When Less is More

Several years ago before toddlers and princesses ran circles through our lives, Josh and I visited the lovely city of Paris.  Some Americans give Paris a negative recommendation, but I must tell you that I absolutely LOVED our 4 days in that glorious city.  The food, the majestic buildings, the quaint cafes, the beautiful art…it was all food for my soul and I still remember it with stars in my eyes.

One afternoon we sat at an outdoor café to catch our breath after a morning of sightseeing and museum visiting.  We sat down and promptly gobbled up half of our crepes without taking even  the slightest breath to take in the moment.  We were on a mission to EAT…because we live our lives ALWAYS ON A MISSION! 

And then the unexpected occurred.  It was as if we both stopped at the same time, took a deep breath and realized where we were.  I looked at Josh and said…”Do you realize we are in Paris!  And we don’t have to eat like Americans…WHAT IF, we actually slow down and enjoy this moment outdoors in a Parisian Cafe?!”

Josh looked up and agreed that we should stop to savor the moment, and after slowly eating not just our lunch crepe but a couple of dessert crepes and cup after cup of coffee, we started to talk about what life might be like back home if we lived a bit slower.  It felt like we were merely fantasizing.  After all, life is BUSY.  Life is fast-paced.  What if we slowed down and missed out on something?  

And yet at the same time…look at all we would have missed out on had we not slowed down to enjoy that meal…to enjoy the next couple of days in Paris?!

We returned home with a passion to slow down and savor this gift (life) that has been handed to us by God.  And slowing down is a STRUGGLE.  It is hard to balance because we both believe in working hard.  We believe that we are to be good stewards with our lives and to make the most of every day.  But those beliefs don't actually conflict at the core with a more intentional life that savors moments.  You can work hard and still look up to see beauty in the ordinary.  And the best way to make the most of today is to actually SEE today... to live it as fully as possible with focus and trust in the One who granted you today.  

The actual struggle is that the desire to slow down does not line up with lies fed to us by culture.  You know the ones that say worth is equivalent to how busy you are...the lies about needing more...more stuff, more time, more meaning.

Faster is not always better.

More is not always more.

And so, I have asked the Lord to help me to slow down, to love more deeply and to live more intentionally.  Moments like tree swings and bowls of glorious cherries are shining reminders in the midst of the day that He has heard my prayers.

Today, I pray that you live well but that you also have a Parisian moment to savor your gift of life today!  Because so often less really is more.

6 Myths You May Believe About Prayer

Earlier this week I wrote about Selah’s audacious prayer to become a flower girl & God’s answer literally 2 days later (she is going to be the cutest flower girl this coming June)!  You can read her story here.

This story has propelled me to think about prayer quite a bit this week and I realized that there are a lot of myths surrounding prayer.  Somewhere along the line we buy into a lie that prayer is found in a formula or has to look a certain way…so I wanted to share with you 6 myths that I’ve believed at one time or another.

The 6 Myths of a Good Prayer Life


1.  You have to pray at 5am.

Now granted, Mark 1:35 says, “Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.”  And I WANT to be like Jesus, but everytime I have attempted to pray super early I usually end up drifting to sleep.

My husband gets up early to pray and when we first got married I thought I must not have a real prayer life because I preferred to pray when I was actually alert…and so I tried to mimic him and it was a colossal failure!  I now thing that ANYTIME is a good time to pray.  Paul says that we should pray without ceasing…and that includes 9am or 2pm (thank the Lord!)


2.  You have to pray for at least 1 hour
There was a movement in the church world a couple of decades ago that encouraged people to pray for an hour, and the motivation was good.  We need discipline in our prayer life, but for many people an hour is a daunting task so we don’t try at all.

And have you ever really prayed your heart out only to look at the clock & realize it has only been 5 minutes?  If you really pray for 5 minutes – awesome!  Maybe tomorrow you could try praying for 10 minutes…I think that the key is that you pray long enough that you get through your lists and begin slow down so that you actually connect to the heart of God.  Sometimes that connection happens quickly and sometimes my mind is in such a place that I need to pray for a long time before I get my agendas out of the way.  Just pray…forget about the clock.


3.  You have to speak eloquently in the type of language suitable for God
Have you ever prayed with a group of people and marveled at those who’s prayers sound so eloquent?  There was a season in my life where I could make my prayers sound really good…but they were empty.

There is no right or wrong way to pray to God – just talk to Him…and then listen to what He says in return.


4.  You have to be in the perfect environment (prayer closet)
I have a friend who has the ULTIMATE prayer closet.  It has a chair, mood lighting, music…I mean it sounds awesome!  And for a while I would think to myself – well, I’ll really pray when I have an environment like that.  I’ve come to realize I won’t likely have that perfect place for many years.

