Deep Thoughts, Precious Thoughts

How good are you works, O Lord!

Your thoughts are very deep.

Psalm 92:5

How precious are your thoughts to me, O God!

How vast the sum of them!

Psalm 139:17

We can scarcely grasp the scope of God's thoughts.  They are higher, deeper, more vast that anything we can imagine.  Even more amazing is that his thoughts toward us are good, loving, and gracious.  He is a loving Father who delights in his children.  

His thoughts of us are deeper than the sea...deeper than the expanse of the universe.  We might wonder how often he thinks of us.  The Bible answers that question.  His thoughts of us are more numerous that the grains of sand on the shores, more than the stars of the sky.  We are constantly on his mind.  Psalm 139:7 says, "Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence?"  There is no place we can go that his mind is not on us, that his eye fail to see, or his heart fails to love.  His reach is always sufficient to grab us in his loving, protective embrace. 

 

How precious is that?  How very precious!  When we try to imagine God's thoughts of us, his care and concern...his love, we can't grasp it when we look at the scope of the reaches of the universe.  But there is one concrete image, one measurable way we can know how much he loves us.  

The measure of God's love is from

one nail scarred hand to the other. 

Several years ago a song from Casting Crowns, East to West, expressed the same thought in describing how far God throws away our sin when we are forgiven through Christ.  The same is true of the measure of his love.  Were it not for what Christ did for us on the cross of Calvary, we would not be able to comprehend or envision how much God loves us.  It is through the gospel message we find our ability to relate to His love.  When God gives us his Spirit we can see what Jesus did and then we know how very, very precious is his love toward us and how vast his thoughts of us surely must be.  

-----

Design Details:

I love using my Praise Book to house some of my journaling for meaningful scripture. It allows more space than my Bible, yet still elevates scripture in beautiful ways.  Here I used the Beach Blessings Printable for the design pieces and the Script Outline Alpha to capture the primary focus of the page. 

I just added a little more texture and color to the page with a stencil and acrylic paint.  

Sets Used:

Beach Blessings Printable

Script Outline Alpha Clear Stamp

Get Some Rest...

Hi friends,

One of the things I have really struggled with over recent years is rest. My personality resists sitting still, doing nothing and being 'non-productive' so resting has been a challenge, to say the least! God has been leading me on a journey to discover the importance of rest over the last year and one of the Scriptures I have been meditating upon is found in Mark 6:31 when Jesus says to his disciples, "Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest."

I wanted to unpack this verse one part at a time and think through what is means for us. I thought I would start at the end and work backwards, as sometimes this helps me to notice things I might not have seen otherwise. The first phrase to ponder is 'get some rest.' This is SO vital to our emotional, spiritual and physical wellbeing, and there are simply no shortcuts. Life has a way of draining our energy and strength, whether in the day-to-day 'stuff' of life, or going through dark and difficult times. This is why we need to rest, to recharge, to realise that life is not the sum total of our efforts, and that over everything, God is in control (and He doesn't need us to keep the world spinning!).

The second phrase to dwell on is 'to a quiet place.' This is something that I really need to hear, because let me tell you, I am good at surrounding myself with noise and busyness! But Jesus' invitation to his disciples points to an important key to rest: quiet. There is something about stilling the noise around us and withdrawing into quietness that really helps us to rest. More than just external quietness though, I am learning that the more important quietness is in our minds and hearts. The spiritual disciplines of silence and solitude are so helpful in learning to enter into and practice rest, both internally and externally. This leads to the next important phrase - 'by yourselves.' Now for the introverts among us, this might be easier than for those who love to keep company with others 24/7! But there's something about spending time alone with the Lord that revives and rejuvenates us in ways that are different from spending time resting with others.

This leads to two important little words: 'with me.' This is where the rest invited by Jesus is different from the 'chilling out' advocated by the world. True rest is found when we spend time with Christ, giving Him access to all parts of our lives, and allowing Him to lead us to green pastures. It is in this place of peace in the presence of God that we find true rest, whether that is for minutes, hours or days.

