Our Glorious King

 On His robe and on His thigh He has this name written: King of kings and Lord of lords. 

Revelation 19:16

Hi Friends!

Today I'm in Revelation 19. I love Revelation. This book can seem daunting with the prophecy, and judgments, and some pretty weird stuff going on, but at it's core, it is revealing Jesus to us. Throughout the book, Jesus is described in various ways and He is in His rightful place, glorified and praised. It is amazing! I just love it. And every time I read this passage in chapter 19, it just speaks to me. It is so powerful. I’ve journaled these verses many times. I love reading the descriptions of Jesus in all His glory.

Verse 11 begins with a rider on a white horse. That rider is Jesus. But He's not the lovey-dovey Jesus some people make Him into these days. Here's how Revelation 19:11-16 describes Jesus:
I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice He judges and wages war. His eyes are like blazing fire, and on His head are many crowns. He has a name written on Him that no one knows but He Himself. He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and His name is the Word of God. The armies of heaven were following Him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. Coming out of His mouth is a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. "He will rule them with an iron scepter." He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. On His robe and on His thigh He has this name written: King of kings and Lord of lords.
Wow! Jesus is pretty fierce! This is Jesus at His second coming, and He's ready to fight. His holiness demands justice. And His sovereignty demands victory over the ungodly who tried to usurp His throne. I want to focus on the names given to Him in this passage:

• Faithful and True: Jesus Keeps His promises and all truth comes from Him.
• The Word of God: Jesus is God's Word personified, the Father reveals Himself through Jesus. That sword coming out of Jesus' mouth in verse 15 is Jesus' powerful spoken word- like the Bible is described as a sharp, two-edged sword (Heb 4:12.) Just as the spoken word of Christ has the power to create, it also has the power to judge.
• King of kings and Lord of lords: This is Jesus' exalted and victorious name.He will reign over all.

We serve a Savior who is very loving. But I think we sometimes forget that He is also fierce, and at His second coming will judge those who chose the beast rather than Him.

Page Details: I used the following Sweet ‘n Sassy Stamps supplies: Typewriter Alpha, Birch Forest Stencil, Texture Tiles 9, Gear Up, and Trust in the Lord. I applied distress oxides to the page with blending brushes for the background. I then used a stencil and applied white acrylic paint through the stencil with a baby wipe. Then I stamped.

Have a blessed week! Andrea

Turn Down the Noise

And after the earthquake, a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. 

And after the fire the sound of a low whisper. 1 Kings 19:12

Hello, dear friends!

Today I'm in 1 Kings 19 with Elijah. In chapter 18, we find Elijah at a spiritual high. God came through in a big way and defeated the prophets of Baal. God was with Elijah big time! But, in chapter 19, Jezebel was pretty angry about what had happened, and vowed to kill Elijah. So he ran. 

Does that surprise you? I mean, he's ELIJAH, the great prophet, who was taken up to heaven by God in a great whirlwind. When circumstances got tough, he ran? Can you relate? I sure can. I may not physically run away when life gets hard, but I mentally run- to books or TV or social media, anything that might help me take my mind off the hard.

Elijah was feeling "done." In verse 4, he asked to die. He was exhausted. The Bible tells us he slept after praying to die. And God sent an angel who fed him. God knew Elijah needed to be physically strengthened so that he could continue the work God had for him. 

Well, Elijah went to Mt. Horeb and found a cave where he took shelter. And God had one question for him in verse 9, "What are you doing here, Elijah?" But Elijah didn't really answer God's question, instead he told God that he was the only one left standing for God, and that he had received a death threat. 

So God told him to go out of the cave, and God sent:

• a mighty wind
• an earthquake
• a fire

But God was not in those things. The loud, chaotic things that so easily get our attention because they are loud and chaotic are often not where we will find God. Instead, God came to him with a whisper, a whisper that asked the same question, "What are you doing here, Elijah?" You see God didn't want him to run away from his problems. In fact, He told Elijah to go right back in to those problems! But, God strengthened him physically and mentally. He had fed him and promised Elijah that he wasn't the only one standing for God. He promised that there would be others to come alongside Elijah in standing for God.

Our world is loud. And there are a lot of problems. So, in the midst of the hard, instead of mentally (or physically) running away from the problems, turn down the noise of the world, and sit with Him in the stillness. God will speak to you through His Word. He will strengthen you and me too.

