Tag: joy (Page 1 of 2)

Spring It Up!

February 26, 2017 / Laura Crosby

Going to college in Texas absolutely ruined March for me.

All of a sudden I discovered the secret that had been diabolically hidden from me all my life: In most of the country SPRING COMES IN MARCH!!

It is bluebonnets and cherry blossoms, lemon bars and strawberries, and the sweet aroma of honeysuckle drifting in through open windows, and THERE IS HOPE STREWN EVERYWHERE LIKE CONFETTI!

In Minnesota, March is the cruelest time of the year. It brings to mind a totally different spin on the phrase “March Madness”.

WE HAVE MORE SNOW IN MARCH THAN ANY OTHER MONTH.

WE GIVE UP ALL HOPE OF EVER SEEING THE SUN AGAIN IN OUR LIFETIME.

via GIPHY

March is a perpetual month of Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Days, which is why I decided we need a dash of inspiration and a pinch of sparkle. How about a Spring It Up Challenge to get us through March?

There are no rules, just a prompt for every day. Do one day or all. Do alone, or with friends. Get creative! Have fun!

Share on Instagram with the hashtag #springitup if you want.

Spring It Up Challenge!

Wear something pink – bright pink or blush pink, lipstick or scarf, shirt or tie…anything counts.

2. Celebrate! Invite friends over for a “March will NOT defeat us!” potluck. Ask each person to bring a food that reminds them of spring (or summer) and have them share why. Choose the date today.

3. Clean out one closet, drawer, or bookshelf. Make room for Spring!

4. Be a joy-bringer. Smile at every stranger you pass. Let others go first – through doors, in lines…

5. Write a note of affirmation to someone. Add some confetti before you seal it up 🙂

6. Go shopping for one warm-weather item – sandals, swimsuit, new top, outdoor entertaining items…

7. Hug at least 3 people today.

8. Buy yourself a bunch of flowers.

9. Put on music and dance!

10. Write out Isaiah 58:11 and reflect on it. Which words do you need most?

11. Take a flower bulb to a friend who needs hope to grow.

12. Wear something the color of sky and sea.

13. Splurge on a donut with sprinkles.

14. Take a walk at sunrise or sunset. Breathe deeply.

15. Bake something fun and springy and bring it to share with your colleagues or staff at church or a non-profit.

16. Surprise someone with a bouquet of helium balloons

17. Make a new recipe with a green ingredient – avocado, lettuce, asparagus, mint chip…

18. Find 10 things to be thankful for today. Say them out loud as you notice them. Write them in your journal.

19. Put a happy, colorful screen-saver on your phone.

20. Take a picture of one thing/person/experience that brings you joy and post it online.

21. Grab a friend or your spouse and go out for an ice cream cone.

22. Make hamburgers on the grill for dinner (no matter how cold it is!)

23. Get out colored pens or pencils! Letter and/or illustrate Psalm 36:5. Post a picture!

24. Buy a funny card to send someone.

25. Plan a dream vacation or weekend getaway. Even if it’s a hope for the future, get online and look at pretty pictures.

26. Make/eat something with strawberries today – yogurt parfait, green salad with strawberries, strawberry smoothie…

27. Create a Pandora or Spotify station of summer tunes.

28. Call a friend who is life-giving.

29. Buy a beautiful magazine on one of your passions with images that spark your imagination.

30. Buy coffee for a stranger.

31. Google the song “Knee Deep” by the Zach Brown band featuring Jimmy Buffet – play and sing along!

Click here for a shortened version of this calendar of inspiration to print up and put on your fridge!

If you’re reading this on email or on your phone and want to comment, just click on the title and then scroll down!

Now go for it! Share on Instagram with the hashtag #springitup.

March Madness

March 29, 2016 / Laura Crosby

The other day it snowed again. Yes, in case you’ve lost track it’s the end of March.

The year we moved to Minnesota there were flurries on May first.

This is just so wrong. But we’re a hardy folks up here in Lake Wobegon country don’tcha know.

But this morning the sun came out and it’s supposed to hit 40 degrees and I saw a bunny hopping across my path so maybe God isn’t dead.

The thing is, when life is ugly (and even when it’s beautiful), I think the most important spiritual discipline is paying attention – being wholeheartedly present in the moment and alert to God. Continue reading

Soul Food When You Just Need to Smile

November 27, 2015 / Laura Crosby

Most of you have probably seen this by now, but my cousin Katie posted it on Facebook last week, and oh. my. gosh. the JOY!!! I couldn’t love it more! If this doesn’t make you smile I don’t know what will!

What snaps you out of a sulk? I bet this will 🙂

This is so cool! What if we actually spread light like this wherever we went?

May your weekend be filled with continued thanksgiving and joy!

5 Questions About Your Time

January 12, 2015 / Laura Crosby

Time. I’ve always felt like it’s there in limitless supply.

Oh, yeah, there are stress-filled days where there don’t seem to be enough minutes in 24 hours to get everything done, but there’s always Tuesday and Wednesday and June 25th 2020, full to the brim with more of life to live.

I buy into the conviction that I need to be responsible for stewarding my time well, but I also live like a perpetually bullet-proof twenty-something.