I’ve discovered that I can make a lot of environments perfect for prayer.  I love to pray on my back porch while my girls run around and play.  I have a chair in my living room that is by a big window and I also love to sit there and read my Bible in the early morning.  I usually get interrupted in both locations (I have a pre-schoolers)…but I realized that if I wait until I have the perfect place I’m never going to pray.

5.  Your prayers don’t count when you lose your train of thought or fall asleep

Let’s be honest - how many times do you pray and all of a sudden find yourself thinking about fantasy football or what you are going to cook for dinner that night?  I know I do that ALL of the time & I used to berate myself when that happened thinking it invalidated all of my previous prayers.  That’s not true!  It happens to us all!

And have you ever been meaning to pray and wind up falling asleep?  Me too!  Oh well – I think God’s cool with it, but we need to stop feeling guilty for all the ways we fail when it comes to prayer.

6.  Your prayers aren’t important when compared to the needs of the world

Yes, there are very real needs in this world – poverty, sex trafficking, and war are all happening at this moment.  And we need to pray for the nations!  At the same time, God cares about what is important to your heart.  He is big enough to see it all and care about it all.  It’s easy to feel like our prayers are unimportant when a friend is battling cancer or has a tragedy in their life, and probably those things are on your mind because you can pray for that friend – you can lift them up…but know too that you don’t have to ignore your own obstacles and needs. 

This is why I shared Selah’s story.  Prayer at it’s essence is relationship!  God wants to connect with you.

I like the way Martha Kilpatrick says it, “Prayer is not an occasion, Prayer is not a set activity, Prayer is a joyful gaze at the Father from a state of utter, childlike need.”

So let’s set aside these myths and come to God as His children – He is waiting and ready to hear what you have to say.

The Faith of a Child

A couple of nights ago, Selah and I were in the midst of her nightly bedtime routine.  After Josh tells her a story, she and I always have “talk time” which has included discussions ranging from why she is EXACTLY like Elsa from Frozen to deeper questions about death and how babies come into the world (help me Jesus!).  I never know what to expect during talk time – the mind of a 4-year old is a wonderous thing, but I have come to cherish this bedtime ritual, and even though I’m often exhausted by the time “talk time” arrives, I get energized by her enthusiasm and sometimes deep questions.

Earlier this week was no different as I sat down next to her and she started off a discussion on weddings.  I have no idea how weddings came to her mind, but mostly she was lamenting the fact that she has NEVER been a flower girl, and ALL of her cousins have!  

“Mom!  Peyton has been a flower girl…and Molly was one too…and Maci!  Mom, Maci is EVERYONE’s flower girl!”   

I was about to refute this claim, when I thought through her cousins and realized that she was in fact correct with her findings.  Each of her cousins have been in a wedding in the role of flower girl, and we have listened to their delightful stories of pretty dresses, flower petals, and the fun of weddings! 

I tried to explain that Maci was a flower girl because she had several single aunts and uncles while all of Selah’s were married when she came into this world.  My reasoning didn’t seem to make much of an impact, and Selah asked if I had been a flower girl when I was younger.  Although I wanted to stand with her in solidarity I had to tell her that yes, in fact I was a flower girl for my aunt Lisa…and so she was faced with the sad fact that EVERYONE she knew had been a flower girl except her!  This is very real heartbreak for a 4-year old!

So she began asking me about single friends in our lives.  What about…Annie?  What about…Jay?  What were their plans for future flower girls?  She was on a mission that night to find a solution to her dilemma!   

After much talking, I said maybe it was something she should pray about, and as soon as that statement left my mouth I immediately regretted it.  What had I just done?  I felt certain that I had just set my child up for disappointment, because in all reality she wasn’t going to be a flower girl anytime soon.  Why would I have thrown the prayer solution out there?  Ugh!  Parent fail.

She immediately liked my idea and so we began praying, and I listened as she beautifully pleaded with the Lord to  make her a flower girl.  She would do a very good job, Lord…and all of her cousins had been a flower girl – wasn’t it her turn? 

It was such a sweet moment that I wrote a quick status update about it on facebook (because that’s what one does now when their kid is adorable), and I may have prayed my own prayer that God protect her little heart from the inevitable disappointment that I knew would ensue.

Oh Paige, of little faith!

Two days passed and I all but forgot about this prayer when I had a friend come by my office.  Jessica and I have known each other for a few years as she was in our college group when Josh and I led Zoe.  She and I met periodically over the years to talk about faith and her walk with the Lord, and a few months ago she asked Josh and I to officiate her upcoming wedding to Sam.

