Release day for my upcoming poetry collection is less than two and a half months away,and I’m looking for a group of people who…
love finding beauty in the tiniest corners of life
want to see my poetry make its way a little farther in the world
can commit to helping me spread the word online about my upcoming poetry release
could go for a good bookish freebie or two (but hey, isn’t that all of us??)
If that describes you, you may be interested in joining my street team! I’ve linked the application below, and there you can find some more details about what being a street team member would entail.
That’s it for today, friends! Regardless of whether or not you’re able to commit to joining the street team, I am so grateful for your readership and your support. Thank you for being here!🫶🏼
A few weeks ago I was FaceTiming a friend, very messily eating my noodle soup and rambling about how much I missed blogs and blogging.
Blogs were such a joy for my teenage self, both as a creative outlet and as a means by which I could be encouraged and inspired by other women I would never have been able to “know” otherwise. I was by no means a perfect teenager (HA!), but the intentionality and convictions I did possess were fueled and shaped in part by the blogs I read. I’m so grateful for them.
In my corner of the writing world, however, blogging isn’t a huge deal anymore. So much of it now is all about building a thriving IG community, creating digital resources, and putting out consistent newsletters.
I miss the days of rambling blog posts, of not trying to sum up a complicated thought process in a way that will capture a short attention span, of posts that read more like a letter from a friend than a best-foot-forward scramble for likes and engagement.
(Don’t get me wrong…social media has so many perks, but lately I’ve been seeing more of its detrimental effects, both on my attention span, my time management, and even the way I want to spend my time. I don’t like it at all, and I’m trying to figure out what my use of it should look like going forward.
Anyway.)
I so miss blogging…so what if I tried doing it again? The way I used to, but, you know, hopefully better? Much better??
“You should do it,”my friend said, without batting an eye. “If you’ve thought about it this much, you should just do it.”
I knew she was right, but then the second-guessing came in.
But I’m a mess!
I’m not qualified.
I don’t know what I’m doing…I really don’t know what I’m doing.
But Ikind of feel like I should start blogging again.
I got to chat with a friend on a hike the other day, and in talking about something completely unrelated to my hesitations about blogging, she shared about part of the exchange between Moses and God at the burning bush…
But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the children of Israel out of Egypt? So He [God] said, “I will certainly be with you.”
exodus 3:11-12a
Moses’ qualifications for the way in which God wanted him to walk did not lie within himself, but in God’s presence and calling.
I will forever, on this side of eternity, be a mess.
I will forever be unqualified in some way.
I will forever be still learning the ropes of my current season.
But I feel convicted to start blogging again…to write through and about what I’m navigating in this gloriously wild chapter of life. That includes but is not limited to:
Living singleness well, undistracted and wholly for Jesus
Stewarding my time well
Cooking for one (or for a mob; there is rarely an in-between)
Knowing and loving more deeply the heart of my precious Savior
Being a better friend
Reading across a few different genres…okay, a lot
Doing my work well – whether as an employee or as a writer
Carpe-ing the diem
Hear me clearly: I really don’t know what I’m doing, and I think I may be more aware of that than ever. I am young and inexperienced in so many ways, but if I can bring a bit of encouragement, hope, a feeling of being understood, or even just a good laugh to someone in this corner of the internet, I will be happy.
I’ll be writing primarily with an audience of women my own age or younger in mind, but I hope that my posts can be a blessing in some way to any woman who stumbles across this blog.
So.✨
Let me know in the comments if there’s a certain topic (or two or three) that I listed above that most interests you, and I just may let the feedback determine the next post!
Let your care and wish be to glorify God by your life here as long as He pleases, even though it be in the midst of toil, and conflict, and suffering, and leave Him to say when “it is enough”.
charles spurgeon
Things worth remembering…
finding rue anemone in the woods
a small road trip with my mom
COUSIN TIME!!!
guacamole
blossoms on the tree in the front yard
Reading Poppletonand Alfie with the aforementioned cousin
a random child at the lake sitting down next to me while I was reading
printing off a copy of Beauty Even Here for edits (!!!)
experiencing the temporary tattoo parlor that popped up around the dining room table one night
finding a solution for my lack of bookshelves problem…three cheers for double decker coffee tables!
watching Mrs. Miniver with Grandma and finding that it’s a new favorite
This was the final book in the If I Run Christian mystery and suspense trilogy. I didn’t enjoy it quite as much as the first two…it got into the mind of one of the villains while he was doing his bad things and that’s something I personally don’t care for. I was grateful for resolution at last, though!!😅
Disclaimer: due to thematic elements, I personally will not recommend this series to anyone younger than 18.
