Resurrection Sunday!

Before the throne of God above

I have a strong and perfect plea

A great High Priest whose name is love

Whoever lives and pleads for me

My name is graven on His hands

My name is written on His heart

I know that while in heaven He stands

No tongue can bid me thence depart

No tongue can bid me thence depart

When Satan tempts me to despair

And tells me of the guilt within

Upward I look and see Him there

Who made an end of all my sin

Because the sinless Savior died

My sinful soul is counted free

For God the Just is satisfied

To look on Him and pardon me

To look on Him and pardon me

Behold Him there, the risen Lamb

My perfect, spotless Righteousness

The great unchangeable I AM

The King of glory and of grace

One with Himself, I cannot die

My soul is purchased by His blood

My life is hid with Christ on high

With Christ my Savior and my God

With Christ my Savior and my God

And here is something special I put together for Ren for Easter! 

I bought bunny ears from the Target dollar section, but they needed something more... 

So I added one of my own knit bows, for a touch of something pink and girly! 

I thought they turned out perfect!!!

And here is the cutest little bunny (with fairy wings and a very silly face!!)

photography & thoughts | new life has come...

"But new life is only possible when the old life dies. There is always death before resurrection."

 //  quote by Emily P. Freeman, from her book, A Million Little Ways  //

I am currently reading A Million Little Ways by Emily P. Freeman. I am only 32% through it on my kindle, but I can already say how good it is! The quote above came at such an appropriate time, as it is almost Easter, and I have been thinking a lot about Christ's death and resurrection. Also, lately I have been going through the SheReadsTruth Lent study, which has really helped me to focus my thoughts on Christ over the past 40+ days. The older I have gotten the more I have enjoyed Easter for what it truly represents. In Christ alone, Him taking our sin to the cross, we are washed clean. In Christ alone, His resurrection, we can know that we are free from death and sin.

In Christ alone, new life has come and there is hope!

fyi... I took these photos last week, when I took an afternoon trip to the zoo. I really enjoyed looking around for all the little bits of spring popping up. This is such a special and beautiful time of year!

word for 2015 | s h i n e

HAPPY NEW YEAR! I am always so excited for a new year, that feeling of a fresh start.

Of course, there are plenty of little goals swirling around in my head right now and I am sure even more will come to mind over then next several days, but instead of sharing those scatter-brained thoughts, I am just going to share the "theme" I've chosen to focus on for this new year. I always love to choose a broad theme that can be a central focus as I make goals & plans throughout the year. As I choose, I always try to think about what the LORD has been teaching me, mostly through His Word. That way, I am choosing something meaningful for me yet basic enough to focus on through all of lives unknowns... So, each new year I choose a word and Bible verse to focus on!

My word for 2015 is  S H I N E

I am a lover of light. I love the way the sun during golden hour makes all things shine. As a photographer, particularly of things in nature, light is everything. It is the most important element in all of my photography and it always inspires me. I guess that would have been reason enough to choose "shine" as my word for 2015. But it goes even deeper than taking a pretty photo... I really decided to choose this word because of several Bible verses that were coming to mind over the past several days and months even. It kind of started back when I designed this print. Anyway, there are so many great verses with the words "shine" or "light" that it was hard to choose which verse I was going to chose to be my focus verse. So really I am going to be meditating on and memorizing several of them over this year.

My verse for 2015 is  J O H N  8:12

{Jesus said} “I am the light of the world.
Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness,
but will have the light of life.”

My main goal this year is to believe Him on a deeper level... To deeply believe that He is a great and mighty God and that He is able to do far more than I can imagine. Naturally I am an introvert, which I don’t think is all bad, but I think I have often allowed it to make me more fearful and timid than He wants me to be. BUT Jesus came to this earth and conquered death, so I can have great hope in Him.

I have His light in me, so I am called to SHINE for Him.

the Light of the world...

J E S U S ...

He came to us, for us, even in our sin. He came to this lowly place to live as we live, yet without sin, to take our sin upon Himself. He came to save us and give us hope. He is the Giver and the Gift. And the gift of His Love never fades, even when the Christmas lights do. He is the Light of the world always...

(Listened to this song a lot this Christmas season!)

I  hope  you  all  had  a  very

M E R R Y   C H R I S T M A S !

