You Are Loved!

Do you know that you are precious to God?  Do you know that He LOVES YOU?
GOD DOES LOVE YOU!  He sent His only Son Jesus to die on the cross for your sins.  When did He do this - while you are still a sinner.  We did not earn this love, we can do nothing to deserve it.  God did it!  He loves you so much that HE provided a way for you!  Jesus paid the debt for YOUR sin - by dieing on the cross. 

We are so precious to God!  He loves us so much that He wanted to fix this broken relationship with us. 

Have you trusted this truth - that Jesus died for your sin - so that you can know God?  You can be forgiven of your sins.  You can know God's great love for you.  Just believe that Jesus died on the cross for your sin.  He is God's Son - who loved you so much that He was willing to die on the cross for you.  But He did not stay dead - He rose from the dead and is now in heaven preparing a place for us - so that we can live forever with HIM!

I praise God for His great love!!!
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I just realized that I need to do my MONDAY's MOTIVATION

So here is a list of things I need to do...

* Reflect God's LOVE to everyone around me...
* Make some new file folder games
* Finish Quiet Activity Book (3 done)
* Make some Valentines cards
* Do at least 3 LOs
* Have fun with my kids!!!

“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” (Philippians 4:8)
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I am so amazed by God's love - how He takes care of us.  We are precious to HIM!  It makes me want to share HIS great LOVE with everyone!!!  This includes my kids.... 

I have been having so much fun creating File Folder Games with my youngest!  My husband and I have been blessed with 9 wonderful children.  Each one of them is precious to us.  They are loved by God!  So how do we treat them?  Do we do everything as parents (Mother's specifically) and nothing for our own families?  We are all busy either making LOs, or designing kits, or taking that special photo...  BUT are we taking the time to do things for and with our kids???

So lately,  I have been making these fun and creative games for my 2yr old.  She is loving that I am making something for her!  I think of her as I am creating these games.  I think of what would appeal to her - what she would enjoy - but yet I am thinking how it will challenge her ever growing / learning mind.  I also homeschool my kids - we will be graduating our 3rd oldest this year!!!

So here is one of the games I have recently made....  Time To Play....



I am having so much fun creating these games from the paper packs / kits that I have made, along with the clipart that I have been purchasing from DigiWebStudios.  It is so much fun producing quality games for my kids to play.  So I have also made them available to you at my store at KJOIs!

After she played the game, I realized I should have added a pocket for the cards...  SO here is a pocket for the cards.  Plus if you are making this for a gift - I have made you a greeting card and envelope.  It is great for any occassion!!!  I hope you enjoy this little freebie - and sample of the work I am doing. 


Download here

The above matching game is about sports - your kids will match the sports item, with the child that is playing that sport.  This is a fun visual discrimination game!!!  I hope you enjoy making this fun game for the wonderful children in your life!!!

What Should Life Be Like?

Hi all - So what should our lives look like?  This passage is really neat - some new things hit me, as I read it today....

19 So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath; 20 for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God. 21 Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. 22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; 24 for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. 25 But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.
26 If anyone among you thinks he is religious, and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this one’s religion is useless. 27 Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.". James 1:19-27

vs19-20  Are we really taking the time to really listen to others???  Are we being patient?

vs 21  We are to remove all evil (sin) from our lives, and receive the Word.  Jesus did it all - He paid the price for our disobedience - He died on the cross for OUR sins - so that we can live in HIM!  He SAVED our souls!!!

vs 22  We need to be doing - God's will.  How do you know what HE wants us to do - we need to read HIS Word - daily.  We need to live a life that is pleasing to HIM

vs 23-24  WOW!  Something in these verses just struck me....  the last phrase "goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was".  Does this refer to our sinful nature?  It is not that he forgets what he looks like - but is this a mirror to our soul?  We can take the time to look at what our life really is like.... but then we get busy with life and forget about what we just learned.... 

vs 25  We need to surround ourselves with God's Word - read it daily - listen to it - in song - have it written on the walls of our houses.  We NEED to remember!!!  HIS law is perfect - it gives us freedom!!!  How will we be blessed?  In what we do.  What are we doing?  What God has commanded us to do?

vs 26-27  These verses show us a bit about our everyday life.  1st if our words don't match what we are trying to do - then it is useless.  I have heard that it takes so much more to correct 1 word said in haste....  We need to be careful what we say and how we say it....  We can hurt people so bad by what we say.....  It all goes back to verse 19....

