Jesus loves Kylie too...

I've spent a lot of time lately mulling over a post that several of my friends have liked and shared on Facebook, and this particular article has really bothered me.  If you are one of my friends, family, or acquaintances that have liked and shared this article, then I apologize in advance if you're offended, but keep in mind, this is my opinion.  The article in question is this one found here, and it is all about why good, Christian girls should follow Sadie Robertson,

and have nothing to do with Kylie Jenner.  

The article greatly details all of Sadie's wonderful attributes and then contrasts them with reasons why we as Christians should be disgusted with Kylie Jenner.  I have one huge problem with this.  Jesus would not have responded to Kylie Jenner by writing her off.  

Just to be clear.  Sadie Robertson seems like a nice, moral, girl that proclaims to follow Jesus, and from what I can see, her actions back up her words.  That. is.  great.  I'm excited to know that she is walking the talk, even though I'm sure that it's not always easy (welcome to the teenage years).  Sadie is also surrounded by a family that loves her, cares for her, and shows her how to follow Jesus.  

Now, let's talk about Kylie.  Kylie is 17 years old.  She does not proclaim to be a Christ follower and lives her life in a very public sphere, thanks in large part to the fact that her older sister made and released a sex tape with a little known rapper over a decade ago.  Kylie is surrounded by a family that is consumed with fame and the pursuit of being famous, led by a mom who does whatever it takes to keep her kids in the spotlight, regardless of cost.

The article I referenced above calls Kylie out for the outfit that she chose to wear to CHURCH for Easter Sunday, saying

"While Sadie is an outspoken Christian who’s not afraid to speak out and defend her beliefs, Kylie’s Easter “outfit” for church featuring a midriff-bearing crop top shows exactly what she thinks about the Christian faith".

Let's be honest, Kylie's outfit is probably not something that most of us would throw on to go to church on Easter Sunday.  However, are we missing the point that Kylie, put on this outfit TO GO TO CHURCH???  I have to say that based on the reaction of people who call themselves Christians, it took a lot of courage for her to even go to a church, and I applaud her for going.  Who are we to judge her based on what she is wearing?  Sorry folks, when we follow Christ, that's not our job.  Our job is to love people, regardless of what they wear, or who they date, or how immoral they seem.  The Bible is really clear that it is only up to God to judge hearts.

"The Lord doesn't see things the way you see them.  People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart".  

1 Samuel 16:7b

Guys, we might see this:

 

(Kylie with her boyfriend Tyga)

But Jesus sees this:

Kylie belongs to Him.  She is his precious, beautiful, one-of-a-kind daughter, and whether or not she has accepted that Truth, you and I don't have the right to tear her down and rip her apart.  I just can't believe that Jesus would do that.  He operated under and in the principle of love, always, and He has COMMANDED us to do the same.

Here's where I can agree with the article that was written originally.  We probably don't want to encourage our daughters to be like Kylie Jenner, not because she's a horrible person, but because she isn't Jesus.  We also shouldn't place undue pressure on Sadie Robertson to be perfect, because one thing I've learned so far in my life journey is that perfection has only existed once in the entire history of ever, and it was Jesus.  Sadie is doing her best, but it is inevitable that she will fail at some point...she is human.  Jesus is the only One that we should aspire to be like.  The Bible is really clear on that point.

Guys and girls, we shouldn't do anything to tear down other people, especially as people that claim to be Christ followers.  We are called to love...everyone.  That doesn't mean you have to follow them on Twitter, or Instagram, or be Facebook friends.  It does mean that the community of Christ should not be the ones that are causing hurt and destruction to others, regardless of how they live their lives. 

So, how about instead of teaching our kids why Kylie Jenner is a bad person and should not be followed, what if we taught our kids that Kylie is lost, and searching, 17 and trying to find out who she is, and we should love her and pray for her?  What if we taught our kids that no one is a lost cause and prayer is effective and proven?  What if we looked at Sadie and taught our kids that she has a lot of advantages and seems to be doing a great job, but the truth is, no one is perfect and we don't ever really know what happens behind closed doors?  

Bottom line we get to love people, not judge them.  Perfect or imperfect, holy or immoral, good or bad.  It isn't what we were created for.   

Let's Talk About Wreaths, Baby...

Ok, you know you are old if you read that in song.  I thought of it this morning, and thought, of course it had to be the title of my next post.  Which, I happen to have a lot of time for, now that I am busy with my new (old) hobby of monogramming.  I'm having a fun morning monogramming my very first item for a customer, and while I'm watching the machine like a hawk, I realized my computer is just sitting here and it is a perfect time to write a post.  About wreaths.  And monogramming.

My sister, Amelia, in case you haven't met her, is awesome.  And she's crafty.  I'm crafty too, but not like she is.  She has great ideas.  She's one of the people that thinks of the stuff you see on Pinterest, then puts it on Pinterest for the rest of us to copy.  

This is Amelia.  Best friend in the whole wide world.

Amelia makes wreaths and door hangers.  And they are presh.

It's a sweet door hanger.

Burlap ribbon, and a monogram...I need one of these.

And then there's this.  Don't you love it?  I'm hoping my sweet sister will send me one in the mail...(hint, hint).

She's super talented guys, and you want her to make you a wreath, so follow her on instagram @ameliamadelyne and check out the fun stuff she makes!

I've had a fun day today.  I got to complete my very first monogram for money job for a dear friend.  I was a nervous wreck about doing it.  It's one thing if you mess up your own stuff, it's a whole other thing to mess up someone else's.  (I've done it before, and all I can say is Sorry again!!)  All that to say, it's a scary thing to take something that you really love and offer it to someone else, because, what if they don't find the work that is so near to your heart, good enough? 

Risks are always worth the reward.

So I took a risk and monogrammed for a friend.  It was fun, and I didn't suck and the monogram didn't suck.  

I'm realizing that I had somehow buried a part of me over these last four years.  It can sound cheesy to say that this is part of who I am, and you are allowed to think that, but let me just say.."This is a part of who I am."  I really love doing this, and it brings me joy, so I think that it might be part of my DNA.  As in, I was created this way, so there's something in this for me, that I get to use to draw people to Jesus.  Love. That.

Monogramming looks beautiful, but some of you might not know the process.

Here's the process I went through with the blanket that I got to do today...It was so much fun!

Step 1:  Make the design.  I use Embird to put my designs together and then I open them in my Singer software to get them to go to the machine.  This font is Carmen by 8clawsandapaw.com.  It's a good font for a baby boy.  Not too curly, but still fun.

Step 2:  Hoop the blanket.  I hoop my stabilizer and then pin down my blank.  On this particular project I had my machine put down a basting stitch to hold the blanket in place.  This comes out easy breezy with a seam ripper once you are done.

Step 3:  Gather up the extra blanket and secure it together to keep things a little more manageable.  Float a piece of water soluble stabilizer on top, and then send the design to your machine!  Chip clips are obviously the high fashion choice when securing a blanket.  Duh.

Step 4:  Voila!

So there it is, from conception to reality.  In my heart, this is such a picture of what has been happening in me lately and this little piece of me getting to go from dream to reality.  I'm so grateful that Jesus has provided a way for me to chase after His heart by responding to the desire He put in my heart.

Thanks for reading guys!