Shall we make blogging cool again?

Shall we make blogging cool again?

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 I kind 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!

Or I may not.

We shall see.

Till next time, stay the course!

❤ Laurel

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

May memories – 2025

May memories – 2025

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 Poppleton and 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
  • noodle soup and FaceTime with a dear friend
  • High, Low, No Goat
  • the first cutting of hay this year
  • an Anne of Green Gables movie night with friends
  • RASPBERRY CORDIAL ❤
  • hiking and good conversation

Now through a frosted pane we trace
The outline of His perfect will,
Content to trust His love until
We know and see Him face to face.

Amy carmichael

What I’ve been reading…

If I Live – Terri Blackstock

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.

The Lost Rose – Victoria Lynn

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!

The Cost of Discipleship – Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Still on my end table, hehe!

Do Justly, Love Mercy, Walk Humbly: How Ordinary People Can Change the World – Savannah Jane McCrary

I did a book swap with Savannah, and her book has been my tractor companion recently!

you only live twice – Hosanna Emily

Still reading through this one!

Dead and Buried – Cydnie Trenholm

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.

O royal Giver, blessed be Thy choice.

Amy carmichael

What made your May memorable?

❤ Laurel


Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved
.

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.:)

April memories – 2025

April memories – 2025

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.

Matthew henry

Things worth remembering…

  • my sister’s cinnamon rolls…AHHH!
  • announcing my next poetry collection
  • writing a bit more poetry
  • a race with my sisters
  • thrifting with sisters
  • playing Sorry with sisters
  • basically any time spent with sisters…XD
  • leading worship with a dear friend again
  • the firecrackers my brother set off outside my window
  • working in the woods with the aforementioned brother
  • the Christian Seder meal shared with family
  • listening to this album on the drive home from a Good Friday Service
  • Easter morning at home with the traditional Easter morning songs
  • walks and hikes and chats with friends
  • watching the world green up again
  • for some reason having a coffin recommended on Facebook Marketplace??
  • the smell of freshly-worked earth

Happy are they who know that discipleship simply means the life which springs from grace, and that grace simply means discipleship.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer

What I’ve been reading…

If I Run – Terri Blackstock

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.

If I’m Found – Terri Blackstock

Of course I had to listen to the sequel…

The Cost of Discipleship – Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Still reading through this one very slowly and sporadically, heh!

The Boys in the Boat – Daniel James Brown

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

you only live twice – Hosanna Emily

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.

hosanna emily

From the journal…

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.:)

March memories – 2025

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.

Charles Spurgeon

What I’ve been reading…

The Colors of Rain – Abigail Hayven

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!

My Dearest Dietrich – Amanda Barratt

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.

The Cost of Discipleship – Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Yes, the audiobook inspired me. I’m only on the first chapter…it’s so rich!

Little House in the Big Woods – Laura Ingalls Wilder

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.🤭)

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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.:)

February memories – 2025

Four short and everlasting weeks later…

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 (!!!)
  • skating past bloody ice 👀
  • getting a dear friend‘s poetry book in the mail
  • getting to use a new skid loader for work
  • being pleasantly surprised by a successful attempt at adapting a cheesecake recipe
  • finding out that Amazon had significantly marked down Clarion Hope (!!!)
  • writing strange typewriter haikus about my siblings
  • surviving The Coldest Day
  • finding that the combination of gravy, pasta shells, and mozzarella cheese tastes way better than it looks
  • a weekend near Duluth with friends…so very good for the soul🫶🏼
  • creating the Play-Doh Red Sea crossing
  • seeing Lake Superior for the first time
  • all of the memories made on the road…and on the side of the road…and in the ditch…
  • the world smelling like spring again
  • picking up crocheting again
  • time in the woods

We are full and we forget God: satisfied with earth, we are content to do without heaven.

Charles Spurgeon

What I’ve been reading…

Three Men in a Boat – Jerome K. Jerome

To be honest, I didn’t read much this month. But I did start reading this book, and the humor is so much fun!

In the Shadow of a Sunbeam – Rachel Rowbottom

I have mixed feelings about this book. I did break them down a bit in my Goodreads review, though, so you can check that out if you’d like.

What We Hide – Colleen Coble, Rick Acker

THE EPILOGUE, PEOPLES!!!

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?

Stay the course!

❤ Laurel

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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.:)

January memories – 2025

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
  • a friend’s poetry speaking directly to my heart
  • enjoying my first latte with actual latte art!
  • attempting to be a responsible plant mother
  • my first time being an Urgent Care escort
  • HIKING!!!
  • glorious sunrises
  • a cutthroat game of Monopoly (I did not win)
  • a video chat with a dear friend
  • surviving the brutal cold snap
  • discovering Pride and Prejudice read in a southern accent
  • lots of quality time with my grandma
  • flying through the hay field in my car
  • encouragement from friends
  • ice skating for the first (official) time
  • fake snake adventures

I want to be free of self-pity. It is a tool of Satan to rot away a life. I am sure that this is the perfect will of God.

