A Repeat

Some of you might remember how I took a break last September.

It was so, SO good for me. I did devotions every day, established a journaling routine and got the first month of school under my belt without the lure of the laptop calling to me every 10 minutes. (okay, the computer still lured me. It just didn't win.)

So you might have guessed, I'm repeating the experiment this year. I'll be off blogs, Facebook, Pinterest and everything except 15 minutes of email a day. I've actually been looking forward to it. Last year was hard, especially the first two weeks. But the freedom and the joy that comes is wonderful. I'm excited for this year.

My goals are pretty similar to last years:

• devotions every day... 30 days makes a habit!
• Memorize Isaiah 43:1-4 and Psalm 34
• start journaling daily- or almost daily- again (summer hasn't been good for consistent journaling.)
• focus on establishing a good school schedule that works
• keep writing. I don't want my newly refocused fire to be suffocated just because I can't type.
• Get aperture, ISO, and shutter speed straight, and be able to shoot a good photo with them.

I've got birthday reminders in my calendar, fresh pencils in my desk, and unopened books in my school crate. I don't like to say good-bye to summer, but I'm super, uber-excited to get into a routine that will affect the next 10 months of my life. That thought excites me so much. I can't wait to see what God is going to do in my life!!

Have a blessed September!!! I'll see you in a month. :)

Sea Breezes

Sometimes God puts a passion in you and it's revealed through little flashes and glimmers of joy.

Maybe it's in the smile you can't keep off your face when you're dancing your heart out or singing harmony in a crowd of your favorite people or throwing yourself in someone's face and stomping through your rehearsed lines on that wonderful hollow stage. And then the hugs and laughs that happen with those same people in the wings.

Maybe it's the way that whenever you're on hospital grounds, something in you lets go and you notice every person in scrubs, every long white doctor's coat, and every name badge and title. How you love the fountain and grand piano in the lobby and the walls and the carpet and the hand railings. And yes, how even the smell invigorates you.

Maybe it's how when you sit alone in a dark room with a computer with clicky keys, you can't help but to write. Maybe it's an email to a friend or a memoir of a wonderful day or a lesson you've learned but you almost can't physically stop until you've finished.

Or maybe it's something else. Maybe it's swimming or painting or computer tech or baking or running or mowing. Whatever it is, if your heart speeds up and your face can't help beaming and if you feel like you're home, then I would stop for a minute.

Ask God if He's speaking to you about this. Yes, it could be the wonder and the beauty that's luring you in, but does God want you to stay?

Or does He want you to leave?

That, my friends, is the question. Is this thing, this horseriding/soccer/coffeemaking thing, is this what God wants you to serve Him in? Is this the direction He wants your life to start moving?

If it is, then you should run through that open door and dive into the beautiful ocean of God's will for you.

If it isn't, then keep looking. Find another passion that your fire for is so strong, you think you might scorch those around you with the heat.

Too many people are content in their puddles, or even their pools, without realizing what wonders could await them. Sure, the saltwater stings your eyes sometimes. But when the sun hits your face and the sea breezes toss your dripping hair, you'll discover that this is pure joy- this wonderful place of being in the ocean of God's plans for beautiful, wonderful, amazing you.