creating my artwork...selling on Etsy....

After some prompting by my friends, I have decided to link my blog, myspace account, and my new store on etsy.com together. For the past six months I have been devoting alot of my time to creating my artwork and wearable pieces. I have decided to put a link up on here so you can check it out easily. Let me know if you like anything that you see, any suggestions, or comments. Enjoy!!


http://www.juvalee13.etsy.com/

Some samples of my work










I have made a promise to donate 20% of the sale price (excluding shipping) to go to the Sudan Project at Ginghamsburg Church. To learn more about this awesome project click on the link below:
http://ginghamsburg.org/sudan/ or http://www.thesudanproject.org/

dandelion in a whirlwind part 2

I was reading over my past blogs this weekend, after being reminded by some friends that just started their own blogs, and realized that I haven't posted much, really nothing, since we made our big move to be closer to family and feel "at home".

One blog in particular that I was reading was the "dandelion in a whirlwind" so I aptly named this new one "dandelion in a whirlwind part 2". In the first blog, I threw out alot of questions....thoughts....not really expecting any one to answer. I in fact didn't get any responses or comments...which was fine, since I really wasn't looking for an answer.

I feel as if since we have moved, things are finally starting to fall into place and make a little sense. Of course things haven't really fallen into place, but a new sense of awareness is present.

I've been reading this fabulous book called "Postmarked Heaven" by Jack Cavanaugh. This must-read is the story of four different individuals, from four different places in the world, and from four different time periods. They are short stories, or letters from heaven, explaining about how once these individuals passed through the veil, and arrived in heaven, their lives on earth finally made sense. One story in particular was about Shankala. She despised wealth and riches on earth. She saw too many heartaches from individuals who achieved or never received wealth and riches because she saw how those riches brought a sense of worry, envy and unhappiness into others lives. When she would read the scriptures of how when you go to heaven, after living a life that pleased the Lord, you received 'unimaginable treasures', she felt a sense of sadness, because she wasn't looking forward to those troublesome riches. But once she passed through the veil it all made sense. The treasures, by this authors interpretation, were the people that received Christ because of her faithful obedience to serve the Lord with her life. The "treasures" were in fact people!!!

I feel like in some way, I'm passing throught the "veil of understanding". While a dandelion is beautiful, bright and yellow in it's prime, when it gets blown and tossed by the wind, it is also beautiful. And I've come to believe that it is the most beautiful thing that I've seen in a long while. The seeds blow away....and plant many many more dandelions!!

I've come to realize that I shouldn't be so upset when things don't go the way that I have planned and deep frustration and hurt result from the dissappoitment. It's okay to break and be tossed by the wind, while trusting in the Lord, because you're planting seeds for others that you may never know until you reach the threshold of heaven's pearly gates. Nothing is insignificant.....and 'we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. ' (Romans 8:28)

Well for those of you that haven't heard....
Matthew and I bid farewell to our alma mater, Bowling Green State University, last month. It has definetly been a difficult adjustment. We've both experienced some things that we really didn't expect.
Before leaving Bowling Green, Matt and I seemed to spend most of our time outside enjoying downtown. In the winter, we'd walk in the foot of snow down to one of the many (and I mean MANY) coffeeshops and play Battleship while the snow fell. In the spring and summer months we would run or jog, depending on our mood at the moment, to our local library and pick up the items on hold, or take a brisk walk to Myle's Dairy Queen for a good ol' 75 cent cone and green slushy. Or we'd try to relive our college years and walk through campus, remembering the many memories when life was easy, and dissappointments were few.
Moving to the Dayton area has openend our eyes to some things though. I'm definetly happy to be here, closer to my family. But it's definetly been a difficult transition. We've experienced some things in just these few short weeks that was definetly unexpected. We didn't realize just how much some things affected our daily lives.
We were talking the other day and we've begun to realize that we really don't have our "own lives" since we've moved. When we lived in Bowling Green, we didn't have people there that were permanent residents. We experienced things that no one else that was close to us expereinced. We still talked to our college friends, but the friends that were the closest to us all lived in Toledo. There lives were drastically different from ours. Our lives were drastically different from both sides of our families daily lives We went to places that no one else closest to us went too. Our frustrations, exciting moments....etc...were our own. And all ours. But since we've moved, we don't have as many unique moments. Of course we live in different towns from our families, but our experiences are not unique. When we talk about certain places, our family has been to those places. When we talk about certain things, we don't have to explain what we are talking about. They already know what we're talking about. It definetly has it's own unique charm to it but in a way it's rather bittersweet.
The effect of not being at our old church "CedarCreek" is different as well. The sense of community is different at our new church. While it is exciting to experience a new church and meet new people, it's still somewhat difficult.
By writing all of this, I definetly don't mean to be complaining. That is not my goal. I just wanted to express that it is really different, with only a 120 mile difference. In someways it seems that we've moved halfway around the world.
We're excited for the new change, and the new things that God is going to do in our lives, building character through hardships and dissappointments. But we'll also miss our first "home" together...Good ol' BG.....

