update:

My address has changed. I've moved. Wanna come with me? :-)

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making art

Art, art & art.

I've been considering art.

I've been pondering the point of my art in this life.

Do I dare?... Is it worth it?... How can I tell?

Friends, let's make art!

heart on my sleeve

Hello dear friends,

If you now find yourself reading this it means that I have mustered up the courage to post this and make a link on facebook for you to see it. It's not a secret, but most of you don't know that I've been here, writing away in private. I generally don't bring up the fact that I write a blog. (By the way, I hate the word 'blog'). And even if I do, I find the thought of someone I know reading it, well, scary.

But, you see, I did this crazy thing of asking God for vision for the coming year. And he made it bigger than I had anticipated. He said that there was more for this little blog than what I had plans for. He said to take risks and do things that scare me. So, here I am. Standing on the edge, taking a risk, doing something that scares me. Scary because I care too much what people think and I'm wearing my heart on my sleeve and I'm vulnerable. And even more scary because I'm going to keep on wearing my heart on my sleeve and being vulnerable and probably still care too much what people think. But the days of private contemplations are over. He's been gently but firmly pushing and prodding me to share my heart more publicly. I inwardly shudder at the thought. It's risky to share heart-thoughts with people, especially ones you know. But in spite of my own nature, I'm taking the leap anyway. And I don't know why this is important yet, but it just is.

So, here's my invitation: join me. Bookmark my 'home on the web', subscribe to my posts, whatever. But promise me, if you do that, don't be a stranger. I want to hear from you. No journey is ever as adventurous as when it's shared. And now that the words are all down on the page, I seem to be at a loss for them. Your turn - leave me a comment, send me an email, or hey, there's facebook too.


Love,

Jo-Ann

monsters under my bed

Remember when you were little and it was nighttime and the dark was scary? And you lay in your bed hiding under the covers when you really wanted to run to the safety of your parents but you couldn't because their were monsters under your bed?

And now you're grown up and you know that there aren't really monsters. Your fears were unfounded, imaginary, childish. But why then, do you still know that feeling those monsters evoked when you thought they were hiding under your bed? Because they grew up too. They may look different but they're still there. Now they have names like "Worried for a Job", "Need Money to Pay the Bills", "Can't Do That", "Not Good Enough" and "What Will People Think". Despite the fact that we shouldn't, we live with these monsters. They scare us. So we imagine them away, we run away, we avoid them. We hide.

I've been thinking a lot about fear lately. I know fear well. Fear had me tightly in it's grip once. (You'll find out about that soon.) But I got to thinking how God had set me free from that fear and yet in spite of it, there are still other fears that I hold on to. When I started thinking about all the uncertainties ahead of me this year, I got scared. I'm scared of the unknown, you know. Of the road ahead. I know it's an unfounded fear, but it's there nonetheless.

A few days ago, I read about Ann naming her years. It resonated. I always feel like I have a theme for the year. I've just never named it. So this year, I am. I'm not doing it because it sounds like a good idea (which it is, anyway) but because my year already has a name. And it's just a word. But it's a word that shapes the year and the work God has already started doing in my heart. Coincidentally (not so coincidentally!) I came aross OneWord. Perfect. My year has a name. It's one word.

"Fearless"

At the beginning of the year, I wrote down a short list of goals for myself for the coming year. The very last one was, "Take risks, do things that scares you, live fearless". Little did I know that God had it in mind to grow that little seed into my theme. But there it is: timely and in season. It's the right word. Fear has stopped me doing so many things. This year, I will be Fearless. I will hide in Jesus, not from monsters.

God is a safe place to hide, ready to help when we need him.

We stand fearless at the cliff-edge...

Psalm 46:1

(Message)

*Image

the bible and the reading thereof

My church is doing this wonderful thing of reading through the bible together this year . As in, the whole church. Everyone.

I've got a confession to make. I haven't started. Not that I haven't been reading my bible at all, I just haven't started using the reading plan. To be honest, I didn't want to start all over again at Genesis when I've read right through it five times after five failed attemts at reading through the bible. I just didn't want to do that again. Every time I slip up and stumble and miss a day (or a few more) I give up. Because the task seems too much, too hard, too long. But why should it be a task? Reading the bible should be a pleasure. Right?

So, I had been debating whether to just pick up from where I had left off in 2 Chronicles and continue from there or do the by-the-book reading plan the church is doing. Until I found this...

and that lead me to this: The Bible Reading Plan for Slackers and Shirkers.

