This print holds a very special place in my heart. It was inspired by our friends, Matt and Monique, and their adoption journey. I remember standing in our dining room talking about the little love they had been praying for and awaiting. I began painting one day and their family was instantly laid on my heart.
Read MoreCraft Street Design // But first, Chai
Pratima from Craft Street Design contacted me a couple of months ago about her fantastic new print line. She offered to send me a free print from her collection to check out the concept and quality of the design. Her company makes cleanly designed inspiration posters, based on design principles Pratima learned while working at Apple.
Of course, I immediately leaped at that opportunity! After hour(s) of browsing through her site and debating between which prints I loved the most, I settled on this one.
Read MoreInspiration for Mia Kai's Nursery // Mood Board
We have made it to the third trimester!! I can't believe Mia Kai will be here in less than three months. Ahh!! We have a lot to do before she arrives, but we thought it'd be fun to share the inspiration for her nursery with y'all today. Lots of floral, delicate colors and soft accents... it's actually developing differently than I originally expected, but I think it will be perfect for her. :)
Read MoreThe Holy Spirit & A Free Scripture Memory Print // Romans 15:13
If you're following along with the Scripture Memory / Dwell Richly printable, here's the verse for week 11:
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:13 (NIV)
This verse calls for a free print... seriously. In every study I'm going through, in every sermon or lecture JD and I have heard in the past four weeks, the Holy Spirit is the main focus. And yet the Holy Spirit immediately directs the attention right back to Jesus. I can't imagine that this topic is a coincidence. I'm embarrassed to say that I am constantly amazed by God - I mean, it's a good thing but shouldn't I know by now that God is God and He is consistently faithful in being great, just, merciful and loving? And yet He still shocks me by His goodness, His grace and His provision.
For those of you that don't know the backstory of the Dwell Richly printable: JD's sister (Theresa) and I were sitting at the dining room table at Christmas. I told her that I felt led to put together a supplemental tool for the 2015 Agendas. Within a few hours, the Spirit led us in creating the printable, without phones, apps or Google to help us find verses. It was such a sweet and beautiful time I will never forget with my sister-in-law, us depending solely on God and getting super excited about the verses to where the Lord would lead us.
The greatest thing has been to see the way God has orchestrated events in our lives to synchronize with the verses at the perfect timing. And by 'our,' I mean, all of the friends, myself included, who have texted or emailed me about the way God is speaking to them in the verses. This week has been no different.
The Holy Spirit is entirely infiltrating and transforming all of the knowledge I thought I knew about Him. Confession: For so long, I have thought of the Holy Spirit as a sidekick, a little brother who picked the short straw, the one in the Trinity who was least of the three. I referred to the Holy Spirit as an "it" because I failed to realize that the Holy Spirit is very much a person and very much relational. Even to talk about the Holy Spirit, it was a little 'too charismatic' for my southern baptist background. In John 16, Jesus says,
Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged. “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you. (John 16:7-15)
It blows my mind that Jesus says it is good for Him to go away, so that the Holy Spirit will come and dwell in us. But it was good. The Spirit teaches the truths of the bible to God's people (John 14:26), convicts people of their sinfulness and need for the Good News (John 16:8), gives believers power over sin (Galatians 5:16-21) and the power to live a fruitful life (Galatians 5:22-25), helps believers and prays for them in their human weakness (Romans 8:26-27), and affirms salvation and believers' identity as children of God (2 Thessalonians 2:13). My favorite is that the Holy Spirit, in all of His glory and responsibilities, His most important job is to bear witness to Jesus and to bring Him glory (John 15:16 and 16:14). God, the Holy Spirit, directs all of the glory straight back to God, the Son, who then directs the glory to God, the Father. I won't pretend to understand the mysteries (or even the non-mysteries, the actual things God lays out for us in scripture) of the Trinity but I'm deeply grateful for what the Spirit is revealing to me about Himself, and in return, what the Spirit is revealing to me about the Father and the Son. I pray that He is doing the same for you.
There are so many other amazing characteristics of the Holy Spirit. I encourage you to listen to the lesson given by Karen Burke about the characteristics of the Holy Spirit (all of the ones listed above came from this lesson): Journey Through John - The Holy Spirit
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit (Romans 15:13).
To download the free print, you can click here. The logo and desktop background are not included on the print. Please do not redistribute the actual file on Pinterest or professional / personal websites or blogs without permission. Thanks!
Watercolor Wednesday // Early Quiet Mornings
Aside from the fact I used watercolor as a medium (green triangle and a white-wash on the mug), I wouldn't quite consider this painting a "watercolor". It's really just a fun, quick sketch with lovely accents.
The quote, on the other hand, I'm loving.
I've been waking up super early the past few mornings (which is rare for me). Most mornings, JD lovingly drags me out of bed and I feel anxiously rushed to get the day going.
As I was slowly breathing in the fresh air this morning, these words hit me like a rock:
Quiet, early mornings are rich for the soul.
There's something undeniably comforting about waking up with the sun and the birds, soaking in God's Word and drinking a warm cup of coffee in solitude. The rush of the day has yet to begin.
Maybe you love the painting or maybe you just love the words. Maybe you hate it altogether. It's okay if you do [just don't tell me]. Either way, the print is available for digital download on our Etsy site! [click this link]
Watercolor Wednesday // Your Path is Beautiful and Crooked
It's official. You can buy your first Jitney's Journeys original watercolor print here:
https://www.etsy.com/listing/204701274/original-watercolor-print-5-x-7-vintage
But before you purchase, read the story behind this print below. Hint: You may find a little surprise waiting for you at the bottom of the post.
In all honesty, many of my days feel chaotic. My mind is a jumbled mess and my path seems completely at a standstill, blocked by trees (at least the view is nice!).
During JD's most recent trip, I decided to take a watercolor class. This class was amongst many, many things I did during his absence to keep my mind preoccupied and my hands busy (so that I wouldn't bite my fingernails - a dreadful habit I never noticed until my brother pointed it out a couple of months ago).
While searching for inspiration, I fell in love with a quirky yet charming photo of pigeon-toed vintage brogue shoes. I immediately began sketching and painting.
Most days, I'm super quirky. But not on purpose. It just happens that way. My feet turn inwards and my face turns a sweet shade of pink when conversations navigate towards me.
Some days I feel completely confident in what I'm doing in life. Then I snap back to reality and realize I have no. I. dea. And that's okay.
"Your path is beautiful & crooked & just as it should be."
Just being honest here... it would be nice to have thousands of "likes" on FB or Instagram on all of the things I post but that's certainly not the case. This watercolor, however, had the most "likes" - by far - of anything I posted.
That tells me that you're with me. Not only do I need to be reminded that my path is beautiful & crooked & just as it should be, but YOURs is too!
So let's walk these paths together.
Our beautiful, crooked, just as they should be, paths.
Side note: In honor of our first "Watercolor Wednesday", we're offering free shipping on your purchase of this watercolor print.
Use code YOURPATH at checkout. Offer expires Sunday, September 28!!
