I hope you are all doing well and are excited to celebrate the birth of Christ! How blessed we are!
I have been doing a lot of social media marketing for the release of Choose Joy: Finding Hope and Purpose When Life Hurts, which comes out in paperback on January 3rd! It provides us another way to spread God's JOY to others. Today on Amazon you can pre-order the book for only $9.88.
Click the following links if you would like to follow Choose Joy on Facebook or Twitter. You can get your daily dose of JOY there...everyone can use that, right?!
Now for the give away information...
If you are interested in receiving these beautiful color sheets designed by our very own Sara, here's what you need to do. Share your favorite quote from the book in the comment section. The quote can be from any chapter, except chapter 1. Also, you can't duplicate a quote that has already been shared! I will be using random selection to choose ten lucky winners! You have until December 31st!
Please share with your friends and continue to spread the gift of JOY to others!
Have a blessed Christmas filled with the Peace and JOY of Jesus!
I can't tell you how great it was to read all of your answers yesterday... with the thought that went into some of them, I know you all are going to love the gist of this book and what it makes you ponder.
Today I'm linking up to Lisa-Jo, aka gypsy mama, who chooses a topic every Friday and writes for five minutes.
Only five minutes.
And the rule is that whatever she writes about in that five minutes is what she posts. No editing her thoughts.
***Actually, when I checked Lisa-Jo's site, there was no prompt put up, so I'm going to improvise. Since the prompt is - literally - unknown, that's what I'll write about. :) ***
So I'm going to set the timer, write some thoughts, and then I'm going to stop.
Ready? Set. Go.
:::
Unknown.
The unknown can be our biggest enemy sometimes… the thing we put most of our focus on and what we spend most of our energy trying to control.
I sometimes wonder if it's actually more comforting for us to look ahead and live in the future and all of the unknown simply because we feel a desperate need to avoid the present we're in.
Because, let's face it, the present can be hard. We can be broke or we can be sick or we can be abandoned. We can be living in limbo in our marriages or in crisis with our jobs or aching for our children and their needs. The right now can hurt so badly that the only escape is to get lost into the unknown of those "what ifs" that give us the illusion of control.
What if I take this job, or what if we lose the house, or what if we make that move, or what if I get the raise, or what if I try this treatment.
We can live in fear and dread the unknown, assuring ourselves of the worst - or we can live in hope and see happiness ahead with Pollyanna eyes.
But neither of them are truly right.
Both are still guessing games of the unknown.
I'm learning how to fully live right in the middle of the hard, in the here and KNOWN, because if this is my life - if this is where I am at - then this is where God is at, too. And if I’m wasting all of my time and energy trying to control the unknown of the future rather than fulfilling what He may be needing from me right now, then I’m wasting God’s time as well.
It all boils down to this: none of it is unknown to Him.
When I was a little girl, I thought I would be a poet.
{I also thought I would be the next Mary Lou Retton and the next Olivia Newton John and the next Bionic Woman, but those are stories you can go back and read...}
The first poem I remember showing to Mom, she didn't believe I wrote. I was little and out of nowhere my head came up with this:
God gives Himself to each of us, To each a special part. But I am the luckiest one of them all For unto me He gave a piece of His heart.
After awhile I convinced her I hadn't copied it from one of my children's books so it went on the fridge, which was enough for me to consider myself published.
I was little and wanted to make sure I always had God's heart in me, and I knew without a shadow of a doubt that I was in His.
It's easy to believe as a child.
But then we grow older.
And we see our flaws.
And we hide more than we show.
And instead of believing we are in His heart we shift our thinking and we start trying to earn our way in. Into a place where He already holds us as a precious gift.
It's a tiny little book, but it is powerful. I've had so many little daily devotionals over the years that have been nice, and I read them and put them away and went about my day. But this one is different.
This one has made me pause.
Each day is only a few pages long, but Holley doesn't mess around. She starts with an idea, tells you her thoughts and then asks you three questions that stop you dead in your tracks.
Not the questions that you do two minutes before faith sharing because you're running late and they are typical ones you don't have to think about. {Not that I ever did that. Ahem.}
These are questions that dive into your heart, so that you can see yourself more clearly in His.