There is just one more word to ponder: 'come.' This is the invitation of Jesus, not just to His disciples 2000 years ago but to His children today. We are invited to come with Him, by ourselves, to a quiet place, and to get some rest.

I used some of the fab printables from this month's Beach Blessings devotional on this page, along with the Bitty Minnie Alpha stamp set. I've also used a couple of little elements from Scene Silhouettes: Trees to add colour to the background.

 

Can I encourage you to join me on this journey of discovering the power and importance of rest? It's not an easy or quick practice to adopt because so many things in our culture discourage true rest, but God is faithful to lead us if we will accept His invitation.

x Amy x

Precious God

Hey guys, it's Deeds!  Welcome to Creative Worship!

I'm glad you stopped by to have a read today!  

I am really glad; and I'm hopeful. 

Lots going on lately on this blog feed.  Some good buzz, and some difficult. 
I know there has been attack after attack on my family for the past few months.  It's been crazy!  All attacks have come in pairs, threes, or even more, and on some days I feel completely lost; distraught; alone; depleted.
This is called reality.  "La vie" is episodes of ups and downs, yes?  

The journal entry you see here comes from a "downs" place; raw place;  a season in my life filled with all sorts of confusion and even despair. 
No, it's not the despair part that I'm interested in sharing with you.  Though there may be use in detailing what the Lord has brought us through as a family, what is far more important is the blessing and honor due His name.  Yes, and amen!!
Enter Psalm 139.
I've read this Psalm in completely different settings before this entry was made, and it was usually in a happy, flowing, comfortable state.  I praise the Lord that Psalm 139 is available to me even when - no, ESPECIALLY when - I'm struggling.  It's rich, and I mean totally LOADED.
There are a couple of verses that stood out to me this last go around.  Funny how scripture you read and hear thousands of times can hit you "just right" in any given moment; meet you just where you're at. 

Check it out…

"How precious Your thoughts are to me; how vast their sum is!  If I counted them, they would outnumber the grains of sand; when I wake up, I am still with you."  (v. 17-18)

Two things:

1. God's thoughts are precious.  No matter what I'm doing, where I'm going, what I'm thinking, where I've been and how messy my life has become, God thinks tenderly toward this child.  God loves His daughter beyond a fathomable measure.  The word "precious," means "of great value; not to be wasted or treated carelessly."  God is not wasting His thoughts toward me; they are precious; they are valuable.  His thoughts toward me are characterized by His ability to restore, renew, and retain value.
2. These "thoughts" are also without number.  Do you remember when God took Abram (aka Abraham) outside His tent and told him to look up?  Abram was instructed to try to number the stars and if he could, he would have counted his descendants through his son.  Abram, of course, was unable to number the stars, therefore unable to number his promised legacy, and oh, the vast generations to follow! 
   More so, God's thoughts toward us are innumerable - WITHOUT NUMBER.  He never stops thinking about you.  Nor does He stop thinking about me!  How is this possible?  Well with man, it's totally impossible.  Our minds hinge on logic, and will only fully function on the appropriate amount of sleep.  GOD NEVER SLEEPS - THUS GOD IS ALWAYS THINKING.  I LOVE THAT!!!!

Who cares, right?  Well, I did.  I do!  My soul needs to know that the tender-loving Shepherd-King is thinking about His flock.  I desperately NEED to understand that my God is bigger than I think Him to be, and can do anything and everything He chooses.  And what He chooses is to think of me.  Not because I'm special, but like I said before, the glory and honor due is name is invaluable!  It's precious!  HE IS GOD!  His love for me turns around and glorifies Him.  He dotes on me, to glorify Himself.  To make Himself my treasure.
It's a weird mindset, and it doesn't permeate our culture all that much.  But, if God were not able to think constantly, love unfathomably, and pursue adamantly, God's glory and I would sink together. 

Think about Psalm 139 the next time you feel completely lost; distraught; alone; depleted.  The precious, uncountable thoughts toward you come from a God that is all-together precious!

