CHRISTmas Eve Day

Well, the orders are completed and picked up. The store is quiet for the moment. I have one more customer coming to pick up an antique glider at 1:00 and that leaves me with a few free minutes to post unless a customer comes in.
I am sooooo excited. First the Lord introduces me to Somerset Studio Magazine. That was true love! Then I found ClothPaperScissors . I learned I am not the only one doing what I do and I discovered so many wonderful techniques and artists and ideas. Oh My! There is a whole world out there that I fit into perfectly. I didn't think it could get any better.
But I have now learned that there are "Artist Challenge" sites. Each week, a challenge is issued......

OK. Let's try this again. I started this post Christmas Eve day and now it's the day after Christmas. Our store was blessed! Last year we sold nothing on Christmas Eve!
So, where was I? Oh yes. I had no idea those magazines even existed until this summer. I was so excited (and obsessed!) Then while surfing other blogs, I learned there are artist challenges. Each week someone issues a challenge with a word or phrase or something and you create a piece of art expressing it. I decided to take it a step further by challenging myself to see it I could take each challenge and bring Jesus into it. I was a bit worried after visiting the site and looking over all the past challenges but had decided to try. THEN, God led me to SALT. The challenges are ALREADY FOR HIM!
I'm am soooo there! I think the next challenge is issued THIS Friday. I can't wait.
So look for my future Salt results! If I have the time I think I'll still try to do the other one too, after all the word is CHALLENGE right?

CHRISTmas

I thought I would share this with you. My Dad sent the link to me in an email. I had a similar design in mind for a piece of artwork, but this outdoes my idea! Hope you enjoy it as much as I did. The ultimate invitation!

http://www.frontiernet.net/~jimdandy/specials/xmas.htm

I Can See Clearly Now

A picture truly is worth a thousand words. But I've been thinking about writers and the words they find to truly get a message across. God Himself used words as well as His creations to make Himself known and seen. But today I'm impressed by writers. How do you do it?! I have tried 3 times to express in words what this photo is making me feel and each time I find that I cannot do it justice. So today my gratitude goes out to writers, writers of song lyrics and books and poetry, the written word. I love to read and find pure amazement in that ability.

To me this photo of the sun rising brings to mind Faith, Trust and Love.

I know that the sun is about to top this mountain. I am counting on it. I depend on it and I am excited about it because I know it's going to happen any second.

That's how I feel about God. I know He is here with me. I depend on Him. I am excited to know that He loves me and has control of my life. And I know that He will do what is best for me.

I bring this to the blog today because it was on my heart. We are in retail and it's the last week before Christmas and I was allowing myself to get a little on edge about getting all the work done. We do picture framing in our shop as well as selling other kinds of things, glass, artwork, collectibles, gifts, things like that. I draw portraits too. The fear of not getting the orders done on time, supplies not getting here on time, all the things that could go wrong were worrying me. Not anymore. The Lord blessed us with the orders and I have faith He will help me see things through. As I know that the sun will rise, as I know that God is with me, all is well.

Hope everyone has a wonderful, blessed Christmas. And may we all remember the true reason for it.

Merrry CHRISTmas!

Heal The Wound

by Point of Grace

I used to wish that I could rewrite history

I used to dream that each mistake could be erased

Then I could just pretend

I never knew the me back then

I used to pray that you would take this shame away

Hide all the evidence of who I’ve been

But it’s the memory of the place you’ve brought me from

that keeps me on my knees even though I’m free

Heal the wound but leave the scar

A reminder of how merciful You are

I am broken, torn apart

Take the pieces of this heart

Heal the wound but leave the scar

Follow The Leader

Some days seem more inspired than others and I find myself lead to share this one.

I had such an organized plan for this blog! Oh well. I'll just follow "The Leader", after all, it's all for Him.

The other day, I took our camera's memory card to have all the photos saved to a disk for backup. I put it in the machine and all of our photos loaded up on the screen. As I stood there watching the familiar pictures pass before my eyes, I thought I saw something I'd not noticed before, but it was gone before I could be sure and then I forgot about it. Untill this morning when He reminded me to look.

In September, my husband and I and some dear friends headed to a cabin in Telico Plains for a long awaited vacation to clear our minds, bond with each other, praise God, and wallow in His glory and presence. It was perfect and it was beautiful! We were blessed in so many ways. We took our brand new camera with us to record the whole experience including 2 gorgeous sunrises. One was pretty but not so colorful. The other was extraordinarily colorful. God certainly showed His glory that morning! But I must admit I didn't look too close at the photos of the not so colorful one, but as I watched them come across that screen, I thought I saw something interesting. And now that I have had a chance to look at them closely I have confirmed what I thought I saw. I am now awestruck at the revelations. Want to know what's there in the photos?

First, let me share what I "see".

God is always there. He's there even when things are not so "colorful". He's there when things seem ordinary. He's there when things are difficult or even impossible. He's there even when we aren't thinking about Him.

He told me one time that by placing my life in His hands, He would have His hands in my life.

How can I not be aware of that at every moment?

Then He leaves a little reminder, like the photo, and speaks through it telling us that He is always there if we just look and trust Him.

Thank You Father, for showing me, for leading as you do, for revealing yourself in the ordinary.

O.K. Now, click on the picture above to get the larger image. Look in the forground at the largest tree. There, near the top is an image of the cross on a hill. It's visible in every photo I took that morning.

Photos of "Cross Roads"

The sketch from 2004.


"Cross Roads" in 3D
Closeup photos can be seen in the slide show to the right.