my favorite christian girl resources // part one

hello, friends! i hope you’re all doing well today ♥ it’s a lovely tuesday evening as i’m writing this post, and i’m watching a marvel movie with my younger sisters (: i figured i’d take a short break from my….heavier posts, and instead just give you guys some light and encouraging content ♥

note that i am not saying you should *buy* any of the products i recommend in here. i’m just saying they’re good products ♥ they aren’t sponsored or anything XD. also~ friendly reminder to remember to remain content in what the Lord has already blessed you with. i know how easy it can be to see posts like this and think “wow. if i just buy that one product i’ll be happy.” — please don’t buy into that mindset. that’s not my intent in this post at all ♥

my favorite christian girl products

// journaling bible

this is the journaling bible i have currently, and i love it so much. it’s gorgeous, and unique, and just…breathtaking. honestly, all journaling bibles are wonderful and so helpful in studying the Word. i know that my bible time has greatly improved since i bought my first journaling bible.

// micron pens

i love my microns so so so much. they don’t bleed through the pages of my bible, and they’re much more fine tipped than any other pens i’ve seen out there. my personal favorites are the 005 ones and the 01 ones 😉

// crayola supertips

the hype around these pens is real. i love them so so much; their colors are gorgeous, and they’re super affordable.

// tote bag

i love tote bags, okay? i know, i know. they’re basic, but honestly there’s something about them that just makes me so happy and adds a nice touch to any outfit ♥ i got mine from the daily grace co, during their $5 sale (keep an eye on their website — they hold those sales frequently). sadly i couldn’t find mine on their website *sad rue sounds* apparently they no longer sell it, so i can’t link it here 😦 i tried to find one that’s similar to it though.

// gracelaced notebooks

i got one of these for christmas, and they are breathtakingly gorgeous. i love all of ruth chou simons’s stuff (i’m hoping to get one of her books for christmas), and honestly just…there’s something about her art that is so soothing.

// bible & theology handbooks

i also got these for christmas, and they’re so wonderful and helpful. i love flipping through them. the bible one has really enriched my bible time (:

// the wingfeather saga series

i don’t currently own any of these, but i got them from the library and they’re just….. amazing. i’m on the 4th book right now, and i’m not ready to finish this series. i’ve read harry potter and percy jackson, and if we’re being honest, wingfeather is much better than either of those 😅 the characters are much more unique and i….. i love the world of wingfeather so much.

w̶i̶n̶g̶f̶e̶a̶t̶h̶e̶r̶ ̶i̶s̶ ̶m̶u̶c̶h̶ ̶b̶e̶t̶t̶e̶r̶ ̶t̶h̶a̶n̶ ̶h̶a̶r̶r̶y̶ ̶p̶o̶t̶t̶e̶r̶ ̶c̶h̶a̶n̶g̶e̶ ̶m̶y̶ ̶m̶i̶n̶d̶

// gentle & lowly

this book…… i…… i just finished it a few weeks ago, and i…… words can’t do it justice. such a good book ♥ read it, please. it changed my relationship with Christ ♥

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i really hope you all enjoyed this post ♥ i’ll try to get out a post next week about some more of my favorite resources.

what are your favorite christian girl resources? let me know in the comments ♥

Know The Novel // Part 1 // Introduction to Before We Fell Away

Hello friends! I’m in utter and complete shock, but somehow we’ve ended up in October? And it’s almost the holiday season? And wasn’t it just the new year last time I checked my calendar??

This year has been going by wayyy too fast for my liking 😅 I’m not ready for 2023…but that’s a topic for another day XD. Anyways, with it being October and everything, we’ve finally arrived in ~NaNoWriMo~ season. This is going to be my first real NaNo (the last few years I’ve kinda slacked off), and I’m super hyped. So~ to make it feel real and not just like an idea, I’m sharing my NaNo idea with you guys, and keeping you all updated on the chaos that is this novel. I’m going to be using Christine Smith’s Know The Novel questions (is anyone else doing Know The Novel this year?)

