Saturday Boosts...

Some things to invigorate you spiritually this weekend:

1. My friend Ally of the blog "Pans and Pickpockets" has such a way with WORDS
2.  A thought on SILENCE
3.  This SONG by Trip Lee:

Rap Music: Part One.

Fact:  
Not everyone enjoys rap music.
But more people should give it a chance.

The Key:
Good Content & Good Craft.

Example:
KB's song, "Hello"
Hear for Yourself:

A Word From Spurgeon.

Have you heard of Charles Spurgeon?
Below is a devotion he wrote concerning a short verse in the Bible.
He is a master of illustration, this one, and a man of soulful truths.
I read the following from his daily devotional, Morning and Evening.
 
"These have no root." --Luke 8:13

My soul, examine thyself this morning by the light of this text. 

Thou hast received the word with joy; thy feelings have been stirred and a lively impression has been made; but, remember, that to receive the word in the ear is one thing, and to receive Jesus into thy very soul is quite another; superficial feeling is often joined to inward hardness of heart, and a lively impression of the word is not always a lasting one. 

In the parable, the seed in one case fell upon ground having a rocky bottom, covered over with a thin layer of earth; when the seed began to take root, its downward growth was hindered by the hard stone and therefore it spent its strength in pushing its green shoot aloft as high as it could, but having no inward moisture derived from root nourishment, it withered away. Is this my case? Have I been making a fair show in the flesh without having a corresponding inner life?

Good growth takes place upwards and downwards at the same time. 

Am I rooted in sincere fidelity and love to Jesus? If my heart remains unsoftened and unfertilized by grace, the good seed may germinate for a season, but it must ultimately wither, for it cannot flourish on a rocky, unbroken, unsanctified heart. 

Let me dread a godliness as rapid in growth and as wanting in endurance as Jonah's gourd; let me count the cost of being a follower of Jesus, above all let me feel the energy of His Holy Spirit, and then I shall possess an abiding and enduring seed in my soul. 

If my mind remains as obdurate as it was by nature, the sun of trial will scorch, and my hard heart will help to cast the heat the more terribly upon the ill-covered seed, and my religion will soon die, and my despair will be terrible; therefore, O heavenly Sower, plough me first, and then cast the truth into me, and let me yield Thee a bounteous harvest.

Ornaments

This year, 

I tried my hand at making and painting

some homemade ornaments.

Here's what resulted...

So then this happened...

Yep. 

Some of my ornaments 

are for sale.

In my Etsy store.

I plan on making many throughout the year

just because I have such a blast 

painting these little pieces.

And I love a good dose of scripture too!

Just thought I'd share!

-xoxo-

Jessie

Rubbish.

Came across this at UNR last week.

I have a habit of living in cycles.

I get caught up 

running around and around,

adding on obligations,

social events,

jobs,

spending too much time on the computer,

unnecessary tasks...

all the while,

I guilt myself into feeling like

I have to do all this.

Like saying "no" 

is never an option.

So then I burn out,

fall apart, 

and unplug

- hermit status -

die socially for a while...

only to start over.

and over.

You see,

I live in cycles.

The sad part is 

most of the things

I tangle myself with 

don't seem to matter.

It's all rubbish.

I'm trying to change this.

No.

Let me rephrase this.

I'm praying to God,

asking Him to change this.

To change me.

I need to figure out 

what to throw away

and what to keep.

I need to learn how to unplug

(both physically and electronically)

in a healthy way,

how to keep learning

and stimulating 

my thoughts

and aspirations 

until they can't help 

but come to fruition.

It's time to break the cycle.

Just like Dr. Oliphint said,

 "Like Christ, 

Christians must withdraw,

unplug.

It is time to make sure

that we are molding our plastic brains

in a way that they will be trained 

to think carefully,

to concentrate,

to work through difficulties,

to meditate on God's character,

to revel in His glory."

It starts here.

In my mind.
In my heart.

That's where the cycle ends

and rebirth happens.

Hallelujah

These two kids have been blessed to say the least!

Wow.

Glory to God.

The Silence and the Sound

I never expected New Mexico 

to be beautiful.

But it is.

Here in Silver City,

the rains turn the rolling hills green.

The skies are full of heavy clouds almost every afternoon -

ready to wash the land,

and the mornings are quiet 

and still.

Sometimes, if I'm lucky,

I'll wake up to hear the gentle steps of a mule deer

walking through my yard.

I get so excited to watch in awe from my window,

the sky barely glowing with the coming dawn.

It takes my breath away.

Last night,

My husband Tanner and I 

went out on a little hike 

not far from our home with our pastor, 

just as the sun set.

We walked into the wildlife refuge with the hope

of hearing an elk bugle.

