In Him was Life

I created this drawing based on John 1:4-5.

Breaking this verse down was where I started. The verse is very deep. I asked my husband, Todd, for help with his idea of the verse. We both started simple with the idea of a glowing figure with flame light inside. After further thought, Todd thought of maybe having life showing inside the figure rather than a flame of light. Although this was more challenging, I really liked this idea. 

I see the "Life" as things growing and living. God created life from nothing in the Garden of Eden. Life sprung from Him. He is the Creator. 

That created life was the guiding light of truth for all other Creation to come.

 Life itself is a testament to a Creator. 

Romans 1:20 says, 

"For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities- His eternal power and divine nature- have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse". 

This light that has been there since the beginning, shines in the darkness. We do not have to be afraid of being overcome by sin, darkness or satan. His light is always with us in the dark world if we choose to carry it. By GOd's Son, Jesus, death and darkness have been overcome. He won already. We know the end. It is not a mystery how it will turn out. It is promised. 

1 Corinthian's 15:55-57 says, 

"O Death, where is your sting? O death, where is your victory? For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sing its power. But thank GOD! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ. 

I wanted to snake to be in the darkness, looming powerless behind God. 

The butterflies came from this creation and light, 

Ephesians 5:8

For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of the light. 

John 8:12, says

Jesus spoke again to them, I am the light of the world: he that follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. 

1 John 1:5 says, 

This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. 

When the butterflies flutter together in fellowship, they are stronger. 

1 John 1:7

"But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanses us from all sin."

If our lights are on in the darkness, the sin cannot hurt us. We are fluttering with His salvation inside us. We are no longer like Adam and Eve, we have Him inside us everywhere we go. There is no forbidden fruit, slithering sneaky snake or lie that can smother the light of the truth. 

Lukie 10 :19 says, 

"I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions

 and to overcome all power of he enemy: 

nothing will harm you. "

These butterflies cannot be taken by the snake. 

Satan tried to ruin it from the start with the first created beings. 

But Jesus came and fixed it all, giving the snake no more power. 

The fruitful tree satan once used against us is known for what it truly is... a lie. 

God will have His way, no matter what. 

His way is the whirlwind in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet. 

Nahum 1:3

So, look up and know that he watches over you. 

If He is for you, then who can be against you?  Romans 8:31

Have peace that He is with you on your journey. 

Think on These Things, Philippians 4:8

 

My most common spiritual weakness is my pessimistic thoughts. My mind complains, gripes, insults myself and others in my weakest moments. I have found that there are ways to "flip the switch" in my head. One is turning on my Spiritual Music, another is counting my blessings, and finding a way to give praise for what I am complaining for. God wants us to think of GOOD things.

This is harder and goes against the human grain. Every action we make was once a thought,

so before you speak it or do it,

Think it through.

 

T- is it TRUE

H- is it HELPFUL

I- Is it INSPIRING

N- Is it NECASSARY

K- Is it KIND?

 

Philippians 4:6-8

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--

if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things.

Romans 12:2

 

do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.

 

Be Blessed and Be a Blessing

 

Here I sit in the middle of Hurricane Harvey, high and dry in my house.

Work is cancelled and school too. What to do, what to do.

I see the news filled with people blessing others. I am so proud of my community.

I feel antsy just sitting and watching...

How can I use my time and not waste it?

How can I give back?

I know the Word of God,

I have an abundance of inspiration and creativity,

(Sometimes too much and time is too little!)

AND God has given me the time in this rainy week.

 

 God blesses us with gifts, talents and time?

Do you have a boat? Go rescue storm refugees.

Do you have extra clothes? Go give to the wet ones.

Do you bake? Make cookies for your flooded neighbor.

Do ALL THIS in the Name of Christ!

 

Parable of the Talents

Matthew 25:14-30

If God gives you talents, do not bury them in the dirt to keep them safe out of fear.

Invest them, use them, be brave to put them out there.

For if you use what God has given you, he will be happy with you.

^" For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance."

 

DONT IGNOTE WHAT GOD GIVES YOU TODAY!

or it can be taken away...

This was told to the rich fool that stored away all his harvest for the future,

instead of trusting God to provide him with daily needs.