Note that I am not affiliated with NaNoWriMo in any way. I have been an active member on the YWP forums for NaNo in the past, but this year I’m flying solo with NaNo 😉

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The Questions 💛

1. What first sparked the idea for this novel?

Well, actually the idea for this WIP came to me 2 years ago randomly on Halloween night XD. It’s been kinda just existing in my brain since then, while changing slowly into something that’s…extremely different from the original premise.

My original premise was this: [The novel is] about this girl who is expelled from her fourteenth school in the past year. As a punishment she is sent away by her rich parents to go live with her grandmother in Bee County, a tiny town in the mountains (population, 1001). She ends up befriending these two girls, named Squirrel and Bee. Bee is your classic hopeless romantic who feels trapped in her small town, and Squirrel is a selectivly mute teenager who communicates through flowers and sign language (flowers have different meanings, and she grows different flowers so she can use them to communicate). She also falls in love with a ghost who haunts the local chapel.

As you can see, the vibes are immaculate and cottagecore XD. Since then, the story has changed a lot, and I’ve written multiple alternate first chapters for it. It’s a weird mix of some of my favorite novels, plus some of my favorite WIP’s, and I love it so much. Honestly at this point, it doesn’t even resemble the original premise. BUT that’s okay because the original premise characters show up in here?? If that makes sense?? Just as side characters??

2. Share a blurb (or just an overall summary)!

So…we don’t fully have a *real* blurb yet. All we have is a very silly chaotic mess of notes that may or may not make sense. Anyways, so here we go *cringes* I’m so nervous to share these notes-

• Set in the 1940s
• About a group of friends who are enjoying their last year of high school before everything changes
  • Theo
    • quiet
    • brooding
    • ready to die in the war (he’s not suicidal — he’s just……. sure of his fate)
    • abused
    • tragic
    • anti hero
    • he’s a survivor
    • so done with everything
    • feels like a ghost
    • type 5w6
  • Atticus
    • disabled (he was born without legs)
    • not entering the war
    • walks on his hands
    • teaches goats how to read (ok fine it was *one* goat)
    • self confidence
    • determined to make the most out of every day
    • silly goofball
    • type 4w3
  • Mel
    • tomboy
    • SHE DOESN’T FIT THE “NOT LIKE OTHER GIRLS” TROPE
    • kinda the mom of the group
    • fiercely overprotective of the boys™️
    • fiesty
    • really mad that she can’t join the war and fight
    • learning about airplanes
    • debater
    • controversial 
    • type 8w7
  • Lewis
    • bullied throughout middle school (he’s now popular)
    • eager to be wanted
    • heartthrob of the town
    • held back a year
    • kinda the bully now
    • tough love is his love language
    • type 8w7 (same as mel)
• nostalgia
• HEY DOES ANYONE WANNA CRY
• a bucket list is made before everything changes (before lewis and theo go off to war, mel goes to build airplanes, and atticus…… does atticus-things)
• set during 3 years

3. Where does the story take place? What are some of your favorite aspects about the setting?

It takes place in the small town of Bee County in the middle of Illinois. I don’t really have much of the setting developed, but I want it to give off like…Stars Hollow vibes, but also like- Bedford Falls vibes?? If that makes any sense at all?? Honestly I’ll develop the setting later in the second draft.

4. Tell us about your protagonist(s).

My main protagonist is Mel Ortlend; she narrates most of the book (aside from short snippets that are through letters and stuff). She’s a mix of Peggy Carter and Jo March, and is just…such a fun character. She has a bit of trauma from having an undiagnosed anxiety disorder. She’s the mom friend of the group, and is extremely protective of everyone. She can be a bit overbearing, but she’s honestly really sweet once you get to know her 💛 She’s bitter that she can’t fight in the war, and to make up for it, she’s planning to build airplanes once she graduates.

I’m so excited to explore her character !!

5. Who (or what) is the antagonist?

Time itself; each of the characters is terrified of how fast time is moving for them. They know that once high school ends, nothing will be the same, and it’s kinda influencing all of their choices.

