mmm! cosmic brownie!
who am I to judge? I'm crooked as vegas! use this Gospel for protection, it's a hard road to Heaven. we call on your blessings. in the Father, we put our faith! (use this Gospel - kanye west)
hey there & happy tuesday morning! I hope you had a very happy week full of love & memories. I pray that you had the best Christmas yet, & that your new year is even better! thank you for being here! if you enjoy my content, please make sure that you are subscribed to get weekly updates straight to your inbox:
the week recap! week of: 12/24/24 - 12/30/24
this is our first Christmas + New Year season together! how sweet!
⛅️ something to celebrate: a personal Father + some childlike faith! when I was a little girl, I always considered getting a cosmic brownie in my lunch box as the equivalent of hitting the jackpot. if you’re unfamiliar with what a cosmic brownie is, it’s a rectangular-shaped, Little Debbie brand, chocolate brownie with tiny rainbow colored chocolate chips decorating its surface. seeing as this unique treat is such a staple of my childhood, I may have cried a little when I stumbled upon this adorable drawing on Pinterest of a turtle sitting alone at a lunch table. what’s so special about this drawing is that the turtle may be alone, but he is still enthralled with this little brownie in his lunch box; he seems so content in his circumstance. it just served as a great reminder of how intentional the Lord is with our stories long + short term. He is a profoundly personal Father who is always reminding us of His presence!
this graphic also reminded me of how intimate our personal relationships with God are. He sees you, He is always with you, & He is so proud of you! if God had a fridge, your photo would be hung on it, & if He had a wallet, your picture would be in it too. He sends you flowers every spring, & a beautiful sunrise every morning. He is there for you. I would like to think that Jesus is keeping this sweet turtle company at this table with his cosmic brownie just like how He is with you right now!
just imagine this scene laid out for us in the Psalms: Psalm 19:10-14, the message version, states, “God’s Word is better than a diamond, better than a diamond set between emeralds. you’ll like it better than strawberries in spring, better than red, ripe strawberries. there’s more: God’s Word warns us of danger & directs us to hidden treasure. otherwise how will we find our way? or know when we play the fool? clean the slate, God, so we can start the day fresh! keep me from stupid sins, from thinking that I can take over your work; then I can start this day sun-washed, scrubbed clean of the grime of sin.” these verses speak on the power of the Lord, His Word, & our willingness to bring forth repentance. also, they detail how the Scriptures should be such an authority in our lives, on our hearts/minds/lips. He longs for our complete devotion for Him! &, you know what? He deserves it wholeheartedly too!
God is closer to you than you are to yourself, even if you don’t realize it! even if you’re sitting alone at a lunch table, He is in the seat next to you, & you can chat with Him. there is nothing you can do to be closer to God - you just have to realize that He harbors great love for you! sweet friend, even though He knows every thought you’ve ever had, word you’ve ever said, action you’ve ever performed, He still loves you for exactly who you are. one of the major steps in a faith walk is embracing this truth fully, even though it may sound impossible to you, so that you may go be love for others. always keep in mind that this is how He views us: just like the little turtle who loves his cosmic brownies. we are His beloved little children who He longs to have a relationship with so that He may grant us the desires of our heart in line with His own. mmm! cosmic brownie!
⛅️ something out of my comfort zone: a self-confidence slump! last week on the blog, I talked about those days when you get the mean reds. this week, I’m going to be touching on those days when you get the mean reds on your face.
focusing on insecurities based upon my physical appearance is one key way that the enemy is successfully able to tear my confidence down & take my eyes off of Christ + put them onto my looks. I mean, the mirror was certainly not my best friend this week! as my acne as picked back up on the surface, a storm of racing thoughts/temperament has been brewing under the surface. I’ve really had to give my insecurity to God (over + over +over again). if you’ve ever felt like this before, don’t worry, you’re not alone! I see you!
there are two verses I want to share with you that have helped me get my eyes off of these mean reds & redirect my thoughts to glorify God:
2nd Corinthians 10:5 says, “we destroy arguments & every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, & take every thought captive to obey Christ.”
