Weekend's Lovely Links

I'm not doing something pointless this weekend, because I am LA at God Chicks Women's Conference. But it still counts as a refreshing weekend. I haven't been to a women's conference in for.ev.er! So ready to sit, relax, and be taught all weekend. If you're going, make sure you Tweet or Facebook me and say hi! ~ And as always, pictures will be on Instagram (username: juliannamorlet). 


With that, here are my most favorite reads from the week 
/ / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / 


I love the inspiration in this post to make blogging a source of storytelling, no matter what you blog about. (Etsy)


I am a new fan (read: obsessed fan) of The Artist and the Architect! I can't remember where or how I stumbled upon this endearing couple, but I can't stop reading. You might see some of my writing being inspired by their geniuses. Like this @theworld post. (The Artist and the Architect)


Got a favorite spot in your house? Mimi & Meg wanna see it. (Mimi+Meg)


Lead with love. It's fun to make someone's day better. (Catalyst Blog)


I swear Rachel Evan's motivation for blogging is to rial people up and watch their world views shatter. Okay, a little dramatic, but I love this woman. Her recent post on Complementarianism and Heiarchy Outside the Home and Church (read: Women in leadership over men other than their husbands or pastors) has sparked some good entertaining conversation. Take a look. (Rachel Held Evans)


I have a photo shoot next week and I cannot decide what to do with makeup. I want it to be different. Thank goodness for Pinterest. (Pinterest)


I use to watch baseball religiously when I was in high school and college. I've been to a lovely amount of stadiums on both coasts and my favorite team is the Angels. Hands down. Mostly because my uncle works for them and their main color is red. But luckily they're good too. Do you watch Bball? (Angels Baseball)


Have a good weekend! Anything crazy exciting happening? 
-

Summer Camp in Photos | Faith Bible Church, CA

We had such a fun week with an amazing crew and group of students // We spent two of the five days at Lake San Antonio, but I didn't take my camera because I would have totally dropped it in the water // Some highlights were teaching them Job Song, watching them respond to the faithfulness of God, and sitting on top of our RV with Joanna watching shooting stars // True story // PS. The band (pictured above) is in the studio this week tracking the new album! Eeek! 

Advertise

 

I believe part of the reason I have this pretty space is to create a space where people can tell their own stories. Whether that's in the form of a blog, a book, a course or class, or your business that you birthed out of passion, I want the world to hear your story. There is someone, somewhere that needs to hear it. ~

GO HERE for info, stats, and rates.

Goodbye My Childhood Town

*This post is part of this week's Loving and Leaving Well Series, where we're talking about lessons learned from leaving the places and people you love. Missed a part? Catch up here!

This week has been emotional. It seems like every song that shuffles on my iPhone or every shows that I watch has some underlying thread of leaving and change. I'm beginning to think CHANGE may be more common than we realize. 

I'm a very sentimental type. I like and dislike places, people and food based on my experience with them. 

I eat Bakers burritos because it's all my sister would eat when she was in the hospital with Leukemia. 

I only drink Mexican Hot Chocolate because it reminds me of Christmas time at my grandmas. 

I like shopping at Costco because it reminds me of my childhood (8 person family = Costco). 

The Fall is my favorite season because it reminds me of the new notebooks and freshly sharpened pencils of my college classrooms. 

The Golden Spoon on Hwy 79 South tastes better because that's where Ty met me for frozen yogurt once. 

Aqua Di'Gio swoons me because it was the cologne Ty wore on the night of our wedding rehearsal. 

I rock out to Kelly Clarkson and Walk to Remember Soundtrack because it reminds me of the Mexico Youth Trip 2005.

I like things because they remind me of someone, something, somewhere. 

Don't we all? 

I am going to miss this town, these streets and these sweet people. And while I'll only be 2 hours and 5 freeways away, nothing will replace this amazing season of my life. This town grew and pushed and fashioned me into who I am today and for that, I will be forever grateful. 

Goodbye, my childhood town. I cannot wait to come back to you with my children someday and show them how to remember.

