My God-Sized Dream: A Letter to My Sister

Encouraging words from others help recharge us too. So take this “do what you can” step for your God-sized dream: Write a letter of encouragement to another dreamer in your life.

Honestly, when I saw this week’s challenge, I hit a wall. In so many ways, there were a dozen people I wanted to write to; and in some ways, I felt as if the words were hiding…they just wouldn’t come. But the more I thought about it, the more I was reminded of this woman…my friend and practically-sister.

She may be a dreamer in a different way, but she inspires me every single day. I know she’ll inspire you, too.

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Dear Missy,

We are sisters, you and me. You’ve known me every single day of my life…you know it all…and, still, you choose to be my friend.

Do you remember those days? The ones when we chased each other between trees, sometimes climbed them, played Barbies, sang sometimes-off-key-and-always-loudly around the piano, put on plays…and between those things, told each other our dreams?

Always, always…your dreams were this: grow up, get married, have a family.

Absolutely beautiful dreams.

And those dreams? They became reality.

I missed your wedding…you walked down the aisle while I was traipsing through Amazon jungles. But I thought of you.

And I smiled.

A year and a half later, I sat on your couch and held J, just days old. Though she didn’t join your family in the way you may have expected, she was yours from the beginning, beautiful, and belonging in every way.

I smiled again.

And then I got married, and the day before the wedding you told me about L, growing in your tummy. (Do you remember that I jumped and squealed?)

Four more have followed since then…and now there are six amazing blessings who surround you with love.

I smile even bigger.

I didn’t smile the day you told me. I cried buckets for you as you watched the other half of your dream walk away from it all…leaving hurt and confusion and a mess of wondering. But instead of watching you fall apart, I watched you, my brave and beautiful friend, pick up and go on, your faith strengthening with each step.

That made me smile.

Dear friend, the one who has more secrets on me than anyone, the one who knows of deep struggles, the one who has always been there even if the miles keep us apart…you have been a blessing and an inspiration to watch.

You have lived your dream…and lived it with a full embrace, even if it changed along the way.

You inspire me, your life speaks of Grace, you shine Him completely.

And that makes me smile.

Keep shining. Keep loving. Keep dreaming.

I love you, my sweet heart-sister.

In memory of Barbie bathtub fails, hidden tape recorders, and leading each other around blindfolded…

Mel

Missy&Mel

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Happy Tuesday, friends! As always, my dreaming sisters and I are linking up at the lovely Holley Gerth’s place…we hope you’ll join us and be encouraged by the words of some incredible, dream-chasing, women.

God-Sized Dreams

Sig

(in)RL…Beyond Computer Screens

I’m a friend-girl.

I. Love. My. Friends.

And with this explosive, ENFP personality…well, if I meet you and we strike up a conversation and even heart spill just a little, you are my friend. For life, if you would like. :)

The hard thing about what I just wrote? Is that 99…probably .9…% of the world doesn’t work that way.

Talk about a tough reality check.

And with the different places that life has taken us, it’s no surprise that I have often felt as if my heart was torn to shreds with each goodbye I was forced to say.

And so when we moved to the land of I-don’t-know-a-soul-here (aka: C’ville ;)) in ’10, I was starving for friends. God was so Good (still is!) and He gave…I am so blessed to walk this journey of life with some amazing sisters. I hold them in my heart forever.

And in 2011, I decided to join the blogging world. I did it more as a way to process the b-gillion life changes we had going on at the time, but it turned into so much more.

Early on in my bloggy-journey, I came across (in)courage.

It was exactly what I needed…a place where women come together online to connect and grow and sometimes-laugh-or-cry.

And last year, the incredible Lisa-Jo and her awesome team of women launched the first (in)RL Conference…taking an incredible online community and making it an (in)Real Life one. Women all over the world met up, shared stories, laughed, cried, drank coffee…

Connected.

In real life, instead of through computer screens.

And so when this year rolled around, I knew I wanted to be part of it again and even (gasp!) signed up to host it.

Because even though I cherish my amazing online friends, I know the value of having those friends in real life, too.

Two days ago, four of us got together in my small living/dining room.

We drank coffee, chatted, made some incredible, small-world connections, laughed…

Took the time to enjoy the kind of friendship that sits on a couch and shares stories from feet away instead of time zones.