In the Bible times - the orphans and widows were often neglected, they were the ones ignored.  We need to pay attention to those around us - if we are truly listening to others - we will "see" their hurting - we also need to respond..... 

The last phrase - reminds us to be pure....

This passage is so refreshing and a great reminder on how our lives should look.  I pray that my life might reflect Christ in all that I do.  Thank you God for working in me to make me a better reflection....
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So I missed a lot of days last week - Wednesday I awoke with a migraine that just would not go away....  In fact, the effects have lasted a lot longer.  I am having a hard time concentrating on one thing - or should I say - I am having such a hard time concentrating on one thing - that I cannot multi-task.....  LOL  hard for a Mom with 9 blessings at home....  So it is taking me a lot longer to get things done.... LOL

So I will do Monday's Motivation (of course Bible Time is my 1st activity of the day)

* Make Quiet Activity Book for my youngest - for church & small group  (I have 3 of the 8 "games" finished)
* Homeschool
* Make cards / holders for File Folder Games
* Do at least 3 LOs

So how about a Tuesday Twists???
You will never know what I will have you do....  How about your favorite scrapbook blog / website?  Post in the comments section - with your favorite link and I will give you a $1 gift certificate to my store.  Post a comment with any of my challenges - and I will do the same.  (If you go back thru my posts - please contact me privately - so that I know that you posted a comment in previous posts).  This will be applied to my KJOI store. 

What ARE Your Plans? Are They Flexible?

Hi all - well let's try this again....  it all disappeared as I was working on it....  something went wonky....

But is that true of things in our lives - they don't go as we plan.  We need to learn, especially as parents to go with the flow - be ready to change our plans as needed.  Or we will miss great opportunities to teach our children, or to even meet a need - emotionally or spiritually.

This morning as I was having my quiet time with God, my 2 year old awoke.  She settled down in my lap for awhile, so all was fine.  But after about 5 minutes she became too distracting.  So it was time to change my plans - I know as a Mom of 9 blessings, I need to take care of them.  That is my responsibility - that is my pleasure.  I look at my children as blessings - even when they are driving me crazy at times....  My 2 year old can be hard to keep up with (I will be 46 in Feb) -- and sometimes I think "how am I going to do it" (raising such a young, active toddler) - but then she will give me that look, or a huge hug - and I Praise God for blessing us again!!!

But this got me thinking about life and it's busy-ness....

The Bible tells us....  Matthew 28:19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, this is the main project that Jesus asked for us to do.  Pretty much everything is summed up in this command.  So how are you sharing your Faith in Christ???  Who are you sharing your faith with???  Your neighbors next door, down the street;  people you meet while shopping;  your friends, aquaintences, co-workers, etc???  How about your family???  How about your own children???

Sometimes we are busy doing for everyone else that we forget about discipling / training our children.  They are important ones that God has blessed us with - they are precious to HIM as well as the world around us.  They should be more precious to us - since they are from our own flesh....  I challenge you to take the time to train your children - to share your faith with them.  Let them know why you trusted Christ as Your Saviour!!!

Be sure to do this today, look for an opportunity to talk to your children / family!!!

I Praise You God - for Blessing us with a Wonderful Family!!!


Today is Tuesday's Twists (I just updated the names).....  I challenge you to do a LO - but Journal about your faith / something God has been doing in your life lately.  But, here is the twist - make it as a kids LO.  Write it to your children - explain it so that they understand it....

I will upload mine later - as we are in the middle of school.....  I do things, especially in the beginning of our school day - hanging around if they need help with their math etc....  :)

Here is my LO....

I CAN do it!

Hello - What a glorious morning!!!  God is so good to us!!!

I was reading this section of the Bible this morning and I wanted to share it with you...

