Thought for the day...

My kids produce enough energy between them to power the entire state of Washington...

Why doesn't the government try to harness THAT energy source? ;)

(Can you tell I'm tired today??)

Hope a little humor brings you a little laughter!

-Megan

Dream a little dream

Last night I had the strangest dream...

I was in the middle of an exhausting, frantic, overwhelming hide-and-seek pursuit. Someone was chasing me, trying to capture me, and I was doing everything in my power to escape.

I would run, and then hide for a moment in whatever shelter I could find, taking a moment to breathe. Then the chase would begin again as I was discovered. This seemed to go on and on, until I felt ragged and worn.

Then I came upon a room, filled with pleasant colors and a sense of calm, and I entered it. It turned out it was a refuge from the Lord, and the pursuer could not enter the room. There were two words I saw in the room- Joy, and Peace. And I knew that once I left the room, if I armed myself with those two things, I could not be captured or even pursued any longer by whatever evil that was after me.

Relief washed over me when I finally woke up. I felt spent from that dream! When I saw the alarm clock I knew I had a few more hours to sleep, and sure felt like I needed it! How can a dream make you so tired?

It has certainly left me reflecting on being armed with God's Peace and Joy. These two things are a result of being in relationship with God and filled with the "fruit", or benefits, of His Spirit. Galatians 5:22-23 says "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law."

These are things that we cannot achieve on our own, but receive as gifts from God when we are in relationship with Him. If you feel like you are lacking in an area that is described in those verses, ask the Lord to fill you with the fruit that you need in your life. As 2 Corinthians 9:8 says "And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work." Having all you need.

I am also reminded about how we are instructed to put on the armor of God:

"Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication." (Ephesians 6:10-18)

Remaining in the Word of God, remaining in prayer, and being continually filled with the Spirit are key in putting on our armor.

I have days where I can clearly see cracks in my armor because I am not repairing it with the Word or prayer. Thankfully God is gracious and when I seek Him, He restores me.

Be encouraged that we have the armor and weapons we need to fight, and that the Spirit fills us with ALL that we need at all times!

{Journey of Faith}

I'm on a journey of faith,
Embraced with hope and love,
Entwined with compassion and grace,
Held by the Father above.
-Megan Philp

{Picture Love}

We've been playing!

Playing with our camera....

Enjoying one dry day without rain...And playing with digital altered art...Below is a combination of pictures I took in Hawaii last year, made into a collage. The main focus of the green berries? Those are coffee beans in their most original form!! How cool is that?

And below is a shot of Lala's boots, with several layers of other photos for texture and vibrance.

I hope you all enjoy your weekend! I'm not sure what we are up to yet, but I'm sure it will be fun. The hubby is home and being together as a family is what counts!

Feeling relaxed,

Megan

{Waves and Breakers}

Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls; all your waves and breakers have swept over me.

By day the LORD directs his love, at night his song is with me-- a prayer to the God of my life {Psalm 42:7-8}

Or, in the New Living Translation:

I hear the tumult of the raging seas as your waves and surging tides sweep over me. Through each day the Lord pours his unfailing love upon me, and through each night I sing his songs, praying to God who gives me life.

I have debated with myself about sharing an entry from my prayer journal with you. I offer this glimpse to you, as I feel led to share. We might have different things that we are crying out to God about in our lives, but I believe that this flowed from my pen not only for me, but for you. Please don't become distraught for me as you read, but welcome what the Spirit of God might want to say to you in YOUR heart and YOUR situation. After this time of prayer, I have had such a peace and gentleness surrounding me. I don't know how to describe it other than surrounded by His gentleness.

............................................................

Surrender.

O God, I ache, I ache. I struggle to free myself from the bonds of what I want. To completely release myself to what you want. Your will, Your plan. Surrender.

Longing...

...longing...

I'm longing for new life to grow inside of me. For the gently rounded tummy of new life. The newborn first cradled in my womb, then in my arms.

Aching...

...oh how I am aching...

My heart is throbbing with the pain of this hope continually deferred. Tears burn continually in the back of my eyes and throat. It has become a physical pain, this desire, this want. Dare I say this need?