It was an amazing morning-turned-afternoon…and four women who came together as strangers…left as friends. (Ok, ok…I knew one of them already. ;))

And as I’ve reflected on (in)RL and the way God is using it, literally, all over the world…it’s a reminder to me that we all need friends.

We all need community.

And we need to have it (in)RealLife.

Preferably with coffee, chatter, and lots of laughter. :)

(in)RLfriends

And mega-props to my awesome friend, L…who accomplished quite the feat in actually getting this picture. Really. :)

Sig

Five-Minute Friday: Friend

Today I’m linking up with Lisa-Jo for Five-Minute Friday.

Join me!

The rules: Write for five minutes. No editing, revising, overthinking, or backtracking. Just write.

Today’s Topic: Friend

Can I just say that at 11 p.m., even after a long day, seeing today’s topic brought a smile to my face?

You see, I’m not a girl whose roots are planted deeply.

Yet.

But I hope that the place they are now is where they will stay forever…I hope that with everything in me.

I’ve moved a lot…made friendships, lost some and held on to many.

It always amazes me that He gives…always, wherever I am…the people I need.

The friends I need.

The kind who will cheer loudly for me on the amazing days, hold my hand while my emotions flow rivers on the not-so-amazing ones, and even get the crazies on with me when there is a need to just jump up and down, shrieking a little on the silly days.

These friends…they make up my community.

They are the core, the heart of it.

They each bring something different and they each make me a better person.

I’d do anything for them.

I am blessed to call my friends…just that. Friends.

Why did you do all this for me?’ he asked. ‘I don’t deserve it. I’ve never done anything for you.’

‘You have been my friend,’ replied Charlotte. ‘That in itself is a tremendous thing.

E.B. White, Charlotte’s Web

Five Minute Friday

Sig

My God-Sized Dream: The Play(ing)

Not gonna lie. (And if you’ve been reading this space lately, this doesn’t come as a shock.)

It’s been a tough few weeks. Even months.

So when I saw Holley’s challenge for her God-Sized dreamers this week, I knew it was from God.

For next week: take this “do what you can” step for your God-sized dream…

Take some time to play.

Do something creative. Snap a picture. Build a Pinterest board. Make a craft. Read a book. Bake a treat. Wrestle with your kids. Whatever energizes you. It can be related to your God-sized Dream in some way or totally different. Sometimes along the way to our dreams we just need a little time to play. It helps us keep going and reminds us not to take ourselves too seriously.

I’m a creator.

I’m constantly doing something hands-on. In the last year I’ve painted several canvasses, made jewelry, taught myself to crochet some (in my opinion) adorable hats, figured out how to make glass pendants (thanks, Pinterest!) and baked (and eaten) waaaaay too many desserts.

While it’s fun to create, creating doesn’t exactly energize me. It fills time between chapters and blog posts and general moments, but I knew that to actually energize myself, I needed to play.

Or, actually go to A. Play. (heehee ;))

One of the local high schools was putting on the musical, Grease, this weekend, and I really wanted to go. But…confession: I didn’t want to go alone. I’m an extrovert, most of the time teetering toward the extreme end of it. Being alone doesn’t do a whole lot for me unless I’m really focused on accomplishing something.

So I put that thought to the side and, instead, decided to go with the being alone thing anyway and planned to take Sunday afternoon and grab a coffee, bum around a few stores, pick up some things for the (in)RL conference I’m hosting on Saturday, (local friends, it’s not too late to join!) and probably talk to everyone I see. :)

Kind of spur-of-the-moment, I shot a text to a friend, asking her if she’d like to come along.

She replied and said she already had plans to go to Grease, but would I like to join her and her daughter?

God thing. Completely.

So I did.

And for two plus hours, I got to laugh and sing along (in my head ;)) to some fun music. (Props to the cast, crew, and pit band from D-C. They were really incredible. :))

And after the musical, well…my friend still had some time. So we grabbed a Starbucks, wandered Target, and ate Culver’s.

It was an afternoon my soul needed so badly. I even came home with a smile on my face.

I don’t think focused is a word that too many people would use to describe me. I’m often easily distracted and a bit flighty…but I do have a side of me that gets far too serious about certain things and forgets to have fun, especially when there’s something I’m working for.

