Shine Bright Book Release!

The Girl Defined devotional releases today!

Things are crazy busy over here, but I want to share this new book with you! I love the books and articles that Kristen Clark and Bethany Beal have put out in the past (I did a review of Girl Defined here in 2018), and I am so excited for this devotional. You can get it at www.girldefined.com/shine, and there is going to be an online study group going through it together starting June 1st, if you want to join!

Isn't it pretty?! And my launch party copy arrived like a present this afternoon. I haven't had a chance to sit down with it yet, but I will be getting to it this evening, and I will be giving a full review on it soon! (I plan on reading through the devotions during the launch, and then going back through it at a slower pace to do the "study deeper" with some friends :).) I'd love if you joined!

I have several posts coming up... I just need to edit them (and add pictures!). A lot has happened the past few months. And then next month has a full plate, too. But until then, have you heard of Girl Defined ministries before? Have you done a devotional you would recommend lately? Let me know if you get this one!

Rejoicing in Hope,

Ambrielle

Miracle of Adoption Christmas Campaign ✽ Meet Scott

Lookie who's back already ;). You knew you couldn't get rid of me, didn't you?! Haha :). I wanted to share some news with you today, so I hope you don't mind very much ;).

Welcome to November! I always love the start of a new month, but today is extra special, because the Miracle of Adoption Christmas Campaign is open as of today!!! This means that from now to the 31st of December, Reece's Rainbow Adoption Agency is trying to raise 1,000 dollars for each of the sweet babies on the "Angel Tree"! This is something I look forward to each year, seeing all the awareness raised for each of the children and watching their accounts move up the tree, from 0 to 100 to 500 to 1,000... and knowing that it's helping each of those children have a better chance at being placed in a forever family to love them and protect them <3. In the past, I have donated to an account or two (usually the one furthest down on the tree, because it makes my choice easiest, because, in the words of Abbi, how do you choose how to help?!). But this year, I really wanted to do something a little more involved, and so, I am little Scott's advocate this year! You've already seen Scott on my blog last week, but please be introduced to him a little more formally...

You can visit Scott's page for more information HERE.

How do you choose who to help? It's so hard, truly, and I would love to see all of these children climb the 1,000 dollar wall this year, so please, help wherever you want! But, I chose to sponsor Scott specifically for a couple of different reasons. I started out looking through the files of 0-5 year old boys with "other" special needs on purpose because I knew that 1. Reece's Rainbow is known for their down syndrome focus, so many people would be choosing from the down syndrome pages, and 2. it's a known fact in adoption that boys are harder to place than girls, and so I wanted to up one of these little guys accounts, so that when a family came along for him, they had as much help as possible :). Then I combed through the pages, opened several accounts, narrowed down to the three who touched my heart with the least amount in their grants, and asked to be assigned one of the three, haha :). Scott's story definitely touched me - he's a little fighter, that's for sure! He'll be about 4 years old now, and I would love to hear that this little one who has been through so much was placed in a home!

I would be thrilled if any of you would like to donate to Scott's account - or to pray that he would find a loving, godly family to call his own! When you donate to a child's account, 10% of the money is dispersed in other children's accounts, as well, so you will really be helping multiple children :)! The goal is for Scott's MACC account to be at $1,000 by December 31st, and I can't wait to see what God will do with this year's campaign, not just for Scott, but for all of these little ones on the tree this year! And I want to thank each of you right now for every bit of help that you give <3!

Rejoicing in Christ,
Bri <3

"Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world." James 1:27

Grateful Hearts ✽ Joyful Laughter

Issac Charles Lee

August 10th, 2018

9 lbs. 6 oz.

22.75 inches long

Precious gift from God <3

Our little Issac arrived mid-morning last Friday <3. Mama and Baby are doing well, and we are all so thrilled for this new little brother! He is such a content little guy... and he snuggles so well! Mama says he has a very definite pattern; over the past couple months, she has noticed that he is always most active in the morning and in the first little bit after we children go to bed; and that hasn't changed a bit since he's been born!

 He is such an alert little guy. Look at those eyes <3. I love him so much. He just looks all around with those big eyes whenever he is awake - he is sleeping or observing, there seems to be no in between. If ever a baby were intentionally taking the world in, it's this little (big) guy!

