Stories from Africa...

What a beautiful life.  It's not mine, but she said I could share with you...

Just a few months ago, on Valentine's Day, my friend Juli wrote this post on Singleness as part of a series I hosted called, YouAreLoved.  I wanted my readers to know...really know, how loved they are by God regardless of their marital status, especially on a day of the year when earthly relationships are glorified. 

So Juli was gracious enough to share about her journey through singleness...and how through it, God has lead her to use her nursing skills in Africa.  I remember when she moved.  She was working in a hospital here in Los Angeles, and felt called to go to Kenya, and minister to those there dying of AIDS.  God had stirred in her heart that people should not die alone.  

Over the eight years she's lived in Kenya, God has opened the doors for her to start Living Room International Ministries.  I encourage you to check it out.  God has put walls and a roof around a stirring she felt so many years ago.  Because she followed Him, so much blessing has followed....

A building to house the guests who come...

...and a staff to work alongside in caring for those who need to be here...

In addition to God blessing the ministry she's been called to lead, God has recently blessed her in yet another way.  He's granted the longing of her heart to be a wife!  She'll tell you that in her years of being single, her desire to be a wife never lessened.  It was there, but she never let it stop her from pressing into what God had for her in this season of her life.  A season when she was free from all earthly ties to go to the ends of the earth...and go, she did.

In her going, she became a women ready for the man God was saving just for her.  

He was in Kenya all along....

God fulfilled the desires of her heart as her desires aligned with His...for her and for His people in Kenya.  And, do you want to hear how much a woman after God's own heart is worth?  Here, negotiations were underway...

Within Nandi culture, the price of the standard dowry is four cows.  But when negotiations had ended, the price for my friend, ended up being FIVE cows and ONE goat!  I can't help but think God was smiling as He saw his daughter...the one after His own heart...honored in this way.  

Here's a taste of the engagement party village and community gave in honor of her engagement...

Children's choir singing...

Living Room guests joining the celebration...

Trees planted in order to remember such a beautiful day...

And now, as husband and wife...following a ceremony with close family and friends in the US.

She'll return back home to Africa to begin the rest of her life as a wife.

She'll continue loving others as a nurse in the healing name of Jesus, 

all the while remaining a child of the living, active and Holy God.

***

I am so grateful Juli allowed me to share her story with you, so that you and I may know how good the will of our God is for those who follow Him, even to the ends of the earth.

God has spoken to me through the journey of my friend...

Lord, where am I holding onto my way, while keeping the nudging of your Spirit at a "safe" distance?

We were made for His glory and to enjoy Him.  

Sometimes I get all turned around and actually start to believe that choosing God's way is a sacrifice.  I forget of the blessing that follows obedience.  The only sacrifice I make in choosing to follow the One who created me for His glory and pleasure, is giving up a way I've dreamed up for myself.  

Hmm...My dreams for His.  Sounds like a good trade to me! 

I once heard a missionary say...

"It's safer to be in God's hand in a dangerous place than outside His hand in a safe place."

Those of us who trust Jesus as Savior will never find ourselves outside the hand of our God...but are we willing to let Him carry us wherever He wants us to go?

My prayer is that in every season, in any type of weather, no matter the apparent "cost" in the moment...my answer would always remain the same...

Yes, Lord.  I am Yours.  Send me.

To my next door neighbor or to the corners of the earth.

May I love as you love,

And listen to every whisper of your Spirt because I know the voice of the One who calls me to...

GO.

Found- A Photo Link Up

"If you look for me in earnest, you will find me when you seek me.

I will be FOUND by you," says the Lord.

Jeremiah 29:13-14

Welcome to the Found Photo Link Up hosted by Beautifully Rooted!
We want to challenge you to be intentional about capturing God in your everyday life through your camera lens. Our hope is that through this process we'll be able to slow down so we can live in His comfort & peace each day, but that we'll also be able to create a collection of images to look back on as a visual reminder that He really is with us every single day.

.......................................

When I saw the adorable lizard in Molly's post at MixedMolly Designs I just had to click over and see what this cute little guy was all about.  This post FOUND me smiling and thanking God for the fun little surprises in life.

"She is nothing less than inspiring."

Thank you for linking up Molly!  

 .......................................

Now it's time to share where you found Him in your week.

-Photos from any kind of camera will work:

your cell phone, instagram, point and shoot, or a dslr.

-Link up your blog post, sharing where you found Him in your week.

-Not a blogger, but still want to join in the fun?

Not to worry!  You can link up your photo through Flickr.

Simply grab the photo's direct link, which can be found

on the share tab of your photo, and add it to the link up.

