Ways to Support Your Favorite Blogger

Apr 25, 2017 | 2 comments

Ways to Support Your Favorite Blogger

by Molly Jo Realy @RealMojo68

Frankly, My Dear . . . : Ways to Support Your Favorite Blogger

And Frankly, My Dear . . . That’s all she wrote!

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Frankly, On Faith: Cast the First Stone

Apr 23, 2017 | 2 comments

Frankly, On Faith: Do All Things

by Molly Jo Realy @RealMojo68

Frankly, On Faith.

We live in an era that glorifies differences. We’re on one side of the fence or the other, but rarely are we perched atop in perfect balance.

Worse, that fence is not often wire. We can’t, or choose not to, see through to the other side. Our vision is blocked by hard wood or brick, or we’re only allowed a glimpse through holes or slats.

It’s sometimes the same with our actions. We don’t always see how what we do affects others. We don’t always care. We keep heaping our own plates higher and higher, with minimal consideration for “all things in moderation.”

We martyr ourselves in our own minds; believing we have it worse because we feel alone. Unloved. Uncared for. We separate ourselves from our community.

We can’t see the other side of the fence.

It makes it hard to see the other person’s story, to walk a mile in their shoes.

When I’m in a moment of frustration or anger toward someone else, I remember how God forgave me. How He bundled me up, healed my hurts and kissed my forehead. Then, He set me back on my feet and gave me a pat. “Go and make disciples of all the nations.” (Matt 28:19a, NLT).

He didn’t ask me to be perfect, to know everything, or to see the horizon before I took a first step. He just asked me to go. And to do so in a spirit of acceptance and forgiveness.

“They kept demanding an answer, so he stood up again and said, “All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!”
~John 8:7, NLT

Instead of using stones to hurt, or to build more walls, try laying a path.

This week, I challenge to take one step closer, to stretch your hand out farther, and to smile at a stranger. Step outside your thought-box and see things from a different perspective. Give someone the grace you would like returned to yourself.

How will you begin to tear down your walls?

CLICK TO TWEET: Frankly, On Faith: Cast the First Stone

With stepping stones and a peaceful heart,
~Molly Jo

Frankly, On Faith: Cast the First Stone

And Frankly, My Dear . . . That’s all she wrote!

Frankly, On Faith: I almost forgot Easter.

Apr 15, 2017 | 4 comments

Frankly, On Faith: I almost forgot Easter.

by Molly Jo Realy @RealMojo68

Frankly, On Faith.

I have a confession to make. A terrible, dark, sinful confession. Can I trust you?

I almost forgot it was Easter.

It’s true. I have been running ninety miles an hour and breaking through that end-race tape only to find it was really just the beginning of another race. Ever feel that way? Yeah. Glad I got my Skechers on.

At some point I ran to the water cart and saw the calendar. That can’t be right. But it is. Easter is upon us, and I’ve done very little to prep for it.

What’s that? You’re in the same race? Sweet. Let me share some refreshment with you.

God doesn’t care about the prep work.

He cares that you showed up.

You know why? Because that’s what He did. He was, is, and will always be here. He showed up. In the beginning. Before there was a beginning. He was the Beginning. And He will be the end. He overcame what we thought was the end. In Him, there is no end.

Wait, you say. How can you have a beginning without an end? Good question. I don’t have a good answer, except to point to Him. Because He is what I know, and He’s way smarter than you or I can ever be.

Some things require only faith. Some things we will never understand, but that’s okay. Not knowing why or how doesn’t make anything less real. I don’t know how my shoes are manufactured, but they still protect my feet on the pavement.

From the beginning, before the beginning, in the beginning, God and the Word were united, the same. They came together even though they already were. It’s like a wind picking up more wind; they’re the same but separate and stronger and together and unique and a whole . . . You can’t separate a breeze from a wisp.

In the beginning the Word already existed.
The Word was with God,
and the Word was God.
He existed in the beginning with God.
God created everything through him,
and nothing was created except through him.
The Word gave life to everything that was created,
and his life brought light to everyone.
The light shines in the darkness,
and the darkness can never extinguish it.
~John 1:1, NLT

God showed up. In the beginning. Now. Later. He was, is, and always will be, here.

And here you are, showing up. Now. In this moment. And you’ve been here. For a second, a minute, an hour, a day . . . It doesn’t matter. Time is no element to God. You are here. He is here. We are here together so He is here, now, with us.

Time cannot hold Him. The Grave cannot hold Him. He is too big and great and powerful and mighty to be held.

Except by your hand.

Hey. Do you see that? He’s smiling and reaching. He wants to run the rest of the race with you. Will you let Him join your journey?

CLICK TO TWEET: Frankly, On Faith: I almost forgot Easter.

With running shoes and a hand to hold,
~Molly Jo

Frankly, On Faith: I Almost Forgot Easter.

And Frankly, My Dear . . . That’s all she wrote!

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Frankly, On Faith: Are You Addicted to Busyness?

Mar 12, 2017 | 2 comments

Frankly, On Faith: Do All Things

by Molly Jo Realy @RealMojo68

Frankly, On Faith.

So, just how busy are you?

Are you overwhelmed at times? In need of some “down” time? Is coffee more necessary than enjoyable? If your people had just three words to describe you, would “multi-tasker” be one of them?

Do you feel exhausted more often than not?