When she stopped by the office I assumed we would talk about scheduling their pre-marital counseling as I told them that we should start in April, but she had other plans.

Jessica sat down and said that she had been thinking for sometime about asking Selah to be her flower girl.  Cue my astonishment & joy!  She doesn’t know Selah that well – she is closer to Josh and I, but said that Selah had come to mind a few times and had wondered if it would be strange to ask this little girl who she didn’t know well. 

But then, she had a dream 3 nights before in which she had 2 flower girls – Selah & Layla (a beautiful girl from Uganda that my cousin is in the process of adopting).  She told her fiancee Sam about the dream and they decided to ask the girls to be their flower girls.

Jessica talked to my cousin first about Layla, and as she retold the dream my cousin asked her if she had seen my facebook post!  Jessica had not seen it as she hasn’t been on facebook for a couple of weeks…and so that sealed it!

As Jessica told me how this unfolded I almost burst into tears!  How good is God?  How much does He love us and care about us?  Even those small desires in our hearts – He cares!  I’m not saying that everything you ever pray for will get the answer you hope for…but I AM saying we serve a God who loves His kids and I believe He really delights in blessing us.

Selah was downstairs at Kids Day Out, so I took Jessica to talk to her, and you should have seen her face.  She didn’t know what to think about this offer – it was like she wanted to jump up and down and be surprised all at the same time…so she just giggled and said yes.  Later on she did jump and dance & she immediately called her daddy to let him know her exciting news.

As she told her BIG news to everyone she saw, I noticed that two different things came out of her mouth:

“Jesus answered my prayer!”

and

“My dream came true!”

Thank you Lord for making her dream come true.  Thank you for being a God who hears our cries and pleas.  Thank you for loving us and loving even the small things that feel big to our hearts.  And help us…help people like me who are small in our faith…who forget how to pray courageously and with abandon.  Help us to trust that you are a good God who loves and lavishes His kids with good.

Why I'll be Observing Lent this Year

Growing up as a Charismatic, evangelical preacher's kid, I always associated Lent with legalism and eating fish.  But a few years ago I was feeling like I didn't really grasp the joy of my salvation - you know...just coasting through life...taking most things for granted.  Most Sundays felt the same, and Easter was basically just a super-fun Sunday when I got to wear a new dress.  I didn't like my relationship with Easter and I was aware that I needed a wake-up call to remind myself of the magnitude of Christ's sacrifice.

So, I started researching Lent - the 40 days leading up to Easter - and decided I would try observing it.  I did my best to really observe it that year.  I went to an Ash Wednesday service (I stood out like a sore thumb unsure of when to stand and when to get my ashes); I learned about days like Maundy Thursday, Good Friday; and I fasted as best I could.  That year, Easter was markedly different in my life.  I wept in our services and my heart was full of such love, joy, and gratitude for what Christ had done for me.

I discovered that I need structure and discipline in my walk with the Lord, and that it is good to set aside times to fast and focus.  I've continued to observe Lent ever-since even though several in my community of faith seem to think it a bit odd.  For me, it connects me to the reality of the cross...to the truth that I NEED Him daily and to the joy of what He has done for me.  It has looked different every year, but I try to set aside 40 days to fast and focus on Him.

Lent begins tomorrow with Ash Wednesday, and this year I've decided to join Margaret Feinberg's 40 Day #LentChallenge of reading through the New Testament.  It's basically reading 7 chapters a day, and Josh and I are going to do it together.  Maybe you should join us!

If you'd like more information about this challenge, you can read all about it at Margaret's blog here.

5 Things Catching My Eyes & Heart Lately

Confession: I love Pinterest & Instagram...like a lot.  I'm tolerant of facebook as I see it's usefulness, but I really love Pinterest and Instagram because...I like pictures.  I like seeing what's capturing the eyes and hearts of my friends and family.

Life around here has been normal but also kind of fabulous!  Some moments of joy I know are meant to be tucked away into my heart to savor alone, but there have been a few moments and pictures and items that I've come to love lately that I thought I'd share with you!

So here are the 5 Things Catching My Eyes and Heart Lately

1.  Selah's 4th Birthday
If you've hung around my family either in person or via social media you likely know that Selah LOVES a good party.  In fact, she has informed me that she may just one day become a party planner.  (Firefighter, doctor, and mommy are also on her list).

For her first two birthdays I did my best to make Pinterest proud.  You can read about my dismal failure for her first birthday here & you can see a few pictures from her Yo Gabba party when she turned two here.  Last year, however we deviated from Pinterest worthy parties by going to the one and only Chuck E. Cheese.  And although this pizza joint usually makes me break into hives and want to hide under a table, I discovered that having a party at a location that entertains kids AND cleans up after them is actually quite brilliant!