" I am, strangely, no longer a child.  But the place where I was a child is thriving. And so am I." - Laura Tremain | Hollywood Housewife  (Make sure you read the rest of her post. It's beautiful.)

- - - - -

***This concludes the Loving and Leaving Well Blog Series. If you missed one, see them all here.

Learning to Arrive Content | Amber Pitts

*This post is part of this week's Loving and Leaving Well Series, where we're talking about lessons learned from leaving the places and people you love. Missed a part? Catch up here!

There are some stereotypical implications of "leaving well." 
Making sure all your present dirty laundry has been cleaned and aired out, you’ve gutted all your past jumbles & messes, you’ve left your rented home fresh and ready for the succeeding tenants, and you’ve left yourself in good standing with your landlord and a good reputation with your neighbors. 

But I also think leaving well has more future emotional implications, as a woman, than we actually recognize. In leaving a past behind, a future needs to be prepared for. It’s more than physically being ready & making sure your new place of occupancy is prepared. It's also being emotionally ready and your place of spiritual rest prepared. 

Two things have helped me. The first is practical, the second is spiritual. 

In my 10 years of marriage we’ve moved 9 times and in those 9 times there hasn’t been once  I anticipated—sometimes it was better, often it was harder. 

When we moved out of the country, we did not have an opportunity to preview the home we were renting and we ended up in a very bad part of town & it took us months to meet people and get acquainted there. Those days were dark. Having moved from sunny So-cal to a cold snowy storm climate was difficult emotionally and psychologically. Yet what always helped me was never allowing myself to slip (and this fall can happen very quickly…within minutes) into a mindset where I was allowed to feel sorry for myself; because it was easy.

When the world around you constantly reminds you that you deserve better than pretty much any circumstance you’re in, complaining always seems justified. Usually complainers busy themselves with finding something they’re dissatisfied with, something they resent. 

The second, spiritual reality, has helped me far more than the physical: I’ve seen the immense calling my husband has upon his life as a New Testament scholar and pastor. It excites me to be his wife and I’m privileged to be part of it. The majority of times we’ve moved has been due to his schooling in order to equip him for his task at hand. If ever I felt unsure about our situation or place that we’re living in, I will quickly remind myself how temporary our situation will be and the fact that it’s for the equipping of my husband to the Lord’s work for the future. What a noble and undeserving honor that’s been entrusted to me. Even typing this excites me for our next endeavor this summer when we move to Los Angeles to let the past 10 years work themselves out (finally!). 

If and when lack of contentment arises, I refuse to allow my complaining and pity party stand in the way of where the Lord has called and placed us or to stand in the way of my husband’s pursuit of his career and desire for our life. Although we are in this together and have the same desires for ministry and work, that doesn’t guarantee that there will not be strife and discontentment along the way. But, despite that, I know I have the opportunity to chose which way I want to mentally arrive, wherever the next road may lead. 

- - - - -

Amber Pitts is a mother of one adorable boy and wife of 10 years to a gentleman and a scholar. She enjoys reading and teaching women how to study the Bible. You can follow her Instagram feed @amber

Learning to Let Go | MK Wise

*This post is part of this week's Loving and Leaving Well Series, where we're talking about lessons learned from leaving the places and people you love. Missed a part? Catch up here!

Uprooting your life from the place you have called home is not easy. 
You must say goodbye to not only the little space you laid your head at night, the grocery store you always bought your milk and bread from, but also things like the roads you became so familiar with, you could drive them in your sleep (though you never actually would). But of all the things you have to learn to let go of, the hardest are the friends you’ve made along the way.

With each move I’ve made, that being 4 major moves and a few more minor moves, I would like to think I have gotten better with practice at saying goodbye to those I love. But, it just isn’t the case. I had to discover that sometimes, friendships are just for seasons. This was one of the most difficult, yet relieving lessons I’ve had to learn. It is completely okay too. Certain people are placed in our lives as well as we in theirs’ to lean on and to grow with for shorter amounts of time than others. Before I learned that this was a natural thing, I would stress myself out over trying to keep up with every single friend I made from every single place I lived. I only had so much love to go around, especially at the depth that I wanted to love each friend.