And after you ponder and pray and realize something new, she gives you a few lines of a prayer you think she pulled right out of your own heart, and then she gives you a pep talk that leaves your ready to face your day with a new readiness you didn't know you needed.
Can you tell I like this little treasure?
Would you like a copy, too?
Good. Because I'm giving one away. :)
If you want to be entered in, all you have to do is leave me a comment finishing this statement:
In God's Heart, I am...
Here's a video with some other people's answers if you need help getting started:
Please, only one comment per person, and the contest will go until 11:00 pm Thursday night. I'll announce the winner on Friday.
Hey, guys… I know, it's the wrong day to have a YOU:create link up. :) But tomorrow I'm scheduled to post over at (in)courage, so I am doing your free download of doodles today instead.
No worries if you normally participate and don't have your own creative project ready to go… you can come back tomorrow and still link up. I just wanted to make sure it was available at some point this week!
Today I am posting some more card options for you all. I find that I often just want to check in with people simply to let them know they are being thought of and loved. It's not always because they need a get well card, and it's not always on their birthday or a special occasion. So I made you all some "just a note" cards for those times when… well… it's just a note. :)
Here's what's in today's download:
If you'd like a copy of these doodles for yourself, all you have to do is click the button and it will take you to the download page:
I can’t wait to see what you guys came up with this week! Just click below and follow the instructions to link to your project. When it asks you to choose the web or a file for your thumbnail, choose web. Then it will take you to a list of the images on the page you are linking to and you’ll be able to choose a photo to represent your project.
It's a special YOU:create canvas day! And not only will there be a winner here, you all could help someone else win today, too…
One of my (in)courage sisters, Heather, is a fighter of a mom. She is surviving cancer herself and is doing everything she can for her daughter, Emma. Emma was born with mitochondrial disease, has gone through a heart transplant and eventually was diagnosed with Transplant Coronary Artery disease.
It's been a tough road. Emma is now 9, and due to seizures has lost her ability to effectively communicate. So we are helping Heather raise money to get Emma an iPad and the related software she needs in order to put words and images to what she so badly wants [and needs] to say.
Here's where we come in.
I made this canvas as a giveaway today, but I also made three more exactly like it that Heather is going to be selling on her Etsy page – starting tomorrow - to help raise funds. If you'd like one of these canvases, you can head over to her site on Friday and purchase one.
There are only three, so it's first come, first serve.
I have to be honest and say these canvases will probably be the last I do for awhile. It was much harder to stand and make them than I even thought it would be, and bending over my table has my spine screaming profanities at me that would scare your grandma. :)
I may be getting a taller table eventually, but until that happens it's just not smart [or kind] to my body to make them the way I have been. Those who have inquired about ordering canvases: this was my "test run" of sorts, so I won't be making them soon. I am keeping all the emails of canvas requests in a folder, however, so when/if I'm able to make more I will contact you as I'm able and see if you're still interested.
In the meantime, leave a comment below before midnight CST to try and win today's canvas. If you don't win it and want one [or three :)] you can head on over to Heather's Etsy site to buy one there tomorrow. I'll have random.org pick a winner and announce it in tomorrow's post!
Good luck :)
:: Side note: if you'd like to read more about Emma and Heather, you can go to her blog. :)
I can’t wait to see what you guys came up with this week! Just click below and follow the instructions to link to your project. When it asks you to choose the web or a file for your thumbnail, choose web. Then it will take you to a list of the images on the page you are linking to and you’ll be able to choose a photo to represent your project.
I have no idea why thinking about writing this post suddenly brought Vanilla Ice's lyrics into my head. But since they're now stuck in mine I thought I would be kind enough to share and let them be stuck in your head, too.
You're welcome.
Sorry. Back to the reason I was writing in the first place. As I've been less and less able the past few years, I've discovered a little gem that has kept my mind busy and distracted when I've not been able to physically distract myself.
AUDIO BOOKS.
I remember going with Mom and Dad on car trips when I was the only kid left at home, and thinking they were nuts for checking cassette tapes of books out at the library.
BORING.
And then I would totally get lost and absorbed in the stories right along with them, and the trips seemed to fly by. As an added bonus, no one got carsick trying to read in a moving vehicle.