I knew at the very moment I opened the pdf file that this was it. It's flexible, with room to change things around and read different passages while still getting through everything. And the best part is, I'm excited about it!

If you'd like a copy too...here you go :-)

january is for dreaming

I love January. No, it has nothing to do with the fact that my birthday is in January;) I love it because it's a time to reflect, to dream, to inspire the future. January is a month of lists and hopes and deep heart ponderings. January brings new vision.

January's vision is still being worked out and battled over. Alongside the dreaming is fear of living out the dream. The vision is the easy part. The outworking is hard reality. Reality is easier to run and hide from than to do battle with. Life's really messy bits would rather be conveniently ignored than dealt to. So, January finds me dreaming and battling.

I have several things on the go that I hope to share with you soon, as well as a series which will be launched by the end of the month. Stay tuned. Until then, fellow dreamers...

the end beginning

So we find ourselves at the end of another year. On the very precipice of something new. A new year holds so much promise and possiblity. There is no past yet, only 365 days new experiences, lessons and life abundant. Who knows what's in store?
For me, a new year usually brings something of a new chapter in my life and this year is no exception. I've completed my university qualification and graduated and am now looking for my very first 'real job'. As exciting as that is, it's also really daunting. It's a new season in my life. A season that means I have to leave the old, familiar one behind and start one that I can't see past the bend in the road. Yet it's times that these that I hold His hand just that little bit tighter because I can't do it on my own. And His faithfullness is great, with strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow.
Here's to new seasons. Happy New Year!

a christmas post

I have a love-hate relationship with Christmas. I suppose that sounds like such a terrible statement, but hear me out. By the time you've finished reading this you may even agree with me. Who knows.

I love Christmas because it's a celebration and I love celebrations. More importantly, it's a celebration of the greatest gift our Father in heaven ever gave us - his son. I can't even imagine what that would be like and even trying to get myself into that kind of headspace is just bewildering. My comprehension at his sacrifice is humbling. The Father's sacrifice of his son and the Son's sacrifice of his life. How could he choose that? I mean, I love those that I love but dying for them when they have wronged and hurt me causes serious hesitation. Simply said, I don't deserve what He did for me. That is why I love Christmas. Because even though I don't deserve forgiveness, he still chose to come in human form, experience humanity and die in my stead. How mindblowing.

But I hate Christmas because of what has been lost in the meaning of why we celebrate. I hate that gifts, shopping and a man in a red suit have become the reason that so many people love the Christmas season. And I hate that so many have forgotten to celebrate what He did for us. I'm so saddened to realize that for many people around the world, they don't know the reason why we celebrate.

Wishing you a wonderful Christmas. May the revelation of what God did for us at Christmas resonate throughout the coming year. Enjoy the celebration with all that it entails!

there and back again

Gasp! It has been more than a month since I last posted anything in my corner of cyberspace. Almost enough time to possibly find the end of the world and fall off it. But thankfully, no. Despite my absence, I'm finally home for enough time to actually find the time to put my fingers to a keyboard and type something. If you've been wondering what I've been up to during the last five weeks...well, actually, I can't fit it all in here. It would get boring after awhile. Needless to say, I've been on holiday with my wonderful cousin, aunt and mother. We've enjoyed each others company tremendously and have done a seriously healthy amount of laughing! Funny, we're not sick of each other yet [I'm not sure others (more specifically, onlookers) would say the same]. Anycase, here's hoping the gap between now and my next post won't be so long. In the meantime, here's a few snapsnots of my adventures:

Notice anything wrong with my helmet?? Title of my post ring any bells? Travelling in a car can sometimes be pretty monotonous. We did a bit of reading to while the time:)

this is a public service announcement:

Jo-Ann is currently away on a much needed, much anticipated break to a place where the sun shines and where good times and laughs are mandatory.

She will be back in twelve days with memories, pictures and hopefully, a tan!

a peek into my week

Hello and welcome:-) I'm so glad you're here. If you found me via YLCF, thank you for taking the time to stop by:-) I thought I'd give a little bit of background before diving in. First off, if you'd like to read a little about who I am beforehand, you're welcome to go to the 'about' page first then come back and read this. It might put a few things into context. Or not, that's fine too. Also, I found out about this last Tuesday and thought I might as well write about the week as it was happening. I (hopefully) didn't include any boring details, but for the most part, I've pretty much highlighted each days events as they were being lived. So this is a typical, non-typical week for me. Enjoy!