Barbara Youderian

What I’ve been reading…

Out to Canaan – Jan Karon

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!

Into Thin Air – Jon Krakauer

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.

What Is a Healthy Church? – Mark Dever

Man, this has been such a good and convicting read.

A Tale of Two Cities – Charles Dickens

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!

In the Shadow of a Sunbeam – Rachel Rowbottom

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!

What We Hide – Colleen Coble, Rick Acker

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.

Hosanna Emily

How was your January, friends?

Stay the course!

❤ Laurel

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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.:)

November memories – 2024

Let us move in the common affairs of life with studied holiness, diligence, kindness, and integrity.

charles spurgeon

Things worth remembering

  • hiking, bridges, and chili
  • writing more letters and journaling more profusely
  • so much mud
  • the first snow of the season
  • pizza and The Village
  • raking cornstalks and hauling bales
  • the Christmas lights adventure
  • the face paint that didn’t come off
  • the loudest game of Life I’ve experienced
  • accusations, meme-worthy moments, and a toast

All God’s giants have been weak men, who did great things for God because they reckoned on His being with them.

Hudson taylor

What I’ve been reading

The Boys in the Boat – Daniel James Brown

This book came highly recommended from my dad, and I’ve so been enjoying it! I love the variety that the triple timeline provides.

50 People Every Christian Should Know – Warren W. Wiersbe

Still enjoying this one!

These High, Green Hills – Jan Karon

I’m still sad they tore one of my favorite characters from me, but – no surprise – this book was a joy.

The Mouse and the Motorcycle – Beverly Cleary

Toy! thought Ralph indignantly. This ambulance is carrying medical supplies to the sick.

Rereading this one was so much fun! I love how the author really captured what it feels like to be a child longing so much to

The Doll People – Ann M. Martin

It had been forty-five years since Annabelle had seen Auntie Sarah. And forty-five years is a very long time, especially for an eight-year-old girl.

I enjoyed this book when I was younger, and it’s been fun to read through it again!

Wait on the LORD;
Be of good courage,
And He shall strengthen your heart;
Wait, I say, on the LORD!

psalm 27:14

From the journal

Even here, in this present darkness, Your goodness is writing comeback stories in the flesh and bones of the wounded and wounding. Great are You, Great are You, Lord! What mercy this is!

There is hope and there is beauty, in and beyond this present darkness.

I know that even when this life feels dry, You are the source of living water. Don’t let me forsake You in pursuit of temporal, more visible wells.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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.:)

October memories – 2024

There is a place called ‘heaven’ where the good here unfinished is completed; and where the stories unwritten, and the hopes unfulfilled, are continued. We may laugh together yet.

J.R.R. TOlkien

Things worth remembering

  • joining a new Bible study
  • blood sausage conversations
  • live music and sunlight
  • the bonfire and the northern lights
  • all. the. stairs.
  • creating a fake crime scene for a Sunday school lesson
  • leading worship with a friend
  • prayers answered and prayers refined

Let us move in the common affairs of life with studied holiness, diligence, kindness, and integrity.

Charles spurgeon

What I’ve been reading

Cathedral – Maya Joelle

You are worthless, and yet you deserve so much more than you are given. I tear you apart with contradiction.

This book has become my go-to collection of poetry for autumn, and I’m savoring it. It really is a gem.

50 People Every Christian Should Know – Warren W. Wiersbe

“Life is the only cure for death, not the prescriptions of duty, not the threats of punishment and damnation, not the arts and refinement of education, but new, spiritual, Divine Life.” – Christmas Evans

This is essentially a collection of mini biographies, and what a joy it’s been! Learning about the lives, ministries and habits of such giants of the faith has been refreshing and a challenge for me in the way I live my life.

These High, Green Hills – Jan Karon

“You didn’ say nothin’ to th’ Lord ’bout my beans,” Louella reminded him.

“I didn’t?”

“Jus’ th’ cornbread,” she said darkly.

Yes, another Mitford book! It’s just as cozy and humorous as I was expecting.

Frost Light – Danielle Bullen

“We all think that we are so brave, so selfless lifting these things that we are too selfish to see don’t even need to be carried alone.”

Still enjoying this one!

True humility is when you are so focused on God that your self-focus becomes secondary. You are so devoted to His cause that You are able to fully rest in His gentle care without a thought for how things will play out.

Jessie Anderson

From the journal

Cleanse, Father. Heal. Do all that must be done to make me the truest reflection of Your heart that I can be.

