Let’s Be Hot Messes Together

It would be foolish to clean the outside of a dirty bowl and call it clean. {Matthew 23:25-28}

Yet it’s the same thing to clean up the outside of our lives and put on fronts, calling ourselves put together when our insides are a hot mess.

Every day I feel pressure to look put together in every area. I feel it from the outside world, but if I’m honest, even more from myself. It leads me to try my hardest to trick myself into thinking I have it all together so that I can put forth that vibe. It keeps me from sharing what’s really going on because if I don’t know your junk, why would I tell you mine?

As I’ve given more thought to my to do and to be lists, I’ve realized that my need to accomplish so many to do’s is closely tied to making myself feel tied together on the inside. Really, there are a lot of loose ends inside. Pride, jealousy, anger…there’s a part of me that believes if I control the outside of my life, then the inside will be set. But if that’s the case, I’m just addressing the symptoms, not the problem. Granted, making strides to change the symptoms will likely lead to {slow} changes on the inside. But the effective, more lasting route, is to deal with the junk on the inside. This is what is lasting; it will result in greater changes in my life than the quick fix.

So friends, I just want you to know that on the inside, things are a mess. But by the grace of God, He is untangling them and redeeming them for His glory. I’m begging Him to hurry up and make me more like Him- or at least let me get out of His way more often. But I know He is faithful and will complete what He started. I know I’m blessed to have people who are ok with that and don’t expect me to have it all together.

I want to be better at showing that sort of grace. Can we be honest hot messes together? Spilling what’s really going on and not wallowing in it, but encouraging and loving one another out of our junk? Let’s link arms and be reflections of Christ’s grace to each other.

A Questionable Mustache

I want to be a questioner. A learner.

To be those things, I must ask questions.

It’s far too easy to stay proud, stuck in a rut or comfort zone, straining to recreate the wheel.

But why? That’s foolish.

Too often I think of things I want to do but don’t follow through. So this week, I started brainstorming a list of questions. Things I want to talk about with Troy, my friends, and people I come into contact with. And I picked one to ask.

Troy has to work late a lot. I often have meetings on the nights he doesn’t have clients in town, so we don’t get to see each other much right now. Supporting him in this is something I think I’ve gotten better at, but I have a long way to go. So I asked a wise friend whose husband is also busy a lot how she supports and encourages him. Her answers affirmed a few things and gave me some new ideas. It was encouraging and refreshing. And I’m looking forward to practicing those things and getting better at loving Troy in that way. All from a simple question.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to ask some more questions and grow a mustache so it’s even more fun to do so. It’s a good look for me, no?

HI! {I’m sorry I’m shouting I’m just so excited. And I can’t hide it.}

Hi friends!

I sure missed you, but thanks for being gracious and letting me spend some time away.

That being said, I am SO excited about what the Lord taught me while I took a break and where He’s leading Greater Than Rubies.

Honestly, I’ve felt disjointed since the challenge ended in December and struggled with what GTR should look like. I wrote this post, and still wanted to write about those things, but I didn’t feel focused and it stressed me out. Honestly, I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to continue blogging or not.

But during my little break, God used a conversation with a friend about ‘to do’ lists and ‘to be’ lists to transform my plans for this blog.

I’ve always struggled with being mastered by my to do list, and while we were talking about that during coffee not too long ago, my accountability partner shared the idea of a ‘to be’ list. What sort of person do I want to become? If I don’t think about and make plans for those things, there’s a greater likelihood I’ll end up far from those goals.

I couldn’t stop thinking about the idea and one night, the Lord poured tons of ideas into my head and gave me the words to capture what I’m passionate about sharing: simplifying the to do’s and focusing on the to be’s.

There are things on our to do lists that just have to get done- but that’s not what our lives should be centered around. How can we be good stewards of what we’ve been given? Accomplish things more efficiently? Spend more time focusing on the people God is making us into?

I’m planning to research and share ways to simplify:

• cooking and meal planning;
• family finances;
• housekeeping and cleaning;
• time management and schedule;
• & wardrobe and beauty-

All so that more time will be focused on who we’re becoming. So GTR will also feature what I discover about thought and behavior patterns, goal planning, and take a closer look at some admirable to be’s.

I’m so excited about where the Lord is leading and I hope you’ll take this journey with me!

Thanks again for your sweet words while I was away. Y’all are the best!

PS If you’re in the DFW area, come out to our Fashion Show benefitting Cornerstone NCT tonight!

inspiration

this month, i’m studying proverbs 31:13-14.

“she seeks wool and flax, and works with willing hands.

 she is like the ships of the merchant; she brings her food from afar.”

my daily life differs from mrs. p31, to be sure, but i’ve taken inspiration from these verses in a couple of ways:

• seeking. the definition is to try to find or discover by searching or questioning, so this month, i’m looking at my productivity. what do i do that works? what do i do simply because it’s a habit? what things could i automate? {this kind of thing is absolutely fascinating to me.}
• checking my motives. i don’t struggle with being willing to work very often, but i tend to get wrapped up in my to do list and lose sight of everything else. because of that, i’m also making a ‘to be’ list.
• meal planning. i’m looking at how i plan and shop and what our family eats.

i’m learning so much my brain feels like it’s going to explode! here’s to a happy and productive week {and no brains exploding.}

these are a few of my favorite things

it’s no secret i’m like a squirrel hoarding nuts with ideas and evernote. i clip all kinds of things that i might want to refer to tomorrow…or somewhere down the road. here are some of the coolest ones i came across last month {you are welcome for not sharing all 1,493,859.75 of them}:

• year27 {this site features illustrated verses with a purpose. jill, the author and designer, is helping translate a book of the Bible through her site.}
• the two minute tuck {brilliant for a bad hair day.}
• font squirrel {free fonts for personal or commercial use!}