So Happy!

I will give them a heart to know that I am the Lord, 

and they shall be my people and I will be their God, 

for they shall return to me with their whole heart.

Jeremiah 24:7

There is absolutely nothing in life that gives me more joy than my relationship with Jesus.  No one is closer to my heart, even those here on earth whom I dearly love.  I came to know Jesus at a young age so I have spent most of my life getting to more intimately know Him.  He has lavished His love upon me and has forgiven me more times than I can count.  To know Him is to love and trust Him above all.

The more I surrender to God, the more I sense His Spirit within me.  As I relinquish, I gain.  One of my most treasured ways to get to know God more deeply is to soak up His Word.  That's why I love Bible Journaling so much.  It takes me into His Word in a unique way.  Sometimes I study deeply, sometimes I read for refreshment, pleasure and encouragement.  And sometimes I search for inspirations for my art expressions.  In January I plan to begin a Bible reading schedule that will take me through the Bible in a year.  I've done this many times and I never fail to find new treasures, new perspectives on how to apply His constant truths.  I love His Word...and I love every new facet of my God  I come to know through the pages of my Bible.  But one of the most treasured promises He offers is that I am His...I belong to Him.

This passage in the New Testament book of Galatians echos the theme of belonging to God through the redemptive work of Christ.  Once we surrender to the Lordship of Jesus in our lives we become a child of the King.

Through our inheritance in Christ, we have everything we need for fulfillment, happiness and joy.  We can live confidently because we know our Father and we know He will take care of us.  We are free to enjoy His blessings...one of the greatest being that His Spirit, His person, resides within our hearts.  That is a lifeline connection to our Father. 

I used the following Sweet 'n Sassy Stamp Sets:

So Happy 

(FREE with $50 purchase during November)

 Above stamps: Words of Life: Collection 2, Child of the King, and Exclamations.

He will shelter you...

Hi friends,

There is such shelter, safety and security when we find our refuge and dwelling place in God. No matter what storms may be swirling around us, no matter what the enemy tries to throw at us, no matter where our choices may have led us, the shelter of the Most High is always ready to envelop us under His wings in loving care and protection.

Psalm 91:1-4

Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High

will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.

I will say of the Lord, "He is my refuge and my fortress,

my God, in whom I trust."

Surely he will save you

from the fowler's snare

and from the deadly pestilence.

He will cover you with his feathers,

and under his wings you will find refuge;

his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.

 

 

I love this image of God covering us, sheltering us with His wings, like a bird covers and shelters her little chicks. Our Heavenly Father longs to nurture and protect us with His lovingkindness and faithfulness. All we need to do it to dwell in that place of refuge and to declare our trust in Him. We don't have to defend ourselves, to desperately try and figure out how everything is going to work out... No, we just need to dwell and declare.

 

 

 

I used the beautiful His Wings stamp set to create this page, with a little help from Words of Life: Collection 2 and All Your Heart. Did you know that today (11th of November) you can get His Wings at 25% discount when you buy two or more sets from the gorgeous silhouette range of stamps? Just quote 2SIL25 at the checkout!

 

 

I pray you would be encouraged today to find shelter under the wings of our Most High, Almighty God, and that in that secret place of refuge you would find comfort and rest.

 

x Amy x





By Grace, Through Faith

Hi friends,

I was recently reminded of the importance of really grasping the truth of Ephesians 2:8-9:

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.

 

It is all too easy to slip into a 'works-based' mentality when it comes to living the Christian life, thinking that we have to do something to win God's approval. But this verse reminds us again that we were saved by grace and therefore we need to carry on living by grace, through faith in Christ's finished work. I had already journaled this verse in my first journaling bible (a pic of that page is toward the end of this post) but I felt I needed to journal this truth again, so I pulled out my Interleaved Bible and some scraps of patterned paper and got inky!

I took a few pics along the way to show my process. Here was my starting point - paper and stamps:

I created a background using acrylic paints, swiping the paint on with a card, then stamped the two block words with Versamagic ink.

I stamped the outline words from Choose Faith onto patterned paper then cut them out and layered them over the block letters shown above to create a shadow effect. I made the word 'gift' out of two of the words from this stamp set (I wonder how many other words we could make from those four words!). I used a combination of alphabet stickers and stamps along with the Words of Life set and my label maker to create the rest of the verse.

I turned the 'gift' into a gift by stamping the gorgeous bow from Christmas Topiaries on the top (love this effect!). Here are some of my other supplies used:

Here are the stamp sets I used on this one: Word of Life Collection 2, Christmas Topiaries, Choose Faith, Mini Grunge Type Alpha.

And just in case you were wondering, here's my page May 2015 when I journaled this verse for the first time...

Quite a difference in style and techniques but I used the same colour scheme as a link between the two pages. I'm so grateful for the blessing of Bible Journaling and how it has helped me to meditate on Scripture over the last couple of years!

Be blessed...

x Amy x