Day 69 of my COVID-19 quarantine.
God began to convict my heart about the amount of media I consume a while ago. My husband would tell you that I have a long-standing sensitivity in this area. Over our 15 years of marriage I have regularly taken inventory of what I’m putting in my mind, body, soul – a healthy habit that I highly recommend. But this year was different. During our fast at the beginning of the year, I fasted TV and movies for over 40 days and the most remarkable shift happened: I moved from being a consumer to a creator.
As image bearers of Christ, we were created to create not merely consume.
In Ephesians 2:10 Paul encourages us that, “We are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” (NLT) God desires that we use the creative gifts He has given each of us. As we create, we are walking out His purpose for in lives, for His glory. I recently really enjoyed reading Rebekah Lyons new book, Rhythms of Renewal, and I love how she defines create “using your specific talents, skills, and callings to live deeper into your God-given purpose, to create something that blesses him and the world around you” (page 221).
We live in a culture with an insatiable hunger for entertainment. It is so easy to fall into the gluttony of the “Netflix & chill” mindset and completely miss the purpose for which God created us. What’s worse is often this mindset trickles into how we view our relationship with God. Many desire to be entertained more than they want to be transformed. Attending church solely to be entertained with their favorite type of music, speaker, décor etc., rather than desiring to use their gifts in obedience to Christ and in service of His call and purpose. Getting bored with reading the Bible or prayer because it’s not exciting enough. Constantly seeking entertainment and consumption.
It is impossible to create when you are constantly consuming. Think about it! When we are too busy consuming the creations, lives, and stories of others – that is time taken away from creating big or small for the glory of God. Don’t get me wrong, I love to enjoy the beautiful creative works of others but I’m advocating for balance and a season of introspection.
“No matter our age, dreams get squashed when our lives are consumed with entertainment and technology” (Rebekah Lyons, Rhythms of Renewal, page 227). Consuming was literally robbing me of fulfilling my dreams and walking in my God given purpose. Unplugging the TV for 40+ days allowed the space in my brain and in my life to dream again. I began to use my hands and mind to make things, write, and dream like I haven’t in such a long time. To use Rebekah Lyon’s analogy, this time allowed me to build a creative rhythm back into my life that was long overdue.
As I stood in the kitchen for hours yesterday prepping our meals for the week, I stood back and thanked God for the opportunity to create meals with my hands, for His glory. I thanked Him for the necessary shift that has taken place in my life. Creating isn’t limited to arts & crafts. It is using the gifts God has given you, in the way He has wired you, for His glory. I’m convinced that our ability to create is limited more by our own over consumption than any other circumstance. Over consumption is literally robbing the world of what you and I were made to create. I pray that my own journey will be the catalyst you need to seek balance and move from a consumer to a creator.
Journal & Process
-What are the dreams that God has placed within your heart?
-What adjustments to your consumption need to take place in order to walk boldly in your purpose?
-What is limiting your ability to create?
Day 16 of my COVID-19 quarantine.
As a Pastor’s wife I have a front row seat to what my husband calls the “Big C” church, that is, the people around the world that love and serve Jesus. Y’all it ain’t always pretty!
There is an epidemic of anxiety happening in our world. Almost daily friends reach out to us for prayer, desperate for support completely beaten up by anxiety. So, I am going to war! I am fighting for and with you friends and I want to share a few powerful tools that are currently being used by God to help many (including me) win the battle with anxiety.
Let Others Fight for You
As I look at the life and ministry of Jesus two of His most remarkable attributes are His dependence on and obedience to His Father. 
As modeled by Jesus, it is through our dependence (via communion and connectedness to Him) that our obedience grows and our lives flourish. Although the cost of our obedience isn’t usually death on a cross, there is a cost to walking in obedience to Jesus. Far too often we opt out of paying the cost. Independence and disobedience are costly. By choosing them we’re missing the beautiful communion and abundant blessings that come with being fully dependent and obedient on Jesus.
We began the new year with 21 days of prayer and fasting with our church family. Daily I sat at the feet of Jesus with an open heart & open Bible longing for Him to speak. During those few weeks something changed in me. I could feel it, like a fire was lit from deep within. There is something about fasting that provides tremendous clarity and purpose. Years from now we’ll remember with awe and wonder how God transformed our lives during the prayer and fasting of 2020.
Y’all I’m all about the details, if you need details, I’m your girl! But my, oh my! I am learning that details are not more important than Jesus. If you’re a recovering Martha like me, let’s say that out loud together: details are NOT more important than Jesus.
Last year I shared our journey through a particularly difficult season + a tool the Lord gave us to navigate that season. It was one of the most popular posts I’ve ever shared, if you missed it, check it out 
Dr. Tony Evans makes these observations on this passage, “What motivation does Jesus offer to enable them to become fearless? 
I can’t do this.
In this verse our responsibility as branches is very clear: to abide in Him. We are called to remain in, join with, and stay connected to Jesus. When we do that, He handles everything else. My whole job as a Christian at any given moment is to wait on, pursue, and listen to Jesus. His job is to produce the fruit, manage the plan, create the outcome…and so much more.
Do you ever sit back, take a good hard look at your life, and giggle? It brings such joy to my heart to think about our health journey over the last decade, through all the ups and downs God has certainly been by our side teaching and guiding our steps. Today I want to share a little bit about our journey to this crunchy life!
Honestly I’m so eternally grateful for the information we found, because prior to my illness I would have TOTALLY rolled by eyes and snickered judgmentally at “crunchy” families. I fully and completely trusted that things sold in the U.S. were safe and not harmful for our family, oh boy was I wrong. The truth is that there is very little regulation on household, hygiene, & beauty products. Not to mention genetically modified foods, pesticides, and processed food loaded with chemicals. The more we learned the more appalled and overwhelmed we were. So we made changes little by little, starting with the laundry room.
Around the same time we began our weight loss journey and made huge changes in how we fuel our bodies. Weight loss is a journey that is far from over, and has had many ups and downs. It began with two successful years on Weight Watchers where we learned a ton in weekly meetings about healthy habits. That was a time I will always cherish! We stopped eating processed foods, began cooking 95% of our meals at home, ate about 75% organic. It was such an eye opener to see a very primitive truth first hand: when you give your body what it needs, it will heal itself. It’s part of the miraculous way God’s creation works.
Throughout the last 8 years we have learned a few principles that we will live by now & forever, by God’s grace.
Naked in the Potter's Hand 