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I had to make a resume this fall. It was terrifyin I had to make a resume this fall. It was terrifying. I hadn't written a resume in 17 years, so I started with the typical resume type things. It was pretty easy to put down on paper. Until it wasn't. After my daughter's heart failure, there was a hard stop. ⠀ ⠀ I called my friend and through choked-back tears, said that I felt like I hadn't done anything "resume-worthy" for seven years. Nothing. I sat with it for a day or so and then read the story about Jacob, when he buried the household idols so his family wouldn't worship them. I heard God, in His tender mercy, speak to my heart, "Kirst, you have nothing to write on your resume because we buried the idols." ⠀ ⠀ So rather than a resume for the past seven years, I wrote a cadence. What God spoke into my heart each year and how He is crafting me into His. ⠀ ⠀ Today is my 40th birthday. In the years where my life looked flashier, where I was racking up accomplishments for my resume, my heart was dying, longing to live for what matters. I used to be a birthday crier. I remember my husband telling the kids about it, but as I look back, my birthday crying stopped when we buried the idols. When I stopped living for the next yes and started living for His. ⠀ ⠀ As a serial yes-er, it took some practice. In fact, in the hard stop my husband encouraged me to say no to everything for a year, and I felt like God asked me not to dream for awhile. Between saying no to everything and not dreaming, God began to reveal a cadence worth living for. ⠀ ⠀ To kick off this next decade, I'm going to write a little bit about the journey God has taken me on over the past seven years. Not to tell you what I know, but to reveal who He is. ⠀ ⠀ It feels like God's faithfulness: His redemption, His kindness, and His care. Your story might be similar as you consider it year by year. So over the next series of weeks, I'd like to take you on the journey of how Jesus became everything to me.⠀ ⠀ HLLF, @kirstinricketts
You can spend your most meaningful moments Black F You can spend your most meaningful moments Black Friday on Amazon and not spend a dime. It's true. ⠀ ⠀ This fall I was wondering about when I had read a book that really sparked a new way of living for me. As I clicked back all the way to the beginning, the orders told a story. ⠀ ⠀ The book I ordered to tell my husband we were expecting for the first time. The diapers and baby toys. The teething products when we would buy anything to get a few more hours sleep. The Jazz CD I purchased my grandfather, who we lost this year. The birthday party decorations and the office supplies that promised to introduce joy and organization to my life. ⠀ ⠀ Each purchase was a part of the story, my story, the story God was writing with my life. ⠀ ⠀ As I clicked through the pages, it sparked gratitude for the journey God had been leading me through. So much so that I started writing it down. Year by year, like a resume, the orders helped me see the themes, a cadence of sorts; but rather than what I had done, it became what He had taught. ⠀ ⠀ I wonder what you might see as you look through your orders? What were you buying to fill a void? What seemed of utmost importance during a season of time? What would you purchase again? ⠀ ⠀ I wonder if it might be a place to let your mind wander. I wonder where God might lead your heart as you reflect. ⠀ ⠀ That first year with little kids or the years when you wondered whether you could have them at all. What was God teaching you? What did you learn? What if you looked at those seasons like a story God was writing with your life? ⠀ ⠀ I bet those clicks will tell you a story, and I wonder what God might have to say. I would love to hear what He has to say. ⠀ ⠀ HLLF, @kirstinricketts
Today, let's intentionally celebrate all that we h Today, let's intentionally celebrate all that we have to be thankful for! Happy Thanksgiving! 💛 - Kirstin and Melissa⠀ ⠀ #thanksgiving #thankful #grateful #hllf #thanksgiving2020 #hllf #holdlooselylivefreely #kirstinricketts #melissacheatham
The Lord is my shepherd; I lack nothing. ⠀ ⠀ I The Lord is my shepherd; I lack nothing. ⠀ ⠀ It doesn't mean I have everything or I am everything I need, but it means when I look to my God to take care of me, when I decide that I will follow His lead and allow myself to be tended to, then, I lack nothing. ⠀ ⠀ This Thanksgiving week probably looks more tentative than ever before. Our plans include options for delivering our sides and turkey to each others’ homes. It's a weird year. ⠀ ⠀ We can mourn the loss of normalcy alone and layer worry upon worry, or we can choose to see ourselves as the sheep of the great Shepherd, loved, cared for, provided for, and seen. Our God, our great Shepherd, will provide all that we need as we trust Him and in His care, we lack nothing. ⠀ ⠀ We can fight for mindset and perspective. We can fight for rest and then allow ourselves to be provided for. ⠀ ⠀ Often God doesn't provide week-by-week, but rather moment-by-moment, like a shepherd moves and tends to his sheep, leading them to what they need next. Let's walk into the holiday and trust that we will be tended to, choosing to be thankful because we lack nothing. ⠀ ⠀ If you are fighting for that mindset, here are some tips I find helpful:⠀ ⠀ -Start the day with five minutes of quiet. Sit alone and picture yourself as a sheep being provided for by the Great Shepherd.⠀ -Visualize the things you are worried about or discouraged by and picture yourself handing them over to God.⠀ -Surrender being the author of the week. Ask God to write a good story this Thanksgiving. Surrender your plans and ask Him to fill in the gaps. ⠀ ⠀ There are good days ahead. Keep your eyes fixed on Him, and God will hold you steady and carry you through. In His arms we lack nothing. ⠀ ⠀ HLLF, @kirstinricketts
My daughter has a month-long count down until her My daughter has a month-long count down until her birthday. Literally. Every. Single. Day for a month.⠀ ⠀ Last year during her birthday month, we traveled a lot. (Oh, traveling… ) Which meant we ate out many meals, and everywhere we went, she proudly told the waiter, "My birthday is coming up!" To which she somehow scored a gifted birthday dessert every time. The girl was living her best life, which happened to come with a month of free deserts. ⠀ ⠀ Watching her await her day every year brings me joy. Ella celebrates the anticipation of her birthday, and she does it well!. She tells everyone what is coming. ⠀ ⠀ This has been a tough year for so many of us, and I have heard people say, "I wish I had something to look forward to." I think maybe we have all felt like this. I know at times I have, but there is so much more than just the next vacation or birthday party to plan. ⠀ ⠀ This time, right now, can be a is a season of hope and anticipation. If you are living weary and tired, now is the time to regain focus on something besides what the world offers.⠀ ⠀ Advent is upon us. The definition of advent is "the arrival of a notable person, thing, or event." We celebrate advent as Christmas approaches as a countdown to the day Christ was born. Now is the time to shift gears into anticipation, hope, and excitement for what's ahead, not only for Christmas but when Jesus comes back again as He promised He would. ⠀ ⠀ As Ella would say, "His birthday is coming up!" Let's start to celebrate!⠀ ⠀ To help us build momentum and appreciation in these last weeks of 2020, we are reading Paul Tripp's advent book "Come, Let Us Adore Him: A Daily Advent Devotional" You can order it off of Amazon or find it at your local bookstore. Whether you are a seasoned Christian or have yet to have a relationship with Jesus, check this book out! I think it will encourage us all in this season and spur us into joyful anticipation that will hopefully carry us far beyond December.⠀ ⠀ HLLF - Melissa⠀ ⠀ #advent #hope #christmas #Paultripp #adorehim #december #2020 #healthyliving #hllf #holdlooselylivefreely #kirstinricketts #melissacheatham
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