I got a hundred pages in (it’s ginormous!!) and it just wasn’t clicking with me yet so I set it down. I definitely want to come back to this one of these days because I’ve enjoyed the previous two books in The Chronicles of Elira, but I guess that day is not today!
Ahhh!!! I’m so glad I’m finally into this book. It’s a YA thriller, and a sequel to a book I really enjoyed. The banter is so. much. fun.
The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD, Like the rivers of water; He turns it wherever He wishes.
Proverbs 21:1
From the journal…
My life is not my own. It rests in the hands of my omniscient, omnipotent Father, who loves me so deeply, more deeply than I can be loved by anyone else. Therefore I don’t have to wonder if there is meaning or intention in where He has me now. I don’t need to fear that I’ve somehow missed an exit or an on ramp. I am not overlooked or crowded out by other items on His to-do list.
May I pursue You as You pursue me, day after day after day, filled with Your goodness, lost in Your love.
I thank You that Your goodness and Your mercy are truly running after me every day of my life…even on the ones when I feel that I’ve botched it.
This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you purchase something through one of the links I share in this post, I receive a small commission…at no extra cost to you.:)
Our own humour and appetite must not determine our practice, but the honour of God and the good and edification of the church. We should not so much consult our own pleasure and interest as the advancement of the kingdom of God among men.
I listened to this one in two days during work. XD I hadn’t read a thriller/suspense novel in a while, and this was a fun one to get me back into that genre. You can read my full review here!
Disclaimer: due to thematic elements, I personally will not recommend this series to anyone younger than 18.
I’ve come back to reading this one and am almost done!! It’s gotten me so interested in rowing that I’ve looked up videos of Olympic regattas on YouTube. XD
One of my dear friends released an Easter-y poetry collection this April!! I’ve been enjoying reading through it…I love both her imagery and her heart for Jesus!
and the waiting will be remembered as a very little while.
Lord…You know what must be done, and You are never short on time.
I was struck yesterday by the poetry in John’s gospel of Jesus drinking sour wine before declaring “It is finished.” He drank to the dregs the cup from which He had begged to be delivered. Thank You, thank You, my precious Jesus. “Love so amazing, so divine, demands my soul, my life, my all.”
Oh, Father! May it be enough for me to be held in Your hand, smack-dab in the middle of Your will.
…the demand and the gift of Christ.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Stay the course!
❤ Laurel
This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you purchase something through one of the links I share in this post, I receive a small commission…at no extra cost to you.:)
Happy Monday, friends! And happy last day of March! It’s hard for me to believe that we’re already one-fourth of the way into 2025…I think my concept of time needs some help. XD
Anyway! Here’s a recap of this month. I always love putting these together and remembering the random wonderful (and wild!) moments that may have slipped my mind. I hope you can enjoy it a bit, too!
God is wise in heart and mighty in strength.
job 9:4a
Things worth remembering…
random FaceTime messages from my brothers
tapping season and time in the woods with siblings
quite literally spilling the tea with a dear friend
working on poetry things behind the scenes
the magic of fresh flowers in bringing homeyness to a new space
culinary adventures, in which chicken cooks faster than anticipated…numerous times
reading Bonhoeffer while babysitting the boiling sap
late night ice cream and chats with sisters
watching the grass begin to green up
setting a reading goal for myself at last and meeting it
sharing one of my favorite poems from Clarion Hope in video form
community.🫶🏼
spaghetti and a steer chases with sisters
sitting on the floor with my journal and a guitar
Lord, I would not be a citizen where Jesus was an alien.
I read this book last summer, but reread it this month, marking it up with colored pencils to gift to a sister. It was so much fun to read it again, not just to enjoy the story but to savor the beauty of the prose and the nuances of the characters’ personalities. I highly recommend…again!
I listened to the audiobook, and shocked myself by giving it five stars. XD (If you’ve been around for a bit, you know I don’t usually enjoy romances.) I appreciated the historical richness of this book and the glimpse of the moral difficulties that were faced by German Christians during WWII, and the courage with which the Bonhoeffers met them. And Dietrich’s intolerance of misunderstanding?? It delighted my soul.