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Monday 25th October:

The 25th of October in New Zealand is a public holiday. Nice for some. I didn't get much of a holiday out of it. I spent most of the day working on an assignment. I got it done then headed across town to drop it off and when I got onto campus, found out that all the buildings were locked. Dah, it's a public holiday. Still, my outline has the 25th as the due date. I go to the library, which is the only place that's open (and quite busy as a result) and find out that it's acceptable to hand the assignment the next day (today actually, as I'm writing on Tuesday). So I head back home and procrastinate a bit before getting on with the next assignment. Did I mention that it's due on Tuesday? It was a late night. I did manage to spend a little bit of time hanging out in the garden where my parents spent the day and took some nice photos. Here are a few:

Tuesday 26th October:

So it's Tuesday and I've finished the assignment that's meant to be handed in today. I drive to university and half-way there I realize I forgot the other one that I tried to hand in yesterday at home. So I turn around and go back to pick it up. A quick dash in the house and I'm back on the road. I get to uni and log on to the computer so I can print the assignment out and find out I didn't save it in the right format and have to go back home to print it. Why didn't I just do that in the first place??? Anyway, I hand it in and YAY, two less things on the brain that gets worried over! Did I mention that I've got another one due...tomorrow! Better get crack-a-lacking!

Wednesday 27th October:

I woke up this morning with the majority of my assignment still to do. I went to bed early last night cause I had a splitting headache. 300 words done with 1200 minimum left to write. Thankfully I was prepared and had a plan so I sat down and wrote the remainder in three hours. Add the two from last night and that's a total of five hours to complete an assignment start to finish. Now, I know what you're thinking. How can she possibly write a 1500 word assignment like that in five hours? Well folks, ordinarily I wouldn't but this one was a report that was entirely based on my own opinion and results from an project that I had to undertake. The work was done. It just needed to be written up. Thus, five short hours of work and it was ready to be handed in. And here it is:

Keep in mind that I had to blur it on purpose because of the details on the page. But there you go. This is a monumental moment right here. Why, you ask? Because it's the very last assignment I ever have to hand in. Ever. No more. And I am celebrating tonight. And we're having ice cream sundaes at bible study tonight. What convenient timing! Could my day get any better?

Thursday 28th October:

Thursday = a good day. Early start today but it didn't matter. My lovely mother and I had a coffee this morning in the mall before it got busy and I bought one of these:

I had a class then popped into the computer room before I left campus and bumped into a friend. How lovely. I love when I bump into friends unexpectantly. It made my already good day even better. I went into town and paid a visit to the library to find some books about how to play the ukulele. Then I drove to the other side of town because I had a long overdue hair appointment. And I was a very happy girl when I walked out of there!

Friday 29th October:

As you can imagine, I spent the day playing with my new toy! And I bought some canvas for a little project I'm starting soon. I'm planning a separate post for that. (Don't hold me to it, but within the next two weeks) And I also went out to dinner with my family and good family friends who are moving away in a few weeks. It was a lovely evening out with lots of memorable moments:-) Like my mother giving greek dancing and the limbo a go! Haha, good times.

Saturday 30th October:

It's been a day of chores. My list of to-dos include:

- washing (and lots of it)

- fold the washing

- a general clean-up of my room

- vacuum the house

and I know that doesn't seem like a lot but I spent the day getting through that list because those chores have been neglected for awhile (especially the tidy room part)! My final week of university work has definitely taken precedence over chores! I also finally posted the contents of my bag. If you're curious.

Sunday 31st October:

Today my mother and I spent some time shopping for gifts for family whom we haven't seen in ages and are going to be visiting at the end of the month. Thankfully it wasn't too painful a search. You know how sometimes gifts are so incredibly difficult to buy for people when you're not sure what to get them?

And I went to church. What can I say? It was awesome!

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So there you have it. That was my week. If you've made it down this far, congrats! If you've made or are going to make a contribution to the Peek into Your Week at YLCF, I hope to read yours soon. (And if you're thinking about it - do it!) I have made it my mission to read every single one. I can't promise to comment on each but they will certainly all be read:-)

grace

I don't have a lot of words today or a great story to share, but this pretty much sums up how I feel about grace:

Grace is...

...and I don't deserve it, don't need it and don't want it.

Yet He still offers it. Grace is love of an unconditional brand.

I'm linking with Emily at Chatting at the Sky for the 31 days of grace series

what's in my bag?

A while ago, I was tagged (thank you, Abbie) to do a what's in my purse post. My life has been a whirlwind of busy lately so it's taken me longer than I had hoped to do this. But finally I'm getting around to it.