There is a danger in not fully embracing the new and letting go of the past. You will never experience the fullness of what God has for you in a new place, a new season of life, if you do not walk forward with your palms up and open. Usually, if you live life with an open heart and open mind, God will replace what has been taken and give you something new, something that may grow to be even more incredible than what you had before. If you choose to live by recreating the past, you’ll never be satisfied, because each person is unique, each place is unique and you can not remake what is someone’s or some place’s to give.


However, some friends are meant for the long haul. I have a few of these which I am incredibly thankful for, though I imagine it would make for an interesting girls vacay seeing as they don’t all know each other, only just what they hear from me. Maybe for my 30th birthday! One friend in particular is my best friend Janneka who I met while we both lived in Australia. She is from Canada, and I am, well you know, from here in the USA. Janneka and I grew in friendship for the months that we both lived right next door to each other, but soon it was time for her to leave. She spread her wings and started college in Vancouver, Canada. I eventually moved back to the USA and we kept in close contact. Over the years, we have only seen each other once since our lives back in Australia, but through skype and letters, we’ve grown to be the best kind of friends. She is like family; constant and forever. We have been each other’s support through relationships, moves, exams, and much more. 

Learning to let go and love the new is hard but incredibly worth it. I would have never known Janneka to the depth I do now had I not first lifted my head up to the sky, raised my hands in surrender and opened myself up to embrace the newness God had planned for me. I’m so glad I did.

- - - - - 

MK Wise lives in Nashville with her husband Dustin, a fellow creative. She loves a good mocha and a chunk of dark chocolate. She blogs at From the Guest Room

Learning to Thrive | Rebekah Snyder

*This post is part of this week's Loving and Leaving Well Series, where we're talking about lessons learned from leaving the places and people you love. Missed a part? Catch up here!

There I was – eighteen years old and terrified – getting ready to move 450 miles away from the place I called home. 
I had moved only one other time in my life. I was three. And it was from one side of Bellefontaine to the other. Hardly what anyone would call a life defining moment. But this… this was life defining. And I wasn’t even taking the normal route of going to college and having the summers off and wondering if maybe I would move back to Ohio after four years had passed. No, this was goodbye.

Goodbyes are hard. Especially when they involve leaving everything you’ve ever known. But goodbyes are also beautiful because it means you’re saying hello to a whole new adventure. And sometimes the hope of that new adventure is the only thing that helps us through the pain of the goodbyes.

As I prepared to set out on this new journey, I realized that I had found myself between dreams. There were my dreams for the future that I was setting out to pursue, and then there were my dreams of the past. Because somehow, when I was dreaming of what the future holds, I forgot that pursuing those dreams would mean leaving other things behind. Things like friends and family and the familiar.

Still, I chose to cling to my dreams and step out into the unknown. In the three years that followed, I’ve learned more things than I’d ever learned in a lifetime. In many ways, I was sheltered. I was a small town girl who had known all of my friends practically since birth. I was accustomed to turning to my mom for answers. I could name all of the people who lived within a two mile radius of my home.

Then I moved to a busy, college town where I didn’t know anybody, my mom wasn’t there to turn to anymore, and I was living with strangers. I had to learn to make friends. I had to climb out of the shell I didn’t realize I was living in. I had to trust that I could truly hear God’s voice and depend on His leading to guide me safely into this new life.

And for the longest time, I felt isolated. There were so many Saturday nights that I spent in my room wishing I was at Bible study in my uncle’s dining room. And there were countless Sunday afternoons that I wished I could teleport to my grandma’s house and spend the day with my cousins.

But then God showed me that I wasn’t isolated; I was set apart. He was taking this time of separation to draw me closer to Him than ever before. And He proved Himself faithful. Though everything else in my life was stripped away, He was the One Familiar Thing I could cling to.

Blessing after blessing flowed from His hands. Slowly, but surely, I had people to fill my lonely Saturday nights. Eventually, I stopped missing the old Sunday afternoon routine because I had a new one. One day, I ceased merely stumbling through life and found that I belonged. I now had two homes rather than one.

