Yesterday was just a blue day for me. I woke up feeling sad and then several things happened that added to that sadness. I was thankful when the Holy Spirit directed me to Psalm43:5 The cure for my depression, my sadness was to put my Hope in HIM!!! I WILL PRAISE HIM!!!!! After making this I was encouraged. I am thinking of sending this to a friend who is struggling with a lot of issues right now. I am also uploading it to Word Art Wednesday.
I live near the Mississippi River and I like to create with odd and ends.(McGyver nickname)
Friday, December 30, 2011
Joy through Sorrow
Yesterday was just a blue day for me. I woke up feeling sad and then several things happened that added to that sadness. I was thankful when the Holy Spirit directed me to Psalm43:5 The cure for my depression, my sadness was to put my Hope in HIM!!! I WILL PRAISE HIM!!!!! After making this I was encouraged. I am thinking of sending this to a friend who is struggling with a lot of issues right now. I am also uploading it to Word Art Wednesday.
His Strength
This card was made for this week's Word Art Wednesday. I choose to focus on this sentence. "I love you O Lord my strength." There are so many days when I am not strong. I am barely surviving. If I was having to rely on my own strength, I would be a failure. I was encouraged by 2 Corinthians 12:9... "My grace is sufficient for thee;for my strength is made perfect in weakness." What a paradox. I am strongest, when I am weak and let God use His strength. I choose to use this crocus image. A flower isn't the first image in my thoughts when I think of something strong, but any flower that can push up through the ice and snow and bloom when there is a chill in the air is a Strong flower. I made this card for a single mom in my church. She is a strong lady in a lot of ways. It takes a special person to be both mom and dad to her two kids. She doesn't ever complain. This week she was struggling with overwhelming sadness. I hope this card will encourage her. The inside of the card reads... I see better days ahead.
Friday, December 23, 2011
Joy! It might be closer than you think.
On Tuesday of this week, I woke up to a grey, drizzly, foggy day. My husband, a long haul truck driver, had been gone for 4 weeks. I woke up just feeling sad and sorry for myself. Happy and Joyful were not words to describe me as I was driving my youngest to school so that he could be there by 7:00 a.m. for a science club meeting.The rain was coming down and I had the windshield wipers on as I was driving around the corner of my house. A little blue bird who had been sitting on the road flew up right by my window as I drove by. The thought that struck me as I saw him, was I had almost missed seeing this little bird who was right in front of me because I was distracted by the rain and my own thoughts. Sometimes Joy is like that little blue bird. It is there in front of me, but I don't see it because I let other, unimportant things distract me. The scripture that I used on this card is one of my favorites. I have it on my bulletin board to remind me that joy is coming if I don't feel it now. I experimented on the background. I printed the sheetmusic on tissue paper, by taping the tissue paper to a piece of printer paper, and running it through the printer. I then ink spray smashed the tissue paper. I then crinkled the tissue paper up and glued it to a piece of cardstock. It is hard to see in the photo, but there is a crinkly texture.I then printed the verse and ink spray smashed it as well as a scrap of lace. The little bird is a Mark's Finest Papers bird. I think he is a chickadee on pussy willows. But for my card he is a little blue bird on a branch with leaves. I stamped the pussy willows twice to add some depth. Some are glued straight to the tissue and some are curved and not attached to the background. It is also hard to see, but the scripture strips are also curved. The center parts are up about 1/4 of an inch and are only touching at the ends. I am sharing this card with Word Art Wednesday.
Merry Christmas to everyone! I pray that you have a wonderful blessed day celebrating our Savior's birth!
Sunday, December 18, 2011
Joy to the World
Joy to the World , the Lord is come!
Let earth receive her King;
Let every heart prepare Him room,
And Heaven and nature sing,
And Heaven and nature sing,
And Heaven, and Heaven, and nature sing.
Joy to the World, the Savior reigns!
Let men their songs employ;
While fields and floods, rocks, hills and plains
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat, repeat, the sounding joy.
No more let sins and sorrows grow,
Nor thorns infest the ground;
He comes to make His blessings flow
Far as the curse is found,
Far as the curse is found,
Far as, far as, the curse is found.
He rules the world with truth and grace,
And makes the nations prove
The glories of His righteousness,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders, wonders, of His love.
292 Christmas have come and gone since Isaac Watts wrote this song in 1719. The words still move hearts. In a world with no hope, no peace and no joy, a little baby was born. That little baby was Jesus, Emanuel, God with us. I love the part that says "let every heart prepare Him room". There are so many things that we prepare at Christmas time. We prepare the gifts, we prepare the food, we prepare the decorations... do we stop to prepare our hearts? The stamp I used on my card for today, I bought many years ago. Not your typical Christmas sentiment, but I really like it.
"Glory to God in the highest, and on Earth peace, good will toward men" (Luke 2:14) This is the scripture that Miesje, picked for us this week. Her challenge is to make a Christmas card/project that shows the true meaning of Christmas. Our sponsor this week is Our Daily Bread Designs.
Check out what my wonderful Stampin Sisters have created at Stampin' Sisters in Christ.