Much love,

Deeds

IG: mrcfuldeeds2010
Youtube: mrcfuldeeds
 

Featured printables by Diane Noble of Sweet 'n' Sassy Stamps: "Beach Blessings."

Find ALL of the June release and more Here!

Whispers from my Father

The verse in Psalm 46 that says “be still, and know that I am God” is pretty familiar to many of us. In today's world of hurry hurry hurry, we often hear people say "just be still."

Sounds great. Doesn’t it? Just be still. Oh, but it’s not that easy. You see, I can let my body be still all right, but my heart and mind are a different story.

In fact, often when I’m still, my mind is anything but still. But, when I do stop, get still, and truly focus on knowing Him, that’s when I hear His soft sweet whispers.

“Hush, my child.”

“Stop striving.” 

“Trust me...even when it’s hard.”

Today as I was pondering this passage, a couple of songs began to play on repeat in my head. “In Christ Alone” has a beautiful part that says:

“when fears are stilled, and strivings cease
my comforter, my all in all
here in the love of Christ, I stand.”

Being still entails letting our fears be stilled and our strivings to cease. It means to turn off the racing in our mind...and truly know Him.

The other song that came to mind, was “It is Well”. How many of us can truly say “it is well with our soul?” When I am still, hush my mind, and experience the peace that only He can bring, I can say “it is well.”

What’s keeping you from being still today? Do you need to sit and listen for His whispers of “hush my child?”


“Be still, and know that I am God!”
‭‭Psalm 46:10‬a NLT‬‬

Art behind the story:

Today’s artwork is very simple as I wanted to keep the focus on the whispers I heard from my Daddy.

For the word “hush”, I used Sweet ‘n Sassy Stamps Script Outline Alpha. It is colored in with Distess Oxide ink and a water brush. “My child” is stamped using Teeny Alpha. The background texture was enhanced with Texture Tiles 1 and Texture Tiles 2. On the tab I used Timeless Hymns. 

Take some time today to be still and listen for whispers from Daddy.

Hugs,

Gayle
PatioPonderings

Editor's Note:  The journal used for these entries is titled "100 Days of Bible Promises" by Shanna Noel.

"Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus!"

I love journaling in my hymnal, because music has always been a vital part of my Christian experience.  I can remember song lyrics much better than scripture (unless they too are put to music).  The hymns I grew up singing are powerfully etched into my memory.  I grew up going to very small churches where even as an early-teen, I was often called upon to lead the congregation in singing these hymns.  I therefore came to know most of the songs in the hymnal fairly well.  As a matter of fact, when it came to the part of the service where special music was supposed to take place, the speaker might look to me--if there was nothing scheduled--and say, "Sister Julie, do you have something you can share with us today?" I would look to my mother, who happened to be my ready-made accompanist, and we would quickly flip open the hymnal, and respond with a semi-confident, "Sure!"  I'd then stand up from my seat, walk to the front, and then stand before the church and proclaim His faithfulness through word and song.  Sometimes this annoyed me.  Other times it amused me.  Later, I realize how it actually equipped and empowered me to be the speaker, teacher and worship leader that I am today.  

The team of George Duffield and Adam Geibel wrote this hymn in 1858.  The words to the second stanza are particularly powerful:

Stand up, stand up for Jesus, 

Stand in His strength alone; 

The arm of flesh will fail you, 

Ye dare not trust your own.

Put on the gospel armor,

Each piece put on with prayer; 

Where duty calls or danger, 

Be never wanting there.

We can only stand up for Jesus through His power.  We cannot trust our own power ("the arm of flesh") because it will fail us.  We must put on the "gospel armor" with "prayer" and face any duty or danger He calls us to--but His power and strength will never fail us.  I've had to claim His power and strength many times in my life as I've had to stand up for Him in more difficult situations than impromptu hymn sings.  But I can honestly say He has never failed me!

