Today’s guest post is our first re:create recess of 2017! Last week’s post spelled out what we’re doing here, once a week, on the blog, but here’s a quick reminder: we’re thinking about create with a healthy dose of play and how both can lead to transformation. My friend Cole oozes playful creativity in her fantastic fashion sense and you should be so lucky to see her gorgeous home and courageous use of bold wallpaper… She originally said no to guest posting because mama to three littles is more than enough; but then she shared this tidbit of creative wisdom with our women’s group and so, here we are. I’ve already tucked one monthly card, and now another, into my gratitude journal. Join us in this creative and intentional pursuit?
re:create recess #1: Cole
If you’re like me, you might need to hit the reset button in 2017. I came into this ‘new’ year harried, beaten down, uninspired, and exhausted, with no gumption to set resolutions, create goals, start a new habit, get organized, become more fit, or get closer to a “new me in 2017.”
It felt like I was just trying to survive. The only goal I had was to sleep! To stay within the confines of my fluffy down comforter and sleep while someone else cleaned, cooked, watched the kids, put away the Christmas decorations, wrote the holiday thank you cards, etc… But one night as I surfed the web in the wee hours, I think I had a “Holy Spirit intervention” because I stumbled upon Ann Voskamp’s blog and her version of making new year’s resolutions. She calls it reSOULutions – a Year of Living on Purpose.
I like Ann’s simple, manageable approach to being intentional about making changes without the anxiety and overwhelm of the traditional approach to setting resolutions. I found myself peeking out from under my comforter with renewed hope excited to get creative and follow Ann’s easy steps to living on purpose.
Ann offers a list of 12 verbs for the new year, one for each month…Embrace, Believe, Do, Learn, Grow, etc., and invites us to add the nouns or intention pertaining to that word. The words are written on a beautifully illustrated printout.
Here is my example. I added my own words and chose to color in the flowers to inspire myself to look at it often (Ann even invites us to frame it!). I’m going to tuck mine inside my devotional, a good reminder of things I want to work on and become better at.
Ann also created these beautiful monthly cards with the word for each month written on them where you can write your intention and your prayer for how God can lead you in this endeavor. You can cut up the cards and tuck them inside your Bible or devotional along with the other sheet to refer to them often as well….
What kind of year have you had or do you want to have? What are you afraid of or excited about? If you’re struggling to pick up your feet, your head, your eyes or your heart, this might be a small discipline you can do with the Holy Spirit’s help. Maybe, just maybe, amidst the shifting, the changing, the chaos, and the beauty of your day, you will take a moment to remember and breathe and do what the card says…it’s a small, easy way of connecting with God while pursuing stability in an uneasy world. Live on purpose while living out your purpose and your soul will thank you.
Cole has been married to Shane for eight years. She is mama to three children, Ruby, Marlowe, and Hyde. She requires a steady diet of faith and fancy with a little mischief here and there for good measure. She strives every day to be more like Jesus and to remember that she is enough, despite her imperfections.
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