Romans 8:28-39  ²⁸ And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. ²⁹ For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. ³⁰ Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified. ³¹ What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? ³² He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? ³³ Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. ³⁴ Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us. ³⁵ Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? ³⁶ As it is written:  “ For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.”^{[c] 37} Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. ³⁸ For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, ³⁹ nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

What a powerful passage!!!  Why do we always stop at verse 28???  There are so many verses that POP out at me today.  We can overcome any obstacle that is before us - through Christ!  I am so thankful that God LOVES us so much that He CARES about the details of our lives.  I praise HIM for helping us through everything that we face in our days!  GOD IS SO GOOD!!!
So I have been thinking about this blog and the direction I want to see it go.  I also was thinking about the Memes (I may just change the name of that....)  SO I think I will try and have a digiscrapping goal/ life goal for each day - I will share mine and hopefully motivate you too....

So today is Monday's Motivation....

Life is so busy - not sure I want to write out all that I do during the week.... especially daily  LOL

1.  Spend time with God / share something here
2.  Share some craft inspiration here
3.  Homeschool
4.  KJOI Studios
5.  Scrap a few LOs
6.  Make Hybrid items
7.  Homemaking

The list could go on - and in NO way is that a list by priority (except for the 1st one) LOL  It started off in order, but then many of those things are interspersed.... 

Where is MY Treasure?

“[Treasures in Heaven] "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:19-21)

My eyes have been opened again...''

I was leaning forward to change my daughter's diaper and I started feeling whoozy - kind of like when I have had a panic attack in the past.... SO I knew I needed to get out and get a breath of fresh air.  So I also went into a quiet cool room and discovered a mess.  I almost did not go into that room, because of the mess..... but I knew it was cool and quiet.  The mess was when my daughter was looking for a clean towel the other day  - there was lots of clean sheets etc in the closet now....

Did I actually know where all of these sheets were?  Maybe, maybe not....  To take up the slack, while my hubby was deployed, the kids helped me out a lot....  So now, there are things put in places that I am not so aware of....."

But this also got me thinking about other things....  am I spending too much time with my wheels just spinning?  Where is my focus???  I need to rethink my day - what I do and why I do it....  It is a good thing to think about what we do and why we do it???  Sometimes what started off as a good thing has turned into needless things....

I know one thing....  I want to continue sharing from my heart!!!

Here are some sweet verses I read today.... 

Psalm 65...  By awesome deeds in righteousness you will answer us.; 

Ps 33:4 For the word of the LORD is right,  And all His work is done in truth.

I praise God that He is a GOD of detail!!!

Every Day Living

Yesterday, I wrote and thought about how I need to come to God and remember daily to rest in HIS arms.... 

This morning, as I was awoken early, had my quiet time with God, then went back to sleep - I was wondering what I was going to share with you....  as I was getting ready to write, I was still wondering.... LOL  so I pulled out my devotional book (I had gotten it to help me to write to you - give me ideas etc and it is always great to have someone else to inspire me with God's word as I share with you...) 

Well today's devo was on "Daily Bread", you know from the Lord's Prayer - thanking God for providing our daily bread.  This is so significant to me, as we have been experiencing that ALL coming from God....  Also the devo mentioned how God provided daily Manna when the Israelites were wandering thru the desert.  God knows that we need to come to Him daily....

Without going to God daily - we can get so distracted....  negative things bombard us daily.... things that take us away from God's Truth.... things that discourage us....  things that frighten us....

When we LOOK to the Master, the One who Created it All, Who Holds ALL things together....  we have a HOPE, a REFUGE to turn to!

I thank GOD so much that HE LOVES us so much and that HE CARES about the DETAILS of our lives!!!

“Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” (Ephesians 5:1-2)

The Truth???

Hi all,

This morning as I was reading Psalm 62 - I was reminded many times that God is our REFUGE!!!  This is such a good reminder - I am praying that I can remember this fact every day..... 

Yesterday was a bit rough, mostly hormonal - I have  been perimenopausal for about 6 years now and things are happening now....  So I have to deal with emotional ups and downs....  plus hot flashes etc....  But there are always going to be things that distract us from the TRUTH.  What is the truth....

John 8:32 And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”

John 14:6  Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

Jesus is the TRUTH!  We need to rest in HIM - rest in the REFUGE that HE alone can bring.