Let earth receive her King;
Let every heart prepare Him room,
And Heaven and nature sing,
And Heaven and nature sing,
And Heaven, and Heaven, and nature sing.
Joy to the World, the Savior reigns!
Let men their songs employ;
While fields and floods, rocks, hills and plains
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat, repeat, the sounding joy.
No more let sins and sorrows grow,
Nor thorns infest the ground;
He comes to make His blessings flow
Far as the curse is found,
Far as the curse is found,
Far as, far as, the curse is found.
He rules the world with truth and grace,
And makes the nations prove
The glories of His righteousness,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders, wonders, of His love.
292 Christmas have come and gone since Isaac Watts wrote this song in 1719. The words still move hearts. In a world with no hope, no peace and no joy, a little baby was born. That little baby was Jesus, Emanuel, God with us. I love the part that says "let every heart prepare Him room". There are so many things that we prepare at Christmas time. We prepare the gifts, we prepare the food, we prepare the decorations... do we stop to prepare our hearts? The stamp I used on my card for today, I bought many years ago. Not your typical Christmas sentiment, but I really like it.
"Glory to God in the highest, and on Earth peace, good will toward men" (Luke 2:14) This is the scripture that Miesje, picked for us this week. Her challenge is to make a Christmas card/project that shows the true meaning of Christmas. Our sponsor this week is Our Daily Bread Designs.
Check out what my wonderful Stampin Sisters have created at Stampin' Sisters in Christ.
Thursday, December 15, 2011
MFP -Blog hop NEW PINES
Hello! Welcome to Mark's Finest Papers a Heinrich Company's December Blog Hop!
This month's New Stamp Set Releases are
Pucker Up Featured December 13
Pussy Willows Featured December 14
Ice and Snow Featured December 14
New Pines Featured December 15
Please hop along with us! You have a chance to win one of the above stamp sets! Just comment on the following blogs (don't forget this one), each day for more chances to win! We will announce all four winners on December 16, 2011 on the Mark's Finest Papers blog. You can go back and comment if you missed a day. The winners will be chosen at 11PM EST on Thursday December 15, 2011.
Lois
Vicky
Anne
Connie
Linda
Karen H.
Patty P.
Geri
Dawn M.
Marilynn (This is Me)
Chrissy
Karen K.
Pam
Debbie
Brenda T
Bonnie
Harriet
Tammylee
Silvia
Mark's Finest Papers
Here is my project using this set. I made a simple bookmark. I stamped the sentiment and trees with versamark then heat embossed gold ep. Added a white base and gold ribbon. It went together really quickly, but I had so much fun making it. I forget how much fun it is to heat emboss.
This month's New Stamp Set Releases are
Pucker Up Featured December 13
Pussy Willows Featured December 14
Ice and Snow Featured December 14
New Pines Featured December 15
Please hop along with us! You have a chance to win one of the above stamp sets! Just comment on the following blogs (don't forget this one), each day for more chances to win! We will announce all four winners on December 16, 2011 on the Mark's Finest Papers blog. You can go back and comment if you missed a day. The winners will be chosen at 11PM EST on Thursday December 15, 2011.
Lois
Vicky
Anne
Connie
Linda
Karen H.
Patty P.
Geri
Dawn M.
Marilynn (This is Me)
Chrissy
Karen K.
Pam
Debbie
Brenda T
Bonnie
Harriet
Tammylee
Silvia
Mark's Finest Papers
Here is my project using this set. I made a simple bookmark. I stamped the sentiment and trees with versamark then heat embossed gold ep. Added a white base and gold ribbon. It went together really quickly, but I had so much fun making it. I forget how much fun it is to heat emboss.
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
MFP blog hop - Pussy Willows and Ice and Snow
Hello! Welcome to Mark's Finest Papers a Heinrich Company's December Blog Hop!
This month's New Stamp Set Releases are
Pucker Up Featured December 13
Pussy Willows Featured December 14
Ice and Snow Featured December 14
New Pines Featured December 15
Please hop along with us! You have a chance to win one of the above stamp sets! Just comment on the following blogs (don't forget this one), each day for more chances to win! We will announce all four winners on December 16, 2011 on the Mark's Finest Papers blog. You can go back and comment if you missed a day. The winners will be chosen at 11PM EST on Thursday December 15, 2011.
Lois
Vicky
Anne
Connie
Linda
Karen H.
Patty P.
Geri
Dawn M.
Marilynn This is me :)
Chrissy
Karen K.
Pam
Debbie
Brenda T
Bonnie
Harriet
Tammylee
Silvia
Mark's Finest Papers
Tiny little pussy willow. Softer than a baby's pillow. Sometimes when I stroke your fur. I almost hear you purr.
I thought that was such a sweet little poem about pussy willows that I wanted to share it with you. For my card I decided to do burned glue technique on the pussy willow blossoms to add texture. I love the sentiment. I know I will use it alot.
I was inspired by this cover to Jennifer Haines Piano Solo album called Christmas Magic.
I love this song called Winter Snow Song. It is my new favorite Christmas song.
