behind the print: philippians 1:6

designing prints really isn't the easiest thing for me. i mean, i absolutely love it, but it's not like i can just sit down and say "i am going to make a print out of john 3:16 right now". it just doesn't work that way. more often than not, it has to be a verse or quote that i'm passionate about at that moment that i just have to put onto a print or else my brain will explode.

it's out of the overflow of my heart that the verses are chosen and the prints are designed. sometimes i hate that i'm this way, because it makes custom orders really difficult and because i will often be right in the middle of my day when inspiration strikes. at that moment, it feels like i have to drop everything and open photoshop elements before the inspiration is gone.

the actual design process is pretty organic. there's no magical formula, i just try different things until it looks right. that's another thing i sorta hate, that i can't whip something up in a few minutes because it takes another hour of tweaking and changing and getting the colors just so.

the thing is, my heart and soul are in those words and those prints in a very real and specific way. i think that's why i keep doing it and why i love it so much every single time someone buys one for their home. they're a part of me. they really are.

and this shop relaunch? i've been designing the new prints for a few months now, since i can't force it. so that means i've been waiting a long time to share them with you. it's been so hard to wait! in light of all that, i thought it might be fun to tell you a bit about the inspiration behind each print. i'll just start with this one today:

i've never been one to pick a "life verse". i feel like any verse can speak to my life and circumstances at any given time. different verses will make a huge impact on me for different reasons and in different seasons. that said, philippians 1:6 has continued to minister to me throughout almost every season of my adult life. it sort of encompasses my life-long struggle of feeling like i'm never enough. like i'll never master this thing or i'll never quit that thing or i'll never have complete victory over that other thing.

if i let my own mind do the evaluating, i'm failing. all day. everyday.

i told you about those spiraling episodes that i have, where i allow my thoughts to take over, instead of taking them captive and making them obedient to Him? well this is the one verse that has consistently encouraged me and pulled me out of those spirals.

quite often, i convince myself that God has washed His hands of me. if i can't get myself organized enough to serve in three ministries and wake up before my kids every single morning for quiet time and make meals once a week for someone in need and have a coffee date or playdate planned twice a week and keep the house clean and my people happy? well then i'm a complete failure and there's no hope for me, and He will move on to someone who isn't such a lost cause.

yes, those are the things that i think.

but philippians 1:6 rebukes all of that nonsense and assures me that i'm not a finished work. not yet. 

He is writing a story and until the story is finished, i will mess up and i will fail and i will still have areas in my life that aren't neatly ironed out. that's just part of being human.

God is constantly using this verse to remind me:
• that He knows i'm a work-in-progress.
• that in fact, i'm His work-in-progress and He's kinda fond of me, too.
• that He's all about the process, as much as the finished work.
• that He's all about relationship and He actually desires for me to need Him and rely on Him.

it helps to bring me back to an eternal perspective, where it isn't all about me, failures or triumphs. it's about the day of Christ Jesus and the work He has already accomplished and will accomplish upon His return. oh for that day to come quickly, amen?


you can buy the Philippians 1:6 print right here.