-Be sure to include a link back to the Found link up in your post or photo description.

-Add your link any time this week.

P.S.  You can grab a Found button for your post from our sidebar.

Beautiful Sponsors- A Giveaway

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To enter this group giveaway,

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Paper and Palette 

please leave a comment sharing

your favorite Summer vacation memory.

Giveaway will remain open through Monday, June 4th at midnight MST.

One winner will then be chosen at random and announced Tuesday.

silhouette plates

For Christmas last year my husband bought me a roll of this chalkboard contact paper. To some that might seem like a weird gift to get from their sweetie but I loved his thoughtfulness knowing I would find something fun to do with it.

I have had the idea for ages to make silhouettes with it but had been sitting on it for awhile. It wasn't until a few weeks ago when we welcomed our fourth baby that I suddenly felt the urge to make these. Feeling like a completed family now I have loved looking at this little corner of our house admiring the sweet silhouettes of the ones I love most.

These are super easy and super inexpensive  I used up all the fun thrifted plates I have had in my stash and completed the entire set in just a few hours.

Supplies:

plates

black contact paper (mine is chalkboard contact paper)

tracing paper

scissors

pencil

photos (printed on typing paper is fine)

plate hangers for displaying

First I took a photo of each family member with my phone and then emailed the photos to myself and put them into a word document sizing them the same. I then printed out the pictures and cut each silhouette out.

Trace each picture out onto the tracing paper and if you want you can even flip the picture over before tracing it if you need the silhouette to face the opposite direction. I did that with two of my pictures to give the finished ones variety.

Once you trace the silhouette staple the tracing paper to a piece of the contact paper and then cut it out using the tracing paper as a stencil. 

When your finished all you have to do is stick the silhouette onto the plate, add the plate hanger and display on your wall. The silhouettes are completely removable when your ready for a new look or an updated version of the kids as they grow!

Happy crafting everyone!

Careful

I hang up the phone and begin analyzing. Did she understand what I was trying to say? Did I offend her? Maybe I should have said this, but not that. What if...?

Some of us struggle with fear more than others. Sometimes we’re so careful to say enough, but not say too much. Love, but not blubber too vulnerably. Give, but not lose it all. Controlled and orchestrated feels safe to us; not being able to control what someone else thinks of you...is not.

Being careful is a result of fear. Fear of man, fear of failure, fear of making a wrong move, fear that someone will be upset with you, will misunderstand, or misjudge. Fear that forgiveness is not real. Fear that recklessness will be too costly.

The only way to ensure that you will never be misunderstood is to not be known at all. Most of my life has been lived out publicly--even if only within my community. I was a pastor’s daughter from my teen years, then a ministry leader, a pastor’s wife, a blogger, and now as a wife of a Headmaster. In a life that is accessible and publicly viewed, where relationships are at the core of all effort...you can only be careful for so long, and only to a certain extent. You simply can’t say everything to everyone’s liking or live for everyone’s approval. You will fail. You will disappoint. You will experience conflict. Public or not, that is at the heart of every relationship. The deeper the relationship, the greater the potential to reveal yourself as the weak and sinful person you really are. And, frankly, I just don’t really like that.

But I do like deep relationships. In fact, I thrive on them.

And so, there is no way around it...I must walk straight into the beautiful, tender, vulnerable, grace-giving, grace-receiving, pruning, weeding, brick-laying, edge-sharpening, soul-satisfying arena that is community.

“Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.” 

(Philippians 2:3) 

Is it possible that our carefulness, our well-controlled responses, our resistance to vulnerability, has less to do with the wisdom of self-control, and more to do with a conceited worry of wanting others to think more highly of us? Could it be that we are motivated by fearful rivalry?

Here’s the good news: God didn’t call us to a life of carefulness, but rather a life of faith in the midst of utter failure. He’s called us to humility. The life we live is to be lived out void of fear and guilt; it is to be lived out in forgiveness. The fellowship we are meant to have with brothers and sisters in Christ was intended to be messy (on account of sin), but possible in rebirth. It is based on grace, not perfection.
It is not reckless to be in genuine relationship with others when we are tethered to Christ. What freedom we have, therefor, to abandon the caution, the guardedness--the carefulness--and to embrace deep and meaningful relationships with joy and confidence. 

beautiful you

You are beautiful.

Three little words every woman longs to hear and most struggle painfully to believe.

I know my own heart has been at odds with this elusive phrase.

I've felt woefully insecure much more often than I've ever felt truly beautiful.  I tried to tell myself that maybe I really didn't need to be beautiful after all, maybe beauty wasn't really that important.  But I never could completely convince my heart of this.  And in all my conversations with my glorious Heavenly Father, I realized that beauty was important to Him as well.

