Introducing...

...InsideOut Girls - a new "blogazine" for young women desiring to live real, authentic lives to the glory of God!

Born in the heart of my good friend, Hailey Sadler, and carried out with the help of sisters and friends, this new corner on the web is sure to be a blessing! It's a place to connect with likeminded girls, to build community, to share encouragement and inspiration, to serve as iron sharpening iron. According to it's mission page:

InsideOut is designed to support Christian girls who want to live their lives inside out. We want to be real, genuine, authentic. We don’t want lives that look great and Godly on the outside but inside are a tangled mess. We want what’s outside to be for real on the inside and what's inside to show on the outside. We want to be the real deal. We want to let God’s light shine through us. We want to be beautiful from the inside out.

We realize that we aren't - and don’t have to be - perfect, and that the walls that we think will protect us, often serve to distance ourselves from others. Instead of hiding what God has done in our lives, we want to proclaim it! We are passionately pursuing lives that glorify Him.

We are thrilled for you to join us on the journey.

But no masks allowed.

Each week, new articles will be published in different categories of interest: style and fashion, health and sports, politics, and our everyday walk with the Lord. I hope you'll take a peek and join the community of those of us desiring to live inside-out for the praise and pleasure of Jesus Christ Himself!

Practicing Eucharisteo

"I had never really learned the language of “thanks in all things”! Though pastors preached it, I still came home and griped on. I had never practiced. Practiced until it became second nature...Practice is the hardest part of learning, and training is the essence of transformation...Do not disdain the small. The whole of life - even the hard - is made up of the minute parts, and if I miss the infinitesimals, I miss the whole...There is a way to live the big of giving thanks in all things. It is this: to give thanks in this one small thing. The moments will add up. I, too, had read it often, the oft-quoted verse: “And give thanks for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 5:20). And I, too, would nod and say straight-faced, “I’m thankful for everything.” But in this counting gifts, to one thousand, more, I discover that slapping a sloppy brush of thanksgiving over everything in my life leaves me deeply thankful for very few things in my life...Life-changing gratitude foes not fasten to a life unless nailed through with one very specific nail at a time."

- Ann Voskamp, One Thousand Gifts

August 16, 2011

201. A toothless smile on a grinning boy's face

202. Little girl lashes so long and silky

203. The shy delight of children enthralled when I enter their world of make believe

204. Dainty white flower petals hanging over a garden wall

205. Laughter around the table during ladies' Bible study

206. Childlike eagerness to memorize and recite God's Word

207. A hundred mushroom dinners being cooked in the backyard by children inspired by "Ratatouille"

208. The smell of toast in the toaster

209. Green smoothies

210. God's love

August 19, 2011

211. The rich, silky nuttiness of homemade almond butter

212. Spring days

213. Piano playing

214. Beloved hymns

215. Being surrounded by books in a church library

216. Chocolate granola

217. The children's excitement over Scripture memory

218. Sparkly gold coins

219. Evening sunlight creating golden halos around little girls' braided hair

220. Playing catch with Edgar at the park

221. Pink clouds

222. Evening talks with Tía Anita

August 25, 2011

223. Birthday candle light flickering in Angel's eyes, reflections of joy and childlike wonder

224. The realization that God is answering prayer and giving me genuine love for these kids and passion for this ministry

225. Continued eagerness to learn Scripture

226. Walking the rest of the way to our destination when the taxi driver didn't understand where I wanted to go - it was good exercise and possibly Divine protection against an unknown mishap...?