If I could share only one lesson I’ve learned through this transition, it would be this: God doesn’t call us to stand on our own; He calls us to stand with Him. He won’t put a dream in our hearts and leave us to figure it out on our own. You don’t have to fear His calling and you don’t have to dodge His dreams because He only wants what is best for you.

At eighteen years old, there were times I had my doubts, but looking back I can clearly see that this is the best thing that could have happened to me. This small town girl knew how to survive, but what God wanted for me (and what He wants for you too) is to show me what it is to thrive.

- - - - -

Rebekah Snyder is a writer, dreamer and lover of fairytales who is thriving in the calling God has placed upon her life. As the newly published author of Beyond Waiting, Rebekah hopes to teach her generation to embrace the plans God has for their lives. You can learn more about Rebekah and her journey at www.beyondwaiting.com.

Learning to Change Seasons | Nicki Koziarz

**The next couple days will be real life stories of women who have gone through or are currently going through life-changing-seasons, like you and me! You are going to love them. I do :) Missed a part of this series? Catch up here!
- - - - -

Quitting is easy. We throw the towel in and walk away. However, finishing the seasons of our lives well is a task that few accomplish because it’s challenging and complicated.  

Several months ago I began to feel a stirring in my soul. It was a stir I had felt before and so I naturally resisted it. Day after day I denied the truth that a season of my life was coming to an end.


But eventually, I came to an accepting moment that God was leading me out of this season. I needed to trust Him through this process because I had experienced many seasons of life that didn’t end well: people stopped speaking to each other, feelings were hurt and relationships were destroyed.


I had invested a lot into this season and formed great relationships, so it was important to me things ended well.  


Whether it is a job, a volunteer position, or a move…everyone at some point experiences a season of life coming to an end. But things don’t have to end ugly, and I really believe it honors God when we do our best to finish seasons well.


So here are 3 lessons God showed me in finishing this season well:


1. Be honest with those closest to you. 

As you begin to feel a tugging in your heart that a season is ending, share this with the people your transition will affect as soon as possible. Even if your new direction isn’t perfectly clear, have as many details worked out as possible. Be honest and share your heart openly.


2. Keep your word.  

As you wrap up your season, be sure to do the things you’ve committed to do. Is there someone you need to train to fill your place? Do you have tasks that need to be finished? Try to honor those who will be left in this season of transition.


3.  Give lots of grace.

You may experience some resistance as your season ends. Change is something people often resist because it produces elements of unknown. Don’t take things personally, and show lots of grace towards those who seem unwilling to accept this change in your life.


Change is constant. Seasons come and seasons go but the faithfulness of our God remains the same. With His strength, His guidance, and His wisdom… we have the ability to finish the seasons of life well.

- - - - - 

Nicki is a simple girl with eclectic taste. She loves a movie that will make her cry and friends who make her laugh until her belly hurts. Her favorite place in the entire world to be is on the beach with her feet dug deep in the sand. She blogs at Nickikoziarz.com

My Top 5 (1/2) Reasons I'm Excited for Change

I got the giggles just writing all these out. However, please note, I am fully aware that excitement will soon meet reality and be a bit less exciting than what appears in this post. I know sometime, probably sooner rather than later, the ____ will hit the fan. I totally understand that. But I'm still excited and I hope my enthusiasm is felt and shared by any of you who are going through a big change in life as well. With that, here are the top 5 things I am most looking forward to in this move. ~


5 1/2. Living Closer to the Beach. Doi! :) 


5. Living in a big city. I know it's all fun and games until someone gets hurt, or irritated by the bird chirp to police siren ratio. I've lived in small(er) towns my whole life and living in LA is such a huge deal to me. I mean, it's LA! Plus, as much as I love the quietness of Temecula at 9:00 at night, sometimes a girl just needs some late night snackage and McD's isn't going to cut it. 


4. Exploring a new culture. I think any place you move to, it opens up a whole new world of cultural normality. From art to music, to hot dog stands on the side of the road, to places you do and do not get your coffee from. I can't wait to ride the bus or ride my bike to town. I can't wait to get all the rest of the touristy stuff out of my system before I become a local. Future friends, consider yourself warned. I will be that girl for a little while. I can't wait to learn which route is the fastest to the freeway and what lights to avoid on your way home from work. I can't wait to grocery shop at Target and have to park on the street instead of a giant parking lot (seriously, that's crazy!). I can't wait to meet people. Tons and tons of people. Which brings me to my next point...


