Britni C.

Britni shares with us some great books you will want to add to your list, finding joy and identity outside of our accomplishments, and thoughts on freedom of choice and not choosing heaven.

Britni C.

Inspiring biblical passage of the moment: Here are two, since I can’t choose one.
“And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.” (Romans 8:28)

“Have you never heard? Have you never understood? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of all the earth. He never grows weak or weary. No one can measure the depths of his understanding.” (Isaiah 40:28)

The first verse serves as a reminder that no matter how difficult or desolate a situation may seem, God can and will use it for good. I love the second verse because it provides perspective through asking questions to check ourselves, reminding us that God is God and incomprehensible by our human minds. He is wise and all-knowing.

Spiritual growth focus at the moment: I’m currently working on complete surrender and trust in the Lord. This comes hand-in-hand with understanding His deep love for me — that I don’t have to strive and “work” for His love.

Profession: My day job is working as a management consultant at a tech/communications company. I spend my nights and weekends as a calligrapher.

A one sentence bio of yourself: A 5-foot-tall, rap-loving, taco-eating, calligraphy-doing daughter of God who is learning to love Jesus, others, and herself while aspiring to bring His love and light into the world.

When did you first encounter God? In the summer before 7th grade, I experienced God’s love during a retreat. During the altar call, I felt led to start a relationship with Jesus Christ. I felt incredibly joyous and free that night — something I had never felt before. I remember bawling (in a good way) that night, overwhelmed by His presence and love, which sparked a relationship and a longing for Him. I definitely was on and off in my relationship with Him in the years after, but through trials and life, He’s drawn me near to a relationship with Him again.

What has helped you grow spiritually in this season? 

Multiple things have supported my spiritual growth in this season:

1) Difficulties that have led me to cling to Jesus for comfort.

2) Being in nature.

3) Various resources: podcasts, books, articles, and videos.

4) Spending time with Jesus and allowing Him to speak to me, revealing things about me and healing me in areas I never knew I needed healing in.

5) People: mentors, friends, pastors, and Jesus. I’ve learned from their wisdom, experiences, and doing life with them.

Just read/currently reading: I recently finished Keep Your Love On by Danny Silk. Currently reading: Emotionally Healthy Spirituality by Peter Scazzero. I definitely recommend both books for anyone who wants to learn about relationships and emotional health.

Top three essentials: My Tombow Fudenosuke pen (for calligraphy) and paper (can this count as one item/pair?), Bible, and sun-lit coffee shops.

How did God speak to you recently? As many of you may be, I’m a doer. I enjoy planning, creating, dreaming, encouraging others, and striving to improve myself and those around me. However, God has been calling me into a season of intentional rest and allowing myself to be loved outside of my activities and accomplishments. It’s a crazy concept to accept that I’m loved no matter what I do or don’t do.

“God has been calling me into a season of intentional rest and allowing myself to be loved outside of my activities and accomplishments.”

Hobby: Calligraphy, hiking and reading.

Top three practical tips for staying spiritually strong: 

1. Be intentional about growing in community. Surround yourself with life-giving people who encourage you, speak truth, and can enjoy life with you.
2. Find your way to connect to God, whether it be going on walks, baking, reading the Bible, or jamming out to Cory Asbury. For me, I enjoy doing calligraphy and watercolor with a playlist in the background.
3. Take care of yourself mentally, physically, spiritually, and emotionally. There are so many dimensions to your life that need love. Respect your limits.

Favorite person in scripture? I’m bad at favorites, but I’d say Joseph is a sick dude.

He’s a dreamer, resilient, forgiving, powerful, and loving. He’s a man of integrity (rejecting the advances of his boss’s wife…which unfortunately led him to be framed, but he still made it out… it’s crazy. Just read the story).
What do you want people to learn about God when they look at you? I want people to know they are deeply and truly loved, regardless of their actions, social status, appearance, or past. I want people to know God fills you with joy! I want to bring joy to my community through encouraging people to love themselves, bringing out the gold in others, and advocating for the overlooked and marginalized.

“I want to bring joy to my community through encouraging people to love themselves, bringing out the gold in others, and advocating for the overlooked and marginalized.”

Favorite season? My favorite season is summer, any of the first few seasons of Modern Family, and seasons where you see the fruit of your growth! (Don’t you love play on words?)

Favorite holiday? This is a close tie between Thanksgiving and Christmas. I love the intentionality of Thanksgiving’s “express gratitude” mantra and how everything starts to slow down in eager pre-Christmas anticipation (and mashed potatoes). I love Christmas because (besides it being Jesus’ birthday), I’m a nostalgic gal who indulges in the warm fuzzies of Christmas movies, fireplaces (though we haven’t used ours in years), Christmas plays, and tacky decor.

A special tradition you and your family engage in or keep: We spent our years being active. We’d go camping multiple times during the year, spend weekends hiking, and make road-trips to neighboring states or SoCal (we especially loved Disneyland and Universal Studios).

Question you will ask when you get to heaven? I think I’ll be blown away by everything and overwhelmed by God (cue “I Can Only Imagine” – which I bawled at, by the way. Please go watch the movie. Dennis Quaid was outstanding). I’ll probably forget all the questions I had before. But to answer this question… I’m currently wrestling with the concept of loved ones not going to heaven.

Thing you want to raise awareness about: Systemic racism and the brokenness of the criminal justice system. Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson is a great read that gives a glimpse into the lives of those working for justice as well as those incarcerated/previously incarcerated.

“Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson is a great read that gives a glimpse into the lives of those working for justice as well as those incarcerated/previously incarcerated.”

What do you usually do before 9 a.m.? In addition to basic hygienic practices, I stretch, read the Bible App’s verse of the day, ride the shuttle to work (and maybe listen to a podcast or read emails), and start responding to emails.

Define Christianity in a sentence: Being truly and deeply loved by a good Father, who cares for you, allowing you to love Him, others, and yourself in return.

For more Britni:

Insta:@littlethingseverywhere

Until next time, keep witnessing!

XOXO