So, we decided to carry on in that tradition with birthday number FOUR and we assembled quite a large party to play at a local gymnastics place.  Here are my favorite pictures.  I think the kids had fun.

On a side note, Selah chose Princess hats, Barbie plates, Yo Gabba napkins, and a Frozen themed cake.  I LOVE MY CHILD.  She utterly destroys all of my perfectionistic tendencies!

2.  Book LOVE!
I've read several books over the last couple of months, but I must mention a couple that I devoured while we took a short vacation to Mexico:

Jesus Feminist by Sarah Bessey was challenging, encouraging, and empowering.  Don't let this title keep you away - it's not what you think.  I actually went to college with Sarah, and as I read her words with sand under my feet I kept thinking about how much I wish we would have had deeper conversations when we lived down the hall from each other.  Sarah is wise, warm, and open with her life in this book.  What I loved the most is that it wasn't a rant or a how-to book...but it was a story.  Her story, the story of women who have gone before us, and the story that might be - if women - like she and I and you...will accept who we were created to be and live out the gospel.  The last chapter of the book is a commissioning...and I'm not sure what happened in my heart, but as I read these words - meant for me but also meant for women in India and Uganda...I found myself crying and praying for the women on the other side of the ocean.

Attachments by Rainbow Rowell was a great little beach read!  If you are looking for something fun - good chic lit - this is one you might consider.

Cold Tangerines by Shauna Niequist - I'm a major Shauna Niequist fan and although this was her first book, it is the last one of hers that I've read.  It is a book about celebration...and when I read her books I feel like I know her.  I want to go to one of her dinner parties or have her over to teach me to cook.  I feel like we are soul sisters...but I suspect that everyone who reads her books might feel like that!

What I'm reading right now:
To Live is Christ by Matt Chandler
wild by Cheryl Strayed


3.  Sales at Anthropologie have also caught my eye this past month.  Does anyone else love Anthropologie?  I walk in and the Volcano candles tell me that it's going to be a good day...and somehow I've walked in the last couple of months and found a few great deals!

                                                          Hello pretty shoes! ------------------------>





4.  My favorite pins from Pinterest lately

I love this little kitchen nook!

I want to LIVE this!

My Favorite Instagram this week:

5.  Road Signs Love
So I've taught the first two live teaching sessions for my Bible study - Road Signs, and I was beyond blessed when one of the ladies in the class this past Tuesday night emailed me this poem that she wrote as she was doing the daily Bible study.  Her words are rich and beautiful and I just love how God spoke to her through my words & then He spoke to me through her words!  Isn't that just like God to use us all to minister back and forth to one another?

So I'll leave you today with her poem.  Thank you Terese.

Rolling Away The Stone Lord, what are the walls
That I've built against You;

That keep me secluded

And far from Your TRUTH?


Deep in the shadows

Where light cannot shine;

Safe at a distance

And hidden by time.

For the walls that I'VE built

Are MY stone at the tomb;

Keeping death locked away

Protecting every deep wound!

But what IF ~ MY faith,

Could reach PAST the walls;

Building a bridge

From MY heart to YOURS, God?

What IF I trusted;

YOU, Lord, By FAITH;

To breathe LIFE into death

And OPEN the grave?

For it's only THEN, Lord,

I can walk into TRUTH;

Where the Light Of God Shines

And True Life Is In You!

So, TODAY, I ask, Lord,

That You'd HEAR when I pray;

And Command Of The Stone ~

TO BE ROLLED AWAY!

Terese Holloway

When Obedience Can Be Held In Your Hands

I was beyond blessed last week at the amazing support and love shown to me as I announced that my first Bible study, Road Signs, was being self-published!  I had so many friends share this exciting news on social media, that my blog announcement quickly became my most visited blog ever (with the exception of this blog here - apparently people really want to know how to throw a Yo Gabba Gabba party)!

Well the excitement is continuing at my house as we received the printed books this Saturday!

 My girls were thrilled (not sure if they were thrilled about the book or the myriad of boxes that make a great climbing apparatus), but I'm taking their enthusiasm and going with it!  There really is just something amazing about holding in your hands the tangible product of being obedient to the Lord.

And if I'm honest, this is what fills my heart with the most joy.  Have you ever had something in your heart (a project, a person who you know you should call, a desire to travel to the nations, etc.) and it lingers - for days or years?  That is what this Bible study has been for me - a thought...an idea...a passion - that would NOT GO AWAY!  Regardless of how I procrastinated or tried to tell my heart that my voice did not matter...that gnawing inside remained...until I obeyed.

