Wildly loved

Hello all! It's summer here in Iowa and as you read this I am returning from a week long vacation. Summer time can be really hard on my creative mojo...so I picked up my acrylic paints and tried a few techniques I tend to forget about. It was such a fun breath of fresh air, to be spontaneous, and different. I hope you enjoy...

This page started with the acrylic paints. I used a credit/ gift card to squish the paint on around the page in broad strokes. Then while my paint was drying I stamped the hymn word art stamp in three colors on to plain white cardstock. I really wanted the wording to pop so I mounted it on pink cardstock that I actually repurposed from my mothers day card. Side note...I am so guilty of cutting up cards I get and using them in my Bible or other crafty adventures....they are sooo pretty I hate throwing them away. Ok after I mounted the stamped image I used puffy foam tape to pop it up even ever so slightly more. The big bold title I found in my stash from a print and pray printed on clear sticker paper. Finally comes my favorite part all the little fun details....the puffy hearts, washi tape, tabs, wordfetti and art marks created using my markers.

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers,  neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. 

Romans 8:37-39

I have so enjoyed looking up all the hymns in this stamp set and really digging into the words, meaning and scripture behind the words! This song is no exception. The lyrics made me really pause and think about how much my Father God truly loves me. He loves me so much that nothing...absolutely nothing on heaven or on earth can keep me from his wild love. Wow! I know I have read that passage of scripture tons of times but do I really sit and dwell on the magnitude of those words? Summer can be a crazy time for many of us, but if you can steal away a few precious moments read, reread and read again....let the words soak in and penetrate your heart. Let God illuminate truths and fill you with joy! I want to leave you with a few lyrics from this hymn...you can go listen to it Here if you like.

Oh the deep, deep love of Jesus vast, unmeasured, boundless, free! 

Rolling as a mighty ocean in its fullness over me! 

Underneath me, all around me, is the current of thy love 

Leading onward, leading homeward to thy glorious rest above! 

Oh the deep, deep love of Jesus spread His praise from shore to shore! 

How He loveth, ever loveth, changeth never, nevermore! 

How He watches o'er His loved ones, died to call them all His own; 

How for them He intercedeth, watcheth o'er them from the throne! 

O the deep, deep love of Jesus, love of every love the best! 

'Tis an ocean vast of blessing, 'tis a haven sweet of rest! 

O the deep, deep love of Jesus, 'tis a heaven of heavens to me; 

And it lifts me up to glory, for it lifts me up to Thee! 

Love and prayers,
Jenn @creativegurl85

Delighting in Jesus, Y'all!

Then my soul will rejoice in the Lord and delight in His salvation. 

My whole being will exclaim, "Who is like You, Lord?" 

Psalm 35:9-10a

Hello Friends!

I was born and raised in Texas. And let me tell you, the summers in Texas are HOT! Nothing tastes better to me than a cold glass of sweet tea. Yum! Have you had southern sweet tea? If you haven't, let's just say, we like our sugar. Southern sweet tea is big on sugar- the more, the better! LOL Well, in my life- and I bet yours too- the more Jesus, the better!

These verses speak to rejoicing and delighting in Him. I looked up the definition for delight: to take great pleasure, to give joy or satisfaction. Don't those definitions sum up nicely what we have in Christ? We can take pleasure in Him. He brings us joy and satisfaction like nothing else. Just like sugar sweetens tea, Jesus sweetens our lives. Verse 10 asks who is like the Lord. Resoundingly, the answer is NO ONE! No one can compare to Him. When I feel like I'm missing something, I can't find  lasting satisfaction in any worldly thing. But I can find that lasting satisfaction in Him. He's just waiting for me to come to Him and ask. He's waiting for you too. And, He'll never turn us away.

Thank You, Lord Jesus, that You want to be part of my life. Thank You for the joy You bring me and for the satisfaction I can only find in You. There is no one like You, Lord. I praise You always. In Your sweet name, Jesus, amen.

I had a lot of fun with this page. I absolutely LOVE the new Life & Lemons set designed by Rebecca Rios. It was part of the June release and is SO much fun to use! I also used two other favorite Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps sets: All in All and Texture Tiles 4.