When he finally had time to use it, he was gone.

See Luke 12:13-21

We cannot take our "harvest" with us, so share it today.

 

YOU ARE BLESSED!

It's not by Luck of Chance or some changing thing that you have the good things you have.

 

James 1:17

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

Treasures in Heaven

¹⁹ “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. ²⁰ But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. ²¹ For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

 

Hebrews 13:16

Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.

 

Galatians 6:9

And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.

 



Luke 6:38

Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you."

 

 

Matthew 5:40-41

And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well.

If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles.

(Go the "extra mile")

 

IN your good works and deeds, do not expect earthly praise.

Let your Father in Heaven clearly see your work.

For he is the only one that needs to know.

At times this is hard because people may be around you when you work,

for instance: what if you are a preacher or helping flood disaster.

How can you do that in secret? You cannot.

The most important thing in these circumstances is to bring glory to your Father in the act.

For example, "I give you these cookies in Jesus's Name" or put a note on the cookies that says,
"In Christ's Love". Basically, put the spotlight on HIm and give HIm the glory. He is what the blessing came from in the first place, you are just giving it back.

 

Matthew 6:1-2

"Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full.

But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing,

so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

 

I hope these illustrations will stay in your heart and be an inspirational reminder to you that

YOU ARE BLESSED!

God wants to give you more and wants to see you share it with your

Brothers and Sister in Christ.

When your kids share the things you give to them, doesn't it make you proud?

Does it not make you want to do it more?

Be Blessed this week.

Guide to Finding Love

These images have been dug deep from my heart as a guide to anyone looking for a closer relationship to Love. I spent my life (till the age of 29) knowing God was there, but only feeling Him from a distance. This created a hole in my heart that I was continually trying to fill with things of this world.

 I was left unsatisfied...

I did not know how to find Love.

 But, Now I do.

Once I found Love and it overflowed in my life, I began writing out my testimony.

It is unfinished, as God is not finished with me. 

But I am working on the emotional time of readiness to dive back into completing the book soon.

My Illustrated Testimony shows the importance of finding love in my life.

It was something I never knew how to do until I was taught how, 

It changed my life.

http://thelostsocklife.blogspot.com/2013/03/supertab-autobiographical-comic-of-my.html

HOW THE SCRIPTURE TELLS US TO....

FIND LOVE. 

BE STILL INSIDE

This is the hardest part! To sit down, be still and listen... near impossible. If it's not the kids, spouse, work, dogs or surroundings that distract us... it's our own minds! Our mind gets filled with thought of the Earth; paying bills, getting taxes filed, getting the dogs their shots, feeding the children... whatever. We can't possibly hear

 His Still Small Voice (1 Kings 19:11-13) if we have a thousand other voices trying to make us anxious. Satan knows this... so... he likes to whisper words of doubt to keep us busy all day long. It's easy to fear things that you cannot control. This even happened to Jesus, yes, really. He had times of anxiety that he had to escape the world in order to hear his Father's voice. But there's somebody that wants to help...

 

My art (above)

God wants to take our burdens, 

calm us down, give us peace and free us from anxiety that binds us.. He says so.

Matthew 11:28-30

28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Jamie Grace sings about it here...

LOVE THIS SONG!

https://youtu.be/3lBtnreAcAE

Psalm 46:10
He says, "Be still, and know that I am God:"

Here are times when Jesus had to be alone, escape people, be 

still and quiet to hear His Father's voice...

And early in the morning, while it was still dark, He arose and went out and departed to a lonely place, and was praying there. 

( Mark 1:35)

And immediately He made His disciples get into the boat and go ahead of Him to the other side to Bethsaida, while He Himself was sending the multitude away. And after bidding them farewell, he departed to the mountain to pray.

 ( Mark 6:45-46)

And they came to a place called Gethsemane; and He said to His disciples, "Sit here until I have prayed." And He took with Him Peter and James and John, and began to be very distressed and troubled. And He said to them, "My soul is deeply grieved to the point of death; remain here and keep watch." And He went a little beyond them, and fell to the ground, and began praying.

