In the Storm

one little word 2018 | february [complete]

Our assignment wasn't easy. 

Create a vision board.

Right out of the starting block I completed two vision boards, digitally. I sort of figured I wasn't done creating a vision of those things I was hoping to invite this year, intentionally, regarding my One Little Word [LIGHT].

And, as it turns out, I wasn't finished, yet.

Firstly, I created the opening page to the month of February for my One Little Word album (it is 6 x 8). Then, I began on another vision board, again 6 x 8, digitally.
 

This time, however, I took a different approach to my board, my word, and my vision - or invitation. I was more intentional about including inspiration quotes and sayings regarding lightening up, lightening my load, my weight, getting fit and eating better, being a light by being fit. Firstly, I love the colors with the indigo blue undertones which I mimicked on my cover page. And, the words. Inspiring.

I refer back to this, and all three of my vision boards, often throughout the month. But, that is the intention of the boards. To refer back to them for inspiration regarding my One Little Word and re-ignite inviting my word - [LIGHT] into my life.

Slightly different than previous years I understand, my instructor, Ali Edwards, includes an additional action statement for the month, this month I will...

I think the intention was for it to be one thing to accomplish over the course of the month. I believe March's assignment will be an action that will be accomplished each day of the month. But, I decided, rather than simply, pray the scriptures over my husband, I would challenge myself to pray the scriptures everyday over my husband. Previously, I have written out scripture-based prayers and I thought, since it was February, what a great way to act on my love for my husband than to pray for him.

I will go back and fill in the circles with the days I did, in fact, pray.

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'Your word is a lamp to my feet, and a light for my path.' - Psalm 119:105

Your word...

It is a lamp to light my immediate path; it lights up a dark path. Only so much as I have the Word? Only so far ahead and just where my feet need to walk? It [the Word, does] lights ahead [only] where my feet need to walk.

Your word...

Is continually in front of me. It lights ahead of me so I will never be left stumbling in the dark. The brighter light for my feet to keep me moving one step at a time along the right path; and the lesser [or less light, because it is lighting a larger expanse] for my path ahead; so, I'm not racing ahead of God's will, of His path for me. With each step, I must focus on the light of the Word so as not to stray off into the darkness. If I am to have a lighted path and a lamp for my feet to walk, I must be studying, meditating on His Word, which is Light.

You know how different wattage light bulbs, even LED lights offer brighter and brighter light, and longer lasting, for a clearer and clearer picture? His Word, with more and more studying and meditation and hiding of His Word in my heart sharpens me, sharpens the path; guides me - along the path; identifies those footfalls, or stumbling blocks or rocky crevices I need to avoid along my path that could trip me up; His Word ever revealing truth, revealing what is true and good. The more I study His Word, the clearer path I'll have. His Word is the right(eous) path and sheds light on my path.

It is His Word alone, the power of His Word to illuminate, reveal, and bring to light - the darkness into the light. His Word illuminates my sin; brings my sin out of the cover of darkness, exposes my sin, to the very same Word that directs my steps, lights my path out of sin.

The Word does this. And, the Word is Jesus Christ (John 1:1)

And...

God's Word guides me.

My feet are set in the darkness of the world, but the Word is a lamp for my feet; a lantern on a pole providing enough light for each step out of darkness, providing just enough light to show the path in front of me, but not a search light revealing the end.

Only the light of the Word can illuminate the path. I find the way I am to go through the Word of God. As I am in His Word, learning, understanding the principles of His Word, it shines His light on, revealing and directing in my decisions and gives me the direction/path I need to take.

Does the degree of God's Word I know determine the intensity of light that shines in my path?

It is 'the entrance of your Word that gives light; it [the Word] gives understanding to the simple (Psalm 119:130). Yet, God advised Joshua when he brought the Israelites into the Promised Land to 'do not let this Book of the Law [the Word] depart from your mouth, but meditate on it day and night so that you may be careful to do everything in it. Then you will make your way prosperous, and be successful (Joshua 1:8).

