Health is something we easily take for granted until something comes up. The test is positive. The x ray reveals what is causing the systems. The prognosis is not looking good. It is at these times that everything else falls at the wayside and the fight begins. The fight for your life. Or the life of a loved one. Perhaps your own child. 

When I came across Alex's Lemonade Stand last year, I knew it was something our family had to take part in and was quickly added to our family's bucket list for the summer, along with dinners and mini vacations. We have been blessed with healthy children but other parents have not. What would I do if my child were sick? Truly sick. With the possibility of death as an outcome. The question would definitely not be what I do but what I wouldn't do to help them. We may not be able to sit next to them in the waiting room or hug them through treatments but we can do a little. We can organize and plan and facilitate events to fund research for a cure or help with traveling expenses. 

The non profit was started by a four year old girl who wanted to raise money via a lemonade stand to cure childhood cancer. The cancer she had been fighting since she was merely one year old. She went to be with Jesus when she was just eight years old but her memory lives on through the lives she continues to touch as new research and hope is given to families fighting the same fight all because of her stand. When God closes one door, he opens another one. It truly breaks my heart to think of Alex' family and their trials but the beauty that has come from it is amazing and the lives of those who have been touched is immeasurable. 

We began praying what this would look like for our family to help. When? Where? Location? And just as God always does, he made the whole thing happen as only he can.

Our neighborhood has a fourth of July parade each year and we had planned on walking in it with our church, as we had done the previous year but this year there was not an entry.

Very last minute, we prayed about doing our stand at the park where the parade ends and it all fell in to place. We got in kind donations from Nugget, a local grocery store, so we did not have to worry about supplies. We had friends and family give yummy snacks, time and monetary donations. The go ahead for the space at the park the parade ends at was given. And my favorite part of all, a few weeks before we even knew when we would do the event, the stand practically landed on our doorstep. I had been praying for something to use that was a little funner and fancier than a table. On a walk one day we found our answer. A neighbor a few houses down was giving away a desk for free. It was perfect. Ricardo noisily wheeled it to the garage.

Here's the before and after.

With exactly enough leftover paint and a chalkboard sign, it was perfect.

It was humbling to see the community come together and respond and God move. We our goal was to raise $500 and we came in at $420, which will fund just over a day of research. Woohoo! I am so thankful for everyone who helped and gave and did something bigger than themselves.

Not to mention we learned what a great barista Penny makes. Who knew?

The scripture says to carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ (Galatians 6:2). This is a tangible way of coming a long side families who are broken at the core and having to watch their children fight a hard fight and give them a bit of hope. No one can do everything but we can do something that impacts others and changes the world, one cup at a time as their slogan reads. If you feel lead to set up a stand in your area or be involved in one of their many events, have a look at their website for more info on all of the awesome things they are doing and how you can help. 

Penny's favorite song, second only to Build your kingdom by Rend Collective, of course, is Do Something by Matthew West. It seems appropriate to insert here. Have a listen.



I pray that God will reveal to you a little something that you can do. And that you will say yes to it.

Here's to more helping and doing all in the name of Christ. 

An amazing friend recently moved to another state and purchased a home. The first home her family has owned. She had been there just a few short days and I asked for some pictures of the place. I know what you are thinking but I had only seen pictures of the backyard and I cannot help it if I am a visual person. She responded saying it was a total zone but she would try to send some decent ones. I responded that it was just proof of her progress.

After sending the message, God whispered, yes enjoy the process of your life. Enjoy the messy and what I am making out of it. 

I have found myself liking the final outcome of projects more so than the process. Making something is fun but when it is finished it is even better. Life tends to be like that, too. I don't know anyone who likes to share their mess. Who likes to share the disaster that is in their living room or hiding in their closets or their hearts. No one wants to share those parts. But in reality, that is the beauty. It is proof of where you came from. Proof of where God has intervened on your behalf and extended grace and love and mercy. Your mess is God's masterpiece. He puts it back together in a way only he can do so. The sharing of your mess allows others to see how God has changed and transformed and made you in to who he has made you to be.

