wordless wednesday [8]
24th October 2012 | wordless wednesday | 0 comments
10/22/12 .. big day.
22nd October 2012 | everyday life, music | 1 comment
I know, I know… I’ve slightly fallen behind on the Madeleine posts. So sue me. I’ve been busy with other things. Like the justalittlebitlouder Etsy shop… and let me tell you about it.
Years ago, I lived in Seattle. Weird, right? But I did. I spent a lot of time with the Reardons. They really love Jesus and they are important to me. They are in the middle of adopting two beautiful children, Tia and Raheim.
A few weeks ago I was in Starbucks, reading a book and suddenly my heart was overwhelmed and I started crying for Rob and Amy and their kids – not just the ones I’ve met, but also Tia and Raheim. I prayed for the whole Reardon clan with my hands open and up – God what can I do? How can I help?
I will spare you the little details, but I put up some paintings on an Etsy store. All of the money will go to help their adoption. This one is my favorite:
PLEASE buy these paintings, spread the word.. and join the group of people supporting Tia and Raheim.
Today is the birthday of some really important people in my life. Zac Hanson, Ernie Halter and Rhoda Boettcher. About a month ago, Ernie started a Kickstarter project hoping to raise $8500 for a “52 songs in 52 days” project. I talked to him the day it launched. It’s ending in a few minutes, and he’s acquired over $34,000 in support of his project. I’m not even making this up. Over $34,000 dollars. And I only pledged $52 of it! There are that many people willing to financially support Ernie and his dreams. I called him to wish him happy birthday and it was all just way too emotional for me. I. AM. SO. PROUD. OF. HIM! And so excited to see the 52 songs project start.
And today I bought tickets to see Allen Stone play at Mississippi studios on Wednesday. Remember Allen? I am SO. EXCITED. For all of the times I’ve seen Allen, I only have these pictures to show for it. This is sad, y’all.
february 27th, 2012 – brandon, donald and bob. oh my.
27th February 2012 | everyday life, faith. | 2 comments
“One day I will meet Donald Miller. and I will make myself look so foolish and stupid, but it will be the happiest day of my life.” – this blog post, August 25th 2010.
last thursday i was really tired and had a big weekend coming up. there was a women’s worship night at my church and i was zooming from the patterson’s to make it in time. and as i was driving, i remembered that brandon heath was playing at imago dei, and donald miller would be there. after three minutes of debating in my head, i decided to carpe diem and go.
i sat there, watching brandon heath sing my favorite songs and laughing with bob goff and seeing donald miller and i knew i made the right choice.
did you know that i am really awkward sometimes? for the most part i think i’m alright; sometimes i’m funny and sometimes i say something kind of smart, and i like fun stuff. but when i am around people i admire, i turn into superhero awkward girl. so if you had walked into the room, you would have found me sitting on a pew, holding my notebook to my chest and swinging my feet like a five year old. after many people stepping in between me and donald miller, i decided that i must do something.
i got up and sat right next to donald miller. and told him how madeleine l’engle was my favorite author {and then covered my face and apologized for being offensive – and he told me he’d just finished reading walking on water and i told him it was my favorite book} {and once i wrote about BOTH OF THEM in the same blog entry.} and i regretted never writing to her, so it meant a lot being able to tell him how much his writing means to me.
after that i spent a solid 70% of the interaction covering my face with my hands because i could not figure out why words about me stalking him on twitter were flowing from my mouth.
i am prophetic. i did make myself look so foolish and stupid, but it was the happiest day of my life.
and i never imagined him being exactly how he is in his books, but he was. and i told him i would read every book he wrote the rest of his life, and that is so true.
then i briefly told bob goff how inspiring he is. seriously. check out these tweets -
sometimes i forget that how i see things isn’t how God sees things; i often think “i must sit on my couch in my pajamas drinking tea to experience rest.” and God responds with “you have to laugh and sing and get teary and be encouraged and focus on me to experience rest.” sometimes he responds with “get your pajamas on, make some tea, and sit on your couch.” but not all the time, just some of the time.
THAT IS A PICTURE OF ME AND DONALD MILLER.
february 26th, 2012 – sabbath
26th February 2012 | faith. | 1 comment
when i was in california, i had a sunday afternoon tradition. after {or sometimes in place of} church, i would go to starbucks with my computer and Bible, i’d order a caramel iced coffee with milk and i’d read/write/free refill sometimes until the store closed. sundays were a day of complete rest and relaxation, with nowhere to go and nothing really to do.
so today, for the first time since returning home in may, i have found myself at starbucks, shivering and drinking a caramel iced coffee with milk, and writing.
it feels so good to be doing nothing, because i’ve been doing so much running. i’ve been going from point A immediately to point B to C and D, E and F… and i’m starting to get sick and tired. not of anything, but just sick and tired.
but it’s Lent. and Lent is a period of fasting. and fasting is stopping. so i am stopping the running, stopping the excessive busyness. i am just sitting at starbucks and thinking and just being.
did you know that the observing of Lent comes with a weekly reading plan? it does! every sunday, there is an element of Christ’s ministry to study and reflect on. and today’s is about Christ in the desert.
in high school my friend randy told me something his youth pastor said, and it’s stuck with me:
if satan can’t tempt you, he’ll make you busy.
wow. because really, when i’m busy, what are the first things that go? time with God. prayer. meditating on him. i exchange on-my-knees time for in-the-car time, and if i hear a bible verse on the christian radio station, i tell myself i’ve encountered Scripture and therefore i’m alright. i substitute being around God for being with God.
donald miller {WHO I MET THIS PAST WEEK ABSOLUTELY NO BIG DEAL BUT MORE ON THAT LATER} once wrote,
“It occurs to me it is not so much the aim of the devil to lure me with evil as it is to preoccupy me with the meaningless. ”
time is important and valuable and expires at a rate of every single second. and satan does a fantastic job at convincing me that any second spent alone or not with someone or going somewhere is a waste of a second. but God says to rest. God rested, not because he needed to but because he knew i would need to and he wanted me to know that i could see it as a way to commune with God, to rejoice in my like-him-ness.
and i forgot how great this feels, to look around at the ceiling and the walls and the bags of coffee, and asking God to reveal himself to me in it all, to provide and heal and comfort me as i sit and essentially do nothing. asking him to prove to me that i don’t have to DO anything for the Spirit to restore me and refresh me.
isn’t Lent about countering what donald miller suggested? isn’t it about giving up the meaningless?
i gave up facebook. but for the first time in my lent practices, i’m celebrating feast days by responding to facebook messages, because there are plenty of meaningful things that quickly become meaningless when they become excessive.
but i really am shivering.