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
MFP December blog hop - Pucker up
Hello! Welcome to Mark's Finest Papers a Heinrich Company's December Blog Hop!
This month's New Stamp Set Releases are
Pucker Up Featured December 13
Pussy Willows Featured December 14
Ice and Snow Featured December 14
New Pines Featured December 15
Please hop along with us! You have a chance to win one of the above stamp sets! Just comment on the following blogs (don't forget this one), each day for more chances to win! We will announce all four winners on December 16, 2011 on the Mark's Finest Papers blog. You can go back and comment if you missed a day. The winners will be chosen at 11PM EST on Thursday December 15, 2011.
Lois
Vicky
Anne
Connie
Linda
Karen H.
Patty P.
Geri
Dawn M.
Marilynn This is me :)
Chrissy
Karen K.
Pam
Debbie
Brenda T
Bonnie
Harriet
Tammylee
Silvia
Mark's Finest Papers
For my project I made a topper for a bag of lemon jelly beans. I used yellow gingham and the lovely lemon.
Growing up in Arizona, my grandparents had citrus trees in their yard and we had a lemon tree in ours. I loved getting fresh fruit off of the trees. We made what we called "battery acid". It was a combination of all the citrus fruits that we had picked, grapefruit, oranges, lemons... My folks have a lime tree in their yard now. I loved that juice mixture chilled over ice. I also have fond memories of when the lemons and orange trees would be in bloom. That is one of my favorites smells. When I saw this set the song "Lemon Tree" Sung by Peter Paul and Mary was going through my head. I was listening to it as I was making my project and thought I would share a link to it on youtube.
Oh and Happy 20th birthday to my daughter Johanna!!!!! I made this little candy bag for her, for her birthday.
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Happy Birthday Jesus
It is my priviledge to be the hostess this week for Stampin' Sisters in Christ.
On Tuesday, my oldest daughter Johanna turns 20 and on the next Tuesday my other daughter, Kristina turns 18. Since they were little girls I have tried to make their birthdays special. A friend of mine who also has a December birthday told me to never wrap their presents in Christmas paper, but to use birthday paper to make sure they felt special. One year I saw a cartoon on a bulletin board at a church that we were visiting. It had two scenes the first portrayed a little boy sitting on the ground with a sad face while all his family was by the Christmas tree. The next scene showed that same little boy with Jesus kneeling by him and saying “I know how you feel, people forget about my birthday too.”
Parties, trees, shopping, lights, presents, food, snowmen, cookies, movies, candy canes, reindeer, elves, Santa… the list could go on and on of all the things we add to Christmas. Those things are all fun. I am guilty of being caught up in some of these traditions. But I love being reminded about the real reason to celebrate. The other day, my daughter Johanna and I were on a road trip and the two of us were listening to Christmas music on the radio. The song “Happy Birthday Jesus” came on.
Happy Birthday Jesus
I'm So Glad Its Christmas
all The Tinsel And Lights
and The Presents Are Nice
but The Real Gift Is You.
Happy Birthday Jesus
I’m So Glad Its Christmas
all The Carols And Bells
make The Holiday Swell
and it's All About You
Happy Birthday Jesus
Jesus I Love You!
I pray that in all the busy crazy days ahead that you don’t forget what Christmas is all about. It is about the Lord of all creation coming to earth to be born as a tiny little helpless baby. To live a simple, but sinless life and then die a horrible death on a cross for you and for me because he loves us.
Luke 2:11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.
My challenge for everyone is to make a birthday card in honor of Christ's birthday. Our sponsor this week is Simon Says Stamp. Make sure to check out what all my Stampin Sisters have created this week. I know you will be blessed.
Sunday, December 4, 2011
Angels among us
My wonderful sister and friend in Christ, Lisa chose these verses this week:
Matthew 1:20-22, "But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, 'Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.' All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 'The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel' which means, 'God with us.'"
Here is Lisa's challenge:
Make a card/project depicting an angel
I made mine a pocket card with an angel on a bookmark. It was really hard to photo with rain outside but it is super sparkly.
Matthew 1:20-22, "But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, 'Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.' All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 'The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel' which means, 'God with us.'"
Here is Lisa's challenge:
Make a card/project depicting an angel
I made mine a pocket card with an angel on a bookmark. It was really hard to photo with rain outside but it is super sparkly.
Yesterday my oldest daughter and I left home at 3:00 am to drive 4 hours so that we could see my other daughter compete at the Iowa State dance competition in Des Moines IA. As we were driving home last night we were both very tired, and I know that God sent his angels to watch over 2 tired drivers. This song "Angel's among us" by Alabama came on the radio and I knew I had to incorporate it into this week's project.
This week's sponsor is Clear Dollar Stamps. Check out what my other STAMPIN' SISTERS IN CHRIST have done this week.
Sunday, November 27, 2011
His Eye is on the Sparrow
This is the scripture that my loved sister in Christ, Linda picked for this week:
Matthew 6:25-34 ".... Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?...."
This verse also spoke to me this week:
Matthew 10:29-31 Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing and on of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father... Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows.
Both of these scriptures together show how much God cares for all of His creation, but He cares the most for people, for YOU, for ME...