The obedience amounted to hours of writing, rewriting, studying, and fighting the lies that I should stop.  Obedience is rarely seen by anyone.  It is a lonely path that requires sacrifice, but as I held this book in my hands on Saturday, I realized that obedience is what fills the heart with joy and purpose!  Obedience is good.  Whether it's obedience to love and raise my kids the way I know I should when another route would be easier.  Or when it looks like keeping my mouth shut when I really want to gossip - obedience is always better.  It may be hard, but it is good; and the rewards of obedience last a lifetime.

So, as I held the product of overdue obedience in my hands, I was filled with thanksgiving and joy.  I danced around the house with my girls, and then we promptly got into the car and I mailed off all the books that had been purchased online last week - THANK YOU!

For those asking, it is not too late to come to the live teaching sessions that are on Tuesday nights.  We had over 70 ladies show up this past week, and I would love it if we reached 100!  It was a really fun night - I loved watching ladies connect as they shared their "Jump Out of the Boat" stories.

Also for those inquiring, you can go ahead and purchase your Road Signs Bible Study right here on my blog.  If you scroll up to the top of this page, you will see page links (Home, About, Etc).  If you click on the page link titled "Road Signs" you will be taken to a new page where you can place your order.  And I'm continuing my fun deal: if you purchase 5 or more books the month of February, I will send you the DVDs or free once they are ready for release.

So please consider buying a Bible study...but don't worry - if I still have them hanging around my house, Haven has made really good use of them!

It's Here!!! I'm Excited to Tell You about My Project!

It's an exciting day for me here at Becoming Paige!  I want to introduce you to my side project that I've worked on for over a year now - Road Signs: Stories of Relentless Trust & Extravagant Love - an 8-week Bible study work book!

The message of this Bible study has been in my heart for at least 3 years now, and when I finally stepped out to teach and write these words, I was genuinely surprised by God.  I taught on a Tuesday morning to a room full of ladies, and as the weeks went by, our group went from strangers to friends.  It was such a special experience that I wrote about it here.

Since that Tuesday morning Bible study, I've taught this once more and I had many ladies encourage me to look into publishing the study.  I did my research, talked to a couple of publishers, and ultimately decided to publish this study myself.  It has been a labor of love for myself and Josh.

And can I just take a minute to give a shout out to my husband!  This man has researched, encouraged, set early morning alarms for me, watched the girls at ungodly hours so I could go to a coffee shop and write...over and over and over again...and even this day, here he is cheering me on.  I love you Josh Allen!

Okay, I'm back from my swooning...

The point is - I've got a real - hold it in your hands - book now!  AND we are about to start recording the 8 live teaching sessions that go with this book!

So, this blog is to invite you to join me in this journey!  I need your help.  And here are three ways you can help me with this Bible study launch:

1. If you live in the Lubbock, Texas area would you consider joining me on Tuesday nights (7-8:30pm) as we record the live sessions that will go with this book?  I promise that I won't teach for an hour and half!  I will pour my little heart out, and then I'll invite you to stay for a bit to drink tea and talk with other ladies. This study is ALL about telling our stories, and I'd love to hear yours.  The tapings start next Tuesday night (February 11th) and will be at Church on the Rock (10503 Slide Road), but I'd LOVE to see my non-COTR friends come too!  Wouldn't it be fun to have a time with ladies from all over the city telling our stories and studying Scripture?


2. If you want to go ahead and order one of these workbooks you can certainly do that!  If you order 5 or more workbooks at the same time, I will send you the full DVD live teaching set as soon as they are available (they will cost around $30 so it's a good deal).  This will be an awesome group study that you could do in the near future.  To purchase workbooks, just click on the page (seen above) called Road Signs.


3. Would you share this blog or link to the Road Signs page with your friends?  Anyone who shares this blog via facebook or twitter will be entered to win a free Road Signs workbook!  I'll draw the winner next Tuesday night before the live teaching starts.

Here are a few more shout-outs!

Thank you to my mom who opened the door for me to teach this in the first place...and thanks for encouraging me to finish this project.

Thanks to the COTR media team who designed the most AMAZING book cover - Jason & Michael for the expertise & Leslie for the brilliant idea.

Thanks to Annie who puts up with my crazy at work & who was the perfect model for the book cover.

Thanks to Laura & Dawn who caught my grammar errors and pointed out when my writing needed a bit of "reworking."

Thanks to the ladies of COTR who have gone through this study twice already.  It's been the tears in your eyes and the laughter in your voices when we've had those "you too?" moments that made me decide maybe I should get this into print.