My life has had a lot of changes lately as we moved from Kansas to Texas. There's been hard and stressful times in this move. But, I just have seen God working over and over. He cares about the details of our lives. And He is there for us. We just have to listen.

Page details: I used the following Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps sets: Ellis Square Alpha, Marker Alpha, Bitty Minnie Alpha, I Am Loved, Texture Tiles 1, Texture Tiles 6, Texture Tiles 9, Gear Up, and Grunge Elements 3. The background was done with distress oxides: Speckled Egg, Dusty Concord, and Chipped Sapphire. I applied them to the page with blender brushes. I spritzed the page with water as the distress oxides react and give a neat effect. Then I used all the stamps. :) I wanted the background stamps to give the idea of the noisiness of life, but the blue area is calm and quiet.

Sit with Him, my friends. He's waiting! Have a blessed week. Andrea

Love God More

But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she came to Him and said, "Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Then tell her to help me." Luke 10:40

Dear Friends,

Look at the verse above. Can you relate to Martha? I sure can. In fact, one Thanksgiving comes to mind. We hosted Thanksgiving that year. My husband's brother and his family were with us. The family time was great. The meal was enjoyable. And then came the clean up, and I found myself all alone in the kitchen. Everyone else was in the living room enjoying each other. And I can remember thinking, "Seriously?! Is no one else going to help?!" Yes, I can certainly relate to Martha. Let's get the whole story from Luke 10:38-42:

As they went, He entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house. She had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus' feet and listened to His teaching. But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she came to Him and said, "Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Then tell her to help me." Jesus answered her, "Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed. And Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken from her."

You see, Martha had invited Christ in. She welcomed Him. And she wanted to serve Him. She probably wanted everything just perfect. And before she realized it, all her focus was on what she was doing and not on Him. And the work was too much. She was frustrated that she had no help. So, she went to Jesus, expecting Him to tell Mary to help her. But that's not what He said. First He pointed out the fact that she had let her service to Him make her anxious and troubled. And then, He told her that only one thing was needed. One thing- Him. Jesus is the only thing that we need! So, service is good. But our focus needs to remain on Jesus, spend time with Him. We shouldn't let service or busyness of life drown out Jesus. Martha invited Jesus in, but she didn't take the time to sit at His feet. Instead, she immediately jumped into serving. When we serve... as we live, we need to sit at Jesus' feet FIRST. And then go back to Him time and time again. Martha wasn't wrong in what she did. But, we need to fill up on Jesus before we serve Him and others. He must always be the focus and the priority. So if we find ourselves busy, busy, busy with life and service but we feel far from Jesus, then we need to stop what we're doing and sit with Him. Jesus is the good part. We need Him.

Page Details: I used the following Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps sets: Prayer Time, Much Love, Consider the Wildflowers, and Gear Up. Prayer Time and Much Love are part of the December release. You can get Much Love for free with a $75 purchase! This is a super simple page! I just stamped the images and colored the centers of the flowers with Prismacolor pencils.

Have a blessed week, friends! Don't let the busyness of Christmas cause you to forget Jesus, the reason for Christmas. Spend time with Him every day, throughout the day. Remember, Jesus is the good part!

I'm Coming, Lord!

 O You who hear prayer, to You shall all flesh come. Psalm 65:2

Dear Friends,

Wow, what a year this has been, right? So many uncertainties and upheavals have occurred. But, in my life at least, there have been many blessings too- more time with family, rest from work, more time of prayer and Bible study. We live in a world where many do not know our great God. But, one day, as Psalm 65:2 tells us, ALL flesh will come to Him. To those of us who know Him, this verse also reminds us that He hears our prayers. Whatever may be on your mind, friend, tell Him! Come to Him. Rest in Him. Make time in your day for Him. It will change your life!

When I read this verse, I thought, "I'm coming, Lord, I'm coming!" And the good news is is that He is waiting for each of us with open arms.

Page Details: I used the following Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps sets: Welcome Home, Vintage Van, All of Me Alpha, Shake It Off Alpha, Texture Tiles 4, Fill Me Up, and Gear Up. I spritzed my page with water first and then applied acrylic paint. As needed, I spritzed more water to blend the colors a little. I stamped the words and scene directly on the page. I want them completely black. So, after stamping, I went over the images with a black marker. I stamped the van on sticker paper so it would stand out. I colored it with alcohol markers.