I started out by using the plaid stamp to stamp my tablecloth. Then I stamped my tea glass. I used watercolor crayons to paint the tea and background. I always paint the background first and then stamp the lettering on top of the watercolor for a couple of reasons: 1) that way the lettering pops since it isn't dulled by a thin layer of watercolor, 2) it helps the black ink not bleed through or shadow. For the lettering, I also masked a couple of stamps- the "sugar" and "sweet tea" stamps. To mask, I just use left over label paper that's sticky on one side. I cover the words that I don't want inked with the label paper, ink the stamp, then remove the label paper and stamp. It helps make your stamps a lot more versatile! I finished the page by highlighting the letters in "Jesus" with a white pen. And finally, I stamped the lemon on label paper, cut it out and added it to the glass.

Delight in Him, my friends. And enjoy some sweet tea too!

Have a blessed week! Andrea

What are you asking for?

Hi friends,

Have you ever thought about what you would ask God for if he stood before you and asked you what you would like? I mean - if you could ask for anything, what would that be?

King Solomon had just this opportunity. In 2 Chronicles 1 God appears to Solomon and says to him, "Ask what I shall give you." This question really does reveal what is in our hearts doesn't it? Would we ask for money? Success? A relationship we have been longing for? Peace and security? Justice? I suspect that Solomon's answer is not one that would be quickly chosen today (or throughout history probably!). He asks for wisdom and knowledge to be able to lead the people over whom God had placed him as king.

God was so pleased with this request that he promised Solomon not only that his prayer would be answered, but that he would also be given riches, possessions and honour (the things he could have asked for but he chose wisdom and knowledge instead). You see, our priorities in prayer matter to God. He is willing and more than able to give us many things, but he wants our requests to reflect his heart. Solomon's request showed that he desired to lead people well and therefore to honour God. This prayer for wisdom and knowledge is one that we need to pray too. Our own understanding is so limited and is not sufficient for the tasks to which God has called us. The good news is that God loves this prayer and answers it extravagantly!

When I received the beautiful Stamp of the Month for June (Happy Irises) I decided to look up the meaning of the iris flower and found that it means royalty, wisdom, faith and hope. I thought this verse from 2 Chron 1:10 would be perfect to illustrate with these irises, so I stamped them and coloured with Inktense pencils. The text was stamped with the new Sweet & Simple Alpha.

I hope you are encouraged and challenged to consider what you are asking God for... Ask for wisdom and knowledge... and ask boldly!

x Amy x

Got Lemons???

John 16:33

"I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. You will have suffering in this world. Be courageous! I have conquered the world." 

Hey all of you lovely readers! I'm finally back! :)

I took a little break from the blog after having our third precious baby girl. She's almost 2 months old now so things are still pretty crazy, but I missed journaling in my bible and spending time in the word and with this wonderful community. So, I'm easing my way back in slowly :)

Have you ever had a bible verse that just seems to pop up repeatedly during certain times in your life? Well I occasionally do, and John 16:33 has been one of those verses lately. It's almost like God keeps throwing it out there as a reminder for me...."Hey Stephanie, don't forget!" As some of you know, I unexpectedly lost my father back in January. Unexpectedly is an understatement. Receiving that news completely knocked the air out of my chest and the feet out from under me, literally. I couldn't believe it, and honestly, I'm still struggling to believe it almost 5 months later. 

I have never lost someone that close to me before, so learning to cope and heal has been difficult. So needless to say, that was a HUGE lemon I was handed this year, along with a few others. You know know that old saying, "When life hands you lemons, make lemonade!", well, I'm not really a huge fan of lemonade, so I prefer to add them to my sweet tea! I do live in the Carolinas after all! If you don't love tea, you aren't from around here. :) After my dad passed, I had a few people tell me that something good will come out of this. That's a really hard pill to swallow when you are overwhelmed with grief and honestly, I'm still having trouble seeing what good could possibly come from it. But, I haven't given up.

John 16:33 says:

"I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. You will have suffering in this world. Be courageous! I have conquered the world." 