3. Meeting New People. It's amazing just how powerful the internet has been in connecting people, good people, in my life. Like, Tiffany, Rachel & Heather, Lauren, Harmony, Renee, Lisa, Sarah, Nicki, just to name a few. I'm excited about new friendships and hearing new stories. I think one of the coolest things about LA is that people congregate there from all around the world. It's been referred to as the "melting pot" of the US. I'm anxious to look back on this moment and think about how on earth I lived my life without "so and so" and "so and so." 

2. A New Level of Friendship and Trust in Marriage. Ty and I have had an interestingly amazing journey of a marriage. I couldn't, seriously couldn't, imagine doing this with anyone else. He is my best friend and I am his. I believe with all my heart that the toils and trials, the joys and romances of our 5 years together have all been preparing us for this change in our life. We have been encouraged, mentored, coached, and prayed for for such a time as this. We are step into a vast unknown and we are clinging tightly to one another more so than ever before. We are trusting each other at levels I didn't know were necessary or even possible. It's beautiful, absolutely beautiful. 


1. Living into what we feel called to do. This is the number one reason we are moving. We believe, with all our hearts, that God is calling us into the city of Los Angeles for the purpose of building and encouraging the Church. How that looks, we have our ideas and framework but we know that He is using us, despite our seeming inadequacies and fears, to birth something for His purpose and His glory. We might be crazy, but I guess you have to be; at least a little. 

- Julianna

- - - - -
What about you? What are your tops reasons of excitement for your big change?

My Top 5 Reasons I'm Sad to Leave Home

When we move on, we always leave something behind. That's the price we pay. These are my 5 things I'm saddest to leave behind. I will admit that more than a few tears were shed at the writing of this post. ~

5. The Identity - I know a lot of people in my home town. And they know me. I know almost every Starbucks barista in this city (not proud of that, but kind of). I have my favorite check out lady at Albertson's grocery store. Going to the local farmer's market is like a high school reunion, seeing people you love and try to avoid. But I think for me, it's mostly leaving my home church that is going to be inevitably tough. I've grown up with them and lived life with them. I've been honest with them and they, in return, have been honest with me. I've learned and studied and worshipped the Lord with them, almost every weekend for the past 3 years. They know me for who I am, the good, the bad, and the ugly and the love me just the same. 

4. The Paycheck - I'm just going to admit it. I've never had a season of my life where I couldn't pay a bill...yet. I've had season where we could only pay bills and nothing else. Not even an extra $2 for a cup of coffee. But I've never just not had what I needed. I don't think that's the situation we are walking into, but it might be. We won't know until we get there. But the comfortability of a predictable dollar amount $$ is slowing slipping itself from under my feet. 

3. The Familiarity - I know this town like the back of my hand. I know what Target has a better clearance rack, I know what Starbucks has the most friendly baristas, I know the best places to sit and read. I know it all. It's easy. It's comfortable. There's nothing risky or scary about it.

2. Our Deep-Rooted and Family-Like Friendships - There are people in this valley that have impacted my life at levels no one will ever really know. They have begun ripple effects of change and freedom and courage that they will never get to see complete.The many grandma and grandpa figures who spoke both prophetically and encouragingly into my life. Our pastors who have invested to much blood, sweat and tears into our marriage and mentoring us. Students we've grown to love and interns I will never forget. Friends who have carried us and whom we have carried through the thunderstorms and fairytales of life. Babies we saw born and probably won't see again until they get married. 

1. Our Growing Families - My sister just had her baby, Ty's sister is going to have baby #2, my brother is celebrating his one year anniversary, our niece is going into first grade and my little sister is going into middle school, and my little brother has only a couple teeth left to loose. It almost feels like a cruel joke that the time is now, though I know there would never be a more perfect one. And though my heart desire to vow my return for every ballet recital and birthday party, well, we'll just cross those bridges when we get there.

