It’s writing prompt time! So glad you’re here.
Even though December can get crazy with all of the holiday events and activities, I’m so happy that you’re carving time out of your schedule to show up and write (or at least read some other posts in the link-up and encourage one another).
If you’re new to the FMF community, welcome!
Click here to learn more about the link-up and how it works.
This week’s FMF writing prompt is: SIMPLE
Confession: I love appreciating the home decor skills and abilities of other people, but decorating my own house is not my spiritual gift. I really enjoy it when it looks pretty, but it doesn’t come naturally to me and to be honest, I struggle to justify spending money on things that I don’t view as “necessities.”
I don’t have totes in my basement filled with seasonal decor that I swap out every three to four months depending on the time of year. It’s always the “same old,” and sometimes it feels a bit stale.
But this year, I saw a tutorial on Instagram showing how to make a simple Christmas centerpiece.
You guys, I actually drove myself to Hobby Lobby and meandered through the store until I pieced together some semblance of the materials needed to replicate the tutorial I watched.
This is what I ended up with, and it is ridiculous how much this tiny blip in my life is bringing me so much joy:
I light the candles almost every night and even some mornings, and I just stare at it whenever I walk past the table.
This centerpiece has been such a reminder to me to appreciate the little things, and to not discount the simple joys and pleasures in life. It doesn’t have to be a five-star vacation to an all-inclusive resort in the Caribbean to bring us joy (although that does sound nice).
We can find joy in big things and small, in complex wonders and simple pleasures.
What simple thing is bringing you joy this week?
STOP.
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UPCOMING FMF SCHEDULE
Every year I take a short break from hosting the FMF link-up over the holidays.
I usually take a two-week break, but personal circumstances this year
have made it necessary for me to take a three-week hiatus.
Here is the upcoming schedule for the FMF link-up:
December 16: Last link-up of 2022
December 23: NO link-up
December 30: NO link-up
January 6: NO link-up
January 13: First link-up of 2023
. . . That means next week will be our final link-up of the year.
Thank you for understanding!
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Also, SNEAK PEEK:Â
I am planning to host another Writing Accountability Group in February, Lord willing.
Tentative dates and times will be Wednesdays and Fridays
in February from 11am-12:30pm EST
Stay tuned for more info!
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Join the link-up with your own five-minute freewrite on the prompt SIMPLE below, then visit your link-up neighbor to read their post and leave an encouraging comment:Â
Gr8, K8!
It’s amazing how it goes,
how simple life can be
when my heart so closely knows
the coming end of me,
but I can spend the days between
living to the fullest,
saying that I live the dream
though this makes me look the dullest
knife that’s sitting in the rack;
people think I’m nuts,
but the Good Lord has my back,
no ifs or ands or buts,
and though I see the grave betide,
we’ll meet up on the other side.
Four minutes thirty. Ok, then.
We’ve been enjoying an extra long mild fall in southern Ontario. The small amount of snow we received a few weeks ago has completely melted. While I really appreciate the beauty of a fresh blanket of snow, I have truly enjoyed being able to walk the wooded trails on dry leaves instead of packed snow this fall. The sights and sounds never fail to fill me with a sense of wonder and peace. On one such walk this week, I was mesmerized by the moss along the sides of the trail. Moss has a variety of colours and textures which lends to its effect. What I love most about it is this: MOSS COVERS. It covers the hard grey lifeless rocks. It covers the dead brown broken branches. It covers hard bumpy roots sticking out of the earth. This simple green plant spreads and covers unlovely things with vibrant colour and life. You can do your own spiritual analogy if you wish. My mind always does these things. And it also just rests in the simple pleasure of experiencing the wondrous beauty of our Creator.
That’s beautiful in its simplicity and it would be the kind of thing that would bring me so much joy as well.
It looks so pretty, Kate.
My simple joy is the face recognition feature on my new iPhone.
During this busy hectic season, it is easy to complicate our lives with so many tasks or activities that may have little or no eternal value that we lose the simple meaning of Christmas: the birth of Jesus, Immanuel (God with us) the promised Savior who came to save and redeem us from our sins in order that we can have a relationship with Him and have eternal life (John 3:16). May we be like Mary who chose the one simple thing when Jesus came to visit her and her sister. Instead of complicating her mind and being anxious about the various tasks at hand, she chose to concentrate on one simple task: to attentively listen to the words of Jesus and worship Him wholeheartedly without distractions. Martha, on the other hand, was overwhelmed by undue expectations she placed on herself. She believed she needed to have an immaculate, spectacular home, and to cook the most exquisite, and delectable meal anyone has ever tasted. Martha felt angry, misused, and bitter that Mary did not assist her with the various tasks. Therefore, she asked Jesus to command or compel her sister to do the “right “ thing and help her. Jesus instead gently and firmly told her, “ Martha, Martha, you are worried and upset about many things, but one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better and it will not be taken away from her(Luke 10: 41-42). During this busy season, may we receive Jesus invitation to choose the one simple task, or one simple focus: like the shepherds and wise kings from the East who came to see Jesus, may we also bow down and worship Jesus, our Mighty Creator and King of kings and Lord of lords.