Scripture says that if anyone is in Christ he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come (2 Corinthians 5:17). This is the process. This is the change. This is unpacking the boxes and rearranging and moving your life.  Unfortunately, there is not a switch that is turned and all of your bad habits and selfishness and pride are washed away when you believe in Jesus but there is a new life. A new life in Jesus. A new life for God to show you his path. You have to choose to see the beauty. You have to chose to share the story. Choose to open the past and let grace flow in to the present. Choose to be transparent and ready for God to shine through you. 

Here's to more beauty in the messy and seeing God move in the process. Here's to more glimpses of his glory in your life and less shame in your journey.

During a recent living room dance party, God reminded me of how Jesus tells us in Luke that "the kingdom belongs to such as these" (18:16). Who are the "these" he is referring to you might wonder? Children. The kingdom of God belongs to children. In Matthew he goes on to say "unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven" (18:3). As the music blared on the speakers and Penny jumped from the couch in to my arms, the lyrics to the song playing rang true: this is what you do, you make me come alive." She twirled and we spun and danced in a circle and the music filled the room. It was there that God continued to show me glimpses of his glory that he put in this little girl that he made and gave her to me for a short time. In doing so, God has used her to make me come alive in ways that I never thought possible and continues to do so.

Here, have a listen:

The more that I hang out with my kiddos, the more that I see how true these statements are and the more God opens my eyes to see what Jesus was talking about in the verses. For the past three years I have been blessed to be the mama to one passionate little girl and a sweet little man who God has been using to teach me about his character and various other small lessons scattered amongst my days.

When you look at a child, there is so much life and so much joy compiled in to one teeny, tiny person that it is hard to believe it is contained so well and somehow does not burst outward. Somewhere over the years as bones grow and the baby fat disappears, joy is lost and complacency sets in. It is there that childhood is no more and the slogan "life is hard" may ring true. 

Finding Jesus makes you come alive, no matter the age. He awakens things in you that you may have thought were long over. You may find yourself enjoying things you did not think possible. Jesus has a way of awakening your soul and even returning you to that state of childhood euphoria and wonder and awe at everything around you. Like looking at your hand. Have you ever witnesses a baby examining his hand? The excitement and wonder found in something that he will most likely take for granted every day of his life. I pray that you would come alive and experience life through the eyes of a child with more anticipation and bliss than you have known.

Here's just a few tidbits about attributes of children that God has opened my eyes to lately, and I thought I would share:

• They have a boldness about them, even the shy ones. They are confident and secure with themselves.
• Passion for what they are doing radiates from them. Even after you give them a time warning to end the activity it can still be hard to pull them away.
• They act the same in public and at home. They not afraid to be themselves. They do not care about what others are doing or comparing, they are simply happy to boldly be themselves. 

Yes, they are super simple but the simplest things make the biggest impact. Here's to truly coming alive in Christ and seeing the world through the eyes of a child. 

Personal bible study. It can be a daunting thing when you first dive in. Which book to read? Where to start? What does THAT mean? How does this apply to me?! So much can start to bubble about from one simple action that you may be overwhelmed at where to start. And of course you are reading your bible daily, right? There can be a lot of pressure to read your bible and do this and that when you start following Christ and get deeper in to the relationship. Just remind yourself that there is no competition. No comparison. Everyone is blazing their own journey with Christ and if you let Him take the lead and guide you, it will be your greatest adventure yet.

So back to bible study, I was in a lull in my personal studies a few years back and came across this method, referred to as SOAP. It really changed the way I read and studied the scriptures and left me with little notes from God, if you will, written in my own hand. Each morning I read a chapter or two in whatever book of the bible I am studying, depending on how much time I had, and then filled out each part of the SOAP acronym. It is truly awesome how much God will reveal from his word if you just take the time to study and listen.

What does SOAP stand for, you ask?

Scripture: Which scripture stuck out to you most? Write it down. 

Observation: What you think about the verse? What does God seem to be revealing through it?

Application: How do you apply this little truth to your life?

Prayer: Write a prayer asking how to implement this verse in to your life.

I have a notebook I use each day to keep it all in one place. I have heard of using binder paper and a file folder with each book of the bible on its own tab so you can keep all of the studies you have personally done for that particular book in one place. That seems super handy and eventually I will do that, too but for now it is all bound together in a notebook.