& 1st Peter 5:7 reads, “cast all your cares upon Him, for He cares for you.”
first of all, there is purpose in your insecurity. God will use it in your story if you let Him! second of all, your worth is not found in your looks at all. what people think of me is not more important than who I am in Christ, & tearing myself down does not glorify God whatsoever! there’s a saying that says that “the area where you become anxious the most, is an area where you are trusting the Lord the least.” for me, that area has turned into my acne/self-image.
the Spirit has helped me come up with an “Ansley Claire is suddenly Ansley Claire’s biggest hater” attack plan: (a) speak life into my heart + take my nasty thoughts captive by reciting these verses, (b) talking to God about my insecurity to cease my mind from racing because He wants me to tell Him these things, (c) reminding myself that there is a purpose for this insecurity + it does not rule my worth, & (d) laying it at His feet. dab on them haters! in this case, dab on them thoughts!
⛅️ something I’ve learned: a screen time trap! a few days ago, I edited my phone’s lock-screen wallpaper so that now it has Romans 12:11-12 showing on it at the bottom of the screen. those verses read: “do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.”
you may be asking me, “Ansley Claire, why did you do this?” well, friend, I finally decided that the older generations are right in saying that the phone is the problem + that it’s making us sick. Romans 12:11-12 is a verse that convicted me of my screen/content-consuming addiction. nine times out of ten, when I’m on my phone, I’m lazy, jealous of someone else, not serving the Lord, not bring joy to myself/others, & not praying (literally all of this goes against this verse’s contents). reducing screen time is one thing that I’ve felt convicted to pursue, but the Lord also called me to be more purposeful when I use my allotted screen time. doomscrolling on Instagram for the entire 30 minute timer I’ve set for myself is still as unproductive as scrolling for hours. the Lord has woken me up this morning, & I really just want to glorify Him with the time He gifted me.
you may also be asking me, “Ansley Claire, how has this worked so far?” this method has really helped me remember what the Scripture says about using my time wisely & how I should be doing so (in prayer, reading the Word, spending time with loved ones, + more). it’s also helping me commit this verse to memory & breathe a little prayer every time I read it. although, sometimes I just ignore it…sorry Lord! if anyone has any more tips on this subject matter (or any other subject for that matter), let’s chat please!
I’ve mentioned this on the blog many times before because it’s so prevalent in our society + in my life. this snippet is from “give thanks with a grateful heart!” (November 26th, 2024) & I still remind myself of this quote from Mrs. Katie often:
one of my mentors, Katie Ginn, said it best in her October Editor’s Letter for MS Christian Living Magazine: “ironically, it’s hard to have a gospel conversation when you’re too busy watching snippets of Christian podcasts on Instagram. my phone is nearly always my biggest distraction from whatever God wants me doing.” her title of this letter is “my struggle to leave the phone alone,” & I happen to agree with every word! my phone is truly my biggest distraction - I really wish it wasn’t.
⛅️ something I’ve read: actually, like I mentioned last week, my page turner edit of all of the fourth quarter reading I did should be posted later this week! so, I’m going to make you read that one to find out what I’ve read recently. stay tuned, & make sure to check out my goodreads (linked on the blog’s homepage)!
who knew that Kanye West would ever right such a Gospel bop?! “Use This Gospel” has become a repeat tune in my car as of late. these bars! it just goes so hard for Jesus! “who am I to judge? I'm crooked as vegas! use this Gospel for protection, it's a hard road to Heaven. we call on your blessings. in the Father, we put our faith!”
I hope each of you has a very happy New Year! love you! praying for you! peace! thank you for being here & I hope to see you again soon! 🕊️
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“therefore, encourage one another & build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.” - 1 Thessalonians 5:11
Ugh! Screen time is definitely a problem for me! Here’s to a new year and less mindless scrolling! I set limits on my social media apps last night!
Love the idea with the cosmic brownie!! The art is so adorable 🥹 Phones are such a trap, and screen time is something I need to continue to work on as well! Happy New Year bff! So thankful for you! 🤗