My boys

So very blessed.

Be still, my heart

love this boy

:)

A bit of January

late summer

Hope

It's just a good time to say...

I love this man.

He really is the sweetest.

He's more than I deserve and everything I need in a husband.

And I thank God every day for blessing me with the privilege of being Lee's wife.

For those of you who aren't married yet... know it can be hard... but whatever you do, don't settle. Be patient, no matter how hard it gets. God will provide. Remember that He "is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think." 

And if you leave it up to Him, it will all be worth the wait.

Thank you, Lee, for being SO worth the wait.

<3

Peace

It's been a while...

Hi. 

I'm Julia.

Nice to meet you. :)

I know... it's been a long time since I've posted anything. 

I think I'd like to write more, though. Sometimes - especially lately - it just feels like I have so much to think and say that it overwhelms me... I don't know where to start so I just say nothing. Ever feel like that? Well, I'm pretty sure that writing is good for me and I know I miss it. So I'm just jumping in! Sorry that this isn't going to be some great, deep, thought-out post. I always feel like I should put a lot of effort into things that I'm going to publish for the whole world to see; like I should do research and study something out and not waste people's time with meaningless ramblings. But ya know... I think I need to loosen up a little bit. No one is being forced to read my blog, and I enjoy reading things from people I love. I like hearing those little stories about folks. I love hearing a story that helps me get to know someone - whether there's a deep moral to the story or not. So... maybe I'll jump in and do a little more personal blogging about everyday things instead of waiting till I get an epiphany or some sort. :)

As a side note, I've been doing a lot of thinking and praying about a certain subject that I think really needs addressed. At first I was going to write a single article, and then I thought about doing a series, and then I thought about doing a vlog series about it. It may end up being a combination. It's something that's been heavy on my heart for quite a while now, and I'd appreciate it if you'd pray for me that I can find the right words and do only good and no harm!

So...  Tennessee is lovely. School is great. Life is wonderful... isn't it? God blesses us so much... in huge ways and in small ways - all of which are grand! I love noticing the little things especially. Don't get me wrong... I fall down on my knees before Him oh-so-thankful for the Big things. 

Salvation from my sins.

A relationship with Him.

Hope.

Without these, life would be meaningless.

But because of those Big things, even the little things are all the sweeter.

The way the sunshine just kisses the tops of the trees and glints on the leaves early in the morning.

Swirls of steam rising from good food cooking on the stove.

The intoxicating smell of rain.

Lee coming up from behind and hugging me while I'm doing dishes in the kitchen.

The little curls of soap when you grate it for laundry detergent

A little rose plant for my kitchen windowsill from my sweet hubby.

Praise God from Whom ALL blessings flow!

It's a beautiful life. 

:)

On My Mind . . .

Be Still My Soul

Be still, my soul: the Lord is on thy side.

Bear patiently the cross of grief or pain.

Leave to thy God to order and provide;

In every change, He faithful will remain.

Be still, my soul: thy best, thy heavenly Friend

Through thorny ways leads to a joyful end.
 

Be still, my soul: thy God doth undertake

To guide the future, as He has the past.

Thy hope, thy confidence let nothing shake;

All now mysterious shall be bright at last.

Be still, my soul: the waves and winds still know

His voice Who ruled them while He dwelt below.

Be still, my soul: the hour is hastening on

When we shall be forever with the Lord.

When disappointment, grief and fear are gone,

Sorrow forgot, love’s purest joys restored.

Be still, my soul: when change and tears are past

All safe and blessed we shall meet at last.

ETSOPM and other stuff =)

As of late, Lee and I have been in the process of raising support for preaching school. Back when we were engaged, we decided to go to East Tennessee School of Preaching and Missions (James 4:14-15), and we're scheduled to start classes this-coming August. I'm really excited about it, and I think it's going to be a wonderful opportunity for lots and lots of learning! We've been sending out packets to congregations, requesting their consideration.

We've had a few people agree to support us so far, and next weekend we're scheduled to go visit with a congregation in Tennessee that is considering supporting us, so we're excited about that, too. Some dear friends work with this congregation, and we get to stay with them while we're there, so that's doubly good. :)

We're very, very thankful for the individuals who have agreed to support us as they can, and we trust that eventually we will raise enough to be able to be sustained through the two years we'll be in school. :) If anyone knows of a congregation that would be interested in supporting a really talented young preacher who has a great love for the Lord and desires to improve his Bible knowledge (and happens to be really handsome and a great husband, too:), feel free to let us know and we'll send a packet! :)

"Thank Yo" Haha... it does actually say "You" under there... I promise.

And now, just cause I love you... here are some pictures I've taken recently of really random stuff.

Lee and I have been reading a chapter of the Bible every meal together. It's been great! It helps us remember that man shall not live by bread alone. :)

Our fireplace has been keeping us nice and toasty throughout the cold weather we had!

"Logs to burn, logs to burn, logs to save the coal a turn..."

I would like to introduce Meatloaf and Hamburger... Aren't they cute in a meaty kind of way?

They're being fattened up.

That's ok, Meatloaf, I wasn't planning on eating that tongue anyway...

Our post-office after the "big storm" :)

My "Through the Bible in 90 Days" is going really great! I've really been enjoying it, and I'm actually ahead of schedule, which makes me happy! Especially since I fell behind by about 4 days early on.

Ah, pretty snow. It's almost always windy in Oklahoma, but on this one morning, it was beautiful and calm and huge flakes were just floating down out of the sky. Just lovely. 

Laundry... it seemed photogenic to me. And I was just taking pictures of my everyday tasks. :)

Do you see that?! It's dripping! That means it's getting warmer. :) Lee and I went on a walk yesterday and I wore FLIP-FLOPS! It was only around 55 degrees or something like that, but it felt like a heat wave. I loved it. :)

I hope you all have a wonderful day of worshiping our Creator tomorrow!

I Heart Faces Fix-It Friday

Once upon a time…

a girl named Julia stopped trying to catch up on her "Read Through the Bible in 90 Days" (90 Days Project Bookmark PDF) project to take a lunch break. During said lunch break, she happened upon the blog post of a certain Kristen, who was in the midst of bringing up Benjamin (a long and worthy task). Falling headlong into the trap, Julia proceeded to go to iheartfaces.com and partake in one of her favorite pastimes - photo editing!

After some curve bumps and cropping; color, saturation, and level tweaking, the image emerged... ... ... then another! Determined to save herself, Julia halted her photo editing spiral before the images started multiplying and taking over her harddrive (as they were wont to do in the past).

Quickly, Julia wrote a blog post about her adventure and scampered off to find some lunch.

The End   :O)

The Original

Edit #1

Edit #2