Hovering as an artist over his easel, God composed a world of breathtaking and wondrous loveliness.

And the crowning glory of his creation?  Man and woman.

Men he spun from the clay of the earth; strong, virile, and dominant.

Women he fashioned from the rib of man; relational, life-giving, and beautiful.

Both are formed in His image, both reflect different aspects of the nature of God.

But the world since those perfect days of creation has attempted to re-write the beauty that God designed.  Somewhere along the way, the definition became exclusive.

And I didn't feel like I quite fit the bill.

I vividly remember a heart wrenching time in my life when I was bound by insecurities and I was desperate for God to help me see myself the way He saw me.  I'll never forget what He whispered to my soul.  His gentle plea was simply, "Let me love you."

I dared in that moment to ask him how.  How was I to let him love me?  I thought I was already.  His patient smile hinted that I had much to learn.   There was more, so much more to His love than I could even begin to imagine.  And He began to show me, in glimpses,  in little gifts, in time-stopping moments when I felt bathed in a love too sweet for words.  Slowly, tenderly, steadily, He revealed to me my inability to love myself had been keeping me from receiving my husband's love as well as the love of my Heavenly Father.

God has done some major heart re-construction since that illuminating moment.  All my ugliness was laid out before him and He didn't flinch.  He didn't run away.  He didn't leave me in the hopeless mess of shattered pieces that I believed myself to be in.

No, He simply changed my looking glass.  

I had been peering into the wrong mirror.  A dirty old cracked mirror the world had hung up in my room years and years ago.  A mirror riddled with lies that I had too easily accepted.  He replaced it with His own--the mirror of His Word.

And this mirror says I'm beautiful.  In a million different ways, God is reminding me that I captivate His heart.

"The king is enthralled by your beauty.  Honor him for he is your lord."  (Psalm 45: 11)

God is not a man that he should lie.  He's crazy about us.  He delights in us.  The Bible tells us that "as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so will your God rejoice over you." (Isaiah 62: 5)  

Wow.  The God of the universe is head over heels in love with us!

Now, when I catch my reflection in His mirror, I find a woman washed in the love of a Savior, purchased by His very own life, accepted as His daughter, rejoiced over as His bride.  

I'm learning to let Him love me.

To let Him write me love letters, send me flowers, bathe me in acceptance, sing songs of love over me.

And everyday His love is surprising me.

Book Review {The Money Saving Mom's Budget}

Hello Beautifully Rooted Readers!

I was so excited to receive my copy of Crystal Paines book, "The Money Saving Mom's Budget".  The title speaks for itself!  Personally speaking, I try each day to find new and innovative ways to be a good steward of the financial blessings my husband and I have been given.  After all, it's all the Lord's money, right?  If I truly believe that, each purchase and choice is important, so it is worth my time to learn about exciting new ideas that will aide in our financial life!

Crystals book is refreshing to me because it offers a way of looking at finances that isn't super common.  Certainly there are tips I have heard before, but what is challenging is the idea of living beneath your means, even if you don't have to.  That is something that I have really been challenge to do lately and I am enjoying it!  Just because we HAVE the money to dine out, do we need to?  Delayed grtification is a wonderful thing and something we truly desire to teach our kids.

Money isn't everything but it is something that we have been given and I know that I want to learn how to make the most of what we have....all along remembering that the Lord is the giver of all things good.

Crystal's book comes along side and helps with just that!

Please read below and you'll find some answers to questions that Crystal was asked and then make sure you enter to win a copy of the book!  You'll want it!

***

What drove you to write the book? What's the story behind the book?

Nine years ago, my husband and I got married and committed to stay out of debt while he went through law school. It was an audacious goal, but we learned so much through living in a little basement apartment barely eeking by and wondering how we were going to pay the next bill.

Not only did we learn how to creatively pinch our pennies and maximize the mileage of our money, we also learned to trust God’s provision and see Him faithfully take care of us--even when we weren’t sure how the ends were going to meet!

During those years, I landed upon this thing called blogging. It was a new phenomenon at the time, but I discovered I loved it--and, to my surprise, people started showing up to read it! And I realized that people were hungry for information on how to lower their grocery bill and get their finances in order.

I ended up starting MoneySavingMom.com--a blog exclusively on finances--in the Fall of 2007. This was close to the time when the economy began to tank and there was a much-heightened interest in coupons and money-saving strategies.

