Easygoing lipstick days....

                                                          bearded husband & rosy red lipstick

Since I was a kid, I had these naturally rose-colored lips. They were pretty. Otherwise, I thought I was a rather interesting..strange..looking girl. Big forehead, big teeth, big cheeks, big chin. Sounds lovely, doesn't it?

I have this fear of man. Fear of people's misconceptions or assumptions about who I am.

It sounds ridiculous, but I was afraid that if someone saw me with lipstick, I would look like someone I am not. I didn't want to cover up what I thought was one of the few attractive things about me - my lips. What if I met some handsome guy and he didn't like lipstick girls and there I was wearing lipstick. It makes me laugh now to look back and see how much I really thought about it.

That lipstick struggle was about so much more. Fear of man.

The other day I was getting ready for a date with my husband and pulled out my gorgeous Estee Lauder lipstick. The one I keep on me all the time these days. Even when I don't wear any other makeup, sometimes I just throw on that lipstick. For me. Because it makes rainy days and snow days feel alive. Because I don't care if someone sees what I really look like. They've got time. Because I'm going on a date with my husband..and he knows what I look like with no makeup.
And I'm a wife. And I'm a friend. And Jesus loves when I'm praying while I put my lipstick on and when I go to church with no makeup on.

I've struggled for years with fear of man. Which is also a pride issue. But over the last year, God has slowly been teaching me through everyday life how to REST in HIM.

Stop worrying over the little things and rest. Dress up, or don't. Work out, or don't. Cook an awesome, healthy dinner for your husband...and have fun when you microwave that yummy bowl of soup. 

So, go ahead. Wear that lipstick to the grocery store. Eat a cheeseburger. Be real. It's all about our attitude.

Do the things we choose reflect a heart at rest or turmoil within us from fear of man?

Live in freedom.

Stir...

 My best friend, Clarke (who also happens to 

 be my husband), has these dreams.

 I have these dreams.

 Deep down in my heart.

 We want to connect to the world.

 I dream of writing and encouraging and

 helping others recognize God's call for

 them.

 Clarke dreams of planting churches and

 mentoring young men.

 I feel God stirring my heart. For days.

 There is a feeling close to discontent, but

 it's not unhappy. Just as if something big

 is coming up and God wants me to see it. And

 be ready.

 He wants me to be ready. So this nervous

 excitement in my stomach reminds me to talk

 to Him. To look for Him. And He is reminding

 me to not give up on the dreams He put in my

 heart. Do not let worldly wisdom snuff out

 the seemingly "wild" dreams you have for

 your life. If they are for the Lord.

 Let God give me words to write. Let God

 prepare us for His people.

Help!

 Oh my dear goodness, I love design and pretties, but I just need some help getting this blog some love.

Since I love cool designs, I would also love to say that I could design a blog by myself...

Let's be honest, I love the idea of crafts, too...

But I'm much better at appreciating other people's crafts.

Maybe I'm going to have to save up my pennies and ask someone to make this place a cozy spot. until then, it's nice being real.

Confession: I'm not an artsy, crafty, sewing, blog, designer, photographer woman. No offense to those of you that are. Ya know, I love y'alls creativity and pretties, but I'm sure good at spending my time appreciating yours rather than working on my own.

To all my girls out there that have the fabulous ideas in their minds, but can't seem to get them out in real time. I'm here for you.

Exceedingly & Abundantly, Jo

You do not go unnoticed.

The front row. Church on Sunday. A middle school boy with his mom. I watch as he walks in, sits

 down, and proceeds to rock himself back and forth while we worship. I wonder what he's thinking. He seems captured in his own thoughts...I wonder if he's thinking about the music or Jesus or all the different stage design, or maybe something totally different. I know he knows something I don't know. I can just tell. While some may look at him with questions, all I can question is what he knows that I don't know. I believe that God gives special gifts or understanding to children or people that we may see with what we call “disabilities.” If we can't understand the minds of these children, what things must they know that we don't. So, I watch this little boy. And I know, I know if he is in the kingdom of heaven that he will walk before me, that he will describe details to me in heaven of things I never understood. Things that I overlook, missing details, traits of God...he must know things that I don't know, that my mind can't fathom. The bible says that God has made the wisdom of this world foolishness...so what the world considers foolishness, God has called His own. So we who think we know something, must really be so far behind.