the jesus of suburbia

I just finished up this fabulous book called The Jesus of Suburbia by Mike Erre. It has really called me to question my own faith and how I live that faith out. Have I tamed the SON OF GOD to fit into my lifestyle? Do I REALLY know Jesus, or is what I know only facts about Him? Below are excepts that I thought were amazing:

"What would happen if such giving began to characterize our churches? What would happen if we took the best of our resources and refused to spend them on ourselves but instead invest them in making the world a better reflection of Jesus? What would happen? People need to see what we are for, not just what we are against. So much of our message is tied to what the Christian community opposes: Harry Potter, homosexual marriage, abortion, feminism, stem-cell research, et cetera. But what are we for? The world need to know we stand for faith, hope, love, truth, beauty, grace, compassion, kindness, and courage. The only way they will know is if we show them. Words, these days, are meaningless."

.....

"The purpose of the church isn't just to survive this world but to become dynamic movements who live out the revolution of Jesus. We are called to serve and love the world around us. It is understandable why many do not want to do so. The world is ugly, fallen, and depraved. It is far easier to close ourselves off to the messiness of culture and focus on perserving our traditions and rituals. It is far easier to divide ourselves according to our theological distinctions than to focus on what unites us so we can mobilize together as the greater community of faith."

....

"I have heard it said that nothing is more dangerous to a revolution than winning. When a revolution wins, it faces the prospect of becoming institutionalized and losing its ability to be dangerous and subversive. If there is nothing to revolt against, a revolution loses its power. Revolutions are by nature subversive.
For instance, where in the world is the global church dead? In places where Christianity is the state religion. Where does it flourish? Where it is persecuted and oppressed. It would seem that if the opponents of Christ in the United States really wnated to stop the movement of Jesus, all they would have to do is to make Christianity the national religion. The separation of church and state actually protects us from winning in our desire to turn America into a "Christian nation." God save us from such a fate. In the Scriptures, past success is always the greatest threat to future usefullness in God's kingdom. (2 Chronicales 26) We lose the ability to be useful in God's hands when we become afraid to lose the success we have achieved."

Check out the book on Amazon.com....definetly more good stuff in the book.

you don't care a bit...no you don't care a bit....

I've always had a deep desire to care for the earth. Having a deep passion to take care of animals and giving them good homes and great environments. Through alot of the research that I've done on my own, and also what has been on the television about global warming and the environment, I've have begun to realize that care of the environment is one of my core values. I've been told that the things that matter most to you are the things that infuriate you when it's misused or there is an injustice that is taking place. The issue of our environment and the earth is definetly something that I hold dear to my heart, it's also something that drives me crazy when people purposely don't care about it either. Or they live in denial that these things are really happening....Why has our culture become so apathetic? Why do Christians only live for themselves? I have come in contact with many Christians lately who just don't care. It's become appartent to me as well that I have a very selfish side to myself. We all want nice things, but it's when we try so hard to get them that is the problem. Are we hurting other people to get what we want? Are we hurting God's creation? Are we endagering animals?


I found these pictures on the internet recently. Of course these would never be printed on the front page of a newspaper. It broke my heart to see that the way that I used to live my life has done this to these animals. I also heard watching the {LIVE EARTH} concert over the weekend that in as little as 50 years, the polar bears could be extinct. How sad. I really believe that God never intends for us to live this way. Do we even care what God thinks and how He designed us to be?