Driven...driven to my knees...

...to prayer...

Ashamed that it takes struggle and pain to bring me to my knees in complete surrender. That it takes fierce need to come before you in complete submission.

I feel raw. Like I have been rubbed raw, the way pavement shreds away the skin on a deeply skinned knee. My insides exposed. And when that raw area is touched, I scream with pain inside.

It hurts Jesus. My heart hurts. I am raw Jesus, rubbed raw.

I have asked. Begged. Wailed. Pushed and pulled. Contrived. Striven to move your hand with my prayers, with your Word. If I could have forced you to move, would I have?

Repent...

...i repent...

I repent of the 'me'. My wants, my needs. Be it may a reasonable desire from an earthly perspective, from a heavenly perspective, what is it?

I come back to 'surrender'. You ask me to surrender

What does this mean? How does it look? Do I stop asking? Does the grieving stop? I don't think it will. And how long? How long do you ask me to surrender?

"Indefinitely."

Did you hear my heart gasp? Its sharp intake of breath? Indefinitely. Even if you choose to never return it to me. Indefinitely. Yours. Indefinitely not mine.

Indefinitely yours, even if this womb and these arms remain empty of another newborn- forevermore.

This tearing away of my will, how exposing.

How freeing.

With tears streaming I say "Not my will, but yours be done".

With heart breaking I say "Your Will, Your Plan".

In complete submission at your feet, I surrender.

I don't know how to live this day by day, or even moment by moment. Give me the grace to do so.

I surrender.

............................................

Let my prayer be counted as incense before you, and the lifting of my hands as the evening sacrifice!"{Psalm 141:2}

You keep in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock. {Isaiah 26:3-4}

Flounder, ears, art, all in a drive by!

Oh my goodness.

I'm floundering!

I started a fun digital art class, and am so behind in what I would like to be doing, but I just can't find time enough. Laundry. Kids. Dishes. Ear infections...

My son came down with an ear infection, his first one ever. We realized what it was when his eardrum ruptured. Eardrum rupture ='s blood. Not fun. But not dangerous either. Little guy is doing MUCH better after a visit to the Dr and some antibiotics.

I want to post pictures, I want to show art, I want to do my giveaway! I've almost reached my 100th post. I should have hit it much sooner in my 18 months of blogging, but alas, my time off while I was sick put the xnay on that.

All this to say- Dear friends, stick around. Your comments and visits are something I adore!

{Giveaway soon, art soon, more stories on life and faith...all soon.}

Right now? I'm headed out to take photos, let this kids play outside in some brief sun that we are getting, and try to have a little fun! ;)

See me leaving now ? I'm not even letting myself post a photo, even though this post looks drab!

Gone like the wind!!!
-Megan

{delight yourself} exploring digital art

{As the Sun Sets}

The sun has set on 2009. Unfolding before us is a new year. A fresh start. We make plans, resolutions, determinations to change this or that. Eat less. Do more. And perhaps..."Be more like {insert name here...Julia Child, The Next Door Neighbor, Gandhi, Mother Theresa...}"

I think that the last statement is one where we too often get caught in a trap. It is good to esteem others, learn from their experiences, and take motivation from them to expand our creativity, try a new project, branch out in another area, or use their fabulous ideas. All good things. The trap lies in the subtle change in desire to be inspired by others lives, that can morph into thinking that their life is better than yours and wishing you WERE them.

This morning I found freedom. I felt the gentle whisper in my heart..."You are not meant to be anyone else. You are meant to be YOU." I do not have to feel guilt that I am not in a certian role or positon in ministry- God has not placed me there, it is not something to be at fault for. I was created for this time in history, to be me. To live in my house, in my city, in my state and country.

Oh how freeing. You see, with that comparision of SELF, we can also spiral into fear- "They had to walk through {such and such a trial or difficult time}...It must only be around the corner for ME to walk through also." But this is not true. Yes, anything can happen to anyone. But I will not have to walk through every single trial I hear others are going through! I will walk through my own darkness, yes, but it will be what I can bear, and some difficulty I can handle. If I had to walk through every-single-possible trial, I definately could not handle that.