-Julianna

- - - - - 

What about you? What are your tops reasons you're sad about YOUR big life change? 


*Tomorrow: My Top 5 Reasons I'm Excited for Change

Loving and Leaving Well | June Series

>>>This month's series is on Loving and Leaving Well. For the next week or so we'll be talking through the highs and lows of change and moving on and reading from the experiences of some fabulous guest writers.

Are you going through a huge life change right now too? Tell me on the Facebook page or in the comments below! I want to hear how you're doing too. 

- - - - -


“There are times when the actual experience of leaving something makes you wish desperately that you could stay, and then there are times when the leaving reminds you a hundred times over why exactly you had to leave in the first place.” 

― Shauna Niequist, Bittersweet

I cannot imagine the pace nor degree of changes that will take place in the next couple of months. Life will be very different. Of that I am most sure. No more security. No more familiarity. Not more routine or habits. No more trips to the local Starbucks where the barista knows your name, your drink, and that you had a Dr's appointment yesterday. All those will be left behind in the wake of our U-haul and the truck beds of friends and family who are helping us relocate. 

Nothing will be the same. 

Except for us. 

We will be the only pieces of this growing puzzle that we recognize. And that scares me more than anything. Mostly because the implications are much to adult-like. I still feel so young, like a kid leaving for camp or college, but pre-planning Summers and Christmas breaks back at home. Not this time. This isn't just an experience or a phase of life. This is another significant milestone that will beautify our journey together.

Am I over dramatizing a bit? Naturally, but that's because it's so raw and see, I told you I was young! 

However, the scariness of the unknown is also a double edged sword. It can kill a person as well as revive them. In our case, I think it will do the latter. 

Ty and I have had the most interesting of roads in marriage; one that I wouldn't trade for the world. We make each other better, not just by "completing" each other, but by pushing the other towards a deeper holiness. He gently reminds me that I cannot control the world and I keep him sweet. I know the man I married, on June 27, three Summers ago is the man who God perfectly cut out for this place in my life. Together, we are the perfect balance of risk and safety. Together, we are much more effective than we ever were on our own.

He will be the one I cling to in the rise and fall of this great adventure. We might change, eventually, but we'll do it together. 

So baby, here's to change! Moving ever so in the quickening pace of our lives. 

~

Weekend Links

This week we are heading to Central Cali to lead worship at a youth camp. One of the blessings of leading worship with my husband is that we get to take these trips together! I'll be posting pics all week on Instagram (Username: juliannamorlet).
- - - - -


This week was full of some good thought provoking reading. I especially loved these posts on love and leadership (Catalyst), questioning God (Nicki Koziarz), and a fruitful life versus a successful life (Darling: Achiever) 


How cute are these two?? (Tea for Two)


Next paycheck, I am buying this cutting board. Who'd a thought I'd want a cutting board so badly. (AHeirloom)


Does anyone else spend hours reading those hilarious e-card pictures? No? Just me? Ok. Here's my current favorites: Exercise, Running,  Skinny Jeans, Lord Give Me Patience, Cupcake, Snoring, Adam Levine, Fart (too far but you know you do it too), Crossing it off the list. Ok I'm done. 


A Summer Manifesto...genius idea! (Shadylane)


Colleen's Monday Mood Board makes me want to forsake all responsibility and leave for the beach. Like yesterday. (Inspired to Share)


Dear Le Musings of Moi, I love you and I will hate you for these. :) (Le Musings of Moi)


Oh hello fellow list maker. Let's be friends. (Little Maison)


A gorgeously written post on the many shades and colors of grief. This made me cry. (Small Bird Studios)


This red-headed beauty has the perfect balance in her blog. She sticks to her niche but makes you want to be her BFF. Well done Nat. We're on nickname basis now right? :) (Paper Crowns)


Seriously Kelly Ann? You're killin this girl with your beautiful inspiring photos. This one and this one are being printed for my nightstand as we speak. (The Flowerchild Dwelling)


Thanks to Lauren, Tea Mixology is going to be my new obsession. (The Perfect Pair)


And to close, a pretty printable card for you to send to someone who needs to hear just how beautiful they really are. (Kelly Hicks Design)


Have a good weekend! Get some sun~

Becoming Girls Conference | Beginning Planning Stages

Working on the Becoming Girls Conference today. I feel so much more excited about this year, yet ironically less inspired. I usually have all these ideas ready to burst from my brain but this is I'm ready for those ideas to burst and nothin. However, I am one lucky girl to have an amazing creative team that jumpstarted so many ideas at last night's meeting. 