It was good for me to play. Or go to one, at least. :)

Happy Tuesday, my sweet friends! We’re linking up at Holley’s place, like we do each week. We’d love for you to join us!

God-Sized Dreams

Sig

On Memories and Sarongs…

A few weeks ago, I broke my favorite coffee mug. It was a travel mug I purchased at the Starbucks at BIP in Bandung, my last night in Indonesia. (I looked for a picture and couldn’t find one online…just think cute, batik, brown and blue. :))

I was crushed, no pun intended ;), to the point of tears. I had already been in I-miss-Indonesia-mode like crazy…and it just felt like a crushing blow.

Yes, it was just a coffee mug, but that mug was special.

But breaking it did make me start to think…about the things I hold dear, about the things that have a place in my heart and life, about the things that take priority where they shouldn’t.

And so, yesterday, I did something I’ve been putting off for three-days-shy-of-three-years.

See, in three days I will have been “home” from Indonesia for three years. (It’s strange to see that typed out. Time has truly flown.)

And when I packed my bags and boxed up what I wanted us to ship back to the States, a lot of those things included were little, at-the-time-symbolic-but-generally-just-taking-up-space, trinkets. And for three years, I’ve kept them stored in a few random bags, which were stuffed, mostly-unopened, in one of our closets.

I’ve known for awhile that this kind of clutter needed to go, but it’s hard.

So many of those little things were gifts from students and friends, little oleh-oleh (souvenirs) purchased during trips. They all hold a memory.

And it’s hard to throw away memories.

But, let’s be honest here…a person only needs so many sarongs. :) (Not kidding when I tell you that I came back with more than a dozen. Ahem…can I blame it on my love for going to the beach?) 😉

So I started…smaller. I went through three bags of jewelry and other random “fun”…and I threw out 90% of it. Straight into the garbage can. I pulled out a few things to save for Maelie when she’s older and even found two or three things I’d been wanting but had no clue where they were. 😉

And then I moved on to the sarongs, which were a bit more difficult to part with. Like I said before, there are so many memories tied to them (again, no pun intended…man, I’m on a roll today! ;)) and it’s hard to just toss them aside. I let myself keep three…my two favorites and, again, one for Maelie.

But I honestly felt guilty about throwing those away…and so I didn’t.

Here they are. :)

sarongs

And here’s the deal. (If you’d like. :)) If you see one you like in the picture, leave me a comment to claim it. (I’ll get your address through email.) I’ll toss it in an envelope and send it your way in the next week or two…and in that way I can get rid of some of the clutter and pass on a little Indo-love at the same time. (I will tell you that I’ve used a few of them once or twice…and I promise to wash them all before I send them out. :))

But if you want a purchased-somewhere-in-Indonesia (most likely, at a beach) sarong, here’s your chance. And it would make me happy to pass them on to friends instead of just tossing them or donating them. :)

The longer we’ve been back in the States, the more I’ve realized that my memories from Indonesia don’t lie in the souvenirs that surround me.

Not in seashell necklaces, not in bright-flower sarongs, not even in the world’s cutest batik coffee mug.

The memories…and, more importantly, the people…are in our hearts. And that’s the way it should be.

:) Blessings, friends.

Sig

My God-Sized Dream: For Good

Sometimes we feel alone not because we need to be with others but because God wants to be with us. Our lives are busy–especially when we’re pursuing a dream–and God may want to pull us aside for a bit.

{You’re Made for a God-sized Dream, Chapter Six}.

The most important part of any God-sized dream is the Giver of it. Set aside a particular time this week to be with Him–to pray, journal, take a walk or simply sit quietly and listen. 

I don’t do alone well.

Nor, still.

That is not something I’m proud of; it’s simply a fact.

I feel most energized, physically, when I’m out running around, doing things, surrounded by people.

But this season? Has been very different.

Lonely would be the word I would use to describe it.

Not so much the kind where I am never around people; more, the kind where I’m struggling with things I’m not able to process with those around me…

…thoughts of feeling like my broken past defines my future. ..

…and that it means I can’t be somebody because of where I came from.

Time alone with Him was long overdue.

So, in some ways, taking a set time to be with God was a good assignment for me this week; in other ways, I was dreading it.