While I have  apart I cannot limit the power of the Word of God to light my path based on my abilities, or degrees of study, meditation, or application, but it is first His Word that gives light and last - His Word that lights my path, guiding my steps, giving Light in my darkest times.

one little word 2018 | february

[LIGHT] For my One Little Word classroom assignment this month we are to create a vision board. A vision board is a created space, a vision, of what you want to intentionally bring into our life. What we focus on expands, becomes active and alive. Because visualization is a powerful mind exercise, therefore, the vision - board should focus on what you want to feel, what motivates and inspires, or what you want to invite into your life.

Because my One Little Word is LIGHT, most of what I want to invite into my life is highly spiritual. Therefore, I made my own vision boards [pages], the one above and the one below, focusing on being a light, chasing light, revealing light, inviting light, seeing light.

I have been gathering images and words over the past couple of months, ever since I knew my One Little Word would be LIGHT for 2018 and saving them to my One Little Word folder on my computer or pinning them on my Pinterest board LIGHT. Sometimes, those images have little to do with light, they're bold in your face about light, or if you travel just a little ways you can see LIGHT in them.

These pages are 6 x 8, digitally crafted using Photoshop Elements, and I will insert them into my album. I LOVE how they turned out. The entire month's assignment is a vision board and it is only February 2; so, maybe, I'll have a bit of fun and make a couple more. I'll let that idea ruminate just a bit...

After completing the first vision board I knew the second one needed to have a different feel, yet catch the vision of LIGHT I wanted to invite. I, seriously, love - this - one! The one large photo 'chase light' and the white and black on the side simply speak to me.

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Photo Source

In my year long word study of LIGHT - recall my One Little Word® for 2018 is LIGHT - I have already begun searching out ways - and words - to study light. I want to actively engage with my word. Be intentional. Because - although the sun will rise everyday, and light will shine in the darkness, light - in me - will not create itself. Whilst researching light, I came across this quote:

Keep your face to the sunshine and you can never see the shadow - Helen Keller 

Sunshine versus shadow intrigued me. Sunshine and light versus shadow and darkness, or darker. Knowing that Helen Keller was both visually and aurally challenged and yet was able to write those words fascinated me even more and I know there was significance for me and for others seeking light in her words. Because Keller was unable to see the sunshine or the shadows meant this quote had to be a reflection of something other than actually seeing sun and shadows.  Maybe, it reflected an inner experience of sunshine and shadow, of light and dark, of peace and rage, of truth and falsehood, of love and hate. While she may be able to feel the warmth of the sunshine she could not feel a shadow yet she was able to say 'keep your face to the sunshine and you can never see the shadow.' I can only assume she was talking metaphorically, or an outlook on life - maybe.

I took note that sunshine, light, is warm and bright, and nourishes the earth, and, yes, necessary for life to flourish. When looking, or keeping your face to the sunlight one cannot also be looking behind at the shadow at the same time, instead one looks ahead. Looking forward. To Possibility. To Hope. To the future.

That must be how Helen Keller had to see or visualize sunlight and shadows. In a time when others like her, with her handicaps, had little hope, she looked at the light instead of the shadow and did spectacular, brilliant things that guided those, like her, even decades later. A guiding light. She had a guiding light and became a guiding light.

As noted, sunshine and shadow are obviously being used metaphorically. It maybe that sunshine means love and goodness and truth. And shadow means that which is not - love, goodness, or truth. Keeping your face to love, goodness, and truth, fixing our eyes (whether we can see visually or not) on that which is...and moving in the direction of makes me think of... 

"So we don't look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever." - 2 Corinthians 4:18 NLT

Helen Keller had to have spiritual eyes. It was her spiritual eyes that saw light and not shadow.

How else would she know that when the shadows are at your back, and not in front of you, they cannot affect your vision or ability to see because she...

"Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise." Philippians 4:8 NLT

 

 

 

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Several Sunday mornings ago, I walked in ahead of my crew (my husband and my two 20-year old sons) and paused to say hello to the group of gentlemen that my husband and my sons serve with every Sunday morning as communion and offering ushers. One of the gentlemen stopped me long enough to tell me this (paraphrased):

Your sons are amazing! It is such a special thing that young adult men will serve each and every Sunday, offer themselves, sacrifice their time, to serve others. Their service and faithfulness is truly a blessing. You have grown wonderful young men. You must be so proud of them.