I’ve started crocheting and listening to audiobooks most evenings, and I’m working through the Little House series. It was such a delight to revisit this book! It’s interesting to listen to it now, being closer to Ma and Pa’s ages, and seeing it with new (or older? Ha!) eyes. It really makes me remember just how much the ordinary moments and rhythms of life mean to young children.
I know whate’er befall me Jesus doeth all things well.
fanny Crosby
From the journal…
Jesus, I leave regrets in the Hands that work outside of time…
Nothing is too hard for the Lord…if He wants something mended or fulfilled in this moment, He will make it happen. But there has never been a circumstance in my life in which He can only sigh and say, “That’s really too bad.”
Awaken in the hearts of Your people a remembrance of the glory of Who You are. Break us out of the ruts of our self-importance…
Open eyes! Heal breaking hearts. Show us a way out of this brokenness, and show us You in the midst of it.
Is not God enough for thy need, or is His all-sufficiency too narrow for thy wants? Dost thou want another eye beside that of Him who sees every secret thing? Is His heart faint? Is His arm weary? If so, seek another God; but if He be infinite, omnipotent, faithful, true, and all-wise, why gaddest thou abroad so much to seek another confidence?
charles spurgeon
Stay the course!
❤ Laurel
P.S. If you’re newer here, here’s a reminder to sign up for my weekly newsletter! That’s where I share the majority of what I used to share on the blog…plus this week’s newsletter *may* have an announcement…👀 You can join the newsletter gang here! (You get a free short story, too.🤭)
This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you purchase something through one of the links I share in this post, I receive a small commission…at no extra cost to you.:)
There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations – these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat. But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub, and exploit – immortal horrors or everlasting splendors.
c.s. lewis
Things worth remembering…
fake snake shenanigans
having an all-sisters outing to a favorite coffee shop
finding that the instant camera I dug out of a thrift store actually works (!!!)
I enjoyed the mystery aspect of this story, but I was really disappointed with how the issue of divorce was handled so flippantly by a Christian couple. The “do I love him, do I not, should I divorce him, should I not,” was littered with Scripture references, and that really saddened me. I know that approach isn’t unrealistic in the least, but I would have appreciated a wiser character being able to bring some clarity to the situation and to the reader. Please and thank you.
(I did get invested in Hez’s story, though, and the epilogue got me, so I may give the sequel a listen when it comes out…)
He satisfies the longing soul, And fills the hungry soul with goodness.
psalm 107:9
From the journal…
The Fall came because Eve was not satisfied with the abundance God had allowed her. Oh, Jesus, let me not fall into the same trap of believing that my ways are better!
It is a gift to suffer and long deeply on this earth, for in doing so we are given a clearer picture of the brokenness of this world and our sinful nature, and our desire for our Redeemer and Savior is strengthened in a way that those who know little trial can only dream of. Thank You for this opportunity, Lord, to know just how deep Your love for me runs.
Let me expect my daily sustenance from You and You alone so that I may be able to love deeply and truly with no conditions.
What’s the best that could happen?
Many people, I’m sure, but one of my dearest friends in Particular 🙂
Ah, February…the month in which joy and struggle love to coexist.:) What thoughts/memories are you taking away from this past month?
This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you purchase something through one of the links I share in this post, I receive a small commission…at no extra cost to you.:)
Hello, friends! It’s the first post of the year!!!
I know it’s been a bit quieter on the blog these days, but it’s been with intention! While life off the page was very exciting this month, I’ve been intentionally shifting away from the blog to focus on building a consistent and meaningful newsletter. You can sign up for that here if you’d like to keep reading new things that aren’t just monthly updates! XD
Anyway. Let’s get to the fun stuff.
How much larger your life would be if your self could become smaller in it.
G.K. Chesterton
Things worth remembering…
New Year’s Day tractor adventures
God giving back the opportunity to lead worship regularly
The fourth book in The Mitford Years…another gem. These books are just so good for the days when I need a cozy read that is heartwarming and entertaining…and not too hard to follow!
I’ve decided to stop being such a reading purist and start claiming audiobooks I’ve listened through as “read” in these recaps. XD This one, however, I would probably have absorbed better if I’d actually read it. It was a fascinating story! Krakauer is a gifted writer, and I appreciated his vulnerability and humility in sharing about such a difficult experience. However, I don’t recommend it for younger readers because of consistent language throughout (ugh) and a bit of content.