…it’s been so good for me to hear the stories of relatively short lives that left a deep impact on the church, not because of their scrambling to be all and do all at once, but because they delighted in the presence and work of God and framed their life around it.

Struck again in Matthew 1 by the value of upright men quietly walking difficult paths in obedience to the Lord.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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.:)

September memories – 2024

Our Lord in His infinite wisdom and superabundant love, sets so high a value upon His people’s faith that He will not screen them from those trials by which faith is strengthened.

Charles Spurgeon

Things worth remembering

  • a beautiful baptism Sunday
  • firecrackers and dead marshmallows
  • surviving the tree stand removals and reassemblies
  • truck stops, apple cider and city driving
  • starting Sunday school again
  • a spontaneous hike
  • redneck baseball
  • the (intentional) air bag explosions and the terrifying excitement that followed
  • an encouraging call with my developmental editor

Righteous are You, O LORD, when I plead with You…

Jeremiah 12:1

What I’ve been reading

Frost Light – Danielle Bullen

Pink is drifting along the mountain, the faint of primroses, clouds low, light and thin brushing the horizon like feathers. Oh, it’s beautiful. And not the garden I left behind. It’s beautiful in a different way, more full, and empty.

I’ve been taking this one along with me in the tractor to read in spare moments! Danielle is a joy, and so is her book. I love the MC’s desperate search for beauty in a place of desolation.

Rhythms of Renewal – Rebekah Lyons

Quietness infused the way I related to others, enabled me to be a bearer of peace, love, and wisdom in the midst of chaos.

This book has been a lovely resource!

The Adventures of Tintin – Hergé

I was struggling to focus on reading for a little while, so reading some of Hergé’s Tintin graphic novels was a fun way to still consume stories on a page without dragging my brain through a lot of words!

God gave all men all earth to love,
but since our hearts are small,
ordained for each, one spot should prove
beloved over all.

rudyard Kipling

From the journal

Help my heart to want what You want, on Your timeline.

Never let me underestimate the power of prayer and a gentle influence in the lives around me.

What a beautiful thing it is to rest in the timing, omniscient and omnipotent, of God!


Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved
.

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.:)

July memories – 2024

I keep saying this, but…what a month! XD

O Lord, keep far from me the curse of leanness of soul; let me not have to cry, “My leanness, my leanness, woe unto me!” but may I be well-fed and nourished in Thy house, that I may praise Thy name.

Charles spurgeon

Things worth remembering

  • dancing the Jitterbug with my grandma
  • the county fair
  • watching the trailer races at aforementioned county fair
  • INTENSE heat and humidity
  • the concert that wasn’t and the subsequent sunset
  • songwriting with a friend
  • a photoshoot with friends and a host of mosquitoes
  • the fights that were much more enjoyable to watch than the baseball game
  • more intentional reading
  • getting the notes for Project Redemption from my developmental editor (!!!)

Beware the barrenness of a busy life!

bishop j. Taylor Smith

What I’ve been reading

Holy Hygge – Jamie Erickson

Who you turn to when the stakes are high – when the responsibilities are mounting – says a lot about whom you trust.

Guys, I FINALLY FINISHED IT!!! As in, you won’t be seeing this book pop up over and over again in the monthly recap posts as it has been lately. XD It was a good and thought-provoking read with a healthy dose of questions to lead to action steps.✨

Giants in the Earth – O.E. Rolvaag

The sun had no strength these days. It peeped out in the morning, glided across the sky as before, yet life it had not until toward evening, as it was nearing the western rim of the prairie. Then it awoke, grew big and blushing, took on a splendour which forced everyone to stop and look; the western sky foamed and flooded with a wanton richness of colour, which ran up in streams to meet the coming night.

Goodness, this novel on pioneer life in the Dakota Territory has been fascinating. The author gets into the heads of his characters so well, and the descriptions of the prairie are gorgeous. (The book does contain a good amount of mild language…just something to be aware of.)

Once There Was a Bear: Tales of Before It All Began – Jane Riordan

“Oh,” said Tigger, who couldn’t quite remember if a hum was something to eat or something to sit on. “Tiggers like those, too.”

The Winnie-the-Pooh books by A.A. Milne are some of my favorites, and the author of this prequel did a stellar job preserving the spirit of Milne’s characters and narrative style! This book has been an absolute delight.

You will keep him in perfect peace,
whose mind is stayed on You,
because he trusts in You.
trust in the LORD forever,
for in YAH, the LORD, is everlasting strength.

isaiah 26:3-4

From the journal

Oh, but Jesus, my story was never supposed to be about me and my achievements, anyway. It’s all about You being strong through me, even when I can’t seem to take a step forward.

Can’t I trust the seedling to the hands of the One who planted and watered the seed in the first place?

What made this July memorable for you?

❤ Laurel