I chose to create a mixed media page for this hymn.  I used the stamp sets Be a Flamingo, Texture Tiles 1, Bitty Minnie Alpha, and Skinny Minnie Alpha.  I began by stamping the flamingo, masking it, then stamping the mesh texture around it.  After that, I watercolored the page in various bright colors.  I then stamped the title words and the leaves.  I added some acrylic paint with bubble wrap, texture stamps, and a paint card.  I finished this page with some flamingo washi, two varying shades of pink bows, and a smaller stamped flamingo.  

What a fun page for a powerful song.  This standing flamingo image reminds me of moments when I would stand and sing this hymn, and others like it, for God's great glory and purpose.  

You can see my other projects over on Instagram @julesk.jewels, YouTube at Jules Jewels, or my blog at Julesjewels.blog.  Thanks for joining me today! 

---Julie

I am Free Indeed!

"So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed."John 8:36

This passage in the book of John is one of the most notable and powerful promises found in the Bible.  We are free indeed!  As we near Independence Day, and we celebrate the freedom we have in our great country--freedoms that many other countries do not have or enjoy--we remember the price that was paid for this freedom.  Many lives were given for us to be able to experience the freedom we have in the United States.  (For any readers in other countries, the same probably goes for you and the freedoms you have--nothing ever comes without a cost.)

But Jesus was not talking about political, social, or economic freedom.  He was talking about spiritual freedom.  Freedom from the bondage and slavery of sin.  When Adam and Eve chose their own way over God's way in the Garden of Eden, and thereby rejecting His intimacy, they allowed Sin to take this world captive.  And all humanity since has been  slave to sin, because "everyone who sins is a slave to sin..." (v. 34). However, Jesus took on humanity, lived a perfect, sinless life, and then died a perfect death, so we don't have to continue to be slaves to sin.  He gave His life for our freedom.

The gift of life is free.  It is a free choice.  We are free from sin and slavery IN and THROUGH Jesus.  We have but to accept it by faith, and allow Him to remove the sin from our daily lives.  He removed the burden of sin from our back.  However, we too often take it back again, and again, and again.  Jesus says we are free from the slavery and bondage of lust, of discontentment, of appetite, of worrying, of anger, and the list goes on.  But sometimes we are too comfortable being a slave.  The Israelites often grumbled after escaping from their slavery in Egypt, and longed to go back to their state of bondage!  That makes no sense to us, but we really are no different!  We might want to be free from our sins, but we don't really want to give them up.  

I'm not saying it's an easy thing to do, to give sin up, to be free.  But it is simple.  Jesus has promised, "If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed!" (emphasis mine).  He adds the "indeed" to emphasize how sure of a freedom it is.  He has already made us free--but the reality of the freedom in our lives depends on our daily submission and surrender to Him.  Our freedom actually comes in surrender.  Its a paradox, but it's a powerful paradox. 

I used the newly-released Free Indeed stamp set for this page because it has both patriotic and Biblical words and images that suit journaling this passage.  I first stamped and embossed the  various firework images in white.  Next, I blended some Distress Oxide Inks over those images, which resulted in a resist-effect.  I then stamped the words to spell out "Christ [has] set me free [so] I am free indeed."  I didn't get a super clear stamping on the word "free", so I ended up doing some white detailing with a gel pen to cover it.  That lead to me doing the same detailing on all the bolder-type words, since I liked the effect.  I stamped a few more of the smaller images in the various red, light blue and darker blue inks, made a tab out of navy washi tape, and topped it with a navy and white bow.  

Friends, don't go back into your bondage to sin.  Accept your freedom, and be free--INDEED!

Land of the Free

"For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery." Galatians 5:1

Independence day is right around the corner and has me contemplating what it means to have freedom and to be free. Freedom in the dictionary is described as the power or right to act, speak, or think as one wants without restraint, or the state of not being imprisoned or enslaved. As a Christian I feel so blessed to have the gift of freedom from sin. I don't have to listen to the taunting and whispered lies in my ears. Christ willingly gave himself as a sacrifice so I can experience freedom.