I love the old hymn His Eye is on the Sparrow. I have posted 2 versions of these words. The first one is by the group Selah and is the traditional song. The second one is a newer version sung by Audrey Assad. I have listened to both of these songs over and over this last week and they blessed my heart so much. I hope you enjoy them too.
Linda's challenge was to make a card with a bird on it... dp, stamp, charm....etc.
I used my little nuthatch sitting on the fence from the newly released set by Mark's Finest Papers, a Heinrich company, called "PEACEFUL NUTHATCH" . I ink spray smashed the sky, and watercolored the trees and bird. I added glitter-styrofoam ball snow to the trees and fence. I made my card an easel card.
This week's sponsor is Sweet and Sassy. Make sure you check out what my Stampin' Sisters in Christ have created.
Matthew 6:25-34 ".... Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?...."
This verse also spoke to me this week:
Matthew 10:29-31 Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing and on of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father... Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows.
Both of these scriptures together show how much God cares for all of His creation, but He cares the most for people, for YOU, for ME...
I love the old hymn His Eye is on the Sparrow. I have posted 2 versions of these words. The first one is by the group Selah and is the traditional song. The second one is a newer version sung by Audrey Assad. I have listened to both of these songs over and over this last week and they blessed my heart so much. I hope you enjoy them too.
Linda's challenge was to make a card with a bird on it... dp, stamp, charm....etc.
I used my little nuthatch sitting on the fence from the newly released set by Mark's Finest Papers, a Heinrich company, called "PEACEFUL NUTHATCH" . I ink spray smashed the sky, and watercolored the trees and bird. I added glitter-styrofoam ball snow to the trees and fence. I made my card an easel card.
This week's sponsor is Sweet and Sassy. Make sure you check out what my Stampin' Sisters in Christ have created.
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
Hello! Welcome to Mark's Finest Papers a Heinrich Company's November Blog Hop!
This month's New Stamp Set Releases are
Peaceful Nuthatch
A Trip to Lancaster
What a Fox
Please hop along with us! You have a chance to win one of the above stamp sets! Just comment on the following blogs (don't forget this one), each day! We will announce all three winners on Thanksgiving Day. You can go back and comment if you missed a day. The winners will be chosen at 11PM EST on Wednesday November 23, 2011.
Lois
Vicky
Anne
Connie
Linda
Karen H.
Patty P.
Geri
Dawn M.
Marilynn
Chrissy
Karen K.
Pam
Debbie
Brenda T
Bonnie
Harriet
Mark's Finest Papers
With this wonderful quote by F. Kessler, I had to make a paper box to hold chocolates. I made a bellyband to go around the box.
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
Nov 2011 Blog hop for MFP day 2
Hello! Welcome to Mark's Finest Papers a Heinrich Company's November Blog Hop!
This month's New Stamp Set Releases are
Peaceful Nuthatch
A Trip to Lancaster
What a Fox
Please hop along with us! You have a chance to win one of the above stamp sets! Just comment on the following blogs (don't forget this one), each day! We will announce all three winners on Thanksgiving Day. You can go back and comment if you missed a day. The winners will be chosen at 11PM EST on Wednesday November 23, 2011.
Lois
Vicky
Anne
Connie
Linda
Karen H.
Patty P.
Geri
Dawn M.
Marilynn This is me *****
Chrissy
Karen K.
Pam
Debbie
Brenda T
Bonnie
Harriet
Mark's Finest Papers
Clean and Simple (CAS) is not my usual style, but I felt like I really needed to make a CAS card using this set. I really admire the Amish society in their goal for shutting out the distractions of the world so that they can focus on God. I know I have way too many distractions. I make life more difficult than it needs to be. So this card was a reminder to myself to take time to enjoy the simple things and be thankful for them. This card has no layers. I stamped the buggy image on white cardstock. I took a ruler and a black pen and drew the lines. I made a matching envelope using the watermark image with Speedy driving the buggy! :)
The card at the top of this post was done last week for a SCS challenge. I was thinking amish quilts when I made it.
Monday, November 21, 2011
Hello! Welcome to Mark's Finest Papers a Heinrich Company's November Blog Hop!
This month's New Stamp Set Releases are
Peaceful Nuthatch
A Trip to Lancaster
What a Fox
Please hop along with us! You have a chance to win one of the above stamp sets! Just comment on the following blogs (don't forget this one), each day! We will announce all three winners on Thanksgiving Day. You can go back and comment if you missed a day. The winners will be chosen at 11PM EST on Wednesday November 23, 2011.
Lois
Vicky
Anne
Connie
Linda
Karen H.
Patty P.
Geri
Dawn M.
Marilynn
Chrissy
Karen K.
Pam
Debbie
Brenda T
Bonnie
Harriet
Mark's Finest Papers
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Job 13:15 Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him.
This is the scripture that Rebekkah, my wonderful stampin' sister in Christ choose for this week.