This year's gonna be good. ~
---
Ps. Congrats to Jesi Rae for winning the Stress Point Raffle! Thanks to everyone for playing! :) 

Me and the Mother of the Boy I Met at Starbucks

So, I met a boy at Starbucks. Then, I met his mother. It was one of the craziest experiences I've ever been a part of. See our conversation below.

Job Song | Antioch Worship Album

This song is near and dear to my heart because Tyson wrote it based on the story of Job and compelled by our current season of life. It's a song that I sing boldly and yet still very broken before my God. It's a song that I can feel vulnerable singing and worshipping with while still proclaiming the name of my good and gracious and sovereign God. 


We hope it's that way for you too. ~Love, Jules + Ty




One true God, Sovereign and good
May You become, reward enough
When all my life, is burned away
And all that is left, is Your great love

Though you slay me
I will trust in You
For You my God are my portion

Faithful God, from barren land
My voice will rise, to heaven
Blessed be, Your holy name
When all is gone, Your grace remains

Though You slay me

I will trust in You

For You my God are my portion

Though You slay me

You will see me through

Before You God I will come undone

With hearts bowed low and hands held high

We bless the name of our good God

Who gives and takes, our hearts He breaks

That we might say, blessed be our God


- - - - -
*To stay updated on what Antioch Worship is doing, find us on Facebook

On Songwriting & A Worship Album

I am so excited to tell you guys, finally, about the new worship album we have been writing! First I must preface with how songwriting worship albums work in our home. Tyson is the songwriter and I am the song editor. He comes up with the crazy good melodies and content and I edit the crazy good melodies and make the words sound a little sweeter. 


But it's not as cute of a partnership as it may sound. It's gruesome sometimes and it takes a lot of work and a lot more patience. 


Also, we write two different types of songs and both processes are different. The first type is congregational worship (songs that are meant for the Church to sing along with) and the second is everything else. This new album with be the first type: congregational worship.


We are not experts in songwriting by any means. We didn't go to school for it and we don't do it as often as we should, but one thing is for sure: when this type of song does come, they are fully and completely from God. Like, 150%.


However, it's less spiritual than it sounds. Let's back up to 6 months ago.


We knew we were moving to LA. We knew we wanted to start a type of church movement that clearly integrated the foundation of solid biblical truth question raising/answering truth with the emotion-full proclamation of worship through music. Our hearts were there, our minds were there, our passion and desire and studies were there, but we were dry. No songs would come. 


Ty would sit down to write but nothing sounded right and everything was pretty messy. It was frustrating to say the least. Mostly for him as he sincerely begged God to give him songs for the church. 


Yet month after month, nothin'. (Sound familiar ;)


But still we prayed. And prayed. And asked. And begged. And lived. And prayed some more.


Then, as if on a divine ticker, one day, the songs came. A flood of them. Day after day new melodies were being hummed into iPhone voice recorders and concepts were coming out of both random and purposed circumstances. 


Even as I write about it now, it brings tears to my eyes because these aren't our songs. There is nothing in us that can or will claim them as a byproduct of ourselves. 


We are just the means to a beautiful end. 


I heard it said once, that everyone has a "genius" or power outside of themselves that they grasp from to create beautiful things. The woman said that when beautiful things come out of a person they aren't really able to take credit because it didn't come from them. They had to give credit to their "genius." 


I wonder if she knew what she ways saying. I wonder if she knew, the "Genius", the Creator of the Universe, the Power she was describing was God Himself. 


C r a z y.
/ / / / / / / / / /


We'll be posting an acoustic music video for the newest song soon. I can't wait for you to hear it!