Win-win.
Of course, no one in today's day and age remember what a cassette tape is, and cds are quickly going by the wayside with the dawn of ever-shrinking iPod Nanos that hold more songs than I could ever listen to in my lifetime.
But audio books? They're still amazing. I have received a few as gifts, and these past months when I have felt too tired to even think about holding a book, they have been an amazing distraction. To me, they are the quintessential movie of the mind.
TODAY, because my friend Matthew is amazing, you all get to try an audiobook for FREE. You will love it. There is something about hearing an author tell the story in their own words… with their pauses and inflections… that brings a whole new depth to the work. It becomes a … wait for it… COLLABORATION between you and the author.
[I can't believe I'm actually tying in that random title.]
So … STOP. COLLABORATE with the author. All you have to do is download it for free andLISTEN.
[forgive me. I just couldn't help myself. it won't happen again.]
Fill out this box and get your audiobook for free:
Well, it looks like the One Word doodles were a hit … because I had a few requests to add some late submissions. :) I loved getting to doodle these, so I've added the following words to today's YOU:create download:
You can download these additional words here: DOWNLOAD
Also, at some point the link for the words in the first post stopped working, so I re-uploaded the original words. If you had problems getting them, the new link to download the 62 words from a few weeks ago is here: ORIGINAL WORDS
::
I also had another idea that I'd like your feedback on. Last week I wrote about "Selah" and happened to remember that I had made a word doodle for it, so I used it to start the post.
Are there any of these words that you would like me to talk about? Is there a certain angle on any of the words that you want me to write on and discuss? You can go back to the One Little Word post to see all the words to choose from, as well as the words listed today. If you do want me to talk about any of them, just let me know in the comment section and I'll work my way down the list. :)
I can’t wait to see what you guys came up with this week! Just click below and follow the instructions to link to your project. When it asks you to choose the web or a file for your thumbnail, choose web. Then it will take you to a list of the images on the page you are linking to and you’ll be able to choose a photo to represent your project.
I got an email last week from a reader who was in desperate need of some original valentines to send to friends and family. So I doodled together a few little sayings that you can print out on a card or stationery or whatever your big hearts desire.
In lieu of candy, consider it my Valentine's Day gift to all of you. Which, of course, means you have to be my valentine. :) Just don't tell Riley. He's the jealous type.
If you'd like a copy of these doodles for yourself, all you have to do is click the button and it will take you to the download page:
I can’t wait to see what you guys came up with this week! Just click below and follow the instructions to link to your project. When it asks you to choose the web or a file for your thumbnail, choose web. Then it will take you to a list of the images on the page you are linking to and you’ll be able to choose a photo to represent your project.
I have all 62 of your One Little Words saved to .png files and ready for you to download and use.
Here's the list of words included in the download:
alertness alive believe can chronicle compassion constant control courage dance delight discipline encourage enough expectation faith fearless feeling focus forward freedom grace gracious gratitude heal healed honor hope humbly serve humility intentional joy kindness listen live look love loyalty moment momentum more of Him... less of me now obey open patience peace plank praise pray seek selah serve shalam shalom stewardship still surrender thankful trust vision wonder yearn
And here are a few random examples to show you what the words look like:
If you'd like a copy of these word doodles for yourself, all you have to do is click the button and it will take you to the download page:
I hope having your word displayed somewhere prominent helps you throughout this year, and that the other words fill you with inspiration. I know they certainly did that for me. I thought of each of you as I wrote them out and prayed that your year was filled with much learning and grace.
I can’t wait to see what you guys came up with this week! Just click below and follow the instructions to link to your project. When it asks you to choose the web or a file for your thumbnail, choose web. Then it will take you to a list of the images on the page you are linking to and you’ll be able to choose a photo to represent your project.
I've gotten about a third of your One Little Word submissions ready to go, as I'm doing everything a bit slower than I was planning on this week. While I finish them up for you to download in next week's YOU:create, I thought I would offer up some more card designs you can use.
I doodled these for those times I need a way to send someone encouragement... offer them peace or hope or simply a word to let them know they aren't in it alone.
