LeeAnn G Taylor - Embracing the Mosaic Life

Trusting our broken pieces to the Ultimate Artist

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Sunday Scripture: Calm For Your Fears

July 13, 2014 By LeeAnn G. Taylor

Today, may you remember God’s deep abiding love for you.

Remember that He lives among us, showing his power as a mighty savior.

Remember that He delights in you. Delights. Like a father tossing up his child and catching her as she falls gently back into his arms.

You are precious.

And with His love, He will calm all your fears. ALL your fears!

With His love, He will calm all your fears. Zephaniah 3:17

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Rest in His presence, His pleasure, and His peace today.

 

For the Lord your God is living among you.     He is a mighty savior. He will take delight in you with gladness.     With his love, he will calm all your fears.  Zephaniah 3:17

photo credit: Alesa Dam via photopin cc

Linking up today with Scripture and a Snapshot, Sunday Stillness, Beauty Observed, Essential Fridays, and The Weekend Brew.

Where I’ve Been & Trusting God to Provide

June 11, 2014 By LeeAnn G. Taylor

It’s been a quiet few weeks here at The Mosaic Life.

While it’s always good for bloggers to take a blogging break when needed, this wasn’t quite the break I was expecting and for those of you who stuck around anyway, I’m grateful!

It’s been a busy time for our family, with lots of both fun and challenging happenings. Salem, our spunky 5 year old, graduated from preschool and we celebrated with her request – a trip to the ice cream shop in our tiny town. Our 2 year old Sekaiah now says “yes” to everything and is enamored with anything remotely related to cars, trains, or dinosaurs.

My husband Chuck moved his business, Sage Garden Care Center, into a new office space and now has a counselor and two more life coaches working with him. As for me, I’ve been absolutely exhausted and now know why…we’re pregnant with baby #3!

And while I wish I didn’t need to use my cancer patient advocate experience last month in this way, our close friend Tommy was diagnosed with stage IV metastatic colon cancer at age 31. Although he has a difficult road ahead, it’s been a privilege to walk through this alongside his family and witness as God uses their story to shine His glory in the midst of uncertainty.

Here on the blog, I’m back to sharing more about my journey of releasing fear and following God in faith.

I recently read Kristen Welch’s new book Rhinestone Jesus: Saying Yes to God When Sparkly, Safe Faith is Not Enough and was challenged yet again to continue to say “yes” to God and continually seek to live out an authentic life of faith.

Today I’m honored to be guest posting on her blog and sharing our story of saying “yes” to God even when (to the world, our family, and many of our friends) it didn’t make sense.

For more of our story, click here or the graphic below.

Saying Yes and Trusting God to Provide

Blessings,

LeeAnn

From Wallflower to Wildflower

March 14, 2014 By LeeAnn G. Taylor

I stand along the wall of the crowded room. The atmosphere is buzzing with excitement, yet I feel alone.

Yes, I’m an introvert, but this feels different. Surrounded by friends, yet somehow disconnected and distant.

The wall feels safe and comfortable. I sink into it and pretend it keeps me away from the small talk and everything else I’m afraid of but can’t process enough to fully understand yet.

Later I remember that God calls us to be wildflowers, not wallflowers. (Matthew 6:28)

“Do not worry,” he says. Live as a wildflower, beautiful and free of worries.

Oh, to embrace this. It’s a journey really. One of laying down my fears and anxieties and casting them onto him, just as he asks. It’s the daily work of faith, of releasing each thought, each action, each moment into his hands.

wallflower to wildflower

photo credit: amanky via photopin cc

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I am so thankful for the community God has created in this little corner of the online world. You all were faithful to pray for my little guy this week and he sailed through surgery like a champ. We still have a week or so of recovery to be out of the woods for complications, but he seems to have not gotten the memo that he had major surgery and is running around our house like a little wild man! Maybe it was all those steroids they pumped in him, but either way, he’s happy and not in pain thanks to our trusty rotation of Tylenol and Motrin. While I can’t say I didn’t experience any anxiety, I definitely felt your prayers and God’s comforting peace throughout. He even sent a nurse who is married to my dad’s first cousin (family!) to take care of us.

For those of you who identified with today’s post, I’d like to suggest a book that’s been on my “books I want to read” list for awhile now. I’ve heard Angela Thomas speak in person several times at conferences and am quite sure that her words will be a blessing to you.

When Wallflowers Dance by Angela Thomas

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*Each week a beautiful community rises up around a writing prompt over at Lisa-Jo Baker’s Five Minute Friday. We write for 5 minutes, unedited and free, then stop and appreciate the words that came forth. Today’s prompt was “Crowd.” I’m also sharing at Beauty Observed, Essential Fridays, Fellowship Fridays, Fridays Unfolded, Recommendation Saturday, and The Weekend Brew. This post contains affiliate links {full disclosure}. 

There is Power in Remembering

March 11, 2014 By LeeAnn G. Taylor

The fear grips me. You know the kind.