 ( Mark 14:32-34)

And when day came, He departed to a lonely place; and the multitudes were searching for Him, and came to Him, and tried to keep Him from going away from them.

 ( Luke 4:42)

But He Himself would often slip away to the wilderness and pray.

 ( Luke 5:16)

And it was at this time that He went off to the mountain to pray, and He spent the whole night in prayer to God. ( Luke 6:12)

from Super Tab (above) 

My art (above)

LET THE EARTH MELT AWAY

I know when I'm on a mission to hear God's voice, I get distracted by the world around me... things around me that I feel touching my skin, things I see around me that are unsettling, things I hear that try to pull me away or make me loose concentration... pretty much every human sense can cause me to stray away from my mission. The world is physical. God is spiritual. He is inside us... deep and quietly waiting.

John 4:24

"God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth."

1 John 2:15

"Do not love the world or anything in the world.

 If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. 

Romans 12:2

"Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.

Then you will be able to discern what is good, pleasing and perfect will of God."

2 Corinthians 4:18

So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, 

but what is unseen is eternal. 

IMAGINE A NEW PLACE

Psalm 23:1-6

The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. 

He makes me lie down in green pastures, 

he leads me beside quiet waters,

he restores my soul. 

He guides me along the right paths for His name's sake. 

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, 

I will fear no evil, for You are with me:

Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. 

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.

You anoint my head with oil: my cup overflows. 

Surely Your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, 

and will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

from SuperTab (above)

SEEK LOVE

1 John 4: 

Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.

We could try our whole lives to find love from the Earth. Earthly love will fail. It can try to do the job, but will come short every time. People disappoint, let us down, discourage us... I know through God relationships can be healed. I know it. But it is THROUGH GOD, that it can be healed. His love through us, our pride aside with our forgiving hearts humbled. Without God, without LOve, it is impossible. So, before you can try to seek love from things, pets, or people of the earth... 

He is the source of where it all comes from.

Seek Him... He will be there. 

It is His deepest desire.

Jeremiah 29:12-14
"Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.
You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.
I will be found by you, declares the Lord"

Matthew 7:7
Ask and it will be given to you: seek and you will find;
knock and the door will be opened to you.

Deuteronomy 4:29
"But from there you will seek the LORD your God,
and you will find Him if you search for Him with all your heart and all your soul."

from SuperTab (above)

It was here, for the first time I met with Jesus. 

I asked Him the questions in my heart. 

He filled my emptiness and overflowed my heart holes with abundant spiritual satisfaction. 

These were holes nobody on this earth knew were there, not even me. Only my Creator knew. 

He showed me hurts I had buried deep and hid away until i forgot they were there. He restored my soul, just as His word said. 

His promises are true. 

I pray with all my heart that you will find time to be alone to meet Him in your secret place of Peace. 

It is what Jesus said ever time He met with His disciples, "Peace be with you..".

The Holy Spirit is here for that very reason. I big price was paid so that you could have that Peace with you always and everywhere. Let go of the world and find what really matters.

What will last for an eternity when all the things that we worry about are gone and over... 

He will be there waiting. He is there waiting now.

He is my Souce of Strength & Joy...

 

If I live without plugging in to His word and His presence everyday, 

I wither away. 

The thing is, as a Christian, we are not lost. 

We know the plug is there, sometimes we just choose not to use it. 

In fact, I think we know the power we CAN have... but we are afraid to use it.

We are afraid of the POWER and the SHOCK, afraid that we cannot hold it. 

So, we just live without it.

Romans 8:11

"And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you."

PLUG IT IN AND SHINE OUT!!!

We cannot shine bright in this world and show His light if we do not connect with Him 

and everyday charge our power.

Matthew 5:14-16 

“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven."

John 8:12

"Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

I love my chord. It charges my battery, gives me strength to face another day, keeps me focused on Heaven and it's perspective, and gives me inspiration and motivation. It helps me see the good in others and encourage them. I struggle to plug in sometimes, like everyone. 

But, plug in into HIm is my life!

" True intimacy is my desire...to catch your whisper, to carry your fire.. 
it's my ambition, my soul's true mission, my destination. More than living, more than breathing, it's the reason my heart's beating.There's nothing greater than knowing it,"

Words from True Intimacy from Rend Collective Experiment. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GMBjVZ8pJHY

I'm blessed to be different from the world... I stand out, shine bright, point to Him. 