And my time with Him didn’t come in a way I would have planned it, but instead in the form of an exhausted, emotional, late-Sunday-night drive. The kind where, the tears were so thick and blinding, I probably shouldn’t have been behind the wheel. 

But I needed to be with Him…in a place where I was sure it was just Him and me.

And maybe it’s where I found honesty and where He spoke…or, maybe, I listened.

I cried out to Him, literally, and somewhere near the McDonald’s on 25, He answered with this.

I’m Tired I’m worn…my heart is heavy
From the work it takes to keep on breathing
I’ve made mistakes, I’ve let my hope fail
My soul feels crushed by the weight of this world

And I know that you can give me rest
So I cry out with all that I have left

I think that maybe…

Maybe…

On this journey to a dream, He is teaching me what it is I truly long for.

Let me see redemption win, let me know the struggle ends
That you can mend a heart that’s frail and torn
I wanna know a song can rise from the ashes of a broken life
And all that’s dead inside can be reborn,
Cause I’m worn

True, I dream of writing a book. The initial words are on the paper. I’m (slowly) tweaking, starting to research book proposals…moving forward. I’m excited about it. 

But I think I dream of more…the kind that makes a difference, does something positive.

The kind of more that reflects His love, demonstrates His grace, screams of His redemption.

I want to know that He can take someone who is so broken and still use her for His good.

That’s what I dream of.

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

Romans 8:28 (NIV)

It’s Tuesday, and my dreaming sisters and I are linking up at our friend, Holley’s place. We’d love for you to join us!

God-Sized Dreams

Sig

Five-Minute Friday: Here

Today I’m linking up with Lisa-Jo for Five-Minute Friday.

Join me!

The rules: Write for five minutes. No editing, revising, overthinking, or backtracking. Just write.

Today’s Topic: Here

I’m sitting here on the couch. Deep, I know. 😉

It’s that moment of the day that I’ve been looking forward to…a time when I can just hash it all out without (well, almost always without) using the delete key or proofreading or questioning.

Just a time to process five minutes of here and what’s going on in life now.

Honestly, I’ve been reflecting a lot on the past few months and the ways that time has felt so up and down, so full of circle-spinning.

So many questions…and, just, wondering.

And the thing He continues to remind me of is the present…of the fact that the blessings, the joys, the sorrows, the ups and downs, the millions of things that make up the past…they all add up to this. The here.

And, I love it.

Despite the fact that in the last month I’ve wept over past loss.

Or the fact that I struggled through days of parenting and prayed with everything in me that I wasn’t screwing it all up.

Or even that, in the pursuit of a dream, there are days when it feels so close, and other days when I feel like I’ve been body slammed fifty miles backwards.

And He reminds me…Here.

Now.

Live.

Just as it is, just as it comes.

Take what you’ve learned…and live it, along with the blessings all around.

That is here.

And I am blessed.

Five Minute Friday

Sig

My God-Sized Dream: The Why

We’ve talked a lot about “what” your dream is and now it’s time to tackle the “why” behind it. Why is your dream worth pursuing, fighting for and seeing through no matter what happens?

I shared a few months ago about a dream God had given me.

To take my stories from Indonesia, the good and bad, the ugly and broken, the beautiful…and write a book.

Since sharing that initial dream, He’s done a lot in this heart. And while that dream is there, and being actively chased :), there’s been more defining…and maybe some heart-refining, too.

I’ve always loved to write and dreamed of writing a book, but that answer to “why” doesn’t completely cover it.

So…here’s the more honest answer. :)

It started with a blog, this space, in January of 2011. My husband and I had gone through an insane amount of change in the previous eight months…being in separate hemispheres for the last six weeks of my pregnancy, leaving Indonesia, the birth of our first child, readjusting to America, and relocating to a brand new city and state.

To be blunt, my head was spinning at a fast and furious, unable-to-focus, rate.

And this space became my haven…a place I hung out every day to share whatever it was that was going on in my heart and life…from the real of heartache and my inability to park a minivan, to the joy I felt over having coffee with a friend for the first time in six months and my confusion over why people wore boots over their jeans. 😉

America confused me, and I think I confused America.