After the chapter is read, the verse or verses that I had stopped at during the reading or jumped off the page at me are written down. Then I underline or highlight or add brackets, whatever my little heart so desires, to the parts that are most important to me. This is the observation. I write a bit about what I think about the verse, what God seems to be revealing through it. Next, is how to apply this little truth to my life. Perhaps I do not know what it means and that is why the verse stuck out to me, so I look it up in the application part of my bible - life application bibles are awesome when you are new to studying the bible or have been for awhile. If there is nothing in it for that particular verse I will ask someone about it and start a little google search to see what others have said about it. God will reveal tidbits about it that way, too. I finish it all up with a little prayer. Prayers about implementing this verse in to my life and for forgiveness for doing otherwise. Yes, these verses may be used to convict you and for God to change your heart. Prayers of thankfulness and praise.

There is so much that God does during this time. All of this usually happens within thirty minutes or less but it makes a HUGE impact on my day. For me, trying to get up before the kiddos do seems to works best but not all days work that way. Naptimes or after breakfast during play time works occasionally, too. After awhile, looking back at what God has shown you through each of your entries is really rewarding. Scattering your pages are little incites and wisdom from the creator of heaven and earth. Wow. That is a gift you can give yourself daily, just take a few minutes.

I love to give this method to friends, so I thought I would leave you with a printable to post in your own personal notebook or one for a friend. There is nothing better than sharing a great way to get to know Jesus better. And a side note, washi tape is perfect for adhering it  to the inside of a notebook. Cute and fun.

Here's to losing yourself and knowing Jesus more. More studying and less scrolling and more peace than you know. Click image to download. 

For Father's day I had planned on doing one of those super cute printables that ask what is daddy's favorite color, food, thing to do etc. and have Penny answer the questions but with Ricardo being out of town for a week and Penny's third birthday the day before father's day, I never ended up getting to it. I did, however, start asking Penny the questions when I stumbled on the one that I imagined I would print out. 
 
Red was his favorite color, his favorite thing to do was play with is fairies (who doesn't right?) and then I asked why she loved him. I was taken back with her answer. She responded with "because he loves me." I thought for sure she would say because he plays fairies with her or swings her or gives her more ice cream than she should have. Surely, one of the things that he did for her would be the reason she loved him. Immediately, 1 John 4:19 came to mind, "we love because he first loved us." 
 
God loves us. He loves you. Unconditionally. Nothing you can do or say or have done will ever change that. He sent his son to die for your sins (John 3:16). He taught us how to love and gives hope. 
 
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. 1 Peter 1:3

I think somewhere it is engrained in our hearts to love. Not based on merit or anything we can do, just pure love. We only know how to love because Jesus loved us. Because he died for us. He gave us hope. Hope in tomorrow. Hope in the worst of times. Hope for the better. Jesus is hope.
 
This week I wanted to share a new song that K-LOVE started playing that was made for their fan awards about a month ago, with several of its performing artists featured. (A fun little fun side note: all of the proceeds from this song go towatds rebuilding Detroit and bringing the city back to life. You can read more about that here.) The lyrics of this song radiate hope and its effects. And how amazing it is. Have a listen.

This song so encouraging, right? What is more encouraging than hope? What about the hope behind it? I pray that if you have not found hope in Christ, that you would. That you would trust him to do so and give yourself the best hope now and to come. Hope can change everything.

Here's restoration and rejuvenation. Less worry and more hope. Here's a little 8x10 of a few of my favorite lyrics, although it was hard to choose - the whole song is well written -  to encourage you. Click image to download.

While debriefing about the day with the hubby one night, I opened a bowl of cookie dough I had made earlier. If there is something I really enjoy eating, it is cookie dough. The point of making cookies is to eat the dough, naturally; although recently, pazookies are getting pretty close. As we talked and laughed and joked, I noticed myself taking bite after bite and hardly acknowledging the taste. Or even enjoying the taste. The thought was great. Yum cookie dough. But I was not enjoying it, simply aquiring more calories with each bite, so I stopped. I think that is how some moments are. They sound great and we whip out the camera, only to attempt to catch the moment and not savor or really enjoy what is in front of us. We miss the moment entirely.

With all of our technology and ability to capture the moments, it seems that I squander away some of the greatest ones attempting to catch something that never wanted to be caught in the first place. Sometimes I get so caught up in wanting to capture the moment that I miss it entirely all together. I scramble to find my phone and open the app. Is it on video or camera? Then I accidentally hit the power button and have to start all over. A black screen does not get me anywhere. By the time I am done fumbling, the moment has passed. The cute expression left and settled in to a more comfy one. My toddler has run away and disassembled her silly attire.