 

This artwork uses simple symbols to communicate my ideas.

This idea was used by Keith Haring and his art holds a special place in my heart. 

SYMBOLIC MEANING

Plug- The True Source, God

X eyes- Supernatural Senses closed

Smile eyes- Supernatural senses opened

Heart- The possibility of the Truest Love

Plug- The spiritual umbilical chord to our Spirit Father. 

LIght- His power shining through His connected child

I teach my kids to use semiotics, like Keith Haring, to communicate their views on life in my classroom. See the lesson here...

http://tabithaannthelostsock.blogspot.com/2012/04/keith-haring-semiotics-posters.html

Thank God... I know the truth.

 

Thank God I Know the Truth

by Tabitha Seaton

  inspired by God's Word and Roy Lichtenstein

 This world is full of fake people, lies, sneaky snakes, wolves in sheep's clothing, users, abuser, bullies, meanies.. (take a breath)... or people that just get scared of being sincere, 

so they just get jaded and lazy.

When you go through a tragedy people show up out of nowhere to be your "friend". 

Some are real, helpful, and stick around even after the storm.

Some were gravitated to you because you were "in the spotlight' and they want some of it for themselves. Only time will tell what kind of "friend" they really are. 

I have learned this the hard way. 

In case you are a new reader, you need to know that 5 months ago 

my wonderful husband  of 10 blessed years, Shannon Seaton, 

passed at the young age of 35 unexpectedly.

In my grieving state... the nights are the hardest.

I look forward to being "alone" after working all day with 100 art students with raging hormones, then coming home to 2 little girls that fight, whine and complain 

(sometimes they are nice though... no, they are really sweet, just take LOTS of energy!).

But when the night does come, and they girls are down... 

things get lonely in a whole new form.

It is hard... challenging... it....SUCKS STINKY SOCKS!

Night after night I am finding myself making a choice.

I can either 

A.) Let Satan steal my joy & fill my head with lies, cry in bed alone feeling sorry for my lonely self,

pig out on a giant tub of cheese puffs and Blue Bell banana pudding ice cream

while tell myself that I am an ugly slobbish loser that is going nowhere but old and wrinkly 

and will never find love or be happy ever again, 

& ignore God cause I am mad at him for all he has taken away.

-OR-

B.) Believe in God's truth, rest under warm cozy blankets with my creamy Chai Tea singing praises and thanks, reading the Promises of Christ, while using my talents to help others see Him more clearly, focus on my blessings, pray for my dreams, think about all God has brought me through so far, and know the truth...

that I am beautifully, intricately, perfectly and wonderfully designed by the master of all creation. 

I am a child of His..

I can believe the lies or know the truth!

Listen to this song, Child of Mine by Mark Schultz

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=64Fnm11TIAU

I will choose to listen to the voice of truth!

Listen to this song, Voice of Truth by Casting Crowns

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VaVg0cWkgAw

I have done mostly "B", but a little of "A" as well. I much prefer the "B", because it just feels better.

As a young widow though, I have realized not every night can be a "B". Some nights you have to scream as loud as you can into a pillow, cry out to the dark night, stomp your feet like a toddler, and  just let it go. As long as this is not done for too long or becomes habit, I think it is perfectly natural.

I am doing my best here. I hate being fake. I am the most honest person you will meet.

BUT, here lately I feel like I have to "fake" happy, just to eventually believe it myself. I think it is better to be positive than it is to complain. 

We must speak Life! We must be a light of hope to the hopeless.

Too much of lonely night option "A" will not allow us to do this. 

If we believe His word, it is perfect. God has proven faithful. Go look in the Bible for His promises and test Him to prove it wrong.

“Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the LORD Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it. I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not cast their fruit,” says the LORD Almighty. “Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land,” says the LORD Almighty.”

Malachi 3:10-12

 God has never lied or broken a promise! His word is the only thing we can believe. 

It is the only thing that can protect us from lies of the world.

He is my refuge when I feel like this world is a jerk!

He is the only thing I can fully trust...