This verse, to live out, takes tremendous faith. My kids were at a youth retreat this weekend where they were talking and learning about the persecuted church. The leaders had toy guns that they used to "kill" the students because they were Christians. They would grab the students at random and question them and when the students would say that they were Christians, they would put the gun to their head or to their friends head and say renounce Christ or die. To my kids and the other kids from our church it was just an exercise, but there are Christians throughout this world who on a daily basis have the possibility of being killed for their faith. What is my excuse for not sharing Christ more, praising God more, giving more?... I am challenged to not take my freedom to express my faith in God casually, but to thank God everyday for that freedom and I am also challenged to pray for those who don't have that freedom.
Rebekkah's challenge is to : make a card of praise,using music, stamp, or design paper or just the word praise.
I used the sheet music for this old hymn, and a soon to be released Mark's Finest Papers set called Peaceful Nuthatch. I also used Layers of Color "Joyful noise" set in the background.
Hallelujah, praise Jehovah,
From the heavens praise His name;
Praise Jehovah in the highest,
All His angels praise proclaim.
All His hosts together praise Him,
Sun, and moon, and stars on high;
Praise Him, O ye heav’n of heavens,
And ye floods above the sky.
Let them praises give Jehovah,
They were made at His command,
Them forever He established;
His decree shall ever stand.
From the earth, oh, praise Jehovah,
All ye floods, ye dragons all;
Fire, and hail, and snow, and vapors,
Stormy winds that hear His call.
All ye fruitful trees and cedars,
All ye hills and mountains high,
Creeping things, and beasts, and cattle,
Birds that in the heavens fly.
Kings of earth, and all ye people,
Princes great, earth’s judges all,
Praise His name, young men and maidens,
Aged men and children small.
Let them praises give Jehovah,
For His name alone is high,
And His glory is exalted,
And His glory is exalted,
And His glory is exalted,
Far above the earth and sky.
Check out what my stampin' sisters have created and read Rebekkah's devotion on the STAMPIN' SISTERS IN CHRIST challenge blog.
Our sponsor this week is :Pizzazz Aplenty.
This is the scripture that Rebekkah, my wonderful stampin' sister in Christ choose for this week.
This verse, to live out, takes tremendous faith. My kids were at a youth retreat this weekend where they were talking and learning about the persecuted church. The leaders had toy guns that they used to "kill" the students because they were Christians. They would grab the students at random and question them and when the students would say that they were Christians, they would put the gun to their head or to their friends head and say renounce Christ or die. To my kids and the other kids from our church it was just an exercise, but there are Christians throughout this world who on a daily basis have the possibility of being killed for their faith. What is my excuse for not sharing Christ more, praising God more, giving more?... I am challenged to not take my freedom to express my faith in God casually, but to thank God everyday for that freedom and I am also challenged to pray for those who don't have that freedom.
Rebekkah's challenge is to : make a card of praise,using music, stamp, or design paper or just the word praise.
I used the sheet music for this old hymn, and a soon to be released Mark's Finest Papers set called Peaceful Nuthatch. I also used Layers of Color "Joyful noise" set in the background.
Hallelujah, praise Jehovah,
From the heavens praise His name;
Praise Jehovah in the highest,
All His angels praise proclaim.
All His hosts together praise Him,
Sun, and moon, and stars on high;
Praise Him, O ye heav’n of heavens,
And ye floods above the sky.
Let them praises give Jehovah,
They were made at His command,
Them forever He established;
His decree shall ever stand.
From the earth, oh, praise Jehovah,
All ye floods, ye dragons all;
Fire, and hail, and snow, and vapors,
Stormy winds that hear His call.
All ye fruitful trees and cedars,
All ye hills and mountains high,
Creeping things, and beasts, and cattle,
Birds that in the heavens fly.
Kings of earth, and all ye people,
Princes great, earth’s judges all,
Praise His name, young men and maidens,
Aged men and children small.
Let them praises give Jehovah,
For His name alone is high,
And His glory is exalted,
And His glory is exalted,
And His glory is exalted,
Far above the earth and sky.
Check out what my stampin' sisters have created and read Rebekkah's devotion on the STAMPIN' SISTERS IN CHRIST challenge blog.
Our sponsor this week is :Pizzazz Aplenty.
Sunday, November 13, 2011
The scripture that my sister Traci picked for this week is:
1 Thessalonians 5:18 "Give thanks in all circumstances for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."
I don't now if anyone else struggles with this, but I do. This last week, we had sickness in our house. To add to that there is a coach who has had it in for my daughter since the school year started. There was a lot of drama on Friday, becuase my daughter was home sick. I can deal with people doing a lot of things to me personally, but I struggle when my kids are attacked.
After I prayed and shared my anger with God, I sat down to write this post. The Holy Spirit started speaking to me.
I give thanks in good circumstances, and I give thanks in kinda good circumstance, but when I have bad circumstances, I pout and have a pity party. I even get a little angry. The bad thing is when I feel that way, the only one who suffers is me. If I can only learn this lesson to be thankful in ALL circumstances how much better off I will be.
Satan whispers"Why would you give thanks for bad circumstances?" I even asked God that question today. This was His answer to me.
Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding.
I don't have to know why I have bad times. I don't have to understand how God will work it for my good (Romans 8:28). I do have to Trust and give Thanks.
