Kelsey Lyles

02/05/2022

11/28/2020

“Slow”

10/19/2020

A poem of hope❤️

08/24/2020

Designed for a purpose! That’s you❤️ believe it 🙏🏻🥰

08/04/2020

“We must confront the brutal facts, yes, but once we have confronted the brutal facts, we must return to our faith. Confronting the brutal facts helps us to understand our reality, but unwavering faith causes us to ask ‘What can I do today to move toward my goal despite the reality of my circumstances?’” -Robyn R. Jackson

@ Austin, Texas

08/03/2020

Does the way you think about yourself or another focus on lack or abundance? Does it allow room for potential and new blossoming or does it build a wall before you've even tried to take a step into new territory? In my latest blog post, I explore the idea of labels, how we label others and ourselves, and how those labels impact our lives. Labels often perpetuate injustice and deficit thinking based on their origins or what they imply. Labels can be limiting but labels can also be empowering. Let’s be inquisitive about the labels we use and challenge ourselves to be critically thinking about their impact.

06/24/2020

I love this piece of art I bought at an art fest in Austin by Anne Byrd. I’ve always had a vision of drawing a heart that was wrapped in tar but that the tar was being peeled away and beneath the blackness was a red, fleshy, beating heart representing life and being fully ALIVE. When I saw this painting it reminded me of that idea and this artist has taken it to the next level (I believe the artist had a different intent as it is called Nature’s Gracious Heart but this is how it initially spoke to me). Recently a question was posed to me about the idea of flourishing: can you think of a time when you were flourishing in the church? This idea of flourishing has been on my mind. This painting reminds me of a heart that is flourishing because look at the beauty and life that is flowing from it. Even in the midst of the worst circumstances, can our hearts flourish? I believe that with God’s help, they can. We can have hearts that are guarded in Christ Jesus and out of the love we receive from Him we can pour it out to others. A recent online sermon/discussion at my church also proposed this idea of flourishing. The aim of church is the flourishing of its people and the people in its vicinity: in other words, shalom (peace) for everyone in every area of life. If that is the goal, I believe that starting with our own hearts is the first step. “Watch over your heart with all diligence, For from it flow the springs of life.”
‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭4:23‬ ‭NASB‬‬

06/22/2020

“I look up to the mountains— does my help come from there? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth! He will not let you stumble; the one who watches over you will not slumber.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭121:1-3‬ ‭

Whatever it is that you are facing, the Lord is right there with you. ❤️

05/21/2020

“I have learned over time, after being battered and smoothed by experience after experience, that creativity, whatever form it takes, is less about creating something out of nothing and more about being in relationship and conversation with life and the unknown. The more we engage expression and writing as a way to listen and to stay in relationship with life, the more sacred our path. We are not meant to bend material to our intent, but to bend our will to give voice to life and its rhythms. “ - Mark Nepo, excerpt from book “drinking from the river of light”

I feel this so much I keep reading it over and over to let the words sink in. I feel so connected to these words as a writer who is still unsure often... but somehow when I do sit down and still myself, something stirs in me and words flow. It feels more like I’m being gently told what to write than creating the sentences myself. It is like a dance, a rhythm, and a relationship. I attribute this to the Holy Spirit working in me, guiding me and changing me as I go. It’s less about the final product but the process that goes into producing a piece of writing. It’s about connecting my inward experiences to my outward ones. It’s about noticing, listening, and finally responding. It’s about acknowledging the depth of unknown but somehow also feeling connected to it. It’s like staring out at a vast expanse of ocean feeling insignificant and full of meaning at the same time. Writing brings life to my soul.