My eyes glistened. What could I say? "Thank you so very much for that encouragement."

You know what?

It wasn't the first time we have been given a compliment or a word of encouragement about the young men we have been raising. When we are tearing our hair out in frustration because they don't seem to be living up to their abilities - or dare I say our expectations - we receive words of affirmation from people who have, or are, living similar roads we are on. They lighten our parenting load.

Sometimes they are simply seeing through clearer eyes. Because our own eyes have become clouded over from home-life frustrations. Our sons aren't being someone different when they leave the home. They are just saving the best parts of themselves for others. They are applying what they've learned to others. Serving outside of the home.

We have taught them to serve others because we have modeled serving others.

Here's what I've learned from this encounter:

1. Lighten someone's parenting load with a word of encouragement; compliment their kid - to them. Make sure it's an honest endorsement but a word of encouragement will give a parent clearer vision, even for a few minutes. 

2. Lighten up. You probably are doing it right. It just doesn't always seem like it because, let's face it, kids are, or can be, frustrating creatures.

3. Be a light. Our kids will learn serving when we model service. Serving together is even a more effective lesson. Jeff served as a den leader in Cub Scouts, then, as an Assistant Scoutmaster in Boy Scouts. John and Jarrod followed suit: as Cub scouts and Boy scouts their acts of service were through the roof. Whenever and wherever we served at church or in other areas the boys always came with us and contributed. Jeff served on the traffic team at church and when John and Jarrod were old enough they served with him. When Jeff moved to children's ministry John and Jarrod found ways to serve there, too; each finding their own niche. I'm serving up there now, too, so we are serving together every week. Wherever there is a need, if the boys are available, they'll jump in to meet it - right along side us. John has taken these acts of service into his workplace. His boss told us that John looks out for him, does the hard jobs for him, and doesn't let him overextend himself. John isn't doing it for any other reason then serving his boss and the people he works with and making their job easier, lighting their load.

My one little word this year is LIGHT. I want to see LIGHT, find LIGHT, grow into my word LIGHT. I want to learn about LIGHT. I want LIGHT to change me and to become a LIGHT.

one little word 2018 | light

And just like that 2017 has come to a close and we are ushering in 2018.

Each year I choose one little word to focus on, be intentional with throughout the year because…”A single word can be a powerful thing. It can be the ripple in the pond that changes everything. It can be sharp and biting or rich and soft and slow.” (Ali Edwards)

Last year my One Little Word was NOURISH. It was my best year for nourishing a heart of giving; nourishing a heart of gratitude; nourishing my spiritual and physical life; nourishing relationships. I saw ripples on the waves of a giving heart. God worked and I am changed.

This year, I chose the word LIGHT.

I am making an album of my year long one little word and these 'pages' will go in my album. I am taking Ali Edwards One Little Word® class and this album will be for that class. In past years I haven't 'finished' an album although I may have experienced my word all year long, such as NOURISH 2017. I am hoping, yes, hoping, that this year will be different. I hope to complete this album of LIGHT.

Above is the enlarged definition of LIGHT with accompanying synonyms. These are potential ways - guiding words - I will invite LIGHT into my life.

While, ultimately, the Word of God will be my guiding LIGHT during this journey into light, I searched for quotes that spoke to me and because I have had issues with fear in my life and although fear is not what is driving me to LIGHT, I loved this quote by J.R.R. Tolkien, as much for because he is the author of my beloved Lord of the Rings trilogy and the Hobbit as for, 'no half-heartedness and no worldly fear must turn us aside from following the light unflinchingly.'

All of these pages are a part of the January prompt within the One Little Word® class. We are using 'the beauty of becoming...' as our class motto or theme and it fits perfectly with my reason why: the beauty of becoming LIGHT.

 

 Above...

My reason why I chose LIGHT. Difficult to put into words what my heart wants to say.

Which leads me to inviting LIGHT into my life...

Thus, begins my journey into 'the beauty of becoming' - Light.