Chest tight, heart beating faster than a train barreling unrestrained down the tracks…and I wonder.

How does this turn out? How can this even be happening? How did we get to this place? Why me?

Sometimes it seems a struggle just to take the next breath, to accomplish the mundane things like brushing my teeth or combing my hair when there is so much pain and struggle in the storm that is now our life.

There was a time when I was in this place. And were you and I to sit together on a faded leather couch tucked in the back of an eclectic coffee shop with piping hot drinks in hand, maybe you’d share your story and it would be surprisingly a lot like mine.

Pain, struggle, heartache, and fear. And yet, God in the midst of it carried you and He carried me.

I’m sharing the rest over at Singing Through the Rain and I’d love for you to join me! I have the honor of sharing these words in Kathryn’s online space as she is walking through her own storm with a three year old and a three month old recently diagnosed with special needs as well as navigating the challenges that come with being a military wife.   

power in the storm

photo credit: Kuzeytac via photopin cc

 

I’m also linking up this week with Wedded Wednesday, Unite, and Sacred Speco.

What I Learned In February

March 4, 2014 By LeeAnn G. Taylor

It was a quarter of the size of my high school. The tiny college in East TN beckoned me with its rolling hills, small class size, and promise of deep relationships and I never looked back. Instead of graduating solely with degrees in sociology, business, and nonprofit management, a handful of passionate professors instilled in me a love of learning.

Maryville College

Maryville College – photo credit

It’s the love of learning that started me on this blogging journey as I devoured hours and hours of podcasts in 2013, soaking in everything I could about the online world and social media. At the time, I had not a clue that I’d have my own little space in the world to write and share and encourage others. Instead, I was supporting my husband’s venture into owning a small business and the relational and spiritual development ministry God has called him to accomplish through pastoral life coaching.

It was at the end of 2013 after reading Emily Freeman’s book Grace for the Good Girl: Letting Go of the Try-Hard Life and attending her At the Barn event that I heard God speaking to my soul. The message was clear – I need to encourage others with my story of moving from crippling fear to embracing true faith and stepping into the freedom God has for us as believers. It’s a path we all need to travel to open the door to the abundant life full of peace that only Christ provides.

Emily Freeman's At the Barn event - November 2013 - We Will Make Art!

Emily Freeman’s At the Barn event – November 2013 – We Will Make Art!

In celebration of my first full month of writing in this world of blogging, I’m linking up with Emily Freeman at Chatting at the Sky for a reflection of the past month. Here’s what I’ve learned in February:

1. Women thrive in community. Especially this woman. But I bet you do too!

I’ve learned this month about the incredible power of relationships and living in community with one another.

As I started blogging this year, I discovered my in-real-life friend Holly also has a blog and writes at Reclaiming a Redeemed Life {and you should totally check it out!}.

Holly introduced me to the community of women writing weekly at Lisa-jo Baker’s Five Minute Friday.

Many of the Five Minute Friday ladies are connected with the community of women at (in)courage.me, a site that provides “a home for the heart of women”. Here you’ll find {you guessed it} encouragement for your Jesus-loving heart!

(in)courage.me - a beautiful community of women

(in)courage.me – a beautiful community of women seeking God’s voice

(In)courage hosts an online conference that also provides an opportunity for women to meet face-to-face in their own hometowns since so many of us are only connected via social media with the barrier of a screen between us.

The conference, called (in)RL {because meeting in-real-life is better than online} is FREE and is April 25 & 26, 2014.

The idea is that you watch a video Friday night on your own in your home {cue PJs, hot cocoa, and your laptop all snuggled in your warm bed}. Then you meet up on Saturday with a local group of women gathering to watch the simulcast, fostering in-real-life relationships.

I am so excited to meet some of my online-only friends in person in just a few weeks!  You can experience this much-needed community too since there are meet-ups all over the country {and the world!}.

2. I’ve decided to be brave and swim.

No, I’m not afraid of the water but I sure have struggled with fear for as long as I can remember. Fear of failure. Fear of not measuring up {to others’ and my own expectations}. Fear of what other people will think.

But instead of succumbing to the breath-taking waves of fear and doubt, I’ve decided to be brave and SWIM. No more sinking under the weight of “what if”. It’s time to move forward and go somewhere!

Be Brave

I learned that I’m not the only one in this boat {hmm…or in the water!} and that you also are working through what being brave and stepping out into the unknown looks like in your life.

I love that we’re doing this together!

3. People look at you funny when you say you’re going to host a webinar about sex.

Apparently sex in the Christian marriage is not talked about enough because when my husband and I decided that we wanted to share some things we’ve learned the last 10 years about the sexual side of marriage and started mentioning it to others, we got some seriously weird looks!

Let’s be real. It was the women who were looking at us funny. The men got giddy looks on their faces and said “where do we sign up?!”

{Soapbox warning} Ladies, we need to start taking this area of our lives more seriously than we may have in the past. Healthy physical intimacy is one key to a rock-solid marriage…a key that can’t be left out, neglected, or forgotten!