And yes, Baby Bear stuck <3. Noah was so confused the first time Baby was called Issac... then he must have just assumed that Issac was a totally different baby, because then the next time we called him Baby Bear, THAT confused Noah... oops, haha. Noah has been so gentle and protective and accepting of him, it has been adorable!

We think Issac looks the most like Josiah, but he has such dark, dark blue eyes that look like Peter's when he was a baby, that we won't be surprised if his eyes end up brown. Mama also says she's seen Andrew in him at times, but for the most part, he looks like Siah... in fact, Mama called Josiah Winnie-the-Pooh SO often when he was a baby, because she felt like he looked like him... she had forgotten about this when I heard her tell Issac last night, "You look like Winnie-the-Pooh right now." Too funny.

We are so grateful for the Lord's protection over Mama and Issac, for the prayers of all our dear friends, and for the joy little Issac has given us. Issac has already met most of our extended family, and had two photo shoots, so lots more pictures will be shared in the future ;). But for now, I just wanted to share our little gift with all of you, and our family rejoices in the kindness of the Lord <3.

Rejoicing in Hope,
Bri

P.S.... go check out this post :D!

Hair Pin Winner ✽ A Special Surprise for YOU!

Rafflecopter and Maddy from "Little Bit of Sunshine" (littlebitofsunshineweb.wordpress.com) have let us know that the winner of some beaded hair pins of their choice from my shop, Under the Tapestry, is...

Emerald!!!

Congratulations, Emerald, and thank you ALL sooooo much for joining in my giveaway :)!!! It has been fun and encouraging to see so many entries on *my* handmade product!!!

As I watched the entries mounting and read all of your sweet, kind, and enthusiastic comments, I couldn't help but want to send a set of pins to each and every one of you! Unfortunately, that isn't possible... but I did decide that I *could* do the next best thing, and I want to offer each of you girls the chance to get these hair pins for *50 percent off* for the next week; you can use the code "SUNSHINE50PERCENT" until next Friday, the 18th :)!!!

I want to publicly tell Maddy thank you... I had so much fun with this giveaway, and it was only possible through her! She was pleasant and thorough, and was eager to do everything needed to make the giveaway happen, and it was such a great experience!

Emerald, your hair pins will be on the way soon. And to my new followers- welcome to my little corner of the web world! I look forward to getting to know you :)!

Blessings in the Lord,

Bri

Under The Tapestry ✽ Two Years on Etsy

It was just over two years ago that Daddy and I were on the way home from church and we got to talking about how I wanted to open an Etsy shop.

From the time I learned to knit, I would pretend to run "dress" shop for my sister's dolls; hats and burp rags, diaper bags and baby booties, and paper patterns were in "full demand". I was 14 when I got my tatting shuttle, and as I quickly taught myself how to tat and even started creating my own simple designs, Mama started talking about this site where I could sell things I made. I was very intrigued and started thinking of one day doing that; at that point I thought of this future shop as "Bri's Beautiful Bits"... haha!

I really wanted to open one, but had held back because I was afraid that maybe I'd be too busy and would have to close it because I couldn't keep up, or maybe I wouldn't sell anything and I'd be wasting my time. On our way home from church that day when everybody was at home sick (poor peeps) and there was nothing to interrupt us, Daddy made sure it was something I wanted and not something I just talked about because Mama mentioned it, and then within a few weeks he sat down with me and helped me set up my shop with my first listing; my Tatted Flower Bookmarks. And Under The Tapestry was a reality!

The name for my shop was inspired by the poem "The Master Weaver's Hand". I loved Corrie ten Boom's illustration/recitation of the poem, and how the Lord plans everything to His own glory; how even when we may only see the mess of "the under side" of the cloth (our sinful hearts and nature), He is using even this to create a beautiful picture of His Righteous knowledge and nature. And since the word "tapestry" can also signify many diverse "threads", or things, coming together to make a whole, I thought this was fitting for my shop, since I offer a little of everything ;).

 

The learning curve has been bigger than expected, if I'm honest. I took a course on Etsy selling last month and learned that I knew nothing about keywords, haha :). I've already seen a tremendous difference in getting seen since I fixed it, but some things you'll always be able to improve! My next step is to improve my photography. Selling on Etsy certainly isn't just crafting all day long, as nice as that would be; I think the technological side has taken about as much work (and certainly more learning)! But I love making things up for other people to give as gifts to give to those they love, and it's so special to make up a custom order so someone gets the exact thing they wanted!

