tracie stier-johnson » beach

expect to see god {719-746}

tracie — Mon, 10 Sep 2012 04:03:15 +0000

If there are wolves in the woods – expect to see wolves; and if there is God in this place – expect to see God.

Ann Voskamp, one thousand gifts, page 126

719. a great first day and a lunch partner
720. puppies recovering
721. turning my twit around
722. crazy obedience
723. walking in the light
724. cherries
725. a spark in her eyes
726. grateful memories of the beach
727. Matthew 13:13-15
728. the beach. the beach. the beach. the beach
729. the round room
730. a full aquarium
731. her
732. a walk in the park
733. a walk on the beach
734. perseverance
735. sour gummy worms and a friend to share them with
736. a fun photo session
737. a breathtaking capture of my girl {even if it’s a bit on the blurry side of life}
738. sisters making breakfast for a hurt sister
739. prayer partners
740. He walks us through the fire
741. nothing but blessings from #31faith
742. God in recovery
743. encouraging stories of Joseph and David and living in wait until God reveals Himself
744. God cares and loves even more than we do
745. her grace … her heart … and she’s just 17
746. God’s glorious wake-up call

How are you finding Joy? Are you seeing God in the small details of your life? Dare to join me in the Joy Dare?

childlike focus

tracie — Thu, 26 Jul 2012 04:12:40 +0000

flickr photo credit

I mentioned last week that I’ve started running again. We’ve also been vacationing at the beach quite a bit this summer. Which means … I’ve been running on the beach a lot.

What I’ve noticed as I run along the beach is I’m constantly dodging children. And I fully admit some annoyance. Why don’t these children pay attention to what’s going on around them?

Then it occurred to me … simply put, these kids have a childlike focus. They don’t care what’s going on around them. They have their sights on their end goal, whether it be the water, their beach toys, a friend, or parent. They see their destination and they’re oblivious to the rest.

Then I thought my adult-self. Cautiously taking each step. Looking around. Making sure all is okay before moving forward another step.

That really could apply to a lot of situations in life, but something that keeps coming to mind is my focus on my Savior. Do I have a childlike focus, keeping my eyes on Him as my end goal … my destination? Or am I easily distracted? Am I moving forward cautiously making sure all is okay before I take a next step?

When Jesus saw what was happening, he was angry with his disciples. He said to them, “Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to those who are like these children. I tell you the truth, anyone who doesn’t receive the Kingdom of God like a child will never enter it.” Mark 10:14-15 {NLT}

I’m contemplating this verse. Seems as though Jesus calls us to have childlike focus. Childlike thinking and childlike ways. Not over-analyzing and questioning. But trusting and staying focused on the One that matters.

Imagine if we could move forward in life believing with every ounce of our being, that His plans for us are good {Jeremiah 29:11}. As I sit and let that sink deep … His promise of good plans to bring me hope and a future … I feel such freedom and relief.

I don’t have to worry and scurry looking about, taking each step cautiously. Instead, if I keep my eyes on my Father and His plans for me, I can move confidently with each step I take.

Have you heard? Beginning August 1, I’m hosting a Facebook study group on my e-book 31 days of faith. Each day in August, I’ll walk through the book with you in a more in-depth sort of way. My hope is to breathe encouragement into your day, to help you see Jesus, and to show you joy in the middle of a trial.

And … if that’s not enough fun … guess what? This weekend, July 28th and 29th, 31 days of faith will be available on Amazon for FREE! Free I say! So be sure to download it and tell all your friends too!

P.S. … don’t have a Kindle? No worries, download Amazon’s free Kindle reading app and you can begin reading on almost any device you own … including your computer!

Additional details found here.

almost wordless wednesday :: week at the beach

tracie — Wed, 30 May 2012 04:11:23 +0000

School’s out for the summer and we headed to the beach to celebrate! Here’s our week thus far via Instagram photos!

when your iphone takes a swim

tracie — Fri, 23 Mar 2012 04:13:04 +0000

Mamas don’t let your babies play with your iPhones {you kinda have to sing this to the Willy Nelson tune}. Roll video please …

Soooo … we were at the beach a couple weekends ago when in come the girls with a deer-in-headlights look on their faces.

“Hunter dropped your phone in the pool.”

Oh boy!

It still looked like it was working. And for the most part it was. Some tricky things here and there with the sound, but everything else was basically working fine.

End of story.

Or was it? I really never got any other details, other than “Hunter dropped your phone in the pool.” The girls had a couple of friends along and I could feel the tension of the girls waiting to see how I could react. All eyes were on me … but …

Cool as a cucumber I was! And kinda proud of it too! :)

Anyway … I couldn’t believe my luck when I was downloading the ~~thousands of~~ photos/videos they’d taken and saw this video!

Are you curious about “poopsalot?” Let me fill you in … there were birds landing in the pool and … well … they were … pooping a lots. Hence, they received the names of Poopsalot.

And the classic moment, “Don’t drop that phone in there.” “I’m not!” And then “Slpooosh, garble, garble.”

Never a dull moment ’round here … never a dull moment!

Happy weekend y’all … don’t know ’bout you, but I’ll be eating cake with a certain ten-year-old birthday girl!

{if you’re reading from an RSS feed, please hop over to my website to view the video … I promise you … it’s priceless!}

finding joy in seashells {217-245}

tracie — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 04:13:13 +0000

217. screening of Blue Like Jazz {more to come on that!}
218. calming my impatience with a tender nine year old
220. touching His hem
222. sharing my testimony
223. metal off eight year old teeth
224. a clean house
225. an eight year old trying to figure out the world
226. friends who stop by unexpectedly for coffee
227. hazelnut creamer
228. an inspiring phone call and beginning of something great
229. melatonin
231. a timely message of grace in parenting
232. girl talk with my littles at the dinner table
234. avocados
235. sunrise
237. seagulls
239. quiet times
241. seashells
243. spur of the moment lunch with a friend
245. a tender word from God

It’s habits that can imprison you and it’s habits that can free you and
when thanks to God becomes a habit, so joy in God becomes your life.
~ Ann Voskamp

How are you finding Joy? Are you seeing God in the small details of your life? Dare to join me in the Joy Dare?

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