This page was a little of a challenge as I originally used StazOn ink on the back side of the page that bled through. I used a little white acrylic paint thinly scraped across the page with a paint card to easily cover and create a blank canvas for me to create on. Instead of using colored inks I used my big brush Pitt pens to color and stamp the images onto the page. Combining the star and stripes stamps I was able to create a abstract flag at the top of the page. I filled in my titled with hand lettering and tiny alpha stickers. The seamless bunting was created by inking all but the knot on one end of the banner then re inking the stamp and realigning to create the swoop. After the ink on the bunting was dry I went back with the same red and blue Pitt pens and filled in the triangles to match the page.

This fantastic set 'Free Indeed' can be purchased HERE along with many other beautiful versatile sets. Keep your eyes open for next months new stamps....you will not be disappointed!

Hugs and Prayers,

Jenn @creativegurl85

Knock Down The Wall...

Happy Friday Everyone!

  I know I'm ready for the weekend, how about you? Fun plans with family and friends, or maybe nothing? Sometimes having no plans is just the best, right?! 

The page I am discussing today is about forgiveness! One of those topics that is much easier said than done, I know.

Ephesians 4:31

"Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, 

along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, 

as God in Christ forgave you."

All of us have at one time or another been "burned" by a significant other, friend, family member, coworker, the list goes on. Whether it was it was a simple and almost petty thing that you just can't seem to look past, or something so awful that you don't think anyone could forgive someone who would do such a thing. The act of forgiving someone is not always easy. 

Let's just be completely honest here. It is SO much easier sometimes to put up a wall! Build a wall around yourself and your heart so that no one can get close enough to hurt you again. And that wall may do a great job of protecting you... for a while... and then you'll probably start to feel a little lonely, or emotionally weighed down from it. Overtime, holding a grunge against someone really wears down on your soul! I know in the past I have held grudges against a couple people that really hurt me, and I vowed I would never let someone hurt me that way again. It wasn't until years later that I realized holding that grudge and not forgiving them wasn't affecting them AT ALL. Honestly, I don't think they even noticed! So I was going through life holding this weight of what happened in the past for absolutely no reason. I was only allowing the past to continue to weigh me down and hurt me.

Once I started praying about it and really focusing on letting go and forgiving them, such a weight was lifted off of me. Jesus is the ultimate example of forgiveness. He paid the ultimate price for all of our sins, when he did absolutely NOTHING wrong. He forgave us of all our sins! If he was able to forgive all of us for all of the sins we committed and ever WOULD commit, then how can we not forgive others just as he did?! So break down that wall you have built around your heart, and let others in. Forgive those that have hurt you and don't let them hold you back from happiness. 

xoxo,

Stephanie Gammon

Texture Tiles 2

Mini Grunge Type Alpha

Let's Do This

Outline Alpha

Free Indeed

So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed. John 8:36

Good morning, friends!

We live in a country that is free. We are free to do what we want within the laws of our country. And I'm so thankful to have been born here. More importantly though, I am free because of Christ. Because of His sacrifice on the cross and His resurrection, I am free from sin. I am free to show others His love. I am free to serve others for Him. I am free to do His will and purpose in my life. And if you have accepted Him as your Savior, then you are free too!

This specific passage refers to our freedom from sin. Does that mean we won't sin anymore? Of course not. But what it does mean is that we don't have to remain defeated in sin. We're going to sin. But, with the power of the Holy Spirit, we can rise up against it and conquer it! ''

For the page, I used the Sweet n Sassy Stamps set Free Indeed. What a fun set! I've used it to make patriotic pages like this and ones that don't look patriotic. So it's very versatile!

Live free, my friends! Andrea

Why Should I Confess?

If we confess our sins, he is faithful 

and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us 

from all unrighteousness.

1 John 1:9 

 

You've heard the old adage, "Confession is good for the soul."  Why is that?  Why should we confess, and to whom is confession necessary?  I know we have a lot of Catholic followers, but I'm not speaking of that type of confession.  Nor am I talking about the necessity of confession when we have wronged another person.  When we wrong another person, going to them to confess your offense and to attempt reconciliation is crucial to healthy relationships.  We cannot forget the importance of confessing before the Lord.  