Home, sweet home…I love Dickens’ work, and this is my favorite of his. So far! Rereading it this month has been a blast…I’m catching all the foreshadowing and appreciating it for the first time as someone who’s already familiar with the entire story. In a way, it’s better the second time around!
I was blessed with an ARC of this book! It comes out in February, and I’ll be sharing my review when it releases. Meanwhile you can follow Rachel’s literary adventures through her Linktree!
I ran out of audiobook hours in the middle of this one! To be honest I’m really frustrated by one of the main characters, but I’m intrigued by the mystery and have to know what’s going on. So back to this one I go! (When Spotify renews my audiobook hours. XD)
If Your presence does not go with us, do not bring us up from here.
Exodus 33:15
From the journal…
Again God will be the same merciful God I have known and loved, and at the end of this year He will still be worthy of my soul, my life, my all.
I trust You, Father, even with my blunders.
Oh, the power of the Resurrection!! Among so many other things, it gives us the power to live self-controlled, to happily trust broken lives to the God Who makes all things new.
oh, wondering soul, time is a measurement of hope as for a wedding day.
This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you purchase something through one of the links I share in this post, I receive a small commission…at no extra cost to you.:)
To hope is to wait with your heart intertwined, knotted up, tied to God Himself. To be a people of hope is to let go of hoping in all the things of this world, and have all your hope, all your heart, all your aching, waiting expectations, bound to Jesus.
Ann Voskamp
Things worth remembering…
Building a book tree with a sister
Studying Malachi
Seeing Sidewalk Prophets in concert at last!!
The drive home with sad songs and 40 ounces of Nighty Night Extra
Several outrageous rounds of Who What When Where Why
That was hope. Not a violent jolt or reawakening, But the constancy of living as though each moment was worth it, Rising up under pain because by the power of the living God it will not end us – It will not end us; it will not end here.
I didn’t end up reading this one all the way through like I did last year, as I was reading another Advent book (see below).
Advent: a collection – Hannah Hodgson
If only Hannah’s books were available for purchase all the time…her poetry blesses me so much and I want to share it with the world. If you want to catch a glimpse of her poetry, though, go follow her on Instagram!
I so wish Mary Oliver had had a better grasp of theology, because if that had been the case this collection would be absolutely flawless. The beauty of her thoughts and way of expressing them is so natural. I adore her poetic style.
A prison cell, in which one waits, hopes…and is completely dependent on the fact that the door of freedom has to be opened from the outside, is not a bad picture of Advent.
dietrich bonhoeffer
From the journal…
Oh, Father, help me to catch a vision for something greater than my own life story!
You’re never late, I know.
You have never skimped a single one of your children, Father, and I pray that I would know that deeply, even if Your richness and generosity meet me in this same position of life next year.
Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.
Luke 10:21
What are you tucking into your book of memories from this December?
Stay the course!
Laurel
P.S. My short story, Grace Werner’s Perfectly Imperfect Christmas, is available to you for FREE when you sign up for my weekly newsletter! You can do that here. ❤
This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you purchase something through one of the links I share in this post, I receive a small commission…at no extra cost to you.:)
I’ve been quieter on the blog lately because I’ve been working to pour more into my (mostly)weekly newsletter. I’m so grateful for my newsletter gang, and this Christmas that group gets a special gift: a short story with all of the cozy, nostalgic Christmas-y feels.
All Grace wants is to make Christmas 2001 absolutely perfect for her family. Is that too much for a seven-year-old to ask? But she can’t wrap gifts as well as her mother, or decorate cookies that look as nice as Grandma’s, and to top it all off the sky won’t yield even a single snowflake! Her dreams for a perfect Christmas seem to be crumbling as fast as her sugar cookies, but could it be that there’s more to a perfect Christmas than perfection?
This Christmas, join Grace and her family in their blustery corner of the Midwest for a chuckle-inducing adventure that will warm your heart and possibly leave you craving a plate of sugar cookies.
I didn’t think one could get so excited about such a simple story, but here I am, proving myself wrong. XD I adore these characters (borrowed from the novel I’m prepping from publication), and seeing them in a Christmas setting and through the eyes of a seven-year-old has been such a delight. I don’t think you want to miss it.:)
Sign up for the weekly newsletter and your free short story here!
Laurel Luehmann 