LOVE

this is a post from almost 4 years ago that i put on facebook. just as good of a lesson for me today as it was back then:

God's love for us: what does that really mean? What does that include? How does it work? This week, I have been challenged with these questions. God has laid heavy on my heart what it really means to serve Him minus the desire or feeling, but to serve with an obedient heart; to do what He has called us to do for the sake of furthering the kingdom of God, with the purposes of saving souls and glorifying our Creator. 

God has revealed to me that His love is a relational love, a mutual and reciprocal relationship, in which there is benefit if we participate and abide. God's love requires action by us, His creation, if we are to fully receive the blessing of it. 

In John 15:10, Jesus says, "If you obey my commands, you will abide in my love"

Loving God is not just saying, "I love you". Loving God requires action and obedience. Loving God in action is obeying His commandments, just as it says in the Scriptures. Loving God in obedience is moving when the Spirit compels and staying when the Spirit stays; it is simply doing what God has told us.

1 John 2:3-6 says, "We know that we have come to know him if we keep his commands. Whoever says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in that person. But if anyone obeys his word, love for God is truly made complete in them. This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him must live as Jesus did."

"But if anyone obeys his word, love for God is truly made complete in them."  All we have to do is to obey his word to receive the fullness of His love. The fullness of it. That means that God loves us NO MATTER WHAT. God's love for us is not dependent on our actions. But if we do not obey or abide in Him, we miss out on the full blessing, the outpouring of all the good God has for us. 

John 15:7-11: " 'If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples. Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love. These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.' "

We keep His commandments not for God's sake, but for our benefit, because in keeping those commandments, our joy is filled to overflowing. Notice how John 15:11 says, " 'These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and thatyour joy may be made full.' " Jesus did not say these things so that He may benefit from His obedience: He said these things so the WE, His children, His friends, may be complete in God.

God's love for us is reciprocal; it is not one-sided. It is a mutual relationship where both the Creator and the creation are in union, of the same heart, of the same mind and of the same spirit.

John 15:12-17: " 'My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. This is my command: Love each other.' "

We are FRIENDS of Jesus. How rad is that?! Jesus knows us by name and has chosen US. In the dictionary, the following definitions of "choose" are given:

1. to select from a number of possibilities; pick by preference

2. to prefer or decide (to do something)

3. to want; desire.

We are chosen because we are preferred, we are desired, we are wanted. We are wanted by the all-powerful, mighty, sovereign God of the universe. I don't know about you, but being wanted feels awesome, especially when I am wanted by someone I want just as much! 

The reciprocality of this love is expressed through the response of our hearts in the relationship: if we actively respond to His love, we are promised by the Savior of the world that we will bear fruit that will last. By obeying and abiding in His love, we are empowered to do greater things than we could ever dream of for ourselves. Bearing fruit is a natural consequence of abiding in God's love and by abiding in His love, we are sharing the love of Jesus Christ with those that are searching to fill that God-sized void.

GRACE

"Today you are called to abandon the purposes of your kingdom 

and give yourself to the will of a greater King. Grace makes it possible."

 -Paul David Tripp

thank my good Lord in heaven that His grace is sufficient in my weakness. a day doesn't go by where i think about california. just yesterday, a group text between bridesmaids for my friend jessica's wedding made me miss the golden coast so much. but God's grace is good; i was not consumed by discontentment or disappointment. sure, i was bummed to have to miss out on bachelorette party planning at 7 am in a coffee shop (thank God for skype!), but i was not distraught. His grace was falling heavy on my heart. if i was in the same place i was last week, i probably would've been a mess. but He has been teaching me so much throughout our "displacement" here in CO (kidding!). it's funny how perspective plays such a huge role in our time here on earth.

what if God brought aaron and i here for a bigger reason than ourselves (gasp!)? what if God has a purpose in this isolation? (duh! He has a purpose for all things) what if His sole purpose was to bring aaron and i closer together and to strengthen our marriage? what if it is to help us get out of debt and save money so that we have the capability and freedom to live where we choose? i had to ask myself, "is that really all that bad? to hang out with my best friend all the time and to save money?" and let me tell ya, it sounds a-okay to me. if that is really all God has for us in grand junction, then bring it on!

in the quote above by PDT (as i affectionately call mr. tripp), we are called to abandon our goals, our will, our desires, our wants, even our needs, to the King of Kings, who is in control of all. we can only do this by His grace. and praise Him that His grace comes in many different forms: encouragements from family, a shoulder to cry on with aaron, friends to share in my sadness, charlie to brighten my days. i am truly blessed that He has made it possible through the Cross for me to abandon my whole life in full pursuit of His Kingdom. i am ready for this season. i am not naïve to the fact that i will probably cry one or two (or thirty) more times over my missing CA. but i can say with assurance: His grace is sufficient.