 

In this situation our confessions come from our heart as we acknowledge sin in our life. Words of repentance then flow to our lips and we pour out our grief and sorrow over our sin to the Lord.  Painful?  So very, very painful.  Sin is ugly to God and it should be to us too.  But confession is a way to stop wallowing in the pain and pity and renew our relationship to God.  As Shanna Noel writes in her 100 Days of Bible Promises, Day 11, "...the purpose of confession is not to tear down or condemn; it's to free you from the weight sin brings."  Confession is releasing the burden of our sin from our shoulders and laying at the throne of our merciful Father who will cast it as far as the east is from the west.  

 

 

Confession is an invitation to God to cleanse us, free us, restore us.  Christ loved us enough to die that He might forgive us our sins.  Would He not continue to love us that we may taste his grace and goodness again and again?  Our debt to God is cancelled in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus.  But because we are not yet perfect, we will still fail to obey God in complete perfection.  Therefore when we sin, our momentary disobedience removes us from the fellowship of God, but no longer separates us for an eternity from his presence.  The later breach was closed when Jesus paid our debt and we believed in faith. I was saved once for all time, and was given the promise that while I continued to live in this fallen world with my imperfections God will continually refresh me and give me rest in his amazing, endless, merciful forgiveness.  Sin no longer reigns in my heart, and God will cleanse any blemish of sin that creeps in....I have this promise; I have this freedom; I have this joy.  

Design Details: 

I love the extra room I have in my 100 Days of Bible Promises book by Shanna Noel/Illustrated Faith.  It has fabulous prompts for journaling thoughts and prayers and just enough room for full-coverage artwork.  Here I used the June printable from Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps, "Beach Blessings."  The 2 starfish and tape on the left page and the girl are printed on cardstock and cut out.  The palm trees, sandpiper, the large words and the starfish trio are printed on clear, matte sticker paper.  

 

Beach Blessings Printable Bundle

Mighty Warrior...

Hi friends,

In Judges 6 we are introduced to the character of Gideon, who God chooses to be one of the judges to lead Israel in a time of persecution and decline. In verse 12 of chapter 6 we see the angel of the Lord appearing to Gideon and his opening words are, "The Lord is with you, mighty warrior."

What an amazing way to be greeting by and angel of God!! But here's the interesting thing: Gideon was anything but a mighty warrior! In fact, when the angel finds him he is hiding in a winepress treading out grain to avoid being seen by the Midianites. When God calls him 'mighty warrior' Gideon's reaction is not to bow in humble gratitude and awe but rather to argue with the angel about whether God was in fact with Israel. When God ignores his arguing, and commissions him to go and save Israel out of Midian's hand, Gideon once again protests! He goes on to list his weaknesses and insignificance, clearly unconvinced of his status as 'mighty warrior.'

I wanted to illustrate this 'unlikely hero' in my Bible using the Brotherly Love stamp set to create a character that looks pretty far removed from a mighty warrior - because that was how Gideon saw himself. But the amazing thing is that God didn't see him as weak and insignificant. God saw and declared over him his true identity as a mighty warrior. This made me pause and wonder how God might want to be declaring awesome things over us, but how we often resist and protest, choosing to believe the lies of inferiority and weakness rather than the truths of God's Word. When we feel ordinary, God declares we are extraordinary. When we feel plain or ugly, God declares that we are beautiful and unique. When we feel flawed and useless, God declares that He has a plan and a purpose for our lives. Let's choose to believe the realty of God's truth and adopt His words over us as our own!

I created the background for this page by applying ink with a dry baby wipe on the tip of my finger - it's a great way to add colour with or without a stencil or mask as you have a lot of control over where you put the ink! As well as using Brotherly Love, I also used the Wetland Grass, Love Your Neighbor, Skinny Minnie Alpha, and Mini Grunge Type Alpha sets.

 

Can I encourage you to find out what God says about you through reading, studying and meditating on His Word and choose to listen and believe His voice? After all, He sees the real us, the one He's created us to be, and the one He will help us to flourish into if we put our trust in Him.

Many blessings...

x Amy x