"Every word of God proves true. He is a shield to all who come to him for protection."

Proverbs 30:5 

If you don't understand a promise... TELL HIM!

Ask Him to show you what it means. I have...

He always answers me, but the key is being aware of the clues around you. 

He will never deny you if you ask him a question...

 He will not deny you the answer, He is your FATHER and desires to give you knowledge of His ways.

Luke 11:11-13 
“If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? 
Or if he shall ask for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?

If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your heavenly Father give the holy Spirit to them that ask Him?”

 I just thank God every night, even on the Plan "A" nights after my fit is thrown, 
for the truth of His word. That it is something I can depend on for my future. I know He is taking care of me in my hard times and only His word is the only real place i can find hope. 
I pray that you can turn to Him too and see the truth. 

Go taste the truth of this daily bread and see how sweet it really is...

Psalm 34:8
^"O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him."


FOR MORE of my WIDOW BLOG POSTS... 
go here
http://thelostsocklife.blogspot.com/2013/08/diary-of-young-widow.html

Good Food and Dreams... remembering Shannon.

Pure Honesty right this second...

I was thinking about my late husband, Shannon Seaton, who passed almost 5 moths ago. He left a hole that I am finding hard to fill. I know God gives me peace and comfort, but if I am just being honest here... the hole Shannon left is not gone. Not sure if it will ever be till I see him again in Heaven. Maybe, that's the point. All holes will be filled when we go Home. Maybe it is those holes we have here on earth that drive our vision to Heaven...

I started this blog ONLY because of Shannon. He encouraged me so much creatively. He never denied me in that way. He was my greatest fan and full support. He wanted me to show my art and faith to the world. He was the one that researched differnt blog sites for me and pushed me to start. That is the incredibleness of him. He put my dreams before his own. When I really got into my blog, I would stay up late nights at times and Shannon would go to bed before me just waiting up for me to get done, "I'm almost done", I would say, "Just one second"... seconds later.... "5 more minutes...."... then snores from him. He would try to wait. But he never complained. Even the thrifty fashionista aspect of the LostSock blog... he was the photographer behind the scenes. He WANTED to take pictures of his girls dressed up. He loved to do this on Sundays after church. He was so amazing. I started to feel guilty as I spend time on my blog. I knew Shannon always had the dream of traveling Texas and visiting every burger and BBQ joint in the state and giving his own critique of each one. I started his blog page for him, hoping he would want to do one too.

Shannon loved LaWaffalata

downtown Mineola the most.

He was a man with a big appetite... and this is a "tea room" kinda place.

But this never stopped him. He always left full and happy. It was always the first place he would call on the weekends to see what their specials were. We went to different cites to eat burgers that were on the "Texas Monthly Burger Fame" list.

He said nothing beat the Hangover Burger East Texas Burger had that one New Years Day.

(he was not hung over... just had good taste).

These pictures below were taken by Shannon as I encouraged him to start blogging.

He had excuses not to, but I told him..

 "Just start local first, no big commintment, then go from there.".

The "specials" at LaWaffalata.

Our last mean together at LaWaffalata...

never would have known.

My meal on left, the Slider

Shannon's meal on right, the burger special.

                                                       Below is Shannon and Maisy

eating at East Texas Burger (joined to LaWaffalata). This is their favorite dinner spot, cause unfortunately, LaWaffalata is not open for dinner. Shannon always wished it was.

This was another burger at LaWaffalata that Shannon took a picture of...

He liked avacado, bacon, and grilled onions on his burger with the jalepenjo cheese bun.

Shannon would always make me run out and check the special board outside LaWaffala to see what they were having, but by the time I would run back to the car, I would forget. So, I got smart one afternoon and just took a picture!

Shannon also loved Kitchen's Hardware and Deli.

If the specials were not so special sounding to him at his first choice,

we would go to the Deli.

He often made reservations on Friday nights here too for our date nights.

He loved thier steak!

Every time we go to Kitchen's for lunch,

Shannon would ask for the "secret sauce".

It is just a kind of horseradish ranch suace the regulars that know about it put on thier saltine crackers. We never knew what it was, but all the old men that come in regularly would have it and one day Shannon just asked what it was and tried it. He asked for it every time after that.

