things that are life giving right now

 

Happy Tuesday, friends! Once again, this post was inspired by a favorite author and blogger that I love, Anne  Bogel, also known as Modern Mrs. Darcy. Here is her Pinterest page, in case you're interested in checking her out there. These are things that are currently life-giving to me right now (Anne refers to these things as life savers, or sanity savers), a lot of which have to do with the word of God. 

This image above is so true! I always love a reminder to spend time with wonderful friends. I also think this reminds me to BE a good friend to others. 

I loved seeing these two friends this weekend and spending quality time together. These things are life-giving to me right now. 

The opposite of things that are life-giving are things that are draining in life. I equate this with people. I don't want to be a miserable human being! We all know someone like this, someone who complains all the time, who drags you down, who is just absolutely draining to be around. I don't want to be like that! I want to be joyful always, like one of my favorite Scriptures says. 

That kind of leads right into this next thing...

I've been "accused" of always being in a good mood. I assure you, I am not, but what I am is intentional about not letting my questionable mood ruin my day. I am a natural optimist, and I choose to focus on the good that I see rather than the bad that people talk about. Sometimes I am successful at not letting myself stay in a bad mood, other times I am not. I often ask the Lord to help me in this area, if I'm having a hard time snapping out of it. He is faithful to always help me through, but He has also taught me something valuable—when I focus on being grateful, or when I thank or praise Him for who He is to me, my perspective changes. Have you seen bumper stickers that say something like this? He⪢I? It's true. He is greater than I am, and any bad mood that tries to overcome me. The above saying reminds me of another of my favorite Bible verses.

It's not just that "things are working out". As Christians, we know that God is working things out for those who love Him, who are called according to His purpose. On a much lighter note, how fun is this beautiful word below?

It's pronounced mel-LIF-lu-ous. It should surprise no one that I am a words girl, especially a beautiful word that is also a musical term. I have a funny story about a class I took in high school—when I was a freshman in high school, I took etymology, which also shouldn't surprise you. I was really excited about this class, because I've  always loved words. I don't know if they had to scramble to find a teacher for us at the last minute or what, but the teacher walked in, introduced herself, and wrote on the board for us these words: "Mrs. Cheatham, Freshman Etemology". The etymology teacher spelled the word etymology wrong. 🤣 I am pretty sure I just let my head fall to the desk in dismay. I didn't say anything during class, but I did kindly tell her that the word was misspelled before I left. She was grateful that I told her, because I'm sure she was embarrassed. 

I am a complete geek about things like this picture above. Did you know that a panel of people (Stylists? Interior Decorators? Nerds like me?) decide on a color of the year, every year?  This beautiful color above is what my Crayola crayon box called "magenta". Yes, I am also a geek in that I studied the colors of crayons in my box at school. Even back then, I was a brand snob and only wanted Crayola brand. Remember thinking you were the coolest because your parents bought you the 84 count box with a built in sharpener in the back? Just me? 

I also have this color in a new (favorite) hoodie that I bought myself before Christmas. I love a hoodie! This one is cozy, but thin, so I don't get too hot. 

I don't have a ton of color in my wardrobe, it just mostly consists of neutrals that can be paired with anything. I do, however, have pops of color throughout that are in the form of sleeveless shirts (worn under cardigans and sweaters) or scarves that I wear with neutrals to brighten things up.

I absolutely LOVE volunteering in our tech ministry! I've been up in this room that I call the bird's nest for three weeks in a row this month, and I am here for it. Our worship pastor's assistant is the one who is in charge of us all, but she's been out sick since the beginning of December. We've all been pitching in and filling in the gaps that have been missing, but to say I've learned a lot since she's been absent is the understatement of the year. This thrills my heart and it's been good for our worship pastor to know that he can count on us when things are sketchy. 

Something else saving my sanity right now is my husband. He is the one who installed our new porch lights last week that I mentioned on Friday on the blog post for that day. The picture I had then wasn't as clear, so I took this one to show you a better picture. I am the kind of person that loves for things to be pretty, tidy, and organized. Having a husband who does things like this for me makes my heart happy and is life-giving. 

And lastly, memories to look back on like this picture of Jonah and Noah when they were twelve years old and new to the hobby of hover boards, are things that are life-giving to me right now. I have loved every stage of life our sons have been in so far, and while I do miss them being young sometimes, I really love who they are right now. They're all kind, and they walk with integrity. They're not perfect, I promise, and have all done things that make me shake my head in dismay, but overall they're pretty awesome. I love them all so much and am grateful for time I get with them. I'm fortunate that I see them all the time, even if only for a few minutes here and there. I saw Drew on Sunday at church, and I'll see him again one night this week when he comes over for another goodie bag of snacks and food he can take home. 

It's your turn! Tell me something that is life-giving to you right now. I can't wait to hear your answers! I love hearing things like this from people, because it's interesting to find out what makes someone who they are. I think your answer will tell me a lot about you. 

As always, thank you for reading my blog! Love to all. ❤