6. What excites you the most about this novel?

The aesthetic !! The characters !! The WW2 vibes !! Also how it vaguelly reminds me of some of my favorite classic novels !!

I have plans to write a prequel for it sometime in the future that’s basically the original premise (but slightly edited) and that makes me so excited. I love these characters so much 💛

7. Is this going to be a series? standalone? something else?

Uhmmm the goal is for it to eventually evolve into a series, but we haven’t reached that point yet, so I’m just gonna leave that to future Rue (:

8. Are you plotting? pantsing? Plansting?

I’m pantsing; I’ve discovered that that’s what motivates me is not knowing where the story’s going next. It’s taken a few years of trial and error to find that out, but I’m so thankful that I’ve finally figured out what motivates me to write

9. Name a few unique elements about this story.

There’s so many unique elements; my favorites being a genius goat that can read, a boy who feels like a ghost, letters from the war, and very fun ships that make me very excited.

10. Share some fun “extras” of the story (a song or full playlist, some aesthetics, a collage, a Pinterest board, a map you’ve made, a special theme you’re going to incorporate, ANYTHING you want to share!).

Here’s the Pinterest board (:

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Thank you so much for reading this messy rambly blog post 💛 If you enjoyed this and want to read similar content, maybe consider subscribing? And clicking like? And leaving a comment? Are you doing NaNoWriMo this year? What are you writing for it? Let me know in the comments!

a chaotic mess of monday inspiration

*all photos (except the header image) are taken from pinterest. i don’t own them.

hello, friends! i hope you’re all doing well ❤ how’s your week going so far?

i don’t know about you guys, but i’ve been feeling like i’m trapped in a rut lately. it’s been rough, and has been messing with my mental health severely. my autism and adhd make it so easy to fall into executive dysfunction, and i just…yeah. so, with this post, i’m attempting to take back control and enter back into blooming.

this post is inspired by aria’s first light, my muse posts (:

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i’m praying that this post was helpful for all of you *hugs* i’m sorry that my posts have been a bit scattered lately…. mental health has been difficult.

let me know how i may pray for all of you in the comments <33

a bit of an apology/explanation post

*i don’t own the featured image

hello, friends! i’ll try to keep this post short, because it’s more of an explanation post than anything else.

in my most recent post, i made a…very brash statement that…the more i think about it, was wrong. when i first became convicted of this, i balked at the idea of actually apologizing and admitting i was wrong. rue needs to work on being more humble when she’s wrong 😅

so…in that post, i explicitly said i was no longer going to call myself a christian because of the toxic history behind that word. and well, after a discussion with my dad (who’s a pastor), i realized that what i was really trying to say is that i’m done with religion.

friends, religion is what the pharisees practiced. religion is simply a strict set of rules and rituals that you follow to “get into heaven”.

in lauren daigle’s losing my religion song, she sings about how religion has become an idol and that she’s abandoning the idea of religion in favor of a relationship with God.

at first glance, religion and relationship seem pretty similar. in fact, in the sense of christianity, they’re very similar. they involve the same rituals and holidays and…everything. the difference between them is the motivation. when people are christians for the religious aspect, it’s not real christianity. it’s just a way of living life in hopes of getting into heaven. but…friends, when people are christians for the relationship with the Maker of the stars, everything changes. 

one of my friends once told me to think of God like a friend. you want your friends to know you love them and care about them, right? why wouldn’t you do the same with Jesus?

i’m done boycotting the word “christian”. maybe i needed to look at it through a different lens. christianity isn’t the problem. religion is.

i have so much more i could say on this topic, but i promised i’d keep this short…so i guess i’ll save the rest of this for another post 😅 i really hope this cleared up some stuff. thank you all for sticking around for my ramblings *hugs* i love you all <33

why i no longer call myself a christian, and instead leave my relationship with Christ unlabled

*i don’t own the featured image

hello, readers! i hope you’re all doing well ❤ before any of you freak out about this post (because i know quite a few of you will get concerned), i’m still a Jesus follower. i’m just no longer placing my faith in a religion. i…i’ll explain in a second.

disclaimer: this post is not gonna be composed and clean and an easy read. this is a raw glimpse into my thoughts, almost like a journal entry. with that in mind, i would appreciate if you would enter into this post without judgement. i’m going to say some fairly controversial stuff that might hit you hard. i’m willing to discuss these topics in the comments, as long as it’s in a civil manner. if you post any hateful comments that are attacking anyone, i will delete those comments and potentially block you. i know we all have our political views that we feel very strongly about, but i’d request that for this you all just read without judgement.

i previously posted a shorter version of this on ydubs.