Within two years, MoneySavingMom.com was garnering hundreds of thousands of visits each month and had grown beyond what I could have ever dreamed. AOL asked me to write a weekly money-saving column for them that they featured on their homepage. Near the end of 2010, a vice president from Simon & Schuster stumbled across this column, clicked on my bio and explored my blog, and wrote later that day to offer me a book deal.

While I’d always thought it would be amazing to be a published author, I figured that was something I’d pursue in five or ten years. But after much prayer, seeking wise counsel, and streamlining our lives, we accepted the book deal.

Writing and publishing it has been a stretching and growing learning experience for me, but I’ve loved (almost!) every minute of it. And I’ve learned so much through it that will impact me for the rest of my life, regardless of where God takes me in the years to come.

Who is the book written to? How would someone know they should read your book?

My heart’s desire in writing The Money Saving Mom®’s Budget is to give women hope and inspiration. I want to communicate the message that you’re not stuck–no matter how much of a financial mess you may feel like you’re in right now!

In this book, I give women the motivation and practical step-by-step help to turn their finances–and their lives around. You’ll be inspired to set big goals and follow through with them, to get a handle on your time and home management, to create a realistic budget, to start telling their money where to go instead of it just slipping through their fingers like sand, and to live a rich and fulfilling life--no matter you income level.

If you're discouraged with your financial traction, if you're feeling "stuck" financially, if you're struggling to have hope in the midst of financial setbacks, if you feel like you're in a financial mess, or if you could just use some practical ideas for how to live well on a shoestring budget, this book is for you!

What will a reader gain from reading your book?

I hope that a reader gains not only inspiration for wisely stewarding their money so they can save and give more, but I also hope that readers are inspired to live purposefully and intentionally by setting goals and getting their home and lives in better order. This book is not about putting a bandage on the problem or providing a quick fix; it’s about making gradual changes over an extended period that will propel you to greater financial success than you ever dreamed possible!

What are your top tips for women seeking financial freedom?

First off, one the most important things is to set goals. Goals give you purpose and momentum for financial stewardship. They give you the motivation to continue to live simply, clip coupons, cook from scratch, or drive an old car because each of those things are propelling you one step closer to your financial goals.

Consider where you want to be next year, five years from now, and ten years from now. Write your goals on paper and then break them down into monthly and weekly bite-sized pieces and start chipping away at them.

You might not be where you hope to be in six months or a year from now, but if you start taking small steps in the right direction, I can guarantee that you’ll be much farther along than if you did nothing at all.

Secondly, cultivate a positive, grateful attitude. You can choose to go through life seeing the worst in everything or the best in everything. You can complain about the thorns, or you can be grateful for the beautiful roses.

No matter what you’re going through in life, there is always something to be grateful for. Choose joy--even in the midst of difficult circumstances--and it will change your whole outlook on life!



***

We would love to give one of our lovely readers a copy of Crystals book!
To enter, simply leave a comment with one of your favorite ways to save money (i.e. leftovers, coupon cutting) and we will pick a name at random, on June 1st!
One entry per reader, please!

***

Thank you, Crystal, for your wonderful tips, insight and wisdom!!

Found- A Photo Link Up

"If you look for me in earnest, you will find me when you seek me.

I will be FOUND by you," says the Lord.

Jeremiah 29:13-14

Welcome to the Found Photo Link Up hosted by Beautifully Rooted!
We want to challenge you to be intentional about capturing God in your everyday life through your camera lens. Our hope is that through this process we'll be able to slow down so we can live in His comfort & peace each day, but that we'll also be able to create a collection of images to look back on as a visual reminder that He really is with us every single day.

.......................................

When I read Jen's post at Taste & See about weeds, I immediately started wondering what in my life is a weed and what is a garden?  This post FOUND me in the garden of my heart, praying that the weeds would be removed.  

"The only thing preventing me from being a weed is the pure grace of God through Christ." 

Thank you for linking up Jen!  

 .......................................

Now it's time to share where you found Him in your week.

-Photos from any kind of camera will work:

your cell phone, instagram, point and shoot, or a dslr.

-Link up your blog post, sharing where you found Him in your week.

-Not a blogger, but still want to join in the fun?

Not to worry!  You can link up your photo through Flickr.

Simply grab the photo's direct link, which can be found

on the share tab of your photo, and add it to the link up.

-Be sure to include a link back to the Found link up in your post or photo description.

-Add your link any time this week.

P.S.  You can grab a Found button for your post from our sidebar.

A quote to think on.