I often put these designs four to a sheet on cardstock, cut them and send them as a simple postcard. It's a nice way of sending a little love. The last one, a quote by Victor Hugo, will always be my favorite for absolutely every occasion.
If you'd like a copy of these doodles for yourself, click the download button:
I can’t wait to see what you guys came up with this week! Just click below and follow the instructions to link to your project. When it asks you to choose the web or a file for your thumbnail, choose web. Then it will take you to a list of the images on the page you are linking to and you’ll be able to choose a photo to represent your project.
When I was in high school, Dad would drive us home from church and I would sit in the back seat singing the songs we had just heard, while Mom sat in the front seat singing the harmony. Dad was convinced [seriously] that Mom and I could be Naomi and Wynonna. He thought if the Judd's could make it big there was no reason we couldn't do it, too.
Bless his heart.
I loved those moments because Dad really enjoyed listening to us. I didn't grow up in a family that just couldn't wait to hear me sing. It was probably more that most of them couldn't wait for me to stop singing :), which is why it was always so shocking to me once I got to college that people would ask me to sing at the most random of times.
Freshman year I had friends on my dorm floor who would call down to my room after they had gotten all ready for bed so I could come sing them to sleep. Later, when I was off campus, I would have friends over and make them big dinners... and it became habit that after they were all full and dishes were sitting empty on the table, they would lay on the floor and have me sing to them while they relaxed and digested.
I thought they were crazy. But I also loved being able to do something so simple that made someone so happy.
So that one year, when I had the opportunity to record a few songs, I jumped at the chance knowing there were some friends who would enjoy it. My nieces and nephews were little, and I loved being able to give them a cassette tape of Aunt Sara so they could hear me sing to them whenever they wanted. My niece Anna used to sit in their basement with her little plastic tape player and sing along with me. I loved it.
But the one who clearly loved it most was Dad. How do I know this? Because every single time the family was home and one of the grandkids rode with him in his truck, they came back in the house saying, "Hey Aunt Sara, we just listened to you sing." I'd hop in the truck to ride with Dad to get a movie, he'd turn the key in the ignition and there I would be... singing from the cd player... and he'd start humming along.
He listened to me all the time.
I'm not sure I've ever been more proud than to see that he was proud of me.
All those years ago, I never imagined that creating a quick cd of music would have such a lasting impact for me. I never imagined that Breath of Heaven would play at my Aunt Judy's funeral when I couldn't travel home. I never dreamed the only presence I would have at Dad's funeral would be my voice that I recorded so many years prior. I had no idea how much it would mean to me to have something to offer when it was no longer physically possible to give.
Some of you guys have asked over the past few years if you could order a cd, but rather than go through the bother of all of that, I thought I'd offer it up as a YOU:create. Admittedly, I feel as silly about offering it now as I did singing to my friends after a good meal, but if it's a small way I can make you happy then I am all for it. I created it years ago... I sang one song after another without the opportunity to fix bad notes or lost breath, so there are many flaws and many mistakes... but I put my heart in it and I hope it blesses yours.
To download the songs, all you have to do is click on that download button and it will take you to the download page.
Hope you enjoy... Merry Christmas!
I can’t wait to see what you guys came up with this week! Just click below and follow the instructions to link to your project. When it asks you to choose the web or a file for your thumbnail, choose web. Then it will take you to a list of the images on the page you are linking to and you’ll be able to choose a photo to represent your project.
While I can't make photo cards for all of you, I thought you might like some of the doodles I used as cards in the past. Before I had a cute dog to take humiliating Snuggie pictures of, I used to make doodles like the ones below, print them four to a sheet on cardstock, cut them and mail them as postcards.
It's super fast and easy, and also saves money on postage. And now they're yours to use however you like... as a Christmas card, as thank you postcards for those fun Christmas gifts, scrapbook pages... whatever your heart desires!
To get the doodles I made today, all you have to do is click on that download button and it will take you to the download page.
Hope you enjoy!
I’m going to be linking my post to Shannon’s Take Five entry [she takes 5 minutes to write 5 things about her week]. Head on over if you want to participate and link up. :)
Have a great weekend, friends, and enjoy the people you love!