(And here are some photos from last week, when I woke up to a glorious combination of snow, fog and sun...)

thoughts | walking in gratitude

|  The verse above is I Thessalonians 5:18  |

I can't believe Thanksgiving is next week! Of course I love Thanksgiving for the great food and family time, but the days leading up to it are my favorite because they remind me to focus on giving thanks everyday, in all things! I love being reminded of the Lord's constant goodness, no matter what other things are consuming my mind... That always brings gratitude and joy!!

I am currently trying to catch-up on the She Reads Truth plan, "In Everything Give Thanks"...
I am a few days late getting into it, but better late than never.

From Day One... I loved this quote, "His will is not as much a path as it is a way of walking." 

It's a beautiful quote and it goes great with the theme of giving thanks in all things, because it is about being thankful along the journey. By choosing to walk in gratitude daily, we find joy! If we walk in His ways daily, we will constantly find things to be thankful for in all of life's circumstances. And  even on the worst days we can know that He is still on our side, fighting for us. That is the one thing that we can ALWAYS count on and be thankful for. He is good, in everything, all the time. I always want to walk though life being thankful and giving Him the glory in all things.

Read the day one devotion...

word for 2014 | f o c u s

 Here is one of the first photos I took in 2014 -- taken January 2nd. 

The sky was clear blue and the sun was shining, yet it was cold and the world around me was 

covered in frost. That kind of beauty is always good for my soul. Seeing it and capturing it 

inspires me. How God has created this world is a thing of great beauty and mystery.

* * *

Well, here we are at the beginning of a New Year, so I had to share a few thoughts on my blog. Like every year, there are a lot of  little "goals" that I have... For example, this year I am hoping to learn more about writing with my new calligraphy pens (Christmas gift). I want to push myself to be more creative. And of course, I have the typical goals of being healthier, reading more books & so on... Another goal, that is actually still on my list from last year (really all of them are)... is to finish some of my half-done knitting/crocheting projects. So, of course I have "goals" for this year! I always start off a year, with lots of plans & things I want to do, because a new year always inspires me, so it's easy to have a lot on my mind. It's all exciting and good, but it can also feel overwhelming. Often what I feel like I lack the most is focus...

One of the trends I have noticed in the past couple of years is choosing a positive word for the year. 

I love this idea, because it keeps things simple, more attainable. And if you chose the right word to be 

your "theme" for the year I think it can really benefit you in several areas of your life.

So... my word for 2014  ///  f o c u s

I decided that "focus" would be my word simply because I feel like God brought me to it.

I feel like God is trying to tell me that I simply need to "focus" on Him. All of my other goals and plans

 may work out or they may not... but either way it wouldn't matter if I was not focused on Him.
There is nothing wrong with goals, but if they are taking over my time & effort and
causing me not to grow in the Lord, than it's all in vain.

A couple of weeks ago in Sunday School, I was reminded of these two verses, which go right along 

with my theme, so I have decided to make these my 2014 "focus" verses...

My plan is to always come back to these verses! I will meditate on them and memorize them, as well as other verses that will help me to keep my "focus" on Him. If I get off track, which I probably will, I know that these verses will remind me where my focus needs to be. In addition to the reminders of my theme word and my verses, I will be reading through the Bible in a year, a little bit everyday, which I have never done before. I am certain that there is no better way to stay focused on Him and learn from Him than to read His Word everyday.

So, there is my only real goal for 2014... To "focus" on Him in all I do. To think on things above. 

Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, 

and all these things will be given to you as well. 

Matthew 6:33

Do you have a word for 2014 or any special goals for the year?

advent | day 11

|  Today's ADVENT ACTION from She Reads Truth  |

"Write down all of the things you secretly believe give you a right standing before God. 

Then thank the Lord that your salvation does not depend on any of those things, 

but on His grace alone."

This is the part of today's Advent devotion that really stuck with me. So beautifully said. 

 Go to She Reads Truth to see the whole reading plan. If you aren't reading something 

special for Advent, I would encourage you to read this plan. It's not too late to start! 

Each devotion has blessed me so much during this special season!

photos taken last week... now the snow is mostly melted.

my thoughts | getting a little bit Christmas-y!!

I love that Thanksgiving & Christmas are so close together. They are my favorite holidays and I believe 

you can celebrate them simultaneously, starting November 1st!! :) Fall decorations are up on the mantle 

& it reminds me that it's all just the beginning... I start enjoying Christmas music & movies right away 

because I think those things should be enjoyed for longer than just one month. However, Thanksgiving 

will never be passed over; Christmas decorations don't go up until after Thanksgiving. 

