When My Brain Won’t Stop Spinning, God Still Shows Up

Hi Friend! 💖

This past week reminded me that sometimes the thing I need most is not more preparation, more planning, or more control.

Sometimes I just need to be still long enough to remember that God is already there.

That was the thread running through my whole week — from teaching a face-painting class at Bermudian Springs, to spending a cold and windy weekend at Highland Orchards, to once again realizing that my brain can make a much bigger storm than the one happening around me.

A Classroom Full of Teenagers and One Very Busy Brain

On Wednesday, I drove down to Bermudian Springs High School to teach a face-painting workshop for art students and National Honor Society students who help with community events.

And let me just tell you...

I was way more nervous than I needed to be. 😂

My brain had me spinning for a few days during preparation, including the whole drive there:

Do I teach them speed painting?
Do I teach them brush basics?
Do I show them cheek art or full-face designs?
Do they have their own paint?
Should I have brought baby wipes?
Do they know what a one-stroke brush is?
Should I have brought sparkles?
What if I forgot something important?

You know. Just normal Brookie things. 😜

So while I was driving, I opened up my Bible app because I needed to put something better in my head than my own spiral. And the verse of the day was:

“Be still, and know that I am God.” — Psalm 46:10 (NIV)

That got me.

Because here I was, once again, being invited to actually practice the thing I keep talking about.

Not just say it.
Not just admire it.
Live it.

I also had this sudden thought about my dad, and I called him to ask for advice because I remembered he used to do Toastmasters and public speaking classes. And honestly, it felt really good to ask for help.

That’s a big lesson for me lately.

I’m not trying to muscle through everything by myself anymore.

And sure enough, when I got to the school, there were immediately some technology hiccups and some confusion getting me checked in — but two eager students showed up and helped guide me through the maze of the building like little angels. I couldn’t have found that art room without them.

Once I got going, the workshop ended up being really fun.

I spent time sharing tips, tricks, fundamentals, and all the little things that help face painting run more smoothly when you’re actually working with the public. Then I painted some students while explaining what I was doing and why.

And somewhere in the middle of all that rambling and demonstrating, I realized:

I actually did know what I was doing.

I didn’t need a perfect plan.
I just needed to show up and trust the magic God already put in me.

If You’ve Been Around a While, You Know About the Jellyfish

Something else struck me that day.

If you’ve been following me for years, you might remember there was a season when I was basically the jellyfish lady. 😂

Back when I was deep in my acrylic-pour painting era, I could not stop making jellyfish. Big ones. Little ones. Pink ones. Swirly ones. Sparkly ones. It felt like they just kept flowing out of me.

And honestly, they meant something deeper than I could explain at the time.

To me, the jellyfish has become a spiritual symbol.

I am the jellyfish. God is the water.

The jellyfish doesn’t force. It doesn’t control. It moves, trusts, floats, and allows itself to be held.

That image has stayed with me because so much of my life has required exactly that kind of faith.

So when I looked over in that classroom and saw a student-painted skateboard deck with beautiful jellyfish on it sitting right near where I was set up, it felt like one of those little God winks.

Like He was saying:

I’m here. You’re okay. Flow, don’t force.

Then Came Highland Orchards

By the time the weekend rolled around, I was back in my usual colorful chaos at Highland Orchards for Fall Festival season.

And Saturday?

Cold. Windy. Slow.

Not exactly my favorite combination. 😅

Being outside all day in the wind really made me notice something that has been bothering me more and more:

I have so much stuff.

So many displays.
So many products.
So many tools.
So many “just in case” things.
So many little moving parts.

Sometimes I look at my setup and feel like my brain looks exactly the same.

Packed.

Crowded.

Trying to carry too much at once.

There was something very clarifying about seeing my whole setup out there in the wind and thinking:

Brookie, something has to get simpler.

That doesn’t mean I stop being creative.
It doesn’t mean I stop offering beautiful things.
It just means I need more intention and less clutter.

I don’t want to keep endlessly adding more.

I want to build something that actually feels aligned.

And I think part of that means letting my art take up more of the conversation in a cleaner, more focused way — instead of trying to make it compete with every other thing I offer at a vendor booth.

My Favorite Part of the Weekend

Even though Saturday was cold and Sunday was much busier, my favorite part of the whole weekend wasn’t a sale or a number.

It was the blanket. 🥹

I had brought a cozy throw blanket and draped it over my chair so the little kids could get all wrapped up and snuggly while I painted them.

And oh my goodness... that made my heart sing.

There was something so sweet about wrapping those babies up in warmth and then covering them in pumpkins, paw prints, sparkle, and joy.

One little girl couldn’t decide between a paw print and a pumpkin, so I suggested we do a mash-up — and of course she was thrilled.

Another fun moment was getting to do one of my little cheerful jack-o’-lantern cheeks. I asked the kids whether they wanted a face on their pumpkin, and nine times out of ten they absolutely do. Years ago, painting tiny pumpkin faces felt impossible to me. Now it’s just one of those things my hands know how to do.

And one of my favorite moments was the selfie reveal with the kids — showing them the surprise designs together on my phone and watching their faces light up.

That right there is the stuff that fills my cup.

What I’m Learning

I think the real takeaway from this week is that stillness is not the absence of activity.

Sometimes stillness looks like:

• calling your dad for advice

• opening your Bible app on a long drive

• noticing the God wink in a jellyfish painting

• realizing your business needs less clutter

• wrapping a cold child in a warm blanket

• trusting that you don’t need to have every answer before you begin

I keep thinking I need a grand vision before I can move forward.

But maybe the next step is simpler than that.

Maybe I need to stop spiraling long enough to hear what’s already true:

God is here.
God is leading.
God is not confused.

And maybe if I get quiet enough, I’ll know what to paint next too. 💖

A Little Reflection For You

Where in your life are you making things heavier than they need to be?

What are you carrying that might need to be simplified, surrendered, or handed back to God?

And what would it look like to trust that you do not have to force the next step?

Maybe your invitation this week is the same as mine:

Be still.

Come Find Me This Weekend ✨

Somehow this fall season absolutely flew by, and this weekend is my last weekend at Highland Orchards for the Fall Festival.

I’ll be there Saturday and Sunday from 9:00 AM–5:00 PM doing all the colorful things:

Face paint.
Hair tinsel.
Sparkles.
Hugs.

And whatever little bit of magic happens to show up in the chair. 💖

If you’ve been meaning to come see me at Highland this season, this is the weekend.

Come say hi, get painted, get sparkled, and help me close out another beautiful fall at a place that has meant so much to me for so many years.

Be still.

God is already there.

With love, color, and a little more room to breathe,
Brookie ✨