Traci's challenge:
Create a card or project that depicts gratitude...it can be an image of something you are grateful for, a scripture that evokes your gratitude, or it can be a card made especially for a person you would like to thank this time of year!!
One of the things that I am thankful for are all the birds that are in my area. Just the other day I saw two bald eagles soaring on an air current. It really made my day. My card has a little red breasted nuthatch on it. I am going to give this card to a friend at church who I am grateful for her support. The nuthatch is a sneak peek at a Mark's Finest Papers set called peaceful nuthatch.
The sponsor for this week is Simon Says Stamp.
Check out Stampin' Sisters in Christ Challenge to see Traci's devotion and to see what my other Stampin' Sisters have created.
1 Thessalonians 5:18 "Give thanks in all circumstances for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."
I don't now if anyone else struggles with this, but I do. This last week, we had sickness in our house. To add to that there is a coach who has had it in for my daughter since the school year started. There was a lot of drama on Friday, becuase my daughter was home sick. I can deal with people doing a lot of things to me personally, but I struggle when my kids are attacked.
After I prayed and shared my anger with God, I sat down to write this post. The Holy Spirit started speaking to me.
I give thanks in good circumstances, and I give thanks in kinda good circumstance, but when I have bad circumstances, I pout and have a pity party. I even get a little angry. The bad thing is when I feel that way, the only one who suffers is me. If I can only learn this lesson to be thankful in ALL circumstances how much better off I will be.
Satan whispers"Why would you give thanks for bad circumstances?" I even asked God that question today. This was His answer to me.
Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding.
I don't have to know why I have bad times. I don't have to understand how God will work it for my good (Romans 8:28). I do have to Trust and give Thanks.
Traci's challenge:
Create a card or project that depicts gratitude...it can be an image of something you are grateful for, a scripture that evokes your gratitude, or it can be a card made especially for a person you would like to thank this time of year!!
One of the things that I am thankful for are all the birds that are in my area. Just the other day I saw two bald eagles soaring on an air current. It really made my day. My card has a little red breasted nuthatch on it. I am going to give this card to a friend at church who I am grateful for her support. The nuthatch is a sneak peek at a Mark's Finest Papers set called peaceful nuthatch.
The sponsor for this week is Simon Says Stamp.
Check out Stampin' Sisters in Christ Challenge to see Traci's devotion and to see what my other Stampin' Sisters have created.
Sunday, November 6, 2011
Words of encouragement
The following is the verse that Peggysue picked for this week:
Genesis 3:6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it.
At first I really struggled with this verse. I had no idea how God was going to speak to me about this scripture. I prayed about it for several days. I don't know if you are like me but sometimes when I read about things that people have done in the Bible, I get a feeling of superiority. I think... "I wouldn't have done that." My first inclination was to think, I wouldn't have been like Eve. I wouldn't have been tempted by that fruit. Then God began to show me where I am tempted in very similar ways when it comes to my eating habits. I resisted and wanted to say, "Well, Eve had been warned not to eat it and she did anyway." That wouldn't be me... then God reminded me about times I have known that foods with high fat, salt and sugar content are bad for me and I eat them anyway.
I am praying that God helps me make better decisions about my food and that He helps me with facing temptations.
Peggysue challenged us to dig deep into our stash and find old stamps that we hadn't used in awhile. I choose this really old SU set. I made a matching set of 5 cards to give to my daughter and her friends. They competed yesterday for small school state color guard competition. I wanted each girl to know that I was supporting them, and that I was proud of all the hard work they had done to prepare. One of the girls, Ericka had a costume for her program that was sparkly white and she had a flower in her hair. She was the inspiration for the cards.
Please check out our sponsor this week Clear Dollar Stamps
Genesis 3:6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it.
At first I really struggled with this verse. I had no idea how God was going to speak to me about this scripture. I prayed about it for several days. I don't know if you are like me but sometimes when I read about things that people have done in the Bible, I get a feeling of superiority. I think... "I wouldn't have done that." My first inclination was to think, I wouldn't have been like Eve. I wouldn't have been tempted by that fruit. Then God began to show me where I am tempted in very similar ways when it comes to my eating habits. I resisted and wanted to say, "Well, Eve had been warned not to eat it and she did anyway." That wouldn't be me... then God reminded me about times I have known that foods with high fat, salt and sugar content are bad for me and I eat them anyway.
I am praying that God helps me make better decisions about my food and that He helps me with facing temptations.
Peggysue challenged us to dig deep into our stash and find old stamps that we hadn't used in awhile. I choose this really old SU set. I made a matching set of 5 cards to give to my daughter and her friends. They competed yesterday for small school state color guard competition. I wanted each girl to know that I was supporting them, and that I was proud of all the hard work they had done to prepare. One of the girls, Ericka had a costume for her program that was sparkly white and she had a flower in her hair. She was the inspiration for the cards.
Please check out our sponsor this week Clear Dollar Stamps
Also check out Peggysue's devotion and see what my wonderful sisters have created for this challenge. Stampin Sisters in Christ.
Side note: Congratulations to the colorguard girls. 5 # 1 division ratings. I'm so proud of you all.