The webinar was held right around Valentine’s Day and provided Christian couples a way to start the conversation about improving this one area of marriage that is so hush-hush in some Christian environments.

essentials to re-igniting the sexual spark in your marriage

To find out more, we’ve provided the resource guide we developed as part of the webinar to give you a place to start.

FREE Resource Guide: Essentials to Re-Igniting the Sexual Spark in your Marriage: A Guide for Christian Couples

4. There are few things more silly than a frog in a snowstorm. 

It snowed last month. You know, like it’s been doing all winter all over the country. But for us in North Carolina, snow is a BIG hairy deal. Bread, milk, and eggs all but walk out of grocery stores and we hunker down in our homes like we’ll be stuck here for eternity. In reality, we were only stuck one day and that gave my thrill-seeking husband long enough to realize that even his 4WD wasn’t going to get us anywhere past our tiny {no stoplights} town.

When we did make it out, we ventured over to my parents’ house for snowcream and sledding. Out came my dad’s digital SLR camera and I began shooting away {warning: a barrage of snow pictures is about to begin}.

The silliest one? The frog in the snowstorm. If you can look at this picture without giggling a little bit…well you could use a better sense of humor!

frog in a snowstorm LeeAnn G Taylor

kiddoinsnowstorm

backyardsledding

littlemansnow

handsomehusbandinsnow

redbirdsnow

5. You are amazing!

Yes, I mean you!

The comments on the blog and in-person conversations I’ve had with you all {my blog readers} these last two months have been so encouraging and inspiring.  You all are brave souls striving to live this life as authentic Christians, intentionally choosing to release fear, embrace faith and move forward into freedom.

Each of our stories and paths are different, but we all are making a difference in the choices we make in the tiny moments of our lives. And it’s the tiny moments that add up to make a life!

Will you do me a favor?

If you’ve been reading the blog and haven’t let me know yet, will you somehow let me know you’re reading? It’s an honor to share with you my journey and I’d love to know who you are and how I can pray for you. You can also share topics you’d like me to address or questions you have.

You can:

  • Leave a comment on this post.
  • Connect with me on Twitter, Facebook, or Google+.
  • Send me an email.
  • Tell me in person.

I promise to pray for each prayer request individually. God is growing me in the area of prayer and this is one way I can serve you and we can grow together!

If you know of someone who would enjoy these posts, you can share the photo below on your favorite social media site.

What I Learned in February - a post from leeanngtaylor.com

 

Today I’m linking up with Emily Freeman’s What I Learned community and the Unite, Inspire Me Monday, Mommy Monday, Titus 2sday, Titus 2 Tuesday, Life Through the Lens, and Wedded Wednesday linkups. This post contains affiliate links {full disclosure}.

Overcoming the Waves of Fear

February 7, 2014 By LeeAnn G. Taylor

Be Courageous and Write

I’ve lived in fear as long as I can remember.
Somehow, it seemed easier to live in that place.

Sure, it was overwhelming and even soul crushing at times, but it felt safe.

It’s odd, really, now that I think about it.

To stay in the very place where you’re actively drowning, not even trying to come up for air. Not even wondering what it would be like to take a breath, swim to shore, stand up, and walk confidently on solid ground.

For many years, it was easier to swirl around in uncertain waters, occasionally treading water and looking around to see if anyone else might be considering swimming to shore.

Fear kept me locked into the lie that I didn’t have anything special to share like the others who had decided to be brave and swim.

I feared failure and instead of embracing my weaknesses and allowing God to work through me, I held onto the notion that I could control my life, leading to years of perfectionism and shaming myself when I didn’t measure up to my own standards.

I’m in a different place now. One where I can come up for air, swim for shore, and walk confidently on the path God is preparing for me, one step at a time.

It took years of inner turmoil and more uncertainty than I ever could have imagined, but I’m learning to be brave.  Instead of walking in fear, I’m trusting each day that God’s promises are true and his plans and purposes for my life are more grand than anything I could construct on my own.

Be Brave

photo credit

The new year has welcomed in a refreshing confidence that part of my journey of releasing fear and walking in Christ’s freedom is to write and encourage others. To be brave despite the potential for rejection, criticism, or doubt.

And so, I write.

And I share this story within me because it is spilling out in waves. The same waves that once were crashing around me as I sank deeper in fear are now gently washing me to the shore with the promise of hope and renewal.

*This post is part of Lisa-Jo Baker’s 5 Minute Friday series, where she empowers bloggers to write for 5 minutes each Friday on a specific topic. Free writing. Writing just for the sheer joy of it. Today’s topic was “Write“. Also sharing with Essential Fridays, First Friday Finds, Fridays Unfolded, The Weekend Brew and Faith-Filled Friday.

What fears are you overcoming? What is one way you can be brave and walk on solid ground in God’s grace this week? Share in the comments & let’s encourage one another!

 

 

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