Jump Into Something New

Photography by Madi Floury Henderson

You know that feeling when you find a new trend that works for you and suddenly all you want to do is buy more of that same look? Well, that’s how I currently feel about jumpsuits. At first, I didn’t love the idea. It was a fad I couldn’t quite get on board with. Then, I tried one on and fell head over heels for it. Why did I wait so long to embrace such a fun style? This jumpsuit found me at Nordstrom, and I knew it would be a perfect addition to my collection.

Sometimes we jump into new things, like a new hobby, relationship, job, or pair of jeans. But, sometimes we jump into these new things and forget to jump out of the thing we left behind: our past.

We all have something in our past that impacts our present. It can also impact our future because it is so overpowering that we can’t seem to move on. We allow it to control our hopes and dreams and even relationships. And that’s not what the past is supposed to do. 

Your past is a part of you. It helped shape and mold you into the person you are today. But it doesn’t have to define you. We need to learn from our past but not let it stop us. 

I am not a risk taker. Nine times out of ten, I play it safe. This is probably due to something I encountered in my past: a moment where I failed or didn’t live up to expectations. I let that “play it safe” mentally really define me for a long time. I talked a lot about the things I wanted to do; but, whenever it came time to tackle it, I would back away in fear. I would tell myself that I was content with where I was and what I was doing. Everything was fine – why change it?

But there have been a series of events over the past year or so where I can really feel God pushing me to go for it – to accept the fact that these thoughts can’t just be vivid images in my mind anymore. It’s time to take action. I can no longer let the fear of my past prevent me from living out my future.  

So, whatever it is that you are jumping into these days, I pray that you are doing so knowing that God is jumping in with you. He isn’t worried about what might have happened in the past, He has already forgiven you for that. He is focused on shaping you into the person He created you to be. Just go for it.  

"He has made everything beautiful in its time." - Ecclesiastes 3:11 

Entertaining God's Plan

Image by Madi Flournoy Henderson

To officially enter this blogger world, I felt like I had to write at least one post about styling a bar cart. It’s basically a right of passage. So, here it is. My beautiful bar cart from World’s Market, and I absolutely love it.

I also absolutely love to entertain. I am happy to offer my home for all types of occasions: from dinner parities, to baby showers, to football gatherings, and—of course—Sunday in the Shed. Having people over to my house is one of my favorite things to do. So, naturally, adding a bar cart to my entertaining collection made perfect sense. It was also a great reason to buy macaroons from Whole Foods that only cost a small fortune (shhh, don’t tell Adam!). 

When I planned this photo shoot, I didn’t totally think it through. And I’ve honestly struggled a bit with trying to figure out how I am going to incorporate my bar cart into my Christian blog. Like, what was I going to do? God loves you, so let’s pop the champagne and celebrate all His blessings?  Yeah… No. Then it hit me. 

This past weekend I struck up a conversation with an old acquaintance, who suddenly felt like a close friend that had been in my life for years. The words she spoke and the strength she exuded could only come straight from the heart of God.  It was a force of faith that could shine in the darkest of holes. If I ever have to go to battle, I will seek her strength to help guide the way. That is how strong she is.

It was during our simple conversation that I realized the gift she was giving me. But, if I am being honest, she had given that gift long ago. This time, however, it was just hitting me smack dab in the face. She was teaching me that God places us in situations beyond our control, yet gives us the strength to confront those situations with nothing more than a faith in Him.

Entertaining a party seems like a pretty easy task when compared to entertaining the plan God has for your life.

Sometimes that plan seems exciting, glamorous, and even thrilling. Other times that plan seems gruesome, painful, and completely unwarranted. The hard part is realizing that no matter the plan or the path, God is shaping you through each and every step. You have to choose if you are going to let him walk beside you… or behind you.

Image by Jenn Gietzen

Excited about YOU!

I get excited about a lot of simple things in life. Like not having to wait in line at Fido on a Saturday afternoon. Or Adam coming home early enough that we can go for a walk. Or finding a really comfortable, yet affordable top from Fab’rik.

I also get excited about a lot of big things (well, big to me at least), such as watching a student finally have enough confidence to join the other boys in a basketball game rather than watching from the sidelines. Or seeing your best friend go on a well deserved trip to her favorite place on the planet. Or having your team be ranked number one in your adult kickball league (yes, this is a big thing… A very big thing.  I love my kickball team)!

But you know what I don’t get as excited about?  Myself.  We hear over and over that we are our own biggest critic. As I chase this dream more and more, I have to really work hard to ignore my inner critic, who tells me I’m crazy for thinking this could all work out. That guy just won’t shut up some days.

But God’s voice and His excitement for you should be LOUDER than our inner critic. When we put ourselves in the most vulnerable places, we tend to put His cheers for us on mute.  Instead, we should be allowing Him to stand in the front row, waving His handmade sign, and yelling “Let’s Go, [insert your name here], Let’s Go!

Romans 9:25 says, “I’ll call them nobodies and make them somebodies; I’ll call the unloved and make them beloved.”

Funny enough, right about the time I began to step out into this new, unfamiliar world, my church started a series called Wonderlife, which was exactly what I needed for this season. There will be more about this series on the Sunday in the Shed page in the near future.

But, in short, the whole point of Wonderlife is to get excited about yourself and realize God put you here for a reason… That God adores you and your story matters. 

Image from Noel Shiveley

So get excited about you! Better yet, get excited about the dreams God has in store for you. Because honestly, “the most radical thing you can be is yourself” – Mike Foster.