And I will not go "black friday shopping" on Thanksgiving night. 

To each his own, but that is the way I like to do things...   :)

Since I have already started listening to Christmas music, I have been inspired by some of the amazing 

words to Christmas songs! So, I decided to use them to create some fun Christmas-y designs!

 These designs are available for sale in my shop, as 8x10 prints! I thought I would post these before

 Thanksgiving, so there would be plenty of time to purchase them for decorating your wall this Christmas! 

See these prints in my etsy shop >>>

Oh, this time of year... the holiday season truly fills my heart with warmth, thanksgiving & joy!  

This season is about a lot of happy little things... the music, movies, baked goodies, twinkle lights, shopping, family traditions, etc... BUT mostly this season is about giving thanks to God for all He has done over the year & it's about celebrating the birth of the Savior- the greatest gift of all & the sole reason for gratitude at Thanksgiving and joy, hope, love & peace at Christmas... and all year long for that matter!!

Yesterday I watched the "Christmas at the Farm" webcast with Ann Voskamp & Liz Curtis Higgs. 

Their messages were a beautiful reminder of what Christmas is really about & how important it is to stay focused on Christ during this season. It can be so easy to get too caught up in everything else, so we have to be intentional about staying focused on Him through it all. I was inspired & I will definitely be getting Ann's new book, The Greatest Gift to read for Advent this season! I love that it is meant to be a devotional for each day of December. Such a lovely way to stay focused on Jesus this season! I am so excited to start it on December 1st!

It truly is the most wonderful time of the year!!

:)

He came to my rescue...

Falling on my knees in worship

Giving all I am to seek Your face
Lord, all I am is Yours
My whole life, I place in Your hands
God of Mercy, humbled I bow down
In Your presence at Your throne

I called, You answered
And You came to my rescue and I
I wanna be where You are

In my life, be lifted high
In our world, be lifted high
In our love, be lifted high

I have had this song on repeat lately... It is so good!!

....And this one too!!

So, I will just leave it at that, because most of the time other people say things better than I can. 

thankful for: colorado wildflowers

Today I am thankful for the presence of pretty little yellow wildflowers. These bright & happy little gifts from the Creator have begun to fill up the usually dry & dull prairies where I live. Seeing them line the roads as I drive by brings a smile to my face. They called out for me to photograph them during "golden hour"... And, of course, I could not resist!!! Any time I am able to capture even the tiniest bit of God's creation, I feel so thankful, blessed, joyful.... This is my small way of being thankful to God for all that He gives. The only reason these photos have any beauty at all is because of what God has given. He gives to us simply because He loves us and He gives abundantly. The least I can do is give Him thanks! All of this beauty is from Him & ultimately for Him. Every day there are little gifts all around us, not because we deserve them, BUT instead to constantly remind us of the love & grace of the Giver.

Slow down & don’t miss what the Creator & Giver has for you each day!

{ Currently inspired by One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp }

thankful snapshots // life lately

It has been a while since I have blogged. Life has felt overwhelming. 

I have a lot of photos, recipes and words that I have wanted to share lately.

However, I just haven't felt much like sitting down to blog. 

Even though I haven't blogged much, life has gone on... with all of it's ups & downs.

Lately, there have been a few disappointments. Plans have fallen through. 

Sometimes life takes unexpected and unwelcome turns. It happens to us all.

Last week, my mom had her surgery. 

And lately, extreme fires have been burning all around Colorado, destroying so much. 

There are difficult things all around. But there are also things to be thankful for!

I am thankful that my mom's surgery went really well.

I am thankful for the love & prayers from people all around us.

I am thankful for beautiful flowers that bring colorful joy, even if it's only for a moment.

And mostly, I am thankful for the gift of peace that this world cannot give...

“I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart.
And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give.
So don’t be troubled or afraid."

John 14:27

The LORD has truly given me that peace. 

Truly knowing Jesus, means having the Holy Spirit within you.

And having the Holy Spirit means that you can have perfect peace right when you call upon Him.

This world gives a little bit of "happiness" and a whole lot of worries and fears... 

But peace is a gift the world cannot give. It only comes from Jesus.