As a new month has begun, that means time for a new Billboard Of Hope Tee!!! Today I want to share the behind the scenes of this shirt.
This design has been in the works since February. At our design weekend, Wendy (my amazing graphic designer) and I were sitting drinking coffee & flowing in ideas. I could see this month's design in my head. A cowgirl riding a bronc with the words “born for such a time as this” Esther 4:14.
I picked this month to release this design because August feels like a month we need to be reminded we are in the right place & time as we head back into school schedules, routines & changing seasons. We were born for this.
The full scripture says: “For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?”” Esther 4:14 NIV
I love that! So much reassurance of being in the right place. As I started to dig into the story of Esther again, I noticed so many new things! I listened to it on my Bible app & boy it’s like a crazy movie! Betrayal, plotting, death, good verse evil. Wow! When I recounted the story to Joe he was like man that sure is eventful. I’d encourage you to read/listen to the full book & see what God is saying to you about Esther’s life! Here are the 3 things that stood out to me!
If you haven't noticed, hope is really important to me! The t-shirts that we (I say we because I have an amazing designer who helps me bring my ideas to life) are creating are called Billboards Of Hope tees.
But why that? Why hope?
Well, for most of my life I operated from a place of obligation, people pleasing and fear. Focusing on the negative even when things were going well, I was always looking & waiting for the other shoe to drop. It was a terrible place to live from. Exhausing. Frustrating. Hopeless.
Then about 7 years ago I started going to a a ladies bible study. We started a book called Victorious Emotions by Wendy Backlund. This book was the catalyst to go on a deeper journey with The Lord about hope & renewing my mind.
Wendy & Steve (her husband) say that we are allowed to be hopeless about anything that God is hopeless about. WOW! God is never hopeless about any situation. What a shift that has been for me. I have had to have grace with myself in the process of learning & walking in this because having hope doesn't mean every day is puppy dogs and rainbows. It doesn't mean that I pretend the bad, horrible things that are happening in this world just go away. It means I have to trust God EVEN WHEN I can't see OR understand what He is doing.
I do believe that having hope & living from a place of hope is a weapon against the enemy. My favorite definition of hope is the confident expectation that something good is about to happen! Whoa! Let's think about that for a second. What is the opposite of hope? The opposite is pessimism, hopelessness, despair, or discouragement. These are exactly where the enemy wants me & you to live and operate from. And for a long time I was. The enemy would like my hope to be in the things of the world & not in the things of God. But when I live from the confident expectation that something good is about to happen, I can keep walking by faith (2 Cor 5:7). I can know hope as an anchor for my soul (Hebrews 6:19). I can allow the God of hope to fill me with all joy and peace as I trust in Him, so that I may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit (Romans 15:16).
My prayer today is that you & I would choose hope! That we would ask God to give us eyes to see and ears to hear our situations from the lense of His hope. That He would fill us with ALL joy & peace as we trust in Him so that we may OVERFLOW with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit!
Marti
]]>For years I have heard the scratching of a number two pencil moving across white paper creating unique tooling patterns in my husband’s leather shop. Next comes the rhythmic tapping of a mallet hitting steel tools producing the melody of flat leather coming to life. These sounds, just like a favorite song, have been the soundtrack to much of our family’s journey.
I love tooled leather! I love everything it symbolizes in the western culture - hard work, a set of values & a traditional way of life. I love how a tooled belt on a pair of jeans is like a ribbon on a perfectly wrapped package. I love the distinct smell of leather. Most of all, I love the creative artwork that tooling is!
I thought, “What a shame it is that this art isn’t a bigger part of my everyday wardrobe.” I don’t wear a tooled belt or ride a beautiful saddle on a daily basis.
A graphic tee however, that is a major staple in my wardrobe! Light bulb moment! Why don’t I take those beautiful tooling patterns my husband creates & put them on tee shirts. Thus making this art available for others to enjoy without needing the leather!
Tooling Pattern Tees were born.
I pray that you will enjoy adding these creative wearable art pieces to your wardrobe just as much as we have enjoyed bringing them to you!
XOXO- Marti
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