I hope you have a blessed week! Andrea

Hard Things

"Therefore, come now, and I will send you to Pharaoh, so that you may bring My people, the sons of Israel, out of Egypt." But Moses said to God, "Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the sons of Israel out of Egypt?" And He said, "Certainly I will be with you, and this shall be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall worship God at this mountain." Exodus 3:10-12

Hi Friends,
Life is hard. And we're asked to do hard things. If I'm completely honest, I don't at all like "hard." My default is to try to find the easy way out. But I don't think God wants our lives to be easy. Because it's in the "hard" that we depend on Him. Let's look at Moses in Exodus 3. God told him to go to Pharaoh and demand that the Israelites be freed. HARD THING! And Moses' response was, "Who am I?" I think what he meant was, "Why do You think I can do this? I'm not qualified to do this!" Moses was doing what many of us do- looking at a hard situation or task and seeing all our short comings.

Look at God's 2-part response:

• Certainly I will be with you: It didn't matter who Moses was. What mattered is that God was with him. He could do this hard thing because God was with him. The same is true for us. It doesn't matter who we are or what qualifications we have because, frankly, God doesn't need them. He could do it all on His own easily. But He wants us to participate. He wants to grow us. He wants us to draw near to Him and depend, trust, and follow Him wherever that may go.
• And this shall be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall worship God at this mountain: God not only confirmed Moses' calling, He confirmed his success. God didn't say "if" you bring the people out, He said "when." Success was a forgone conclusion. When we are following God and within His will, success is a forgone conclusion. Now, that success may not be what we have in mind as success, but it's success nonetheless.

Friend, YOU CAN DO HARD THINGS! Not because of who you are, but because of who God is! If you are a believer, the Holy Spirit indwells you. That means God is with you ALL THE TIME and through HIM you can do the hard things of life. Hard times can be some of the most precious times if we allow ourselves to be led and molded by our Creator. Let's not run from hard things. Let's not try to find the easy way out. Let's trust Him and do the hard stuff.

Page details: I used the following Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps sets: Playful Alpha & Gear Up. Playful Alpha is brand new and part of the September release. I just love it! 

Have a blessed week! Andrea

Perfect Peace

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. John 14:27 

Dear Friends,

Peace. It's what we all want, right? There are different definitions for peace. One is freedom from disturbance or tranquility. Another is a state in which there is no war. It's probably safe to say we'd like both. The peace Jesus is talking about in this verse is the freedom from disturbance- no matter what's going on in the world. In this context, peace is not the absence of trouble, but the presence of God.

From gotquestions.org: Peace is a fruit of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:22). When the “God of all peace” comes to live inside a believing heart (1 Corinthians 6:19), He begins to produce His own characteristics in that life. Inner peace comes from knowing that circumstances are temporary and that God is sovereign over all (Isaiah 46:9–11). Peace comes from exercising faith in the character of God and His Word. We can have peace in the midst of challenges when we remember that “all things work together for the good to those who love God and are called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28). We can choose peace rather than give way to fear and worry. Inner peace resulting from a relationship with God allows us to keep things in proper perspective. We can accept difficult situations on earth by remembering that our citizenship is in heaven (Philippians 3:20). We are commanded to “live in peace” with others, as far as it is up to us (Romans 12:18; 2 Corinthians 13:11; Hebrews 12:14). To live at peace means we interact with those around us in accordance with our own wholeness of mind. Our reactions to circumstances can bring peace to an otherwise chaotic situation. Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called the children of God” (Matthew 5:9). And James 3:18 says, “Peacemakers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness.” God’s desire is that we who know Him learn to live in peace within ourselves first. Then we can radiate that peace to others, bringing calmness and wisdom to tense situations, and in so doing be lights in the world (Matthew 5:14; Philippians 2:14–15).

The world is pretty chaotic right now. But Jesus gives us perfect peace. We just have to rest in Him, and share His truth with others. And, boy, does this world need His truth now more than ever. Rest in Him. Love others. Share Jesus. Be at peace.

Page Details: I used the following Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps sets: Way Maker, Send Me, Gear Up, Texture Tiles 1, and Faith Wordfetti. I stamped the texture stamps around the world to symbolize the division and chaos that seems to be consuming us. I used watercolor crayons and Prismacolor pencils.

Have a blessed week. Andrea