I'm excited to continue this venture, though, and I want to thank each of you for your support! To celebrate this special day, any orders of $20.00 or more will be 25% off, from now until Monday, August 14th. And each purchase will come with a little gift and a code to get a discount on your next order :)!

And don't forget- today is the last day to enter the giveaway for beaded hair pins on
littlebitofsunshineweb.wordpress.com!

Under the Tapestry

I mentioned a couple weeks ago that I had something to share that I was excited about, annnnnnd, here it is :)!!!!

I've started up my own Etsy shop :D!!!! You can view that shop, Under the Tapestry, here: https://www.etsy.com/shop/UnderTheTapestry

My shop name is inspired by the poem "The Master Weaver's Plan", which I first heard quoted by Corrie ten Boom in a documentary;

"My life is but a weaving
Between the Lord and me;
I may not choose the colors–
He knows what they should be.

For He can view the pattern
Upon the upper side
While I can see it only
On this, the under side.

Sometimes He weaves in sorrow,
Which seems so strange to me;
But I will trust His judgment
And work on faithfully.

‘Tis He who fills the shuttle,
And He knows what is best;
So I shall weave in earnest,
And leave to Him the rest.

Not ’til the loom is silent
And the shuttles cease to fly
Shall God unroll the canvas
And explain the reason why.

The dark threads are as needed
In the Weaver’s skillful hand
As the threads of gold and silver
In the pattern He has planned."
~Author Unknown

How beautiful it is to know that whatever our life looks like to us, as we stare at the underside of the cloth, that God sees the whole picture, and is doing all for His glory!

Blessings in our Lord and Savior,

Bri :)

The Fruit of the Spirit is... SELF-CONTROL (and my 100th post on "Forget not his Benefits :)!)

                                             

Love

Joy

Peace

Patience 

Kindness

Goodness

Faithfulness 

Gentleness

Self Control

                
I moved my blog here just under sixteen months ago, and this post will put me at the 100th post threshold. Such a fun milestone :)! Today is also the last day of our Fruits of the Spirit study... how did that happen we just started! This was so much fun, and I am thrilled to have gotten to share some of the fun with those who read my blog, even if it wasn't always on time ;).
 

Now, on to the topic of self control! Romans 8:13-14 tells us that "if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God." And Proverbs 25:28 points out that "A man without self-control is like a city broken into and left without walls." Self-control is so important! A lack of control over the desires of the flesh in which we once walked (Ephesians 2), can damage so much... not the least of which is the hearts and relationships of those you love. So many words or actions, said or done without controlling your emotions, go much father than we ever meant, but it hurts the other person just as much as if we had- sometimes more.

"Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified," Paul says in 1 Corinthians 9:25-27. People will go to great lengths to make sure that they win what they want to win in earthly riches, but so often we all, (myself definitely included!) forget what riches we gain when we use the self-control that comes with faith in our Lord. Hugh Black says "True self control means willingness to resign the small for the sake of the great, the present for the sake of the future, the material for the sake of the spiritual, and that is what faith makes possible".

 

I love how  C.H. Spurgeon says that self control "is the best medicine -for it is a preventative and a preservative as well as a cure." Not only will those who practice self control in their walk with the Lord be cured of past sins, but it will also help them as they run the race of faith to also keep them from sins that they have not been acquainted with before!

"Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil", Ephesians 5:15-16 reminds us. There is so much that seems like it is good- and might be in moderation. But there comes a point where we have to evaluate our priorities and decide if what we are doing is really the best use of our time. We are given such a short time on this earth when you think of the thousands of years that it has been in place. What can we do to make the biggest impact for our Lord through our Lord?

 

Blessings in the Lord King,

 

Bri :)

 

A Praise and a Pic :)

Miriam Ibrahim and her family have made it to the United States! Praise the Lord for his grace and mercy :)!!!

And my sweet breakfast prep helper :). 

She was so excited that the jelly she was spreading on her piece of bread was shaped like a crab, heehee :).

And the Baby is...

...here!

Josiah David Lee was born yesterday at 10:33 pm, weighing 8 lbs. 2 oz., and was 21 3/4 inches long :). He is such a precious *tiny* little man, and he looks just like Andrew (and, consequently, Tori, Emmi, and Mommy :) ) :). We are so thankful for the blessing of this little miracle! Aren't his cheeks just the sweetest thing :)?...