As we stood there,

straining our ears,

I couldn't help but feel overwhelmed -

Overwhelmed by the quiet,

by the stillness,

by the feeling of being at peace 

in some 

small 

wilderness.

In that moment, I thanked God.

I thanked Him for His creation,

for the way He breathes the stillness to life,

just as He did my soul.

In the end,

I heard a faint bugle

a distant echo carried in the wind.

But it was beautiful.

We shall try again soon.

It's one of those nights...

...you know,

when my brain is on overdrive

and I start to wonder about what I'm doing

and what motivates me

and where truth stands in my life.

I hate that I struggle with caring 

what people think.

I worry and dwell and over-anyalze,

and next thing you know,

I'm all anxious and weird.

The reality is, it's my struggle.

And I deal with it daily.

But I heard something recently,

something that made me think.

"There are only two people

in this world

that you have to please:

God

and

your husband.

THAT'S IT."

- Dixie Chandler (My pastor's wife)

I'm trying to figure out

what this looks like.

I'm trying to stop worrying

and working myself up

over 

every

single 

little

thing.

So, I'm reading this verse

and praying for God's help.

"Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, 

for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. 

Sufficient for the day is its own trouble."

- Matthew 6:34 

Art & Faith Coincide?

Last year,

I finally finished my degree in 

Studio Art.

I've always loved painting 

and drawing...

the way these mediums 

enable you to express beyond

normal means...

but I've always had trouble expressing one thing

in particular:

my faith.

How can art and Christianity

coincide?

Well, I've seen many attempts 

at such a unification, 

but never like this...

Check out this video.

Makoto Fujimura - The Art of "The Four Holy Gospels" from Crossway on Vimeo.

Words Remain...

that's the title of this mesmerizing song by 

Josh Garrels...

House Update!!!

Hi Comrades!

I have news.

We recently made an offer on a house

(A HOUSE!!!!)

and found out today

that we did not get it.

Are we bummed?

Eh... not too much

God's in control

and that's all that matters.

:)

Play Me Something...

Hi Friends.

I found something,

and I want to share :)

I'm a huge fan of music,

especially edifying tunes

that are simple

beautiful

and deep.

Enter:  Valley Maker.

This guy wrote, sang, and produced songs 

based on the Bible's book of Genesis 

- all for his Thesis Project.

I can't stop listening.

Old & New

Hello world.

I like the old & new.

It's the perfect combination

of history 

and possibility.

Buildings tell such stories

with their crusty bricks

and cracked corners,

faded signs and peeling paint...

Our lives do the same.

These wrinkles tell my story.

Of my cries and joys.

My favorites are my smile wrinkles.

(You can never have too many of those.)

Who I was is not who I am.

And the same to you.

But what we hold from the past 

affects our forward motion.

So I'll hold on to trials that made me stronger,

to people who stretched my character,

to memories that built my house,

my foundation,

and I'll keep Christ as my cornerstone.

It's the Final Countdown!!! (cue music...)

3 Days

18 Hours

and

55 minutes

UNTIL...

the end of the world?

no.

I make myself a 
deliciously scrumptious 
PIZZAHHHHHHH?

no.

my next bm?

no, silly friends.

The countdown leads to my biggest milestone yet:

MARRIAGE!

It's the beginning of a new life for me.

And for Tanner!

We've known each other for some time.

Us Graduation Day - 2006

(Extremely flattering picture of me, I know :P)

And we've always had these commonalities:

1.  An extreme love for FOOD.  

Seriously, can't get enough of it.  

Which is good and bad. 

Actually, it's just plain good.

2. A knack for conversation.

We're both talkers.  

All kinds of topics, shallow or deep, we talk it out.  

Preferably over food. Hmm...

3.  HUMOR.

I make poop jokes, and he gets me.

Now that's the kinda love I'm looking for.

 

4.  Athletic Things of Sorts, YES.

We strangely bond over long walks,

strenuous mountain bike rides,

and the ever so sweaty and spandex ridden racquetball match.

Confession:  I have yet to beat him at racquetball, but it'll happen.

By golly, it'll happen!!!! 

Arg!!!

5.  Faith.

Now, Tanner & I haven't always shared a faith in Christ,

but after a year of us dating, 

it became apparent that our relationship 

was founded on something new,

something incredible and redeeming,

and that, my friends, is Jesus.

Sharing a foundational belief in God 

and committing ourselves to live by His standards

is the sole reason (I believe) we made it 

through 3.5 years of a distance relationship.

And moving forward into marriage, 

I know that we'll rely on that same faith 

and relationship with Christ to make it through

all of the craze-tastic adventures heading our way.

So, you beautiful readers out there...

What advice to you have for a nearly wed gal?

Any strange things I should know about before I get hitched?

