My latest photo session...

Check out the pictures on facebook.  Click here.  :)

Who I long to be...

Life has been happening around here.  That's the easiest way to describe things.  Just life.  Ups and downs, good things and bad things....my journey continues on.  And it's beautiful, really, I promise you it is.  Amidst the messiness and craziness, it's a beautiful life.

But I've realized this lately...the burden I carry is heavy.
And I think heavier than necessary. 

I mean, I honestly believe that life is not intended to be easy breezy all the time.  A life like that allows no challenges to grow, opportunities to learn, chances to experience worlds outside the bubbles we create for ourselves.

But I do think there's a middle ground.  And I don't think I've gotten there yet.

For this reason...

I carry the burden alone...at least most of the time.  I carry both the worries and the joys alone.
And who should I share those burdens with?
I don't know if it's a matter of sharing...
...rather, maybe giving.

Maybe I should be giving them over to Christ.  And maybe that's not even a maybe.  Rather, a definite biblical truth.

I spend so much energy worrying.  Even about the joys, even when I'm on a mountaintop.  Worrying about when the valleys will come.  And rarely do I turn to Christ.  Rarely do I give it to Him.

Why?
Easy, lack of faith. I don't believe that He'll take care of it the way I want Him to. I don't believe that He'll respond to my needs in the timing I want Him to.  So I foolishly believe that if I worry and fret about things enough, they'll get better.  Ha! Right. Instead, I end up emotionally (and sometimes physically) exhausted. I start to lead a crippled life because I spend so much time worrying about my circumstances that I am often unable to respond to the people around me.  To care for those I love. I'm consumed with my own life that I have no energy to reach out to others.

Fail. Utter fail on my part.

So who do I long to be?

I long to be a woman of faith who turns first and foremost to her Savior.  Who finds comfort knowing that Christ is in complete and utter control of my life.  Who is okay being in the valley and feeling disappointed because I am confident that my Jesus will rescue me.  I long for a faith that is strong enough to trust that each and every moment and experience....the good and most definitely the challenging, are refining me and making me the girl that God has called me to be.

I long to love Jesus more than I love myself. To trust that He is good and perfect and more capable than I could ever even imagine.

I'm desperately praying for that...

PHOTOGRAPHY!

Life's been crazy. Like words cannot explain.  But GOOD!  So good!  I don't feel like I have a single second to breathe, but I'd much rather experience life this way than having too much time on my hands.  I'm trying to cram as much as I can into my days and weekends because I want to do SO MUCH.  So basically, I'm thankful.

All that to say, much of what has been occupying my time as of late is...PHOTOGRAPHY!  If you've read any of my past blogs, you know that I was just starting to get back into it.  Welp, I took a big ole leap...jump...DIVE!  And went all in!  (Because really, do I ever do things just half way?  Nope!).  So essentially, I've started my own business.  Kristi Noelle Photography.  It's still a baby business, but a business nonetheless.  And I. AM. STOKED!  I couldn't think of anything more fun than capturing the memories and moments that are important to others.  My hope is that God will bless this venture and it will one day flourish into a strong business.  But for now, I'm just enjoying what comes my way.

So head on over to my site.  Check it out.  Follow my blog.  Like my page on FB.  And book a session with me!! :)  (And then tell all of your friends to do the same!!).

Life is good.  I am thankful.

Flags

Brooke Fraser's new album, "Flags", was released recently. It's incredible...seriously, incredible. Go buy it and you'll immediately love it. In the meantime, listen to the song "Flags". So much Truth in this song.

Portraits with Carly

So as I continue to learn how to use my camera and take quality pictures, I've been roping friends into letting me do portrait sessions with them. Carly was kind enough to agree. And I'm so thankful for her! She was super patient as I was taking her picture and she was lots of fun! And obviously, she's very photogenic so that made it pretty easy to get some great shots! Anyways, as always, constructive criticism is welcomed. Especially when it comes to lighting...that's my sore spot. I don't have reflectors yet, so I think when I get some of those and learn how to use them it will help with some of the lighting conditions. Any other suggestions on how to help with lighting? I really want my pictures to have a warm feeling to them. Also, I don't want to have to use additional lighting, but I know at some point, I might have to...sooo that's another battle for another day.

These are some of my favorites from the day. Enjoy :)

Hymns

I love hymns. Like words can't describe how much I love them. I think there's something incredibly special about them...a connection to the body of Christ from many years ago. There's a comfort knowing that our ancestors who wrote these stunning lyrics loved, struggled, praised, cried, and went through very similar situations as we did during their walk with Christ. And while I value modern worship music, it often lacks the depth and clarity that hymns have in presenting the picture of the gospel. I especially love movements such as Indelible Grace, Red Mountain Music, Sojourn Music, etc that are writing new music to go with hymn lyrics from long ago.

In any case, we sang "Before the Throne of God Above" at church on Sunday. I don't think any other song paints the beauty of the Gospel as well as this song does. This is my ultimate love story. My long awaited fairytale. My Jesus desperately loves me...he has engraved my name on his hand, not just written, engraved. It's permanent. He claims me. I. AM. HIS.


(disregard the images...some of them are kinda strange)

Because a sinless Savior died, My sinful soul is counted free.

My Photography Endeavor Continues

I'm learning. Slowly. But, I'm learning. I persuaded 2 of my friends into being my model subjects so I could practice taking pictures. I definitely have a lot to learn, but I'm catching on. Anyway, here are some of the pictures I took during our little Sunday afternoon session. Enjoy :)

The City Beautiful!


Fountain at Lake Eola


And another Fountain shot :)


My sweet friend, Angela


Angela's friend, Alanna, who I met for the first time this day. And she was kind enough to put up with me taking her pictures all day!



I need to work on giving direction a bit more, but Alanna still looks very pretty!


These 2 have been friends for a long time. Love that I was able to capture some pics for them :)


Her hair reflected the light so beautifully!


2 gorgeous girls.


And this is my favorite one of the day.

So, once again, please feel free to leave your thoughts, feedback, advice. All are welcome. :)