Welcome to the new site! Please take a look around or read about the changes here.
let’s fill our minds with beauty & truth
Hi, I’m Emily
My name was supposed to be something very 1978 like Erica or Jessica, but when my theatrical grandmother arrived at the hospital to meet her newest granddaughter, she looked upon me with my single loop of red hair and exclaimed, “How’s my little Emily Anne?!”. And that’s how I got my name.
It’s fitting, really. Emily means ‘diligent worker’ and I like that about me: I am a hard worker.
What’s not so great about being a person who expertly checks things off a list is that I can get tangled up pretty easily in thinking my effort and accomplishments and successes and failures are what define me. So tangled, in fact, that I spent the second half of my 30’s desperately trying to get untangled.
Here’s what I’ve discovered: we don’t have to diligently work to prove our worth. As we move from self-reliant striving to surrendered trust in God, He is gentle and faithful to renew us into who we truly are so we can live from a place of love, identity, belonging and purpose instead of searching for it. This is abundant life and I want it more than anything.
My deepest hope is that whatever I do – whether at home as a mom, laundry-doer and expert chocolate chip cookie maker, or in my work writing, illustrating and putting things on the internet – that I shine a light on the beauty, goodness and truth all around us so that we might see who God is and who we truly are just a little clearer.
WILL YOU BE MY EMAIL FRIEND?
weekly coffee date
Each week I’ll pop into your inbox with a few thoughtful words and quick list of the good, true and beautiful things I’m noticing (books, art, podcasts and more).
Think of it like a standing weekly coffee date with a friend, except over email.
creative classes
Add delight to your day with online classes
the daily sketch
A year of daily art practice using everyday objects as inspiration
Don’t Miss
from the blog
written offerings on life, faith, good things and more
it is finished
These three words have come to mean a lot to me this year. I put them on my letterboard and look at it every day as a reminder because I am so prone to forget. If left to my own devices, I make everything about me. I self-promote and self-protect and hold myself back...
lift your eyes up
I woke and the house was quiet. It wasn't necessarily early; we've grown very accustomed to the irregular weekday schedule that doesn't require an alarm clock or bus routes or school bells and take advantage of the chance to sleep in. Ryan had already gone up to the...
it changed my life
Three things happened back-to-back that changed the trajectory of my bible-reading life (and my whole life, actually). It first started with a post I wrote last year about morning devotional books I liked. I am not a morning person and yet I saw the value in starting...
for the non-fiction types
I listened to a podcast conversation where the host and guest mentioned listening to audio books. One woman said she doesn’t often listen to books because she can’t stay focused. The other suggested listening to novels as they are more entertaining and capture...
he takes great delight in you
Our oldest son is just the nicest kid – he is smart and friendly, witty and creative. He’s responsible and caring (and as sloppy as they come, but I try to overlook that part). He’s a leader in his class and has lots of friends. And he has a bully who’s been bugging...
be kind
The quality I admire most in others, the one character trait I wish for our children and the word I’d love for our family to be defined by is kindness. My friend just told me that in a study of what makes marriages last, the biggest factor was kindness. Honesty,...
I’d love to teach you the art of watercolor. CLICK HERE for more.
let’s chat
Say hello, ask a question, share something you’re learning.
I look forward to hearing from you!
@emily.a.lex