Sweet boy, I hope someday I can see Jesus through your eyes. You know things that I don't. You are so calm and precious. I watch you, as you truly are, not nervous or agitated, but calm and intelligent, detail-oriented, and fearless. I wish you knew that someone wishes they could understand you. Your life is noticed.



Understanding...

Do we understand?

 Do we ask?

 Do we really want to know?

 I was thinking the other day about what I most want to instill
 in my future children. Obviously a love for Jesus,
 but what after that?
 Kindness? Honesty? Compassion? Service?
 patience?...there are so many things.
 And then I saw it. God opened up my eyes and showed me..how
 much we choose to not "understand" each other. How often we
 choose to not really look and see people, to ask them questions.
 Instead, our pride tells us we already know.
 The best way God has taught me this is by shaking up my world
 with people that love Him and are redeemed..and they have very
 different stories.
 What do you think of a divorced man?
 What about a young mother?
 That girl that everyone sees as cute, but has no substance?
 What about the mean girl?
 The young woman that's been engaged twice already?
 What about the prideful, all-american 21-year-old man?
 Type A church leaders?
 A woman that goes to church without her husband?
 That crazy-faith woman that has cancer and "thinks" God is
 going to heal her?

 For all of them, I want my children to look deeper, to watch
 with Jesus' eyes, and really see the world around them.
  

It's the little things...

I have always loved the beauty of the little things..

Eating a whole bowl of pudding. Driving with the windows rolled down. Having conversations with random people at the grocery store. Writing cards. Waving. Picking things out of the garden and eating them right there...

But, everytime I decide to give something back to God even more, He shows me more of those beautiful, little things I so desperately love.

In January I decided to cut off my long, golden locks that I had been growing out for so long. Not because God told me to, but because I had to ask myself, "What could I give up to show God that I love Him? Do I hold onto my hair because I feel like it's the only thing that makes me beautiful?" My answer to the second question was..Yes. What would happen, though, if I gave up that long hair? God's purposes for me would still be there. His ever-abounding love and grace, still there. Now, don't get me wrong, I don't think we have to give up everything or that God is asking us to. Sometimes I just like to physically do something in remembrance of what I have learned in my heart. My prayer was, "God, here's something simple and human, but something beautiful you've given me. I'm cutting it off in remembrance of that all I need is you. If you stripped me of everything, I would still thrive because of You." And God made it fun. We were having lunch with a bunch of our friends after church and one of the great "brothers" in my life, Dale, volunteered to do the cutting. We let him hack away and laughed for weeks when people complimented my haircut.

Recently, I've been trying to be a better steward of the money God has entrusted me with. I've made commitments to not buy anything I don't absolutely need. Even if it's on sale. I've been cleaning out my closet and giving up things I don't need. For the last few years, I've been thinking of all these ways I could help with the ministries that God has put on my heart. One of the greatest joys and callings God has put on my heart is, "Help others achieve their God-given dreams." There are my friends in Mizak, Haiti, who just want to go to university. There are the beautiful families that want to adopt, but cannot afford it. There are people with God-given dreams who we are to use our resources to help. So, this idea was born. A little garage sale style shop out of my room, called Lydia & Yves. Lydia, was a fashionable woman, a seller of purple. I too, love fashion...and I too have been chosen by God. Yves is the name of one of our dear friends from Haiti; A man that proves that we can love each other, even when we cannot speak the same language and are not able to say it. Half of everything I sell is going into a fund. A fund that will for now go to one of three things: helping someone from the blog-world adopt, helping someone in Haiti go to university, or helping with the cost of sending someone on a mission trip.

As all these things were coming about and God was telling me to step out in faith and give. And once I was in step with Him, he reminded me of the beautiful little things.

Last Sunday I told my friend I like her shoes. She took them right off of her feet and gave them to me. How beautiful.

God provided all the ways and money for my tuition this semester.

Today, my grandmother gave me a cute tote bag.

Why? God doesn't have to, but He even surprises us with little things. This is not always the case, but shouldn't we be ready to see those beautiful things when they come along? Give up something and you will notice how much you truly are blessed. Look at your world.

Top Five...

I'm a big fan of lists and numbers and fonts...and things to be thankful for. I started giving my top with friends awhile ago. It brings joy just to say, "What are some little things that blessed my week or keep coming to mind?" So here's my top 5. Please tell me yours.

1.) The day I decided to cut off my long, blonde hair.

2.) These slightly cooler, beginning of fall days.

3.) White Chocolate Mocha,

4.) Cleaning out the closet.

5.) Confessing our struggles to friends and having them encourage with scripture!