Sunday, October 30, 2011
O happy day...
Here is the scripture that, my stampin' sister in Christ, Lisa picked for this week:
Isaiah 1:18 "'Come now, and let us reason together,’ says the Lord. ‘Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool.’”
Yesterday, we helped our new youth pastors move into their new home. They came from Texas to Iowa. I am sure that it will be a big change for them. They left family to come to our little town. There was a big group from our Church there to unload the truck. The ladies took the small things, like clothes and small boxes, while the guys took the couches and piano... The ladies had just moved the kitchen chairs in and we were commenting on how new they looked. We laughed and said let them get kids and see how they look. As a mom of 4 kids, I know how easily things can get stained. Something about the color white, seems to just draw stains from ketchup, mustard, grape juice... You can use cleaners to clean the stains, and sometimes it works, but in my experience, there seems to be some stains that just won't completely come clean.
Our lives are like that. We have been stained by our sins. We can try to "clean" our stained lives by going to church,or doing good deeds. But try as we will those things will not make us clean. There is nothing that we can do on our own to become clean. That is why God had to send Jesus to live the perfect life, and die for our sins. He is the only way that our sins can be washed away.
I love this worship song. We sing it a lot with the youth at church. I love the chorus where it says... O happy day when you washed my sin away...
The challenge this week is to use scarlet or fall colors on our card. I used fall colors and a Mark's Finest Papers image of a country church.
Our sponsor this week is Lilyof the Valley. Check out Lisa's devotion here at the Stampin' Sisters in Christ blog. Also check out what my stampin' sisters have created...
Kris Linda Miesje Pegggysue Traci Grace
Friday, October 28, 2011
Layers of Color- Vintage butterfly orb
I was inspired by the Layers of Color ornament blog hop. Laura shared a template for this ornament on her blog. I used dp that made me think of vintage wall paper. I used beads and gold cording to hang my ornament. I took a gold leaf pen and drew on the beads as well as little dots and squiggles on the dp. I then stamped and heat embossed with gold ep several butterflies using Layers of Color Flutterescent Set. 
Sunday, October 23, 2011
Stampin' Sisters in Christ and 12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop Combined to save TIME
(For Mark's Finest Papers 12 days of Christmas blog hop keep scrolling down to about 1/2 way through this post.)
Time
Ecclesiastes 3: 1-8
1 There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:
2 a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
3 a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
4 a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
5 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
6 a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
7 a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
8 a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.
If there is a time for everything, why do I struggle so much with the issue of time? I start each day rushed and have so much to do that I always run out of time by the end of the day when I collapse into bed, with things left undone. I find myself wishing I had MORE TIME.
There are several questions about time that have been on my heart lately.
HOW MUCH TIME DO I HAVE LEFT? In the past several months, several times, death has touched people I know. In several of the cases the people were really young. 2 were still in their teens.
DID THEY KNOW THAT THEIR TIME WAS ALMOST UP? No, because none of us really know when our time is up.
IF TODAY WAS MY LAST DAY, HOW WOULD I SPEND IT? WOULD I WASTE EVEN A MINUTE OF IT? There are so many time wasters that I find in my day. Waiting in line, watching tv, getting on facebook( just being honest and transparent here). If today were my last, I hope I would spend it with my kids, my husband, my family, my friends, my church… making memories in the relationships that I treasure.
Lord, help me to get my priorities straight today and not waste my time.
IF I KNEW THAT TODAY WAS YOUR LAST WOULD I TREAT YOU DIFFERENTLY?
WOULD I TELL YOU THAT I LOVE YOU?
WOULD I MAKE SURE YOU KNEW THAT HEAVEN WAS YOUR DESTINATION?
WOULD I TREAT YOU WITH KINDNESS AND FORGIVENESS?
Lord help me to interact with those around me as if today were their last day. Don’t let me live with the regret of things undone, unsaid.
My challenge is for you to make a card or project that shows time. Examples: clock (minutes/hours), sun or stars (days), calendar (years), seasons...etc.
Here is my project. It is a calendar that I made for the 12 days of Christmas blog hop for Mark's Finest Papers. Kind of ironic that my post today is about time and this project is one that has taken a lot of time to complete.(Don't ask how many hours...) I saw it in my head but putting it together has taken hours.(Change that to days.) I printed my calendar using Microsoft Excel. I cut the calendar pages out and glued them at the top. When they were done, I made a base for my calendar out of an old cereal box. The toppers were printed using Microsoft Excel as well. I made 12 toppers each with a different blessing. I then stamped images from all of my Mark's Finest Papers sets to go along with those blessings. I then cut and matted them onto dp and cardstock. I taped a giant paper clip to the back of the toppers leaving about half of the paper clip hanging down. All of the toppers fit nicely inside the calendar. There is a slit cut at the top of the calendar for the toppers to fit into.
Our Sponsor this week is: Digital Delights by Louby Lou
Time
Ecclesiastes 3: 1-8
1 There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:
2 a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
3 a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
4 a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
5 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
6 a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
7 a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
8 a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.
