Home: Living Room Redo

I'm a gal who loves change. 

Combine that with my love for interior design, and I'm happy as a peach by simply moving around a couple picture frames. 

Because of this, Mr. Darcy is used to coming home and finding decor in new arrangements throughout the house.

Due to the fact that we currently rent our town home, we are unable to paint or do any "major" DIY design changes. However, a couple weeks ago, we sold our old couch and purchased some new-to-us furniture. Rather than just swapping out the couches, The Hubs and I decided to flip the entire room.

On a Saturday afternoon, we both sketched out our ideas for new furniture arrangements, and then we presented our ideas to each other. The Hubs impressed me with a couple good ideas, and we combined our efforts to fully maximize our living room space.

Well, what do you think?!

Click here to see what the room looked like when we first moved in.

Man! We didn't realize how huge this living room was until we moved our furniture around.

Moving the TV above the fireplace was one of the best space-savers. Also, it is much more conducive for movie nights with family/friends.

This red sofa is my favorite- it's so long and so deep. It's literally the perfect napping conch.

Jon calls this his "Man Chair". (No seriously, he kicked me out of the chair so he could practice his bass playing skills.)

We just love this large Ikea coffee table, given to us from some sweet friends. It was the perfect addition, and it the second shelf houses our laptops and my Real Simple magazines perfectly.

Our teal flea-market-find now houses all of the electronics. And holla- my record player is now back in motion! The sheer curtains also hide any cords from the TV to the outlet. (Ain't nobody got time for cords hanging out all over the place.)

This gallery wall is one of my favorite additions to the room. More about this detail to come!
These two white chairs form a quaint reading nook, of which I am currently blogging from (since Mr. Darcy kicked me out of his man chair).


It felt so great to take the time to sketch the room, and use the best of both of our ideas to maximize the space. It was a total team effort!

We love our new-to-us furniture, and this room is now our favorite room in the house. In the mornings, I love to just sit in this room and prepare my mind for the day.

So, whether it's rotating all the furniture in your space, or merely swapping out a few accessories, I challenge you to change something in your home decor. The freshness may inspire you in more ways than one!

When He speaks freedom.

The following has been The Lord's Word for me during this past season of change. The entire chapter comes off the page at me. 

It's. so. good. 

I invite you to read it- in its entirety. For this post's sake, I have highlighted my most favorite lines.

Psalm 37

Of David.

5 3 Trust in the Lord and do good;
    dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.
4 Take delight in the Lord,
    and he will give you the desires of your heart.

Commit your way to the Lord;
    trust in him and he will do this:
6 He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn,
    your vindication like the noonday sun.

7 Be still before the Lord
    and wait patiently for him;

17 

The Lord makes firm the steps
    of the one who delights in him;
24 though he may stumble, he will not fall,
    for the Lord upholds him with his hand.

2539 

The salvation of the righteous comes from the Lord;
    he is their stronghold in time of trouble.
⁴⁰ The Lord helps them and delivers them;
    he delivers them from the wicked and saves them,
    because they take refuge in him.

This passage is where my scripture memorization is coming from these days. Pulling this passage about, piece by piece; I can't get enough.

You see, for about a year now, I felt God prepping me for something. I didn't know what- but I knew it would be totally different than what I was used to. I knew He was calling me to get ready. 

At the end of May, an unexpected opportunity was presented to me. It was something that I was truly so excited about; almost to the point of not believing it could be true. They were asking ME to accept this position. Me! And at such an unexpected time!

I took the next month to make my decision- Jon and I prayed, we crunched numbers, we dreamt about a different future for our family, we made plans. As the excitement fluttered in my heart, the fear also billowed up in my stomach. Fear of change. Fear of provision. Fear of... health insurance?

You see, I have Type 1 Diabetes. One of the perks of teaching in my county was the incredible health benefits. For diabetic teachers, they covered all cost at 100%! That was unheard of, and I knew that no other career (or county) would provide that.

I audibly heard God say to me, "Am I not bigger than BlueCross?" Sounds silly now, right? But at the time, the fear was very real. And this new opportunity revealed just how deep that fear ran. 

Have you ever prayed for peace over a situation, but it didn't come right away? Have you ever asked God for His guidance, knowing all the while He was already leading? Has God ever asked you to just trust- commit to Him first and foremost?

Now that I'm able to look back on the situation, I realize God was speaking the whole time. I was praying over and over again, but my prayers were drowning out His words. 

"Be still, and know that I am God."

"Wait patiently for me."

"Commit your way to me, and I will do this..."

"Delight in Me. I will make your steps firm."

My God began to flood my mind with memories of times when He had provided, been faithful, guided. He reminded Me how GOOD He is. And He challenged me to trust Him.

Trust.

Commit.

God, I need peace about this situation!

Give me your desires.

I want to follow You!

Commit your way to me.

I need your peace!

Recognize I am who I say I am.

One afternoon, when I knew it was time to make my decision, I spent a couple hours on the phone with health insurance companies. The numbers and jargon had finally got the best of me. Here it came- anxiety began to flood my body.

In a refusal to let the enemy take me down, I put everything aside. I turned on my worship music, and I began to sing. I prayed. I sang some more.

Through tears running down my cheeks, I whispered, "Okay God. You've never left us hanging before. You are the Provider. You are Faithful. You are Good. You are Gracious..."

I began to relive life experiences when God knocked my socks off. My whisper grew louder. Stronger.

"I trust you, God. I commit my way to You. I believe this opportunity is from you, and I accept it. We will go where you're calling us. Yes, God!"

And you know what? That peace that I had prayed over for a month, but had yet to experience it- that peace came over me. It flooded my living room. My somber prayers became a moment of dancing for my Lord, all over the house!

That fear that had taken over my mind was released. Freedom! 

When God speaks freedom over His people, it's not just over the unsaved. He speaks freedom over the bondage that we place over ourselves every day, sometimes unknowingly so!

I so loved my years as a teacher. I was blessed beyond expectation with coworkers, administration, students, and parents. I changed my career without malice intent or regret. God had been prepping; He was moving in me. 

And I accepted this new life change with true peace and abandonment of fear.

He's still prepping, you know. I realize I have not arrived yet. This year I am the newb. I am learning. And I am loving every minute.

God, I don't know where we're going. But I trust You completely.

There is such freedom in those words.