It Is Well

When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,

When sorrows like sea billows roll;

Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say,

It is well, it is well, with my soul.

It is well, with my soul,

It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,

Let this blest assurance control,

That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,

And hath shed His own blood for my soul.

My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!

My sin, not in part but the whole,

Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!

For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live:

If Jordan above me shall roll,

No pang shall be mine, for in death as in life

Thou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul.

But, Lord, ’tis for Thee, for Thy coming we wait,

The sky, not the grave, is our goal;

Oh, trump of the angel! Oh, voice of the Lord!

Blessed hope, blessed rest of my soul!

And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,

The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;

The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,

Even so, it is well with my soul.

Seasons

Have you ever been blown away by God's faithfulness? Goodness? Mercy? Love?

I'm in a season right now where I'm learning these things more than I ever have. And it's beautiful.

He is showing me things about myself that I have never fully believed, He is answering prayers in magnificent ways, He is touching my heart every day.

Sometimes, our experiences in life are high and exciting and full of sparkles (I don't know, doesn't it seem like life just sparkles sometimes?!). Other times, we are in the Valley. (my pastor talks about it here). Where God seems distant and life is hard.

Where are you today? Can we be praying for you for something? Let's talk about it in the comments below.

I Need This Today

There is so much more in my mind and heart than can be put into words. It feels like every so often, a time comes when one's faith is truly integral to survival. That feels dramatic, but right now, it's true. I have to turn to Jesus and cling to Him. To know the truth and choose to believe the truth. To put my entire heart and life and strength into His hands. To be overcome by His grace, glory, love, peace. To know that when I ask, He answers. And to trust that He is bigger than I am, that He not only has my life's perfect plan in motion, but the plans of everyone else as well. I can trust Him. I can rely on Him. I can run to Him and be comforted. And most unfathomable of all, I can be loved beyond measure by the God who created the universe, who stands above time and seasons and planets, who is all-powerful, who is all-knowing, who is in all places, who is right here with me, who traded the glory of heaven and constant worship of angels for a helpless infant body only to grow and  be beaten, mocked, and killed, stripped of dignity and respect, all so that I would not suffer the same fate. So that my crimes against God may be erased from my past, present, and future and that I may be seen as righteous, to have right standing with the Holy, perfect God Almighty. That is the Jesus that is Lord of my life. That is the Jesus that I cling to with all that I am. That is the Jesus that I want to share with the world. That is the Jesus that I choose again today, and every day.

My New Place!

Banjo and I are taking a step into adulthood (I guess it's about time) and we moved out of our parents house into a rental house! The house is actually closer to my niece and her parents (we used to live 2 streets away, now only 1!) and is really nice.

I have roommates coming in December, so for now it's just me and Banjo!

 My very blue bedroom :) I still have some pieces of furniture to move over and get my bed off the floor. :)

My purple office/crafts/media room. I'll have my desk and computer in here as well as my sewing machine and crafty things.

 Bathroom that is all mine! No brothers allowed!

  Looking from the back door towards the front! (I have no furniture, haha!)

I'm excited for this next chapter in my life. I pray that God uses it as a time where I can not only learn about myself but a time where I will be challenged and stretched to think farther beyond myself and truly embrace others.

No. 24 - The Screwtape Letters

image from Abebooks.com

Great book. There isn't much more to say. It totally made me think, realize how victorious God is, it convicted me in places I've been lax, and made me laugh. All in all, I'm so glad I read it and would recommend it to anyone who hasn't read it.

Next up in my Unread Library, via random selection, is No. 17 - Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens.

The Sunday Creative - Abundance

Still working through Dubliners, it's good, but it's short stories so I'm not invested in the plot, since I finish a storyline with every chapter. It should be done soon...
This week's prompt for The Sunday Creative is abundance. And I knew exactly where I was going with it. John 10:10 says: "The thief does not come but to steal, rob, and destroy. I have come that they may have life and have it more abundantly."

A life with Christ is a life that is full. No matter what I don't possess, my life is full. There is no void in my heart because I've found the One who can fill it. There is no hopelessness, because Hope lives in me. There is peace, because He is with me. There is joy, because I've been redeemed. My life is abundant because of Jesus Christ and I am so, so grateful that He came.

I am by no means a paper/ink/free-hand kind of artist. I like digital art because I can make everything perfect. I can Ctrl-Z as many times as I want. There are thousands of fonts that can change the look of any word. But there is something so personal, vulnerable, and real when I put my ideas on a piece of paper. It really is a stretch for me. I can't take it back once it's written in Sharpie pen in my notebook. :) But I love all the decorated sayings and modern calligraphy pieces out there and decided to let it inspire me. Maybe I'll start being able to put more and more of the millions of thoughts floating around in my mind down on paper without caring what it comes out like.

The Sunday Creative

I missed a week! This week on The Sunday Creative our prompt is "comfort."

Comfort vb 1.To give strength and hope

n 1. Consolation 2. Freedom from pain, trouble, or anxiety; also: something that gives such freedom

I find comfort in:

-using Illustrator over any other Adobe programs :)

-teal and light coral together

-the scene in Little Women (the Winona Ryder version) where Jo finishes her book and slides a red geranium into her raffia-wrapped manuscript

-my pup, Banjo, who always sits right up against me

-The Comforter, Jesus (Matthew 5)

-my closest friend, who knows me so well that I can't hide anything from her

-white blankets and good books

I'm sure there are more, but for today, those are the things that I am wishing for. :)

The Sunday Creative

I just discovered this blog and I'm totally joining up for The Sunday Creative.

This week's prompt is Orient.

Orient  vb 1: to set in a definite position esp. in relation to the points on a compass  2: to acquaint with an existing situation or environment  3: to direct to the interests of a particular group

OR

noun : East, esp. the countries of Eastern Asia

 And here is what I made:

Matthew 7:14 "But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it."

When it comes to a direction or position in my life there is only one: Jesus. My life's journey is fueled and directed by my love for Him and my devotion to Him. And the only way I know where He wants me to go is by spending time with Him and reading the Word.

I'm excited to be challenged in being creative and having a project to learn new techniques and styles that I wouldn't normally use. I haven't used Photoshop a whole lot, but I recently learned about textures and how to use them, so I wanted to try something new.