If there is a time for everything, why do I struggle so much with the issue of time? I start each day rushed and have so much to do that I always run out of time by the end of the day when I collapse into bed, with things left undone. I find myself wishing I had MORE TIME.
There are several questions about time that have been on my heart lately.
HOW MUCH TIME DO I HAVE LEFT? In the past several months, several times, death has touched people I know. In several of the cases the people were really young. 2 were still in their teens.
DID THEY KNOW THAT THEIR TIME WAS ALMOST UP? No, because none of us really know when our time is up.
IF TODAY WAS MY LAST DAY, HOW WOULD I SPEND IT? WOULD I WASTE EVEN A MINUTE OF IT? There are so many time wasters that I find in my day. Waiting in line, watching tv, getting on facebook( just being honest and transparent here). If today were my last, I hope I would spend it with my kids, my husband, my family, my friends, my church… making memories in the relationships that I treasure.
Lord, help me to get my priorities straight today and not waste my time.
IF I KNEW THAT TODAY WAS YOUR LAST WOULD I TREAT YOU DIFFERENTLY?
WOULD I TELL YOU THAT I LOVE YOU?
WOULD I MAKE SURE YOU KNEW THAT HEAVEN WAS YOUR DESTINATION?
WOULD I TREAT YOU WITH KINDNESS AND FORGIVENESS?
Lord help me to interact with those around me as if today were their last day. Don’t let me live with the regret of things undone, unsaid.
My challenge is for you to make a card or project that shows time. Examples: clock (minutes/hours), sun or stars (days), calendar (years), seasons...etc.
Here is my project. It is a calendar that I made for the 12 days of Christmas blog hop for Mark's Finest Papers. Kind of ironic that my post today is about time and this project is one that has taken a lot of time to complete.(Don't ask how many hours...) I saw it in my head but putting it together has taken hours.(Change that to days.) I printed my calendar using Microsoft Excel. I cut the calendar pages out and glued them at the top. When they were done, I made a base for my calendar out of an old cereal box. The toppers were printed using Microsoft Excel as well. I made 12 toppers each with a different blessing. I then stamped images from all of my Mark's Finest Papers sets to go along with those blessings. I then cut and matted them onto dp and cardstock. I taped a giant paper clip to the back of the toppers leaving about half of the paper clip hanging down. All of the toppers fit nicely inside the calendar. There is a slit cut at the top of the calendar for the toppers to fit into.
Our Sponsor this week is: Digital Delights by Louby Lou
Check out what my Stampin' Sisters in Christ have created...
Kris Linda Miesje Pegggysue Traci Grace
12 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS BLOG HOP
Speedy the Cat at Mark's Finest Papers likes to get a head start on special Christmas gifts and memories for friends and family. He gathered the design team at Mark's Finest Papers to bring you 12 days of exciting paper crafting gift ideas to get that holiday mojo flowing. The hop runs for 12 consecutive days, starting October 17th! Begin your holiday hop at Speedy's home base, the Mark's Finest Papers blog and relax with a cup of eggnog (or sprig of catnip, your choice) as Speedy leads you though a short, daily hop. You'll find your holiday paper crafting ideas and supplies at Mark's Finest Papers.
Welcome to the 12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop! We have four samples each day for our hop! Please visit each of the following blogs for holiday inspiration!
Peggysue
Connie
Anne
MariLynn
This shows the back side of a topper. See how I just taped the paper clip to the back.
See how the toppers fit inside the calendar.
I love this song about time by Chris Rice and thought I would share it with you!!!
Thank you for taking the TIME to read this really long post!!
Friday, October 21, 2011
Speedy the Cat at Mark's Finest Papers likes to get a head start on special Christmas gifts and memories for friends and family. He gathered the design team at Mark's Finest Papers to bring you 12 days of exciting paper crafting gift ideas to get that holiday mojo flowing. The hop runs for 12 consecutive days, starting October 17th! Begin your holiday hop at Speedy's home base, the Mark's Finest Papers blog and relax with a cup of eggnog (or sprig of catnip, your choice) as Speedy leads you though a short, daily hop. You'll find your holiday paper crafting ideas and supplies at Mark's Finest Papers.
Welcome to the 12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop! We have four samples each day for our hop! Please visit each of the following blogs for holiday inspiration! Start off tomorrow on the MFP Blog for more inspiration!
Day 5 Acetate Box Oct 21
Lois
Joanne
Patty
MariLynn (This is me)
Welcome to the 12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop! We have four samples each day for our hop! Please visit each of the following blogs for holiday inspiration! Start off tomorrow on the MFP Blog for more inspiration!
Day 5 Acetate Box Oct 21
Lois
Joanne
Patty
MariLynn (This is me)
My gingerbread men were made out of an old cereal box. I stamped each gingerbread man three times. I cut them all out and glued the 3 layers together with Aleene's tacky glue. I glued buttons and tied ribbons around thier necks. I added red cheeks with prisma colored pencils. I used a white prisma colored pencil for the frosting. The eyes and nose are dimensional. I added drops of Aleene's tacky glue for each eye and nose. It really makes them shine in real life. I made the lid and base of my box with plain white to make the gingerbread men stand out more.
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