And eventually those stories started to spill out, and God began to give glimpses of His goodness in the midst of ALL…despite the fact that everything I had always known no longer made sense.

Because it wasn’t about life making sense…it was about holding His hand and choosing to walk in His Grace, despite circumstances.

And I felt like maybe my stories were worth sharing…not just the happy and hilarious ones but the ones that broke me, the ones that changed my perspective, the ones that made (and still make) me cry.

And so I decided to write a book. :)

I’ve finished the rough draft, and I kinda love it. I think it’s one anyone can relate to on some level. (If y’all would like to say a prayer that a publisher will see it’s awesomeness, too, that would be amazing. ;))

But beyond books and blogs, I think the overall dream is encouragement.

I think that’s what He wants from me.

To take the gift He’s given me and use it for His glory. That might often be through words, but it also comes in other forms…listening, prayer, heart-spilling chats. He can use it all.

He can take my words…and make a difference, no matter big or small. It’s a difference and it’s for Him.

That’s the heart of it all right there.

And it’s worth chasing because it’s what He’s calling me to do.

I read these words recently, written by a friend…they are so true. And so what my heart needed to hear again this morning at this stage of dreaming.

Maybe you’re in a place where it seems no one sees you and it feels like what you do doesn’t matter. Maybe you feel like your potential isn’t being used. What are you doing taking care of a few sheep when you sense inside that you’re made for so much more? But you’re being faithful anyway. You’re serving, learning, loving, and growing.

You’re a God-Sized dreamer, and that means you can make a difference anywhere.

(You’re Made For a God-Sized Dream: Opening the Door to All God Has for You, by Holley Gerth; p. 50-51)

My prayer is that He’ll take this heart and life and use it for His glory…and I’ll leave the size of that up to Him.

And, Happy Tuesday, friends! As always, we’re linking up over at Holley‘s place. Hop by, say hello, and read what God is doing in some dreamer hearts!

God-Sized Dreams

Sig

Five-Minute Friday: Broken

Today I’m linking up with Lisa-Jo for Five-Minute Friday.

Join me!

The rules: Write for five minutes. No editing, revising, overthinking, or backtracking. Just write.

Today’s Topic: Broken

It’s been a broken week.

The kind that started with Sunday tears and wondering and wishing that life made sense in a week that is supposed to be beautiful and the perfect reflection of the sacrifice my Jesus made for me.

And then I think about how broken He became for me. His body was literally broken.

He was broken to fix me, fix this heart, give me hope and peace in a world that offers no such things.

And, yet, I will still catch myself looking at the world, trying to use it to fix whatever seems to be wrong at the moment.

My greatest need is Him…and though there are days and even weeks or longer that seem to be a mess of broken, I must always remember that because I have him…

I am redeemed.

Made new.

Forgiven.

Healed.

Hopeful.

I am anything but broken.

And as I reflect on a day full of unimaginable pain and sacrifice, I am so very thankful that he was wounded and broken, he died and rose again…

So that I might live.

Five Minute Friday

Sig

My God-Sized Dream: How I Live

What’s a typical day in your life like right now? How can you see God’s hand in the middle of the “small” and ordinary too?

When I first saw the topic for this week, I smiled and started singing a song.

One that, for reasons unknown to me, somehow made it onto my running playlist about a year ago and became a favorite. I especially love the chorus.

Turn up the music, turn it up loud
Take a few chances, let it all out
‘Cause you won’t regret it
Looking back from where you have been
‘Cause it’s not who you knew
And it’s not what you did, it’s how you live

“How You Live” Point of Grace

Though it may sound a bit flaky, I try to live my life in this way…with the music cranked up (sometimes literally), looking for the adventure in every step, and dancing throughout my days, too. (As long as there’s coffee. ;))

On a perfect day, I start with a run.  I usually do between three and four miles, but  I only did 2.4 this morning…on Monday nights I work out with friends, and our workout went late last night and was topped off by a frappuccino and a chat with my dear friend :), so I didn’t push it. I’m not Super-runner Woman, either (though I would look good with a cape, huh?!)…it’s something I became intentional about in order to shed those baby pounds and turned into something I enjoy.

When I get home from running (before 7 am) I get the coffee going and get ready for the day.

