Oh give thanks to the Lord

"Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;

    for his steadfast love endures forever!"

Psalm 118:1

(hand cut scrapbook paper)

Saturate...

"Find the things that stir your affections for Christ and saturate your life in them."
Myquillyn Smith (TheNester.com)

One thing that stirs my affections for Christ is creating! Painting, doodling, making hand painted papers for collaging and working in my art journal are creative ways I can saturate my life with beauty. I am so thankful that God created all of us in His image and that we can be co-creators of beauty with Him!

I love art journaling as a way to practice and play and learn art techniques. AND... I love to add words of inspiration, favorite quotes and scripture that I want to infuse my life with.  While I am creating I can invite God to be with me and inspire me. And I can go back to my journal pages over and over for re-inspiration and re-encouragement!

I have never been able to muster the fortitude or whatever it is that makes one good at memorizing scripture, but I want His word in me! I want to be able to call it to mind when I need it. So being able to flip though my past art journal pages can be a great way for me to saturate my life with inspiration and His word. Hopefully some of it will stick! :)

The quote I used in this art journal page is from a lovely blog post at TheNester.com. Myquillyn says her blog is "a place for you to come and find decorating encouragement, creative ideas, and be reminded that “It doesn’t have to be perfect to be beautiful”. In her post "Why it’s Worth it to Fight for Rest", she says:

"Most of all we need to fight for the time to do nothing so that we can truly rest." 

I agree. But it's hard! So hard! Many days it's down right impossible, so while I am fighting to make times of "Doing Nothing" in my life,  I'm also  exploring what it means to live a quiet inner life, a restful inner life. When I slow down and make time for being the  creative person God made me to be, it is a form of "quiet". It is a form of "rest". And it's good for my Soul.

(Collaged, hand painted, stenciled, bubble-wrap-stamped &  gelli- printed papers 

with white gel pen for writing the quote. I LOVE LOVE LOVE white gel pens!)

Resources for Soul Rest

In recent days, as my life journey unfolds, I am continuously drawn to anything that sounds like:

REST

SILENCE

SOLITUDE

MARGIN

PEACE

QUIET

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I listen to a great weekly podcast called The unQuiet Life. Well they are going to be doing daily ADVENT Podcasts! I'm so excited! During the busy holiday season I definitely need some help with rest, peace, quiet and margin! Be sure to sign up for them at 

unQuiet Life Advent! 

One way I create Inner Rest, Inner Quiet and Inner Margin is through my Art Journaling.

I often use it to focus on one word that I am reflecting on. Initially, I wanted to put a black accent line around the edge of the page like I did on the blue square an the magenta square. But I decided to resist filling in the "margin" of this page as a way to remind myself to not always fill up every bit of margin in my life!

So...... even though there are a million books I want to read or re-read, I will choose not to feel RUSHED. I will read them as I can. (Note: the thin black book at the bottom of the stack that does not  have a title on it is "Unquiet Time: A Devotional For the Rest of Us"  by Heather Caliri. And the top "book" is not a book, it is a DVD called Be Still about contemplative prayer.)

As God opens up little snippets of time here and there. I will be focusing on "Savor: Living Abundantly Where You Are, As You Are"  by Shauna Niequist as a daily devotional. And "Found: A Story of Questions, Grace & Everyday Prayer" by Micha Boyett and Ann Voskamp. Here is a quote about Found:

"With this beautiful book, Micha Boyett opens a door to Benedictine spirituality 

through which regular, busy people can enter and taste, see, smell, hear, and 

feel what it means to live life as a prayer."

RACHEL HELD EVANS, author of A Year of Biblical Womanhood

Watch for a new section on my resource page coming soon for links and more information about all these books as well as blogs I follow, and podcasts I listen to.

Leigh Ann

Seasons of Rest

I'm in a season of rest right now. It doesn't mean that I don't do anything and I sleep all day. :) I'm talking about Soul Rest.

Some of the talks at the Allume Conference  2014 have started me on a path to decluttering and simplifying my life. 

I'm not sure where I came across these verses in Isaiah, maybe in the Allume talks or on the Un-Quiet Life Podcast or maybe on Pinterest! But I know the Lord sent them to me when  I needed them.

This wonderful thought is from "Cold Tangerines" by Shauna Niequist 

(a  w-o-n-d-e-r-f-u-l book that you should go read right now!)

Of course, some actual vacation time is always good for the soul!