To start off with, I just want to say that I call my purse a bag (short for handbag) and my wallet a purse. Just to clarify :-)

So lets get started:

This is my bag

And my purse

Phone

Sunglasses

Tissues - very handy

Hairpins

Glasses cleaning cloth

Paperclips

Lighter

Pens

An assortment of lip products

Hand cream in an easy-to-carry size

And my camera. What a great reflection from the computer's screen for me to show it to you:-)

And that's it. The contents of my bag revealed! Hope you enjoyed it. I had lots of fun doing it.

NB: I just realized that I totally forgot to tag anyone for this. So, if you'd like to give this a go because it looks like fun (it is!) then you're tagged. Let me know so I can read it:-)

~grace~


unmerited

mercy ~ freedom ~ favour

31 Days of Grace at Chatting at the Sky

i spoke too soon

I've gone and changed it again!

I just said two days ago that no major overhaul was in the pipeline. Guess even I don't know what to expect around here.

reflections

A year ago today, I wrote my very first post. You can go back and look at it if you like, but I'll warn you it's nothing amazing. I had no idea what shape this little piece of bloggyness would take, let alone considering I would stick to it for a year to find out. In saying that, I can't overlook the enormous gap of six months between October and April when there was not a single post written. I never started out with the intention of wowing the world with my amazing writing and fantastically witty and intelligent thoughts. And since I don't claim to be a great writer or philosopher, (which I still don't think I am) it has been nice just to express my thoughts and life happenings no matter how mundane and uninspired they are. They always seem very inspired in my mind but never come out onto the page the same way they start off in the brain. Mind you, I'm not much of a brain person. I'm more of a heart person. I've discovered the heart provides much more depth than the brain and my best writing almost always stems from a heart thought rather than a brain thought. Lets hope I'll keep that in mind for the future of my blogging journey.

Since I started blogging, this little blog of mine has taken on more design changes than I care to admit to. I'm just saying, don't be surprised if you visit and I've done a complete overhaul. Not that I plan to do anything remotely like a full makeover right now;) I've also had several name changes so who knows, one day that might change again too! But essentially, behind the aesthetics, (which I love tinkering with) this feels like home now and I've got no plans to leave.

Highlights from this first year of blogging include considering what it might be like to die, a post dedicated to my pajamas, a once typical day in my life, the beginning of counting a thousand gratitude's, a failed challenge, a blog award (which by the way, I didn't have anyone to tag so if you'd like to be tagged, I tag you. Let me know so I can read it!) very boring study related procrastinations (one of which was creating another blog altogether) and surviving a rather decent sized earthquake! And my favourite posts ever (which I am the most proud of) are here and here. I think I've made a great start, but to be honest, as much as I've enjoyed documenting my own life during the past year, I'm so excited about what's still to come. I'd love it if you'd join me:-) No pressure! And for those of you that have read anything of my blog before now, thanks for giving me the time of day. This random, average, slightly nerdy girl appreciates it very much:-)

storytelling

If a picture were to tell a story, what would this one say?

under a blossom sky

Today I'm thankful for:

- A newly fixed roof

- Four days of work that I really needed (however did you know?!)

- A secure future

- Seeking you in the dark, quiet, secret spaces (they're the best)

- Making me smile

- Children's laughter and joy (Why do we think that we teach children when they have so much to teach us?)

- Renewed grace every day (I so don't deserve it!)

- Knowing exactly who I am (every single crazy contridiction)

- For spring

- For blossom trees

- And for hope that blooms afresh

- I am thankful for You being You and always being that way:-)

Counting #44-55 of one thousand gifts with Ann Voskamp and others @ Holy Experience.

4:26am-itis

I just created a new blog.

I wonder why?

Go here to find out more!

Update: I deleted it. I give no other explaination but that it was created out of sheer boredom and procrastination and was therefore, stupid.

on a saturday afternoon

Just for fun and because I'm currently procrastinating...


My lovely mum and I went for a little drive the other week to a lake with a beautiful restaurant and had lunch. It was special. Mother daughter time always is:)

Isn't the view just divine?? And I just had to make it a bit arty by including the wine glass in the shot. And as a random side note, that was the best glass of wine I've had in ages! Beautiful.

And amongst photos of beautiful landscapes on the drive back home...

We encountered...well, this.

It made us laugh so much :D
And that's about all that I want to say. Because I feel guilty about procrastinating so I should go and do the thing that I'm really meant to be doing right now aka writing an essay!!