Key word here = coffee. I drink a ton of the stuff. True confession. But not black…always with creamer. Bailey’s Creme Brulee is my favorite. Mmmmm.

I’m a stay-at-home-mom, and it’s the job title I wear most proudly.

I’m mama to the most incredibly wonderful, spirited, sweet girl, Mae. Ever the non-napper, she almost always gives me a wonderful night’s sleep, so she usually isn’t awake before 7:30. (Unless we’re in time change mode. Ugh.) I love that it gives me time to hop through the shower and get ready somewhat before she’s up.

Once Mae is up, it’s the usual. Breakfast, sometimes-playtime, sometimes-Sesame Street. If she goes the tv route, I use that time to do some Bible reading and blogging. It’s when most of my daytime writing gets done. A lot of people start their mornings early. early. early. with spending time with God. I have found  that it  simply doesn’t work well for me.

I love Him.

But my mind is not coherent enough before my run to focus. Instead, I crank up a pretty sweet playlist of praise songs for my run and worship Him in that way. I love it, and I usually sing along. 😉

The  rest of our day varies, depending on the day. Some days we head to church for Bible study or to help with Feed My Lambs; the other days we’ll chill at home and  do art projects or read stories or play princesses or bake. (She’s a huge play doh fan right now, too.) We save errands for the afternoon, usually, because my ever-so-sweet girl mostly-dropped her afternoon nap last summer. (She takes about one a month.)

It’s a simple day, usually, and sometimes there will be more writing or catching up online interspersed with what we do.

MaeMommyPumpkinDays

My main goal as a stay-at-home mama  is to simply enjoy her and be the best mommy to her that I can be. The days are already passing too quickly, and she’ll be off to preschool in just five short months. Tear. 

My hubby usually gets home around 5:30, and  we’ll spend a little time together as a family,  eat dinner, and then it’s off to bathtime and bed for the non-napper girl we have. :) She’s usually in bed and asleep before 7:30 which gives us some time to unwind. Sometimes T and I will play a game or watch a movie; sometimes we’ll do our own thing…me, usually write; him, catch up with his favorite blogs or watch a TV show. Fun fact: we really love playing cribbage. I know it’s an old-people game, but it’s fun! You should try it. 😉

Being a SAHM was not something I ever thought I’d be, but I love it. I’ve realized, too, that it’s something I should never take for granted. My husband works hard so I can be with my girl, and I know there are a lot of mamas who wish with everything in them that they could be home with their kids, too. I am extremely blessed, and so thankful I can spend my days with Mae. :)

family01

One of the things God has over-and-over convicted me about is my prayer life. I grew up always thinking that to pray, I needed to stop what I was doing, fold my hands, close my eyes, and talk to Him in that way. And while there are times for that, I try to make prayer part of my lifestyle…and I talk to Him throughout the day. Sometimes in a sentence, sometimes longer. While I’m washing dishes, vacuuming, or even changing a diaper.

I love that He hears me…and that He listens no matter where I am or what I’m doing.

I also love that my daughter is learning the value of speaking to her Father, too, no matter where she is in her day. Often, we’ll pray for Putra, our Compassion child…his picture is on our wall in the kitchen, and she likes to look at it. Mae knows that we can talk to God about him, and that we can do it while we’re playing princesses, too. :)

In relation to my dream(s) and pursuing them in daily life, my biggest goal is to place them in His hands each day and pray for opportunities. Right now, my sweet friend is reading through my book, and I’m good with that…in some ways, it’s a break I can use to reflect on what He’s asking of me and what could potentially be next. As for my other dream of writing for a bigger blog, I talk to Him about it…and just keep doing my thing…

…writing  in this space, which I truly love. I really do, even if the number of blog posts a week has dwindled a bit. (I’m trying to focus on content more instead of word count. Please don’t count the number of words in this post. ;))

I’m trying to be faithful with the smaller things…and trust that He’ll bring the big things when it’s time. His time.

More than ever, right now, I’m content with that, and it’s a good place to be.

Just living the life He’s created for me, following Him in obedience, and trusting that His plan will happen.

And it’s Tuesday! Hop over to the lovely Holley Gerth’s place to read more stories of what God is doing in the lives of my dreaming sisters! We’d love for you to join us. :)

God-Sized Dreams

Sig