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this post has been on my heart for far too long. but…i was scared to post it. hate had polluted my heart and i knew that if i posted this, i would be saying all of this out of a place of sin. not out of a place of love. i’m praying that Abba gives me the right words to say. goodness knows i need all the wisdom i can get.

friends, im so sick of seeing christians be hypocritical. im so sick of seeing them make fun of people who they don’t agree with, and justifying it as humor. im so sick of constantly feeling like as contemporary christians, we’ve forgotten that christianity is, at it’s very roots, about love.

i was oblivious to this until the covid pandemic began. the christian community started boycotting masks, and saying that they needed their freedom. they said they were protected by God, and not a mask. the amount of times i’ve seen christians be unwilling to do something as small as wear a mask, even if it’s to keep a high risk person safe is…. heartbreaking. i’ve seen friendships destroyed over a small piece of cloth. i’ve watched people essentially give the government the middle finger with mesh masks that do almost nothing. i’ve watched people care more about their rights than about showing love to others.

and it hurts. it feels like the christian community has forgotten what the root of our religion is. when i hear christian, i think of trump, american flags, boycotting masks and vaccines, and hurting people. it’s funny how something as simple as following Jesus has become polluted by sin. now, mind you, i’m not saying it’s sinful to be a trump supporter or to be anti mask (those are things you have to take up with God and figure out what He says about them), but i am saying that those things turn sinful so quickly. only a few years ago, it was the left that was considered “ungodly”, but now i feel like the right has become equal with the left. 

you say you’re mad about progressive christians taking verses out of context and saying that God accepts homosexual love, and yet you ignore the verses about obeying the government unless they’re requiring you to sin, and about loving your neighbors. i have so much i could say about this topic, but i’m not going to. because, if we’re being completely honest, it would be sinful for me to keep talking about this. you want to know why? because i struggle with judging conservative christians. and i don’t want a post about the hate in the christian community to become a post where i’m growing the hate in my heart.

i’m gonna be real for a second; i’ve been hurt countless times by christians who care more about politics and what they think is right, than about their relationship with Yahweh. they justify hateful practices as being “their rights”. they give people the wrong picture of christianity. i’ve been told that it was a sin for me to have anxiety, i’ve been told that it’s sinful that i struggle with being attracted to girls…. i’ve been told so many things. and i…would Jesus say those things? He looked at so many broken people who were condemned by society, and He called them by their names and not by their sin. He looked at them with love. He didn’t judge. He didn’t tell them what they were doing wrong. instead, He picked up their broken pieces, and called them to follow Him. 

so when did christianity lose that as it’s very heart?

as i get older, and as i see how much hurt that so called “christians” have caused, i long to separate myself from the label of christian. i don’t want to be associated with all the bad. maybe instead i’m just… a weary traveler who loves Jesus and is on her way to the celestial city. i don’t want people to see me, and go “oh…she’s a member of that group that really hurt me.” i want people to see me, and understand that i love Jesus. i have so many friends who get triggered by christianity, because they’ve been abused in the name of Jesus. 

the bible says that people will know that we are Jesus followers by our fruit. not by our politics. not by our insisting on our rights. not on our harassing others who disagree with us.

i’m not gonna keep rambling…i know that this post alone will potentially cause debates, but im just…i guess that my challenge for you guys is to…think about what picture of Christ you’re portraying for non christians. are you showing them that christianity is all about politics and my rights my rights? or are you showing them that christianity is about one man Who dared to die a humiliating death in public, for you?

edit: the quote “He called them by their names and not by their sin” was paraphrased from a jarrid wilson quote.