"In the Morning" Hymnal Journaling

 

In the morning when I rise / In the morning when I rise

In the morning when I rise / Give me Jesus

Give me Jesus / Give me Jesus

You can have all this world / But give me Jesus

And when I am alone / Oh, when I am alone

And when I am alone / Give me Jesus

Give me Jesus / Give me Jesus

You can have all this world / But give me Jesus

And when I come to die / Oh, when I come to die

And when I come to die / Give me Jesus

Give me Jesus / Give me Jesus

You can have all this world / But give me Jesus

Isn't that a beautiful hymn?  Give me Jesus! Yes! The first printing of this song dates back to 1845 in a Methodist hymnal. However, the 1867 compilation Slave Songs of the United States includes this spiritual as a favorite among former slaves in South Carolina. I can easily understand the powerful words to this song strengthening and encouraging anyone going through a difficult time. When we seek Jesus first, in the morning, we'll be victorious over anything and everything we encounter throughout the rest of the day.

I knew I wanted to journal this hymnal page, but my first attempt was a FAIL!  Well, nothing created in heartfelt worship is really a fail, but I was definitely not happy with the results. I didn't like how the lightly stamped words didn't stand out enough against the watercolor background. Nor did I like the placement of the words and image. So I set it aside for a day, and came back to it the next evening. Here's a photo of the first attempt.

First Page Attempt

I pulled out some white, yellow, orange, and red acrylic paint, because I knew that medium was heavy enough to cover up what I had previously done, but light enough to allow me to still see the score of the music.  

Second Attempt

 

I created an ombre effect with the colors, and then, using the Good Morning stamp set, I stamped the words and images over the background.  I added some paint to the sunrise image, and used a white gel pen to highlight the words and the sun's rays.  I added white, orange, and red splatters, which made me think of droplets of sunlight. I added a tab made from washi tape and the phrase "Not today Satan" from the Faith Wordfetti stamp set.  I finished it off with the some black and white washi (to help balance out all the color) and an orange puffy clip, which reminds me of the sun. 

 

I am much happier with the second attempt. I love its brightness and image placement, and the splashes of sunlight! Which is your preference?  

Faith Wordfetti Stamp Set

Good Morning Stamp Set

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 or my YouTube channel Jules Jewels 

God of Grace & Mercy

Hey guys!
It's March!!! Can you believe?  I mean, can you? 
In some ways, I feel like I'm stuck in January and unable to move forward; at the same time, how did we already make it to the month where the sun makes promises of warmth? 
It's mind-blowing!  And here we are.

Today, I'm in Nehemiah.  I LOVE this book.  You guys, if you have a chance to read Nehemiah, and if you should have your note-takers journals and pens handy, I would strongly recommend!  It's the other thing right now that I cannot believe I'm a part of.
Nehemiah.
Do you remember the process video I did back in February in this book?  If you haven't seen it already, the link is right here.  Through this video, I explain a bit more of where the people of Israel have been, what they've done, and how far they've come.  In this context, we meet Nehemiah now in chapter 9.

baby wipe with acrylic paint technique

Nehemiah chapter 9 and following (somewhat like the rest of Israelite history) is a bittersweet combination of a rebellious-turned-right-turned-rebellious people and a God that contains His wrath and justice to bring about His grace and mercy.
"Now therefore, our God, the great God, mighty and awesome, who keeps his covenant of love, do not let all this hardship seem trifling in your eyes."  (Neh. 9:32a)
This is a request of Nehemiah that follows tightly on the heals of something that he'd just expressed from his heart of ache and plight.
"But in Your great mercy you did not put an end to them or abandon them, for You are a gracious and merciful God."  (v.31)
The God of the Bible - the same God of today - has far-reaching hands as He works (with delight, may I add?) to restore a people to Himself.  This same God does not tolerate idolatry of this people and carefully, with the most amazing and appropriate mixture of holiness and grace, guides them again into His fold.  He will not leave them.  He will not abandon them.  He will instruct them, which to some may come as an extreme move on His part, but for the fickle and the flighty,  He does what it absolutely necessary.
I don't think I'm alone when I think about how ridiculous it was for God to have given Israel so many chances; so many opportunities to come through and remain faithful.  SO MANY!  It's embarrassing to the same degree that the Lord chases me down and uses this same Fatherly chastising to bring a daughter (wayward and wandering), to the acknowledgment of who He is once again.  Many, many times.  Too many times.

Did you by chance catch the verse above?  The one about the "gracious and merciful God?" 