Solomon writes "there is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens." (Ecclesiastes 3:1). He knows a thing or two about time. Not to mention he was the wisest man to live. There is a time for pictures. I am a huge photo person, if you have ever stepped foot in my house, you might have guessed. That being said, it is sooo easy to capture so many. Too many! Since my first digital camera, I have taken thousands of pictures. I have tons of Polaroids but digital made it easy to take thousands! More than anyone ever needs. The mystery was taken out of the picture with it. Are my eyes going to be open? Did I actually look at the camera? Now you are left with more expressions of the same moment than you will ever need, all in an instant.

I pray that you would take a moment and look around you. Look at what is next to you. Who is next to you. What God has strategically placed in your life at this very second. Take it all in. Because in a moment it will soon be gone and you may just realize that you did not appreciate it enough when you had it. Life may get repetitive and may take away your enjoyment all together if you let it. But choose to enjoy it. Enjoy time as it ticks away. Breathe it in, so when it is no more, you will have tasted it to the fullest. I challenge you to put down your phone. Put away your camera and take in your surroundings a little more. Perhaps less pictures will allow you to appreciate the ones you already have and take more meaningful ones when you do.

Here's to savoring the moment. Enjoying each bite on your taste buds. Truly enjoying the little things. Here's a little 8x10 of the verse to remind you to enjoy the moments. Click image to download.

Simple. That is a word that I have been struggling with the past few months. I have read a few books and such about it. The definition is straightforward enough: easily understood or done; presenting no difficulty. But the implementing of it that is the hard part and is difficult. I truly believe that less is more. Less clothes in the closet. Less toys on the shelf. Less to maintain and clean up. Less laundry to fold and less time spending picking out an outfit. Now that is a win-win. Getting there however is not as easy.

The past few months I have been working on what this will look like in my household and lifestyle. Going through things I no longer use and passing them on to some who can. Trying to be intentional with the items that I do have and that get brought in to our home. Being on a tight budget helps, too. It keeps random impulse buys at bay and therefore less messes and clutter.

This song by Keith and Kristyn Getty Has been in my head a lot lately, especially when I am tending our little garden. Really simple living. Getting to the roots of material possessions and focusing on more important things. Generations before us did not have the access to as many items as we have so readily available via Amazon with free shipping. And ready to wear clothes were not so ready, so closets were smaller and I am sure getting dressed was a breeze. Dress A. Dress B. Or dress C. In our consumerism driven culture it is hard to imagine having so little options. 

When Penny was born, we were blessed with an abundance of clothing for her. Her first year of life she hardly wore an outfit twice. And if she did it was one I really liked. The amount of options were overwhelming. I cannot blame Ricardo for never knowing what to pick out for her and which shirt went with which skirt and headband. Too many options. Too much space. Too much stuff. When someone says a teeny baby takes up space, it is no joke. That is if you let it.

This past December when our little man was born, I was determined not to have the same clothes frenzy. We were blessed this time with bunches of second hand clothing from friends whose little boys had out grown them. I kept my favorites and passed the others along to other mama's who were looking for clothes for their babes. What good is a bin full of clothes with a only a few items that baby is actually going to wear?

I don't mind him wearing the same outfit a few times. Perhaps even in the same week. Wearing the same outfit in our culture has such a negative connotation to it. She doesn't have enough money to shop for more. Poor thing. She wore that dress the other day! Who does that? She really needs to get another sweater. Having gone to school for fashion I know too well how often and common these thoughts are said out loud. I am guilty of the same in the past. Thankful for grace! Who wants to be judged because of what we wear?! Scripture says:

"your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight." (1 Peter 3:3-4). 

So beautifully worded. I could go on and on about simple living. It's something God keeps teaching me and showing me how to and directing my focus to areas that need help. I am still horrible at it but I'm a work in progress. Praying God uses this song to touch your life in a simple way that only He can. Enjoy!

Here's to fewer items and more space. Less time focusing on what you need and more thankfulness for what you have. 

And a little 8x10 of the lyrics to inspire you to live a little simpler =) Click image to download.