Right here, Jesus tells it like it is. No sugar coating it. We will have troubles, disappointment, heartbreak and struggles, He promises that. But he encourages us and tells us not to worry, because He has conquered the entire world, and we can be strong and conquer anything the world has to throw at us, through Him and Him alone. Jesus is our rock, and he wants us to lean on him when we are struggling and feel weak. He can restore our strength and build us up stronger than before. Now, I'm FAR from perfect, so I haven't mastered this concept in the slightest. But it does bring me comfort when I'm upset. 

Life has handed me some lemons this year, 

but I'm brewing some sweet tea and I'm throwing those lemons in there

 and trying to make the best of it!!

xoxo,

Stephanie Gammon

IG: faith.and.creativity

Check out the fun stamp sets I used to create this page!

All In All

Life and Lemons

Whimsy Bouquet

The Word is Emmanuel

Hello, creative worship friends!

I'm glad you're in here this morning.  The "Sweet n Sassy Stamps" creative team have been working (or should I say, "playing?") hard to bring you some of the neatest samples of the June release ever! 

I've been so amazed at the different things that I've seen so far, and I'm more excited about seeing what y'all make as this month progresses.  It's awesome to see bits and pieces of God's creative hand in each of us, isn't it?  Just when you think you've seen it all, God reaches down and displays a little more of His glory through a brush, a stencil, a stamp, or just a pencil.  I love it.  I love it a lot.

It's fascinating that such a big, holy, indescribable God could think of and work through someone like you or me.  The first time man "messed up," His righteous right hand stayed in place to allow His most glorious creation to continue to exist; continue to exist, and even multiply and populate the earth with more of the same kind.

In Genesis 3:15, we find the first rendition of the sweet gospel of Grace. 
"I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel."  

This here is something so far beyond what I can understand as far as God's sovereignty and redemption plan.  When the LORD speaks like this, He Himself is testifying of His own goodness and grace for mankind that was (and has been since) actively rebelling against Him.  Though we have an inborn illness of a wicked heart, God saw it as a good and self-glorifying thing to allow man an escape; freedom from this hardened heart, and freedom to a heart like His own.  There is a "Seed" that comes from a woman, and that "Seed" will indeed be in opposition to the state of the wickedness and rebellion set forth by our Adversary - the Satan. 
God speaks so beautifully into His plan of death versus Salvation in Jesus Christ, giving a picture wherein Jesus will be injured by the adversary - a temporary, non-lethal wound - and Jesus would deliver an eternal, completely lethal blow to said adversary!  The swap of battle wounds would render our enemy defeated, and our King on His Throne forever!

Throughout the rest of scripture we're given account after account and type after type of the Plan.
The Way.
Emmanuel.
God with us.
The Word.

True to form, God inspires another prophet to speak the name, "Emmanuel," to encourage and motivate the people to follow the one true God again.  Isaiah's words tie in what God has said before regarding a "Seed," and mingles it with another prophecy of a God-man that would come and dwell among man.  This Messiah would be the hope of the world; the Savior; the Christ that comes through a virgin and saves the people from their sins!

Again, in John 1, we see something called "the Word."  This is no ordinary word, and no ordinary saying.  It's not a psalm, it's not a proverb, it's not a prophecy.  It's THE Word of God - HIS Word that would be spoken across the spans of humanity, calling and curing all who would come.  It says,
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."  Then, in v.14 comes the formula for understanding this God-man in the greatest capacity possible:
"The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth."
The Word.
God with Us.
Emmanuel.
The Way.

That God sent His only Begotten to save the world, to cleanse us from our unrighteous ick, to replace ick with His beauty and purity, to be the Hope and Light in darkness and confusion, is the very Word we need to hear.  It's the very Word we need to breathe.  The same Word we need to dwell in us, changing us, prepping us for His eternal Kingdom. 
God is so kind. 
His love never ends.
His grace ever enough.
Jesus, we love you.

Much love, my friends.
Deeds

To Bring Him Glory

"Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ's sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you." 

1 Peter 4:12-14

One of my favorite Bible stories is found in John 9. While Jesus is in the midst of His earthly ministry, He and His disciples pass by a man who had been blind from birth. Jesus’ disciples assumed, as was common at that time, that either the man or his parents had committed a grievous sin and the man’s blindness was a direct result of that sin. When they asked Jesus what sin had been committed, Jesus responded with this shocking statement:

“Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him.”

Wait. What?!

