happy Easter

wishing a happy Easter and a blessed Resurrection Day to all of you, my friends... 

and if you don't mind, i'm going to 'wax poetic' for a moment 

to share something important with you...

i've realized that one of the reasons i am so drawn to using 

old, scarred, damaged, discarded elements 

to create beautiful decor for my homes and to share with you here on the blog 

is that i myself have felt much the same at times... old, scarred, damaged, discarded. 

i long to not let the experiences and misfortunes that have made me feel 'less than' 

stop me from seeing beauty in life... and beauty and usefulness in the detritus.

when i salvage a bit of wood or an old rusted dented piece of metal, 

or pick up an errant bit of fabric or paper, and turn them into lovely home decor, 

i am finding a way to redeem those forgotten and discarded items. 

it soothes my soul to not let them stay there on the ground in a broken, dirty state, 

but to lift them up and clean them off 

and give them the chance to reveal the beauty that remains - deep within. 

it's not perfection, but it is beauty nonetheless.

do you see where i'm going with this, my friends?

this is what i know that God has done with me, and with many others i know: 

He has not left us to rot away in our broken, damaged state. 

He has not discarded us, but has lifted us up, 

given us the opportunity to be cleaned up and made useful and shiny once again. 

to reveal the beauty that He created within us to be seen once more. 

i have certainly seen that principle at work in my own life... 

that beauty can come from ashes, growth from destruction, and life from death. 

most especially, i see the way that my faith has given me a new start many times over, 

and a glorious hope for the future.

because of that faith in Him and hope for my eternal future, 

this day means a great deal to me. 

and i hope to live every day with the promise of Easter, of resurrection, 

in my heart and on my mind, guiding me through life.

i hope that you, too, will find your hope in Him. 

by the way, there's a really great story behind this wood cross planter that i made into wall art... 

check it out here