227. Ana Maria's body melting into mine as she relaxed into sleep on the bus ride home

228. The ever awe-inspiring, changing tones of afternoon sunlight and clouds over the mountains

229. Wrinkle-nose smiles

230. Phone call to Mema and Papa during family birthday dinner

August 30, 2011

231. New music from the Galkin Evangelistic Team filling my room with joyous strains. A free gift!

232. A bag of American crunch and yumminess

233. The smell of banana bread baking in the oven

234. Brown paper packages tied up with strings...the arrival of all the packages I was expecting!

235. Interior design beauty in the home of another missionary lady - reflecting God's beauty

236. Yellow pineapple and monkey bread

237. Candles flickering...so homey

238. A Sunday school lesson given

239. Transformation at the hands of God

August 31, 2011

240. Baby's breath warm against my skin

241. Warm afternoon nap with sleeping baby snuggled in the crook of my arm

242. Arches of green ivy vines dappled with golden sunlight

243. Teenage girl delighting to hold a newborn babe, awe clearly written across her face

244. Kindness

245. Evergreen needles reaching for the sunshine

246. Wind in the leaves, rustling gently

247. Clippers snipping, pruning, cutting away to beautify

Blessed By This Blog Post

Just encountered this blog post from a link shared on Ann Voskamp's site. I could relate in such a real way. This truly is my life (minus the pregnancy and nursing parts!). I had to share the article here before turning the light out. Utterly profound...

If I had to pick one word to describe motherhood, I think that word would be “transforming.”

The days of a busy mother are made up of millions of transformations. Dirty children become clean, the hungry child fed, the tired child sleeping. Almost every task a mother performs in the course of a normal day could be considered a transformation. Disorder to order, dirty clothes to clean, unhappy children to peaceful, empty fridge to full. Every day we fight against disorder, filth, starvation, and lawlessness, and some days we might almost succeed. And then, while we sleep, everything unravels and we start again in the morning — transforming.

Days of these little cycles add up and suddenly you see a big transformation. A nursing infant has become a boy on a bicycle, a baby bump has grown into a toddler, and children have been changed into brothers and sisters.

Then there is the kind of transformations that we do — not because we work at it, but because we were created to do it. You eat your lunch, and your body transforms it into nourishment for a baby. Taking something too big for an infant, and still finding a way to feed them with it — with the goal of growing them up to do it themselves.

Pregnancy and nursing are only a small part of a child’s life though — and this cycle is clearly not only a physical one. It is the spiritual cycle of food that is so much more important, and so much less talked about. Christian mothering is a constant cycle of nourishment — both physical and spiritual.

We Apply What We Believe

In the same way we take the food we eat and make it into something the baby can eat (and our bodies simply do this without us willing them to), so we take what we believe about God and the gospel and faith and life, and we apply it in the places that seem too little for it.

Imagine yourself in your kitchen trying to make dinner for a group of little kids who are tired and should have eaten a half hour ago. Imagine that things are going wrong beyond that — maybe you are out of something you assumed you had, children are fussing with one another, and maybe your littlest is still at the age where they come stand on your feet and pull on your pant leg. Bonus points if you are wearing maternity pants and this little person is actually capable of pulling your pants down. You are hot, you are tired, and you are sick of it.

This is no time for a gospel presentation. There isn’t time. There isn’t anyone to lead the discussion around the felt board, because you are still scrambling to figure out dinner. This isn’t a time for a gospel presentation because it is a time for gospel application. This is a time to take the grace that God has extended to you, and feed your children with it. Apply what you believe about God’s mercy and kindness and long suffering towards us, and pour it out to them — in a form they can believe in. Unrest like this is just like a baby crying for a bottle — only what they need is spiritual milk. They need you to feed them, not with a lecture, but with application.

You Have Everything You Need

Mothering is a job that is full of difficult moments. Diapers blow out in stores when you have too much in your cart to just walk out. Sudden carsickness can leave you pulled over on the side of the road wondering just how much can be done with half a bag of wet wipes. You need to take what you believe and apply it to these difficult moments. Does the Bible teach us that God is disgusted by our frailty? That he doesn’t want to carry our burdens? That he doesn’t have the energy to deal with us?

The good news is, you don’t need to have been through some elite mother’s training camp to apply the gospel in your life. You need to believe. Trust God, give thanks. Laugh. Believe — and that will feed your children. Rest in God, and your children will learn to. Extend God’s kindness to you, to them. Forgive them the way God forgave you. You have everything you need to spiritually nourish your children, because you have Christ.

The gospel is not just something to talk about Sunday morning while you are in clean clothes and the kids are looking orderly. It is not limited to quiet times and reflective moods. It is something to apply while you are in a difficult position in the back of the car trying to buckle a child up who is playing the kazoo and needs their nose wiped.

