliant and cantankerous and a leader of leaders. We know we are right where we are supposed to be as we continue to settle into our unique skin, discover more purpose, and love God and our neighbors, and I can’t imagine what all will be told for as long as we are graced with this house... but if walls could talk, I would ghost write that book. 🖼: @suzidavidson
A friend recently shared this quote.. not sure who said it but I love it. Indeed, there are things, ideas, dreams that have been seeded in me, and as they emerge, God gives a hearty, squinty eyed nod. “Yes!” The discovery of a dream set in me by my creator is like the victory of dug up treasure. And yet, as much as God says YES (to the dream of writing a book or launching a business or caring for foster children - fill in the blank!) there is still life and learning, maturity and new skill sets that need to be amassed before that YES gives birth to a GO. I have sometimes put foot to pavement the moment I heard YES, but really should have sat down and yielded to the still small voice that whispered “wait”. There are things churning in me even now, and yet there has never been a stronger pull toward slowness, paring down, listening, watching and waiting. In some ways, my hands are itching to get to work and GO! But my heart says that a premature birth might stifle the dream. And so I am learning the sweet contentment of waiting and watching and getting busy with the here and now. Which, with four boys 3-11 is more than enough for any moment. In fact, their dependence not on what they have or what they know, but on my presence is the very thing that is tutoring me in this season. Here’s to the YES in all of us.
The Vitamix was just about the sexiest anniversary gift we ever gave ourselves. And I have been thinking a lot about what I put IN my mouth, and how it does not even compare to the effort I should exert in thinking about what comes OUT of my mouth. “Set a guard, O Lord over my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips.” Psalm 141:3 #staypresent
Moving into a scenario, a conversation, heck, a DAY too quickly is where I often get tripped up. When I don’t take time to get the full story, consider the state of my heart and who or what is before me, I often end up in a place of lament. The first scripture I ever memorized, with little hand motions, was “be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.” James 1:19 So today, here’s to slowness in the interior parts. Regardless of how fast my body is moving, or how swiftly calamity comes, my deep hope is to slow down enough to catch up to God.
So often, I am not RIGHT HERE. Sure, my body is present, but my mind is flitting off on a million different directions and before I know it, I’ve missed it. The moment to really LIVE. To notice. To love. To speak not out of old habits from an outdated script, but to speak and love from a present connectedness to the KING who is good and tender and kind and is WILD for me. When I know I am a beloved daughter, delighted in and cheered for and helped constantly and connected to the one who makes all things new, then I can in the present moment write a new script. I can speak with more intention and a slowness that my people need. I can listen with more purpose and actually absorb words, rather than have them deflect off my hollow body for lack of a present mind. It is the last day of break for my four littles and I am aching for routine and time alone and order and to get this show on the road! But today, I choose to be here. Right in the midst. Known and doted on by the King, knowing that my wholehearted presence to him and to the people around me actually drives him wild. And the rest will take care of itself. I can only experience the fullness of life in this present moment. And so today I choose to be here. And tomorrow? I will do it again. . . Script by me. Background by @gracelaced. Her devotional is THE BEST.
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