Like in pregnancy, when no one tells you you'll poop on the delivery table?

Anything entertaining out there?

:D

Feeling Silly

I've always had a hard time crying.

For some reason, I think,

deep down inside my brain -

or maybe my stomach -

I've always hated it.

Crying makes me feel weak,

vulnerable,

stupid...

I get so embarrassed when I usually cry

because I've been bottling myself up for so long,

and then I have this weird explosion of self 

all over people in public

and it's just plain awkward and humiliating.

But, I've realized some things.

God gave us emotions.

They don't just pop up to help us mate or something.

We're supposed to feel and reflect and explode a little sometimes.

Perhaps God makes me cry to remind me that it's okay to feel,

and that there's nothing wrong with crumbling  a little here and there, 

for the sake of letting Him in.

I'm allowed to cry.

There, I said it.

And this whole moving and getting married and leaving my loved ones and

change change change

is stressful.

It makes me sad to say goodbye to my parents 

and brother

and my friends

and my dog, 

yes, even my dog.

It's true, I'm getting married.

And it's true, I am blessed and excited 

to finally live with the man I've waited over 5 years to be with (!!!) -

but I believe it's okay for me to grieve leaving as well.

It's weird.

I feel like a tangled mess of syrup and spaghetti

which separately are pretty cool and alright to deal with,

but together,

well, you just don't know what to do with it.

Unless you're Buddy the Elf.

Then you savor it for all it's worth.

Hmmm...

Good thinking, Buddy...

Now, back to packing :)

This is how I draw in the morning.

Tunnels and Such.

Untitled from Joshua Porter on Vimeo.
So, thanks to my buddy Alissa, 

who gave me some solid advice the other day,

I went on a hike.

You know,

One of those mind clearing

cold, refreshing,

digestive hikes.

My "lil sis" Kt and I grabbed our flashlight,

Pulled on our beanies,

And stuffed my bag with water and gloves.

The sun was hanging low when we set off,

and the trail was wide.

It seemed like everyone 

was coming back to their cars to warm up

and turn on their heaters

While we strode on the crunchy dirt path

Wrapping around the mountains,

winding away from the world,

away from the noise.

It was just me

and Kt

And our crunching footsteps.

And then we reached the tunnels.

They were a lot darker when we neared them.

Sort of ominous.

But beautiful.

So we went into the dark 

and talked of life

and fears

and struggles

and joys

and stupid humor

and you know what?

In the cold air,

and amidst the crunching beneath us

I could feel life swelling into my lungs again;

it was the sensation of living in rawness

and embracing reality.

Thank you, Alissa,

And thank you, Kt,

And thank you,

cold 
beautiful 
night.

Holla Holla How You Say?!?!?!?

Life is happening CRAZY FAST.

Way faster than "Half-Cheetah-Speed" ...

(which is around 30-35 mph).

I just had my bridal shower - which was a strangely beautiful, 

yet surreal experience.

A lot of people were there:  

family, 

family friends, 

friends from high school, 

church buddies, 

people I barely know...

And it went by so fast...

I was afraid of not really living it out.

You know,

being present.

It felt strange to celebrate getting married - 

Don't get me wrong, 

I'm so stoked about Tan's and my wedding...

And I've been looking forward to a lifetime with him for years...

But I can't believe it's almost here.

So much has been going on 
and people have been busy 

and I've been busy

and sometimes

Well, Sometimes

I forget to savor it.

I feel like I can't enjoy it.

Like I'm not allowed to until everyone else is happy 

and comfortable and tended to

or else 

I'm selfish.

Now, I know this is ridiculous, 

but let me just gush it out for a bit.

I keep getting weirdly stressed out about things that aren't worth a gray hair.

I live with my family, but feel alone in this big house everyday.

We live separate lives.

And Tanner's working so hard on finishing his degree.

It's just lonely.

Sorry.  

I know it's going to be okay.

I know these next 60 days will fly by.

I just want a day where I can be strong enough 

to resist the pull to please people all the time,

or have a day without caring 
if they think I'm being a 
crazy 

micromanaging 
psycho

and to just focus on pleasing Christ.

You know, 

I need to retreat somewhere 

away from the noise 
and demands 

of all this planning 
and running around

and mailing and stuffing and blah blah blah...

It's time I retreat to a small,
still 
place 

where I can talk to God for a while,

maybe write to Him about my weird anxiety 

that keeps flaring up,

or about how sometimes I wish 

I had just moved up to Reno when I graduated

just to let go of everything and leave it all behind.

This is precious time,

and I don't want to waste it obsessing over stupid ribbons

or excel spreadsheets at work

or that I do 95% of the house work in a home of 4 adults.

I feel like packing tonight.

I did have a kick-ass bridal shower though.

Just saying.