The past few weeks I have been relaxing and exploring in the beautiful state of Colorado...a little bit far from my natural habitat of being oceanside. This trip I took an art break. I actually had no sketch book or anything to draw with and just soaked up time with family in the Rocky Mountains. 

My home church started a new series this past week while I was gone, but thank goodness for podcasts! I was excited to listen and catch up... it was in the books of John and Acts focusing on why we believe and how we have the Holy Spirit.

I was so antsy having no art for the past two weeks that my heart just poured out onto this Bible page as soon as I was back at my art desk. The last time that I really studied the book of Acts was when I was in the Philippines for a month doing mission work. That is were the inspiration to add the text on the right column of my Bible page called "The Declaration of a World Changer" We recited this declaration every morning before going out to share Jesus with others and I wanted it to have a special place in my Bible journal.

Today, and all my days to come I will live my life in such a way that
I WILL CHANGE THE WORLD
Because Jesus is alive and I have the power of His Holy Spirit inside of me. 

Until Next Time Friends, 
Morgan 

Sea Cliff
noun  sea·cliff  \si:ˈklif\
​: steep to vertical or overhanging rock slope at the coast

   I have been on the edge in a lot of places. A cliff in San Francisco looking out at the bay. A mountain in the Sierra Nevadas looking over Lake Tahoe. A sea cliff in Nor Cal looking at the vast Pacific. There is something about being that high up that makes you feel a little bit closer to heaven.  I have been to places like this many times and one thing I know that can change the whole perspective of the hike up and the view is the weather. Clear days are prime, but when it is windy, foggy, or stormy the view from that high up can't be seen.

    The "God thought" on all of this is having the faith to climb up even when you can not see...or the end result isn't always perfectly pretty or clear. We have to hold onto the days that are clear when it all makes sense, when we can feel his presence and provision. So WHEN (not if) but when the stormy and foggy days come we can look back on the clear days of provision and know that our God is faithful. 

    Lord, this world can be messy, when my eyes can not see the next step ahead help me through the fog help me to trust that you will get me to the top of the mountain a little closer to you through it all. 

Check out this video of a sign I crafted this week! 
You can click HERE to order your own custom "When You're in the Mountains You're Closer To Heaven" sign! -Mahalo Friends

coconut
noun  co·co·nut  \ˈkō-kə-(ˌ)nət\
​: a large fruit that has a thick shell with white flesh and liquid inside it and that grows on a palm tree

  Yesterday I rollerbladed to the market and my mind was cuckoo for coconuts. I returned with every type... shredded, milk, water, a whole coconut. On my way home with my bag of coconut items in tow, I thought about how versatile this awkward looking little fruit is and the benefits it can have to the human body, containing water and good fats. It also can drift at sea for several months until it is planted or picked up. 

  Like a coconut, I can be a drifter and a bit rugged and tough on the outside. I drift from Gods plan for me of reading His word daily, prayer, a peaceful heart. Instead those dirty dishes, the babies schedule, and the day to day life somehow seem to be more important in the moment of things. I also can be a bit tough...like the brown and hairy outer shell of a coconut. We live in a world where sin seeps out...we are tough on others, tough with our words, and tough on our spouses.

  I am so thankful that there is more than just the drifting-toughness of a coconut. God plucks me up and out of the seawater. He works on me and draws near. He fills me up with the sweetest gift the Holy Spirit. Then, despite my stubborn properties he still can crack me open releasing the sweet inside. The kindness of His Spirit reminds me that the dishes can wait, to use words of His love toward others, and live in Him. 

  Lord, when I drift in survival mode, please pick me up and crack me open getting rid of my sin and filling it with the sweetness of your Spirit. 

​  

Check out the little time lapse I made of drawing this coconut! 

lighthouse
noun  light·house  \ˈlīt-ˌhau̇s\
: a tower with a powerful light that is built on or near the shore to guide ships away from danger

​  When I think of lighthouses the first thing that comes to my mind is the lighthouse night light that I sculpted in college ceramics for my daughter, or an oar that I painted for my mother in law. But this week as I have been thinking of Christ as this word crosses my mind.

  He is a POWERFUL LIGHT more holy, all knowing, and stronger than any other. When I get lost in the stormy seas of lifes hardships or am tempted, headed for DANGER... He is there. A constant. He guides and carries us safe to shore (or His arms). He never stops shining. Sometimes we close our eyes, we turn our ship away, we ignore the light thinking it is too good to be true. But it is real. He is always present even if we are too distracted to notice the light. 

  Lord, thank you for being my lighthouse shining in the darkness. You will always carry me.