You mean to tell me that neither this man nor his family had committed any sin and yet he was afflicted with condition? Blind. No light, no color, no hope. A burden, a beggar, a blight on his community. No possibility of a future through no fault of his own.

It’s at that point that Jesus stoops to the ground, makes a clay paste, coats the man’s eyes with the paste, and commands him to go wash in the pool of Siloam. Upon exiting the pool, the man is miraculously healed. He could see! The man then proceeds to proclaim the miracle to all who will listen. In fact, he proclaims it so much, it angers the local Pharisees who question both the man and his parents over this miracle. The man’s response to the Pharisees’ questioning just cracks me up! He repeatedly says, “I don’t know who Jesus is, whether He is a common sinner or the Son of God; all I know is that I was blind and now I can see. He healed me.” (JRV, Janelle Rodriguez version 😉).

“But that the works of God should be made manifest in him.”

The blind man endured a lifetime of hardship for this one encounter with Jesus. A chance to be healed and to bring God glory through his healing. A chance to show for all of eternity what God can do and continues to do. A chance to show future generations that some of our greatest blessings come through our most difficult trials. Our lowest points, our suffering, our most difficult trials give God the opportunity to be made manifest in our lives. We do not always know the purpose of our hardship. We cannot understand the mind of God. All we can do is remain faithful and continue to bring him glory.

There is so very much to be learned from this short story in John. Christ’s love, His compassion, His healing – but most of all His glory. Don’t be surprised or discouraged when you go through trials, but rejoice and be glad when God’s glory is revealed. 

I had a lot of fun stamping and creating ephemera for this page. 😊 I used the adorable Life & Lemons stamp set from Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps. I first stamped the lemons on the background; then stamped the lemon and leaf, lemon slice, and lemon mason jar on regular cardstock paper, colored with ink and colored pencils and fussy cut them all out. I then tied a little piece of ribbon around the mason jar, inserted the lemon slice on the lid of the jar, and taped all the ephemera to the page. I then finished my stamping, highlighting, and added some splotches of color to finish out the page. So fun!

 

Would you take a minute today to read the story of the blind man in John 9 and pray for God's glory to be revealed through your life?

Much love in Christ, 

Janelle

@journalingjoy

It is well

Hey there! Happy June 1st! ...bet you know what that means...our new stamps launch today for preorder. We have some beauties this month including a new designer that just joined  the team. Hop on over to the SHOP and check out the new releases then come on back and I will share a page I created in my Bible using the Hymn blocks set.

I used distress inks to create a soft background using the colors salty ocean, peacock feathers and mustard seed. I stamped the amazing lettering design from Hymn word art using StazOn black ink. Towards the bottom of the page I pulled in the He is Risen stamp set and used the crown of thrones, crosses stamp and the word hallelujah. I stamped the crown using the distress inks...it bled really bad so if you don't love that I recommend putting gesso down on your page before you start. I colored in the rolling hills with a touch of watercolor, and added a couple tabs and pieces of washi to complete the page.

Colossians 2:13-15 "And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses by cancelling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him."

The hymn "It is well" was written by Horation Spafford, he was a very prominent and profitable Chicago lawyer who owned many properties and had a beautiful family four girls and one boy. His life was blessed! However, just as he was becoming more successful tragedy struck and his son passed away, then the Chicago fire destroyed nearly all his investments. A few years later he decided to treat his wife and daughters to a much-needed escape and sent them on a boat trip to Europe. He had plans to join them after he finished up his business. Just a few short days later he received a telegram from his wife "saved alone".  All four of his daughters had perished at sea. It was while crossing the same waters that stole away his daughters that he penned the hymn.

I loved learning more about the beautiful tragic story behind this hymn. It can be easy to love God and see the good when life is rosy and we are feeling blessed, but what comes out of our mouths when life turns upside down? Do we grumble? Do we lift our voices in praise and thanksgiving? That can be such a struggle! Are you in a pit, are you struggling? Lift up your eyes to our Father, He is still on the throne! Praise him for the gift of salvation and the hope of a future you have, then like Job watch what God does. I highly recommend sitting back and letting the words soak into your soul...It is Well

Thanks so much for popping in I hope you found this encouraging and uplifting!
Love and prayers!
Jenn @creativegurl85