Chels in Progress

{one} electric blankets. {two} two days in a row off of work. {three} picking up my DSLR again. {four} roommate bonding. {five} personal growth. {six} the smell of new boots, still lingering. {seven} the encouragement endeavor. {eight} being in community with other single twentysomethings who love the Lord. {nine} cheese + grapes combo. I can't even explain its perfection. {ten} breaking free study by beth moore, and the weekly discussion dates with my sis. ♥

Does this sound like a big feat?  Well, it is. Yesterday, my heart broke and I felt overwhelmed in grief for my mom.  She has been fighting MS for over 25 years, and watching it slowly take more from her is painful to watch.  Not only is she physically dwindling, but more so, her spirit is suffering.  I finally hit a wall, and I started bawling. So I sat with God and told Him how I felt.  I remembered that it was okay to dish it out.  He's big enough and strong enough to shoulder our grief, and more importantly, He cares about us.  So I laid it out there.  And then I slept on it. This morning, I wasn't sure what to think or feel.  I was all cried out, my eyes still puffy, and I just had to push through to get to work.  And then something happened.  I began to realize that I believed that God could intervene.  That God was truly there.  That He had me , as the Holy Spirit has been whispering into my ear all week. ...

"For we are God's masterpiece.  He has created us anew in Christ Jesus,  so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago."  Ephesians 2:10 (NLT) Masterpiece . The Greek word there is poema . A work of art. Work was crazy today.  Frustrated and wiped out, I walked out of the store on my lunch break and saw this: And I stood and stared for a minute, lost in thought. God painted this sky . He chose to make it do that. And it's amazing . But yet, this is not what He calls His masterpiece. He chooses to call us , little us, selfish , spiteful , broken us, His poema . His work of art. His masterpiece, His workmanship. I almost started crying in disbelief. Because the sky never hurt God. I, in my flesh, have. And yet, He loves me more. And my heart was filled with joy.

  :)

breakfast with dear friends . time with my momma . my dad's sense of humor . [passing my kidney stone] the smell of coffee . pumpkins and wreaths . my roommates . football season. Angels baseball. my life group . homemade bean dip. worship nights . new friends . {giggles} healed hearts . nail polish. chilly nights. time to sleep in . time in prayer . day dreaming .

God humbled me one day.  It was the first day I realized how truly selfish and prideful I was.  And then, He humbled me more.  And kept at it, slowly revealing my sinfulness that was causing me to build myself up.  And slowly, faithfully, He began to chip away at my pride.  Which, by the way, hurts.  It hurts real bad.  What hurts more, though, is looking back at my past and not having been able to see the areas of pride in my life, and now being able to see how they affected people around me.  The times when I wasn't gracious or compassionate, the times when I was rude or condescending, the times when I wanted something and tried chasing it, when God was clearly telling me that it wasn't for me.  "Hindsight is always 20/20," my mom used to tell me.  I get it now. Abba, Father.  Wipe away my pride even if it's as shocking as swiping a rug out from under my feet.  Break me down.  Show me what humility looks like,...

Obligatory: That I make a list of things I want to do before my birthday.  Some of them are fun bucket list things, and others are the "oh crap, I really need to get these done!" kinds of things.  It is always the number of things to do before the number of years I am about to acquire under my belt.  Thus... hang all of my frames up on my wall. start a volunteering job or internship. go on a photo excursion every week, even for just an hour. make coffee/lunch/dinner dates with friends every wee k. send my parents snail mail every week. actually use that gym membership I'm paying for. buy cowboy boots . get a haircut . learn the MIB line dance . learn the rappy parts of "Dirt Road Anthem " (so close). get my ribs tattooed . have a homeless bag making party. wear a dress every week . take a picture a day . go to a baseball game . see Planes. sign up for the GRE. finish Breaking Free by Beth Moore. build my desk . go ice skating . go rol...