And so the whisper in my soul continues "Be YOU. Embrace yourself and where I have placed you, and watch what happens. Watch the joy that ensues, the victory you find, the gifts you are given. Give me the freedom and room I need to bless you as I want to bless you."

Oh the joy of our own individuality. And so, I find the freedom to step forward and not envy what another has, looks like, or does. Because we are each blessed, and every one of us is a precious individual, in the life that we have been placed in with great thought and care.

My friends, take the time to resolve to be YOU this year!

Joyfully,

Megan

Happy New Year From the Pacific Northwest!

Happy New Year from our family to yours!! I pray that your year is filled with blessings that overflow, hope that springs eternal, and joy no matter what your circumstance!

Oh dear, I am embarrassed to even show this photo!! This is the little table in my Kitchen. Yes, there is a table under there. It is prone to catching all the clutter in our house. Ok, so does my dining room table. But I am not showing you that.

And so I show you this uttering a squeak of "Help!!!" I confess my trouble with remaining consistently organized. I am a creative soul, and tend to be a bit scatterbrained at times, which is reflected in this table.


Oh dear.

As the new year rolls in, I am striving to conquer these clutter zones! Help me friends! Now that I have shown you this terrible mess (Ok, so the dirty bowl does not camp there...my son just finished breakfast. Now I feel worse! My son ate breakfast at that mess!) I ask you to share with me some organizing love and help me work through the clutter this new year.

Looking forward to your insight!
Megan

(P.S. It is killing me to leave this photo up....I will have to post something beautiful or striking tomorrow to erase this image from your minds...)

I'm going insane!

I love my son.

He is wonderful, smart, funny, cute...the list goes on and on.

But sometimes? Sometimes he drives me absolutely i.n.s.a.n.e.

Currently, he is in bed, NOT napping. He is singing, yodeling, bouncing, and being a miniature wild-man.

Oy-vey!

But no matter what he does, I will always, ALWAYS love him. Deeply. Truly. Madly.

Just for a moment, I ask you to sit and soak up this thought- This is how God loves you. This and more. Bigger. Longer. Deeper. Forever.

Even if you don't believe, take a moment to contemplate that. Wouldn't you love to be loved like that? And even if you don't believe, I tell you this- you ARE.

Just sayin. ;)

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases,
His mercies NEVER come to an end;
they are new every morning;
great is Your faithfulness.
"The Lord is my portion," says my soul,
"therefore I will hope in Him."
The Lord is good to those who wait for Him,
to the soul who seeks Him.
Lamentations 3:22-25 NIV

May His steadfast love envelop you today,

Megan

Wrapping up the Christmas Season...Unwrapping the New Year!

I don't think I've ever been this wiped out after Christmas! I am the one who keeps the Christmas music pumping for at least 2 weeks afterwards...I keep the Christmas movies going all year long...

But I need a day off.

Just one day though. I think. ;)

I got sick two days before Christmas, and spent Christmas Eve morning crying because I felt so awful and overwhelmed. But, the day rebounded, and a much improved me continued on with the festivities.

We had a wonderful joy-filled Christmas. (Pictures below...) Oddly enough, I don't feel sad now that Christmas day has come and gone, but I anticipate the new year and all of it's new promises!

I look forward to blogging frequently once again, now that I am in full health. (Praise the Lord!) I am also preparing to open a new Etsy shop, one that I was preparing for last year before I got sick, and am now able to follow through on. This will be smaller items that I am excited to share with you. Glimpses of that are soon to follow!

New images will be appearing here as I step out further into photography and digital art. I am very excited about this.

I am also working on a blog makeover. Hopefully this will be accomplished soon!

And so my dear friends, I wish you all a very Happy New Year!! Celebrate, and welcome in the New Year with hope.

I pray that " The lines of purpose in your lives never grow slack, tightly tied as they are to your future in heaven, kept taut by hope." (Colossians 1:5, The Message)

Blessings to you!!

Megan

(P.S. Giveaway coming SOON!!!!)