Ta-Da! I Finished It!

Here it is!

As I was flying out the door to head to my piano recital, I had Dad snap a picture of the finished dress.

If I look nervous, that's because I was. ; D

The recital went really well - all of the students did an excellent job- (almost all of them are close friends of mine ; D ).

Then I was whisked away by my grandparents for a weekend trip to Cowboy Church, and to the church rodeo! It was really cool - their challenge this year was a colt-starting competition between Pastor Jim Matthews of my granparent's church and a cowboy church pastor from another church.

They took two young horses that have never been handled - ages 3 and 4, and started from scratch, gentling them and working with them until finally, they were able to ride them.

The grand finale was an obstacle course including some low jumps, a "mystery" object the horse must approach, and performing a trot and canter.

I really enjoyed it - it was so amazing to watch them building a trusting relationship with those horses.

After a certain point, the horses starting following them around, stopping when they stopped, turning when they turned. Anything they asked of them, no matter how scary it may have looked, those horses would at least try, because they trusted those men. Pastor Matthews made this illustration - that just like those horses have to trust their rider to protect them and lead them safely, we as Christians must trust the Lord to lead us. Horses are flight-or-fight creatures, instinctively afraid of predators - a fear they must have to survive in the wild. They also have horrible depth perception - they often shy away from shallow puddles or streams, because they can't tell how deep they are.
We have to trust that the Lord can lead us through deep waters, that no matter what trials He takes us through, He will protect His children.
Ps. 121:5-8 says- "The Lord is your keeper, the Lord is your shade at your right hand.
The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night.
The Lord shall preserve you from all evil;
He shall preserve your soul.
The Lord shall preserve your going out and your coming in, from this time forth and even forevermore."

I was inspired - maybe my colt has hope after all! ; D
Anyway, sorry for not posting this sooner, but life is crazy this week!

A Small Accomplishment of an Unaccomplished Seamstress

I'm making myself a new spring dress!

I wanted to have a dress that I could wear to my piano recital and our spring English Country homeschool dance, but it is close to impossible to find a modest, reasonably priced, and cute dress at your typical clothing stores, so I got brave, and decided to attempt my own.

Guess what? I couldn't even find a pattern that was modest and flattering, by Simplicty or Mcalls anyway.

So I found a cute pattern with a modest top, and a cute pattern with a full skirt, and am attempting to marry the two. So far, so good.

Found some adorable fabric at my favorite store -Hobby Lobby!

Here is what I have so far, but it's kind-of hard to tell, because the bodice and skirt aren't attached yet, but you get the idea.

When I have it done, I'll show it to you, but until then- you are the witnesses - I can sew!

On Not Judging A Book By Its Cover

I was really blessed by Jasmine Baucham's latest post-


Judging A Book By Its Cover

I have often been convicted of the same thing- I am ashamed to say that I am often inclined to prejudice, and quick to judge people based on outward appearance or brief acquaintance. By God's grace, I believe I am changing my habits. Jasmine's post is an excellent reminder!

I remember distinctly several times where someone new has come to our church, or been introduced to our family, and I didn't exactly like them at first- maybe they looked a little rough aroung the edges, or dressed a little unseemly, but when you talk to them, their love for the Lord is the first thing you know- it glows from their eyes as they tell you about how they became a Christian, or share pieces of their life with you, and almost immediately, they don't look so bad at all . . . in fact, you don't even care any more.
You begin to see the person underneath, the person God sees.

It makes me wonder . . . how do we appear to the world? Do I always speak with the graciousness that a Christian should exude, or do I snap at people when I'm having a bad day, or things aren't going my way?

Yeah, I may be dressed like a Christian. I may be carrying a Bible.
But am I dressed in Christ Himself? How am I making Him look by my attitudes and actions?

 I think I would rather be the hobo on the corner- sharing the gospel with a passion and a zeal,
than be a perfect little Christian young lady, in my perfect little denim skirt ; D, walking aroung with my Christian friends, talking about how we should be changing the world. As I've said before - it's about getting out of your little zone, and being willing to sacrifice your personal comfort to live like Christ.

I will tell you - I am a pretty shy person. You may or may not believe that, reading my blog, but I find it far easier to talk to a bunch of invisible internet people than face to face or even on the phone! ; D
Therefore, I find it hard to be very open with people about my faith - unless I know they're Christians.

So, I preach to myself when I say this - shyness can be a form of selfishness, or even of pride- ('how is this going to make me look?'). When we have so many gifts and ways we could be ministering to people, is it not selfish to hold them back? This is killing me with conviction, but it's like when my Dad has to preach (he's an associate pastor) - often, the sermon ends up being about something the Lord is dealing with him about. It's how the Lord has worked in us a lot.

So - as Christians we need to be marked by our actions - so if people do judge us by our covers, most likely, it's going to be accurate. I do not mean go out and buy a wardrobe full of Christian t-shirts (of which I own a few : D ) and wear them everywhere you go - I mean that we should be sure we are wearing Christ - when we go to the grocery store, when we're at our friend's house, from the time we wake up until we go to bed.

The best way I know how to do this is to pray for God to fill you with His Holy Spirit, at the start of every day, and all through the day - if you are tempted to snap at someone, or you're just having a bad moment - ask Him to fill you up. And what are the fruits of the Spirit?

Galatians 5:22-23 "The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law."

Hope this is somewhat uniform- my train of thought got derailed several times. ; D