AMERICAN BLOGGER

photo: American Blogger

last night i finished watching the documentary american blogger. i have been following casey wiegand for a while now and have always loved the way she has been open, genuine and honest. i was eager to watch the documentary and as soon as i began it, i knew i was not going to want it to end. seeing all these women tell their story, sharing why they share, why they love blogging has encouraged me in so many ways. i honestly feel like i know all of them personally! i know there has been some major criticism surrounding the film, and i have read many a blogger defend the film. i am truly honored to be a part of a community of love and support. sure, sometimes we are fake. sometimes, we take pictures and move our dirty dishes and laundry out of the way so as to get the "perfect" shot. we definitely give off the appearance of "perfection" sometimes. but i can truly say, most (if not all) of the women in the film have shared about some struggle (or two or ten) on their blogs.

i have read stories of great joy, of new babies, of moving across the country. i've read about the grief and loss in having a miscarriage, of battles with cancer, of struggles in being a mother and a wife. and through it all, i somehow deemed their stories more important than mine. and i based it on how many people i was reaching vs. them. how can my story be as important if no one is reading it? 

after watching the documentary, my perspective has changed. for years, i have yearned to be a blogger. seeing all those around me that i admire, i have been encouraged to be that to others. i have probably started a million blogs, but have never followed through with them. it was hard for me to find my voice. it was hard for me to be real enough that i could intrigue people, but surface enough that i still had some privacy to my life.

but after i finished watching american blogger, i realized something:

blogs are not people. people are people.

all of the bloggers featured (and more) each have purpose outside of blogging. blogging is not my end all, be all, and it shouldn't be.

this all has led me to this conclusion: i am not my blog. readership doesn't define my worth. how many people follow me does not dictate how important what i post is. while i would love for people to read my story, i honestly yearn for the community that would come with it. i see the friendships and relationships that are generated from blogging, and i want that. leave the blog, give me the people. 

and so i have resolved and decided that i will no longer blog with a number or goal in mind. i will blog with my whole heart because i want to remember this time in my life. i want my story out there for the world to see. i want to meet people who i can learn from and share my life with. my story is important and that is only because of my sweet savior jesus.

CHARLIE

this is my handsome pup charlie. i promise, i'm not one of those crazy dog ladies who dresses her dog in boots in the snow or takes him everywhere with me. i do, however, buy him birthday bowtie collars, take endless pictures of him and cuddle with him like he's my child. he is my constant companion and i am so blessed by his friendship. i've never met a dog spunkier than him (and boy, is he spunky). he's honestly helped me with my feelings of loneliness here in colorado and i can't imagine life without him.

JOY FOR THE TAKING

photo credit: hillsong

life is hard. heck, it feels nearly impossible sometimes. since moving to colorado, my emotions have been all over the place: mystified by the beauty of God's creation here in CO, excited for new friendships, fearful that i wouldn't have any said new friendships, weighed down by the feelings of loneliness, guilt, doubt. question marks plagued my thoughts every second of every day: did we make the right choice? why did we move away from everything we know and love? does God know what He's doing? will we make friends? will i ever be happy again? (yes, i tend to be very dramatic but this is really what i was thinking about). i legitimately felt depressed, a feeling that is almost foreign to me. i was devoid of hope, faith and joy.

through wrestling with my precious God, my patient God (oh goodness, is He ever patient), my everlasting, ever-present God, He revealed an oh so simple truth: My joy is for your taking. now, think about this: this huge, great, majestic God, who created the heavens and the earth, who knitted us together in our mothers' wombs, who catches our tears in bottles and whose thoughts of us outnumber the grains of sand on earth, that same God has joy unspeakable waiting, just waiting, for us to grab hold of, to passionately, desperately, longingly live our lives in love and joy with abandon. i have to stop and say to myself, "for real? that's just waiting for me?" because if i'm going to be real, if it's just waiting, why don't i have it already?

get this: the answer is actually an easy one, almost a freebie. i don't have this joy because i haven't claimed it. i haven't grabbed hold of the laughter, the carefreeness, the purity of this joy. it makes me say to myself, "well, why the heck not skyler?!" there are a number of reasons why, but this is the main one: i would (almost) rather hate life here in colorado. i would rather throw a pity party, wishing my sweet husband would rescue me and whisk me away to california, hoping that being back in my comfort zone would make all of what i was feeling go away.

well, here's a slap in the face kind of truth: your circumstances don't dictate your joy, they dictate your happiness. joy and happiness are so different, while they are often mistaken and used interchangeably. happiness relies on the outward and is often swayed by circumstances or others, while joy relies on the inward and is constant. i want joy. i want to constantly be full of joy, even when life sucks. i want joy because i know Whose i am and i know Who holds me. i want joy because i worship a King who has conquered death. i want joy because i want to be made brave. i want courage, i want love, i want joy. all i have to do is take it, and take it daily.

NEW IN THE SHOP

// brushstroke wedding invitation suite

// kraft garland bridal shower invitation

// tulip + vine wedding invitation suite

i've been hard at work the past week coming up with new designs for the shop! i have been truly blessed to have been very busy with etsy orders + custom orders this past month. it only encourages me to design more! i'm loving these new designs + am excited to see lily + olive grow.