11.15.2011

my cup.

i have a confession.
my whole life i have been a cup half empty type of gal. i have always played the woe is me card. this is a fact about me that i am not proud of. 


Source: etsy.com via Kelly on Pinterest




about two years ago i decided i needed to change. i had just turned 29. 29. i started to panic. i was not who i thought i would be at 29. heck i never thought i would be 29. i decided it was time to take an active approach and change all the things i didn't like about me. problem was i focused on the outside, not the inside. cause you know if you aren't pretty outside you wont be pretty inside. *rolling my eyes at my stupidity*


i started working out and eating better and lost 18 lbs. i was getting compliments on how good i was looking. and of course i 
ate.it.up.


later that year my husband had to go out of town on business for two months. i was not happy about this and fell apart. i stopped exercising and reverted to my old ways of woe is me. and guess what gained all of the weight plus an extra 10 lbs back over the course of a year. who does that. oh yes...ME!


last year i realized that i still wasn't all that happy. and why not? i am tremendously blessed. i am living the american dream. i am a christian...why wasn't i happy.


here is what it came down to.
i could talk a big game about the lord. but i wasn't actively pursuing a relationship with him. of course i would fall down on my knees when things weren't going my way, but how about the day to day. we prayed with our children everyday, but i was doing it because it was part of the routine not because i wanted to. shameful i know. 


over the last year i have been trying (i saying trying because of course there are days that i fail) to actively pursue a relationship with christ. becuase you really can't have a half full cup without him. i want my cup to remain half full for the rest of my life.





 the other day while reading my bible i came across this:

 "What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are so careful to clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside you are filthy—full of greed and self-indulgence!  You blind Pharisee! First wash the inside of the cup and the dish, and then the outside will become clean, also."  
Matthew 23: 25-26

this rocked my world. i haven't been able to get it out of my head, nor do i want to. pretty much says it all for me. 


this is how i interpret it. if you are actively pursuing a relationship with the Lord by whole heartedly following the commandments, reading and living in the word, praying and giving thanks, that when we open our mouths love and kindness will pour forth. we will sparkle and shine without even knowing it.
if we are doing it out of routine or because we want to "look good" in front of others inside we will be a hot mess. 


are you actively pursuing a relationship with the Lord?


here's to our cups shining for all to see and when we do fail that we get right back in to the pursuit with the quickness.



happy tuesday my friends!








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21 comments:

{cuppakim} said...

i like this post a lot.
i am a half full girl usually.
but i love the idea of pairing the imagery of the dirty cups from Matthew 23, and the shining cups with that gorgeous picture.

you really shared something beautiful here :)

stephanie said...

i. love. this. and you. way to challenge my socks off lady! so good.

Marie said...

way to go!

i too am a recovering "cup half empy" gal...

there truely is no way to change except Christ daily:)

The Olive Tree Blog said...

I am a half full kinda girl...almost to a fault...I do the opposite put things on the back burner and pretend they are not there...lol...go about my merry way rather than deal with it Such a great post. Thanks so much for you honesty!

grey rose (they/them) said...

amen, girl. god is good!
keep on striving. i see his work in your heart and you are a blessing. xo

Anonymous said...

This is a lovely post.

Anonymous said...

Great word! Glad I stumbled here. Definitely needed this today :)

ashlyn | nicole said...

what a perfect post that my heart needed to hear. your words are so true!

i can be a "half cup empty" girl & am def working on changing that!

happy tuesday xoxo.

Anonymous said...

Thank you for your honesty- that is such a convicting scripture!

And it's SO TRUE that only Christ can satisfy us fully, and the beauty of his love is overwhelming when we really take the time to experience it!

Vivian said...

Very well said. The Lords looks at us with infinite worth. We just need to ALWAYS remember to him we matter.

Karen said...

I love you, friend! And pray that your cup is always half full!!

Kristin @ KK & A CAMERA said...

I'm a half-full lady most of my days. I still need more Jesus. :) Loved reading this post... I want to shine the light of Christ because I'm so near to Him, because I know Him so well. What a beautiful thought. Cheers.

Katie @ minivan diva said...

I love that you decided to share this. I think many of us can relate. I have to work hard to be a cup half full girl.

Jessica said...

so very true. your honesty is inspiring...and motivating.

i am in a similar space and this hits me hard.

truly wonderful post.

thank you for it!

... said...

I was the same way as you in the past. I always looked at life with the glass half empty...I decided I was going to make a conscience effort to look at life in a new way...and with the help of Christ....I am so much better off now...with my glass half full! Thanks for sharing!!

ashley marie wilson said...

BEAUTIFUL POST! i used to be so half empty because I always worried and thought thinking about what could happen was a good thing... i realized i wasted YEARS worrying for no reason and should've just seen the bright side of things.

No and Jen said...

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Kate said...

This was an awesome post, kelly! I really feel the same way.. I'd love to have a better relationship with christ too! This really inspired me! <3 <3

In our sea of love

Heather @ Finding Beauty in the Ordinary said...

totally relate to this post. you're awesome.

Anonymous said...

This post spoke to my heart. We all have our ugly cup moments... I want to sparkle and shine for Christ every day!

Jess said...

this really spoke to me... in many ways. i was led to read this for sure. thank you!