I blogged about my feeling of irrelevance and the lies Satan feeds us, HERE.  This quote reminds us that our hope is in Him. Our purpose is found through Him.  We owe Him our obedience.  Each day.

on choosing the first things first

"The moment you wake up each morning, all your wishes and hopes for the day rush at you like wild animals. And the first job each morning consists in shoving it all back; in listening to that other voice, taking that other point of view, letting that other, larger, stronger, quieter life coming flowing in." 

- C.S. Lewis

For me, this is the time of day when all is right in the world. The sun has just risen. All's quiet in the house as the kids are still snuggled in their beds. The provider husband is already hard at work, getting ready for his students to come.

All the windows are flung open wide and the morning breeze is washing the home clean. On an ideal day there's coffee by my side and my lap is covered with Bible and journal. I seek Him out and am ever-amazed how He speaks when I'm really listening. On a less-than-ideal day, my Martha kicks in and I deem tidying up and prepping for school and any-other-thing to be more important. Why do I do that? Am I so dull that I choose to forget what I know to be true day after day?

"He who runs from God in the morning will scarcely find Him the rest of the day." John Bunyan

Ooo, ouch.

When these precious kids I've been given stumble downstairs, some more awake than others, I want to be filled and ready to serve, disciple and teach them diligently. If what comes from my mouth is the overflow of my heart, my heart better be freshly filled with wisdom from Him!

The 17 projects on the table, the paper plate on the floor, the discarded clothes in the bathroom, the dinner plates in sink will all have to wait!

Because, for me and for them, I'm choosing Him first.

  "ETERNAL Father of my soul, let my first thought today be of Thee, let my first impulse be to worship Thee, let my first speech be Thy name, let my first action be to kneel before Thee in prayer. 

Yet let me not, when this morning prayer is said, think my worship ended and spend the day in forgetfulness of Thee. Rather from these moments of quietness let light go forth, and joy, and power, that will remain with me through all the hours of the day."

- Baillie, Diary of Private Prayer

What To Do With Our Down Time

source

We've all been there. When we don't have the energy to pick up our pinking shears. When our sewing machine gets dusty and the hinges to our craft room door gets rusty. When the site of our hot glue gun makes us want to curl up in a ball and wish it all away.

Ok, please tell me I'm not the only one!

For the past 3 months I've been in a crafty funk. Now I must tell you that for the last 3 months I've also been hard at work growing a human being. So at least I've been busy making something.

But if it's not a baby it's something else for sure. We get busy. Life throws us challenges. We get tired. We are needed to focus our amazingly skilled creative talents elsewhere. No excuses needed.

We sometimes just get in a creative rut. Which is normal, and important, and perfect, and sometimes needed to come out refreshed and more crafty than ever!

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So what do we do with this down time?

1. Pray about it lady. Whatever is causing you to be weary in this season, take it to the Lord. He wants to know your thoughts and troubles. He wants to talk with you and allow you to listen to His plan. Ask Him for direction through this time. Pray for ideas, motivation, and an newness with how you approach the creative parts of your life.

2. Journal about it too. Reflect on this time and write it down (and for heavens sake, just go buy a journal, no need to be crafting one out of fabric scraps and vintage sheets right now). My favorite part of journaling isn't necessarily pouring out the hard times into the blank pages, but it's when I go back and read how faithful the Lord is (yet again!) through this season in my life.

3. Dust out the bucket list. I know you have a billion things that you'd like to do someday. While you're not feeling particularly crafty these days, maybe turn your sights on some other interests in your life. Dust off your bike, whip up a new meal, spend more intentional time with family, call up an old friend. If you've gone some crafty down time, don't fritter it away. Give it to other important things in your life that you love!

4. Get back to the heart of things. Why do you create? Why did you start in the first place? Reflecting on those questions might help give your creative juices a kick in the pants. Does crafting help you elevate stress? Does it help you express emotion/prayers/problems/praise? Do you craft and sell your items to support your family and what has that business helped your family do?

5. Don't feel bad about it! Last week I cracked the door to my craft room for the first time in weeks. I finally had more energy and was getting excited about new ideas. With the baby due in the fall and the hopefully possibility of staying at home and providing for our family through my shop, this gave me a renewed sense of purpose. By the end of the night, the hot glue was flowing and momma-to-be had found her groove. But you better believe that I almost hit the "my store is on vacation" button about 100 times during those first few weeks. And I don't feel bad. I did what I needed to do for me and my family. Making pretty things for my shop and my home is important to me (and vital to my sanity), but I don't feel bad for needing to step away. And you shouldn't either. If you do, email me and I'll give you a pep talk!

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Now please know that just because I'm giving a voice to these words, does not mean I have it all figured out. I am writing this as a reminder to myself more than anything! If you find yourself in a dry season, relax and enjoy the fruits of free time!