Over the past nine months John and I have had a friend teach us much about living and dying, about heaven and earth, time and eternity. HIs name is Steve and he is dying of Pancreatic cancer. He and his wife, Sharol, have walked this hard road with authenticity, faith, courage and vulnerability. I asked Steve if I could share some of his thoughts on time in the post today. These reflections come from a place of physical weakness and a greater awareness of limited time. Continue reading

Is God Always the Hard Choice?

June 20, 2014 / lauracrosby

It’s One Word Friday!

Ok, so I’m not sure how I got there, but after becoming a Christian in my teens, I fell into a default mode that always assumed that God’s will must be the hardest, and most painful choice I was faced with.

Broccoli or brownie? Broccoli must be more holy.

Cat or dog? God surely hates cats so He must want to refine my character by inflicting a cat on me (if this is true, I’m not committed enough to be a disciple) Continue reading

2 Questions, 2 Truths

April 28, 2014 / lauracrosby

When ~~you~~ I write a blog post I ~~rarely~~ never have the time to find all the scrumptious words or present my offering with the “voila!” of someone serving a gourmet feast at Thanksgiving.

But this morning, more than most, I feel like I’m serving up “bare naked chicken” – just a couple of things I’ve been thinking about that seem to go together.

A few weeks ago I was listening to a sermon podcast by Craig Groeschel and honestly I can’t remember the point of the sermon because as an aside (not having to do with the message at all), he said his counselor had asked him two questions.

Those two questions are what my mind keeps returning to. Here’s what they are: Continue reading

The Words you Hear

December 11, 2013 / lauracrosby

This past weekend my husband John and I preached together at our church. It’s always such an overwhelming and…sobering (?), scary (?) privilege to preach and ask for God’s voice to drown out anything of “us” that might distract.

We spoke on Mary and finding joy in the midst of any circumstances. That was all fine, but then God totally messed with me.

In our sermon I shared about an experience I had had the night before. I went to a dinner celebrating the birthday and an anniversary of sorts for a dear friend of mine. Each of us gathered there brought a word or words to share that communicated some of the incredible value our friend has brought into our lives. As we shared, our words were written in gold marker on a glass hurricane with a candle inside to be a reminder to her when she lights it, that words like beautiful, effervescent, intentional, and wise advisor describe how God is using her in the world. It was a privilege to speak these words of truth to my friend.

In our sermon I said that most people don’t get to hear words of value and affirmation spoken over them by friends like that, but God desires to whisper His words of love to us every minute. Mary’s joy and peace came from the fact that she knew who she was and whose she was.

Joy to the World

December 6, 2013 / lauracrosby

Daughter Katy in D.C. sent me this the other day and by the end I was grinning ear to ear and wanted to cheer along with the crowd.

I know it’s Fearless Friday and this doesn’t seem to have anything to do with Fear except that it’s a fantastic uplifting reminder that there is still delight and good and “Joy to the world” because the Savior has come.

This happened at the Air and Space Museum and is the Air Force Band. Who says nothing good comes out of Washington? Enjoy!

I’ve always wanted to be in a flash mob! If you’re planning one, count me in, but until then, this made me think of other ways I might brighten someone’s life today. What can you think of?

Fear and Filling

June 7, 2013 / lauracrosby

It’s Fearless Friday, so as I was running yesterday I was thinking about what the total opposite of fear would be.

I’m sure there’s more than one answer, but one thing that squeezes fear out is the exuberant filled-up to overflowing joy of the with-God life. Joy doesn’t leave room for fear.

Kind of like pushing back from the table at Thanksgiving stuffed with deliciousness so you can say “no thanks” to a piece of fear pie. You’re already full.

We fill up in different seasons in different ways, but Summer just seems made for “tasting and seeing that the Lord is good”

The Choice Today Gives You

May 24, 2013 / lauracrosby

A departure from Fearless Friday this week… Day after tomorrow our youngest daughter, Maggie will marry the love of her life. It’s a week of celebrating God’s faithfulness. Looking back and praying forward. Our Maggie is an adventure waiting to happen. Someone for whom the world is full of friends she just hasn’t met yet. Her ability to choose life is seen clearly in this post from two years ago…

I never, EVER thought there would be a day in my life when I would accidentally end up in a nudist camp, looking for the Giant Lady’s Leg Sundial in rural Indiana. But that’s exactly what happened.

I just got back from the road trip my daughter Maggie and I took driving a U Haul, moving her to D.C. and stopping at quirky sights along the way.

Our trip included car dancing, U turns, bonding with fellow truckers, and stops like the sundial, a space acorn (we just missed the UFO convention) and a hot dog bun “museum” of sorts. It was a blast. Three days of adventure filled with laughter.

I kept thinking of Deuteronomy 30:19 that reminds us to “choose life!” The life that God has created includes everything from the inspirational, to the sacrificial, to the…FUN!

So…on this Memorial Day weekend I hope each of you find a giant orange moose, or a space acorn, or something that gives you delight!

How are you choosing life today? What are the life-giving relationships, experiences and spiritual practices that bring you joy?