The Room is Empty

I am aware of the space surrounding me.

Thanksgiving day passed. Everyone returned to school and work. The blind next to me raised halfway allows sunlight to shine on my face. I sit at my writing place. The Christmas tree lights shine across the room into the dark of the tree branches. I ponder finding joy in the loneliness of writing. 

A soul longs for quiet moments, but how quiet? How do you find the balance blocking out the chatter of the world, the chatter of the enemy, self-doubt, the lonely?

I am encouraged to ask myself first "did you pray" before starting a day of writing.  

Praying I know brings peace. 

The peace embraces the silence of loneliness. 

Communicating this to our souls as a writer brings the importance of writing to a higher understand. It's beyond us. It's an act of obedience reminding us to whom we belong, that we are loved, we are truly important, and we are secure in Him. 

So I ask you-the-writer, "Did you think to pray?" before starting a day of writing. 

View the time of writing as your time with God.
Focus on the need for Him.
Let Him fill you up.

He will equip you reminding you, you are His. You are secure. There's no room for lonely thoughts of doubt when the room is full of Him. We must not allow loneliness to consume our soul. Loneliness is known as a lack of purpose. As an obedient child of God's, we have all the purpose in the world of writing.  

Allowing the lonely time to strengthen our prayer life is refreshing. I am reminded of this in Isaiah 66:9, a time of loneliness (suffering) is also a time of something new being born. Writing is a form of birth. Laboring those lonely pains births a new writing, a new prayer life.

Shall I bring to the point of birth and then not deliver? asks the Lord your God. No! Never! Isaiah 66:9 TLB

Do I bring to the moment of birth and not give delivery?” says the Lord“Do I close up the womb when I bring to delivery?” says your God. Isaiah 66:9 NIV

In the same way I will not cause pain without allowing something new to be born,” says the Lord“If I cause you the pain, I will not stop you from giving birth to your new nation,” says your God. Isaiah 66:9 NCV

Let the lonely be a launching pad to your greatest calling.

You are called to write.


Workshop Now Available


NEW: 2014 Mini Christmas Workshop


Join me in my new online mini workshop, 2014 Mini Christmas Workshop, we will create a snowman, christmas tree, reindeer and a bonus page.

Supply List:
24 count crayola colored pencils 
a pencil 
a black pen 
paper

Workshop is for all ages.
All pre recorded videos so you can watch over and over.
Work at your own pace. 
No one sees you in the classroom. 
Commenting is optional.
The classroom looks very similar to my blog here.
Very easy to navigate.
Videos are step by step process.

 $14.99  


Once payment is processed you will receive an email with access to workshop. 

Let me know if you have any questions. 




Thursday Turtle

Today on Thursday Turtle here at Ashley's Art Closet you get to watch a video. Yay! The video was filmed using my iPhone one day when I finished cleaning their aquarium. They love it when it's clean. This is the only time they swim around like this. Usually they are more in hang out mode. Enjoy!

The Best Tripod


After filming my first online art class/workshop, I knew a tripod upgrade was a must for the next filming. Today, I am sharing with you the tripod upgrade I recently purchased. Because I film over head, I needed something very flexible to get the job done. After much research and review reading, I came to a conclusion the Vanguard Alta Pro 263AT was best for my needs. You can view this tripod on Amazon by clicking here. It's even an Amazon Prime item. I am very pleased with the durability of this tripod. Over the years, I've owned a number of inexpensive tripods which didn't hold up. If you are in the market for a tripod, I am here to tell you this will fit your needs for any project; food, landscape, workshop filming, portrait, etc. Below are a few pictures of features of the tripod. If you have any questions please feel free to ask. 









For an addition amount of flexibility, I also purchased the Vanguard BBH-200 Magnesium Tripod Ball Head




Let's say this has been one of my best investment recently!