Let me try to dumb this down for us a bit: WITHOUT THE GRACE AND MERCY OF GOD THERE WOULD BE NO US.  Humanity at its best would still be a pile of rubble; rubbish ground down to bitter ashes of shame and nothingness.
God is holy, you guys, and His name is above all other names.  He gives His glory to no other; shares none of His weighted magnificence with anyone.  God is God, and only God is God.  So, having scriptures recount His glory in the highlights of His grace and mercy is huge for us.  It's huge!

Nehemiah understands this and that is why he vocalizes it in the community there in Jerusalem.  We all need to hear - repeated and distinctly - who God is, and the very breath by which we live under His Sovereignty.
This should really spark some general questions for us:
Why then do we continue to elevate and worship other "gods?"  The gods of finances, health, comfort, possessions, popularity, strength, religiosity?
I love the Jesus Bible and I quote from it often.  Here's a little snippet of something I read that clears up the mess in my brain over all of this.
"Remembering the past gave them (Israel) a focus for the future.  Having heard their own story, God's people faced a decision.  They could renew their covenant and continue on with God, or choose a different future, dedicated to other 'gods.'
"This covenant was not defined by a code of behavior or a list of intellectual truths.  The covenant was framed by the narrative of God's gracious acts toward a rebellious people."
DON'T MISS THIS.

                     

God brings a mess of people - a ruin of broken hearts - under His care and by HIS GRACE AND MERCY ALONE causes the covenant to exist; again.
GOD is faithful.
GOD is wonderful.
GOD is gracious.
GOD is merciful.
To GOD be the glory for all the great things He has done.

I've been convicted by this book as a whole.  I'm reminded of God's pleasure which is not to destroy me - someone who daily flips with a given emotion or situation - but to renew me, to bring me back, and to restore me to rightful worship of the One True King.  My Daddy.  The God of Grace and Mercy.

May He get all the glory.  May I daily surrender to His lead.  May He remain the all-powerful God and Sovereign of my fickle, feeble heart.  May I ever fall on His grace and mercy in remembrance of what He has done.
Much love,
Deeds

                       

Pray Big, Bold Prayers

Hello there!

It's Deeds, and I wanted to share something: a bit of my world, as movement, change and situations occur.  There's a lot I could say, but I have found that when God is working at the present time, all my mind can muster is, "God is good.  God is in control.  God is sovereign."

It's the mantra I'm living by currently.  I haven't found anything else that suffices for the hurt and dark that seems to be encroaching.   Nothing but these broad and core truths about God's character will act as my rock, my refuge and my strength. 
God IS good.

God IS in control.
God IS sovereign.

When we come to the broken and weakened parts of life, I think our initial reaction is, "Why, God?"  At least that was mine when faced with news so stunning, I had to fight hard to believe what was happening was actually happening. 
You probably know that feeling. 
That feeling of doubt.  Denial.  Surreal-ness and dreamlike feelings.  What can possibly weigh in as heavily as tangible fear?  Despair so close you can taste it?

I had a chat with the hubster a week ago regarding all the things that are in full swing, and let me tell you, I'm being swung!  He began to encourage me to truly engage my Creator.  He beckoned me to pray intentional prayers.  Big prayers.  Bold prayers.  Specific prayers.  His kind voice reminded me of a precious Heart that longs to hear my cries, feel my pain, and touch my needs.  And through shaking voice and wet face, I began praying that God would hear my cries!  The aid of the Holy Spirit guided my thoughts and emotions, channeling them toward the One who listens and can do something about it.

There's a certainty of the longing and desire that the Father has for communication with His children.  He is full of love, compassion, peace and mercy, and all we have to do is come.  Draw near.  Pray big.  Pray bold.  Strangely, prayer doesn't seem to hit the top of the to-do list in my Christian walk.  Give me bible studies, give me blogs to write, give me worship songs to sing!  But prayers?

Talking to the Lord?  Talking face-to-face, in a sense, with my God?  Building on the relationship with my Redeemer?  My best Friend??  Why not?  Why does it take a period of darkness to pray for Light?  Why do I wait for despair before I grasp for Hope?  Why  don't I learn that God wants to speak to me and with me in the good times and bad?

Friends, pray.  Pray big.  Pray bold.  Pray!  Just sit with your Master, lean on His shoulder, cry in His lap, and listen to His words.  I don't take advantage of that which Jesus my Christ purchased for me on the cross.  My salvation, yes!  Yes and amen!  But He also TORE THE VEIL that I may have CONSTANT, IMMEDIATE, FOREVER ACCESS to the Holy of Holies!  To the LORD of creation!  To the good, good Father!  I sing about it.  I read about it.  I study about it. 

It's time to pray…

Much love,

Deeds

PS - I'm still working through the "ABC's of Christmas," by Hillary Krippaehne.  The letter 'I' is for "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day," and the prompt was to pray to God, asking for peace in a dark time.