Yeah. I hear ya. Sometimes just breathing takes more effort than I want it to. This pesky life with its pesky chores at its pesky pace of lightning speed . . . Sometimes I just wanna scream.

You, too? Phew. Good. Thought I was alone for a minute.

Oh, not good that you’re going through it. Not even good that you understand. Because, really. Wouldn’t it be great if fewer people understood the chaos of a demand-it-now mentality? But still. I’m glad you’re in it with me.

So. Here we are. Holding on to the ropes as the sea churns a little more than it used to. Trying to keep our heads above the water more often than not.

And the storm comes and drops something else on us. Right? Another wave. Another hit. Another emergency.

It’s enough to make This Girl want to jump overboard.

But alas, I know all too well that even though the ride is rough, there’s better safety in the boat than out in the sea itself. So I stay. You stay. And we look at each other and say, “What are we even doing here?”

The high waves come and rock the boat, but then the seas calm, the sun comes out, and we’re happy to be warm and dry again.

And we can think clearly again.

He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.
~Mark 4:39, NIV

And it’s with a deep breath and clearer vision that we realize the Captain has been here all along. He’s the one who tethered us to the boat in the first place!

So we feel good about what we’ve overcome and we decide to take on more.

STOP. DOING. THAT.

Stop taking on more. Stop ignoring the peace He has gifted you. Stop being addicted to busyness.

Just be still.

In this moment, we can give ourselves permission to sit back and let Him navigate. All we have to do is row. All we have to do is let go our grip and let Him take over.

All we have to do is have faith that He will get us to our destination. And when the Son is out, it’s okay to relax and enjoy the view.

CLICK TO TWEET: Frankly, On Faith: Are You Addicted to Busyness?

With fair winds and following seas,
~Molly Jo

Frankly, On Faith: Are You Addicted to Busyness?

And Frankly, My Dear . . . That’s all she wrote!

Happy Planner: Conference Style

Mar 1, 2017 | 4 comments

by Molly Jo Realy @MollyJoRealy

Nippers, NOLA, and a Happy Planner

Hey y’all! Remember when I fell in love with my Happy Planner? And the Meal Planner pages to track the holiday foods and monthly meatloaf recipes?

Of course, I also bought my Planner to help with the social media, writing, and editing projects.

Happy Planner Page: Social Media MoJo

In less than three months, I’ll be at the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference. Immersed for five days with fellow writers, agents, publishers, teachers . . . friends. It’s pretty much my equivalent to a big family reunion.

One of the most important accessories a person can have at any conference is a notebook and calendar. There will be classes to take, people to meet. Projects to share and shop out. It’s important to be able to track all this information. And for me, it’s also important to have a creative outlet for journaling.

So I took a few extra pieces and designed my own Happy Planner. Of course, my main writing focus is NOLA, so I made sure to add those little touches as much as possible.

Grab a glass of tea, sit back, and let me tell you all about it.

Happy Planner: Conference Dashboard

The dashboard is a tabbed, plastic divider. Think of it like a large bookmark. Some people use it to hold their sticky pads for writing notes. I also use mine as a motivator. Each day, several times a day, I’ll be reminded to be productive and, as Dwayne Pride of NCIS: New Orleans says, “Learn Things.” All this one needs is a honkin’ big coffee cup sticker.

Happy Planner: Conference Style – supplies

The beauty of the Happy Planner is even if you pick up a calendared version, you can purchase inserts and accessories. I knew when I first bought my Planner, as the months passed, I’d take them out and put them into another Planner, like a memory book. Since the extra covers come three sets in a pack, I had two left over to choose from. I picked the stripes/dotted combo because the dots remind me of ~ wait for it ~ Tiffany Blue. Like y’all didn’t see that one coming, right?

The Planner inserts are designed to easily slip onto the discs, so whether you have five or fifty pages, they lay flat and secure.

Happy Planner: Conference Style – I Heart Discs

The six-month calendar extension pack is so my friend. Since the tabs are undated, instead of using them as monthly inserts, I use stickers to identify each day I’ll be on my trip, including travel time.

Happy Planner: Conference Style – Day Tabs

Each month-at-a-glance layout will be used for that day’s highlights, while several week-at-a-glance layouts have been converted:

“What They Said . . . ” will be a collection of quotes to inspire and motivate
“Growth Spurts” track those “Aha!” moments

This leaves two week-at-a-glance layouts to be used however the day requires. Perhaps autographs from fellow conferees? Notes to and from God? They can be anything.

Happy Planner: Conference Style – Week-at-a-Glance Pages

I picked up photo pocket inserts and a fuse tool, so I can make photo/glitter/memorabilia pages (as inspired by Me & My BIG Ideas blog post “Valentine’s Shaker Pocket“). Oh, and twelve small containers of glitter. Hey, they were on sale, okay? And who doesn’t love a good shake of glitter now and then?

Happy Planner: Conference Style – Photo Pages and Fuse Tool

Of course, no Planner is complete without a Bucket List, yes? I queried my friends for suggestions, and as you can see, This Girl is going to be pretty busy.

Happy Planner: Conference Style – Blue Ridge Bucket List

Finally, an ample supply of lined and graph pages. Because you never know . . . I may feel like writing something.

Happy Planner: Conference Style – Writing Pages

A few stickers, some washi tape, and my Happy Planner is almost ready. Of course, I’ll post photos as more pages are ready, but I’m pleased as punch with the initial layout.