God is not above these moments. He is teaching us, and leading us, and refining us, in them. He wants to see our faith in action. He wants to see us feeding our children with the grace that he has given to us.

Mimic the Gospel

Of course, this side of heaven we will not do perfectly. Harsh words will be spoken, patience will wear thin. Frazzled mothers will act frazzled. And when this happens, our own sinfulness does not detract from the power of the gospel, it illustrates why we need it. Do not use your own mistakes as an excuse to wallow about what a bad mother you are. Repent, seek forgiveness, get it right, and move on. Believe. Be forgiven. Extend that forgiveness, that belief, that joy, to your children.

As you go about your daily transformations, set your heart on the truth. Mimic the gospel in what you do. Bring peace, bring order, bring joy, bring laughter. Bring it because it was brought to you. Give, because it was given to you. The gospel is not too big to fit into little situations. It is too big not to.

Rachel Jankovic is a wife, homemaker, and mother. She is the author of "Loving the Little Years" and blogs at Femina. Her husband is Luke, and they have five children: Evangeline (5), Daphne (4), Chloe (2), Titus (2), and Blaire (5 months).

Brown Paper Packages Tied Up with Strings...These Are A Few of My Favorite Things!

We thought perhaps they were lost - but now they're found!

We thought perhaps they were stolen - but now they're here!

We thought maybe they were just delayed in coming - apparently so...two months delayed in one case!

But God is faithful and has answered our prayers. In perfect timing, might I add!

MY PACKAGES HAVE ARRIVED!!!!

Not just one...

Not just two...

but FIVE all in one day!

AND a letter from a sweet younger sister in the Lord!

Three of the packages were from my family (thanks a million Mom and Dad!) containing a re-supply of the vitamins and natural immune-boosting supplements that I am going through pretty fast AND a new batch of ProActiv which I am desperately in need of as the dusty Bolivian air has wrought havoc on my skin.

Two of the packages were from a friend, who, when she saw our handy-dandy toothbrush system in one of the blog posts, wanted to contribute travel sized toothpaste to our cause. It just so happened that, a couple days after she emailed me about this, the ministry she works for (Care Net Pregnancy Center) where I also used to work, received a generous donation of travel sized toothpaste...that they couldn't use. [smile]

Guess who my friend thought of instead?

Thanks, Brittney and Care Net! As you can see, we get pretty excited about toothpaste around here!

The Bible says, "As cold waters to a thirsty soul, so is good news from a far country."

In that case, today, I've been basking in Niagra Falls.

Best Ever Banana Bread

Banana bread is one of my all-time favorite goodies to bake! This recipe, our family standard, has been a hit with tías and niños alike here at Casa de Amor House II. Yesterday, a little buddy and I made a double batch and it was delicious as usual! Just wanted to share the yumminess with you...

2 eggs

1/2 c. oil

1 cup brown sugar or honey

1/2 tsp. vanilla

1 1/2 c. ripe bananas (or regular bananas cooked on the stove top)

2 c. flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350. Mix wet ingredients in a large bowl. Add dry ingredients. Pour into greased muffin tins or bread pan(s). Bake muffins for 20-25 minutes. Bread will take 45 minutes-1 hour usually. A knife inserted in the middle should come out clean when done.

Let cool and devour!

Happy Sunday!

"I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be joyful in my God;

for He hath clothed me with the garments of salvation;

He hath covered me with the robe of righteousness..."

- Isaiah 61:10 -

Passing Along the Inspiration

As I recover from another round of stomach trouble, I took some time during my restful morning today to read Ann Voskamp's blog. Having just finished her book, One Thousand Gifts, and longing for more of the beautiful, poignant, inspirational writing she has shared with the world, I am delighted to find that her blog is like a continuation of the book...so there's really no need to close the cover and stop reading after all! The pages continue at: aholyexperience.com and are even complete with lovely photography and additional, helpful links.

I was especially blessed by this post giving inspiration for a cozy, history-filled, beautified homeschool room and this post about simplified homeschooling. I know I'm not a homeschooling mom yet...but it never hurts to store up thoughts for the future! :)

One more thing.

This video, a feast for the eyes and for the soul, as it describes the whole message of the book, is a must-watch.