The girls Madelynn and Maisy eating the "secret sauce" on their saltines.

They have kids' menus that you can color on too. Fun for them... and me too.

This was our very last mean at Kitchen's only days before Shannon past.

He never got the nachos but wanted to try somethign new.

His regular was the Shilou Plate.

He was going to do a section in his Beans, Bacon and Chopstick blog

about what I ate. He was fascinated by my food. He always teased me because I ate the oddest things.

This is my cripsy chicken salad with ranch and blue cheese crumbles. Not that weird.  

 Shannon's Blog... dreams left undone.

    http://beansbaconchopsticks.blogspot.com/

I hepled him with the name, made the design. A week before he passed, we ate at a couple of his favorite places downtown Mineola, Texas (our home town). I took pictures of his plate before he ate, posed him fork in hand and even the girls too. I wanted him to want to start blogging. But the passion just was not there for him He dreamed my dreams for me more than his own. I wonder if God made him to dream through me? I don't mean this selfishly... I mean, Shannon was a behind the stage man. He wanted to go unnoticed. He was humble down deep. He loved to see me shine. He revamped a vintage trailor to be my art studio. I never worked in it cause I didn't want to go out away from him to work. So, he moved all the stuff out years later and changed out dinging room we never ate in to my art studio. He never questioned my dreams. I was a grain of sand, he was my clam. I was a lump of coal, he was my mine. He brought out the best in me.

And now i am here.. with my blog... withough him. Still going... still dreaming.

I remember only a few days before he passed, that Friday night we were blessed with a date night to go see a friend act in a play and go eat dinner. Shannon always wanted an old car. That was one dream we had toghether. We promised one day we would do it and stopped road side many times to check out cars and consider. But that night we had our date... He almost broke his neck when he saw an old truck on the side of the road for sale. He pulled over, got out, stood on the side rail, peeked in. He just stood there dreaming. I remember looking at him and thinking, "Man, that is the most handsome Shannon has ever looked, standing there with dreams twinkling in his eyes, all passionate and sexy (sorry)". I did not tell him this though. But the way he lingered there on that truck, dreams in his eyes, passion inside.

But then let it go. Then he walked back to the car so we could drive back home to our little girls and our bed. He let them go... His dreams.

Five days later, he left us to something bigger and grander.

The place that holds all dreams.

That puts life into perspective for me, truly.

What dreams do I have that are not important? Which ones do I need to let go to God?

I know God took Shannon from me, and here I am lonely as i've ever been.

I have dreams not of finding another mate, bruildig another love, hope for a father figure for my girls to grow with. The desire to make new memories and move on to a happier place.

But, then I wonder... are these just dreams of MINE...not dreams of HIs.

What are dreams anyways?

Shannon lived to make my dreams grow and they produce fruit still and give life.

He left a earthly home that was not completed. I am here to finish the work

while he goes on to get things ready for us in our eternal home that will never fall.

His dreams are done. I just wonder if he is cheering us on form the cloud of witnesses.

"Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us (loved ones we lost),
let us also lay aside every encumbrance(dreaming dead-end dreams in vain), 
and the sin (selfishness) which so easily entangles us and
let us run with endurance the race that is set before us (God's dreams),
fixing our eyes on Jesus (seeing clearly eternity),
the author and perfecter of faith (He wrote our life, beginning to end),
who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."…
Hebrew 12:1

Is he seeing us from the grandstands, a witness from the clouds,
 trying to steer us to follow the dreams of eternal value, cheering us on?

I pray that I make the right choices,
and follow the ones that will lead to eternity and branching roads of opportunity

rather than chasing the selfish ones in vain that lead to dead ends.

 I pray we all do.

Thank you God for giving me Shannon for 10 years.
Thank you for his encouragement to nurture my creative dreams that magnify your presence.

He was so unselfish to dream through us, just watching from backstage and behing the camera lens...

You are greatly missed my love.

Your Forever Girls

Tabitha, Madelynn, and Maisy

A blog post dedicated to my best friend...

http://thelostsocklife.blogspot.com/2013/07/my-best-friend.html