Well this morning I just received some not so good news, my father is having a lot of problems and they discovered Shingles.  In the course of some treatment, he developed some serious problems yesterday....  BUT....  I am resting in the knowledge that GOD IS MY REFUGE!!!

Nothing IS Impossible with God

Hi all,

This morning in my quiet time - I have been studying the names of God, this mornings was about Jehovah Jirah - My God will supply.  I was wondering how God was going to show Himself today.  Wow I could not have imagined what would happen as the morning progressed.

So I come downstairs and start my morning - checking my computer, reading emails etc and getting ready to start school.  Well around 10 am, I get this phone call from my best friend - she had some interesting news to tell me.  Last night, we were talking about my daughter's best friend - we had not seen or heard from her and there might be something going on that we don't understand - none of us know - but it sounds weird.  You see, my daughter's 19y friend has lung cancer.  Everyone is astounded at how SHE could have cancer - there is no exposure to anything that should have caused it....

So my friend's call was about this young lady.  Over the weekend, she was having problems breathing etc, so she went to the hospital - to find out that the cancer was now stage 4 - she now had large masses of cancer in both lungs as well as the outside.  The cancer had been shrinking - responding well to chemo.  But NOW all of a sudden - they were only giving her 2-4 months to live if she only did the chemo.  So they were preparing to take her to Texas to the best Chemo treatment center.

This morning she went to go get a PET scan (for the trip) and the cancer was virtually gone.  There is only a tiny bit left that should be cleared up within 2 weeks with Chemo.  GOD healed her body - it was there yesterday - it is gone today.  Needless to say - we all have had a hard time concentrating today - GOD IS SO AWESOME!!!

Today, as little things / itty bitty trials would come up, I would think - "oh this is difficult".... then I would remember how GOD worked in such a wondrous way this morning.  ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE WITH GOD.  No matter what happens in my life - I am so THANKFUL that GOD KNOWS and CARES!!!  I am thankful that nothing is bigger than HIM!!!

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I want to start giving away my scrapbook kits.  Today I am offering a sampler from my US Army Forever Remix kit.  Come to Faith Scraps and get this free mini-kit and see how you can easily get the full kit....

Does Your Life Have Meaning?

I just love today's verse of the day....

“I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” (Revelation 21: 2-4)

Do you know if you will be there at this wonderful occurance? What is the condition of your heart? (These are my notes from the last 2 weeks sermons at church. I just wanted to share these with you.)

John 2:23-25 (English Standard Version)

Jesus Knows What Is in Man

²³Now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many believed in his name when they saw the signs that he was doing. ²⁴But Jesus on his part did not entrust himself to them, because he knew all people ²⁵and needed no one to bear witness about man, for he himself knew what was in man.

Jesus knew what was in their hearts. He knows what is in your heart. Do you truly believe that Jesus died on the cross for your sins?

Here are some things to think about...

Do you have a living heart? Are you living for God? Are you sensitive and responsive to God?

Do you have a listening heart? Do you listen and obey the Word of God?

Do you have a transparent heart? Are you hiding from God because of sin? Or are you confessing your sins to God - keeping current?

Do you have a commited heart? Are you hanging in there - even when things get tough?

What does Jesus SEE in your heart?

This message made me want to examine my heart - make sure that I am being a bold witness to Christ and all that He has done and is doing in my life! We need to make sure that we don't fall into the trap of getting "puffed up" with head knowledge - but to apply what we learn and make it heart knowledge - a part of our lives....

If you don't know Jesus as your Saviour, do you know what is in store for you???

Luke 16:19-31 (English Standard Version)

The Rich Man and Lazarus

¹⁹"There was a rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. ²⁰And at his gate was laid a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, ²¹who desired to be fed with what fell from the rich man’s table. Moreover, even the dogs came and licked his sores. ²²The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried, ²³and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side. ²⁴And he called out, 'Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.' ²⁵But Abraham said, 'Child, remember that
you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like
manner bad things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish. ²⁶And
besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in
order that those who would pass from here to you may not be able, and
none may cross from there to us.' ²⁷And he said, 'Then I beg you, father, to send him to my father’s house— ²⁸for I have five brother -so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of torment.' ²⁹But Abraham said, 'They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.' ³⁰And he said, 'No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.' ³¹He said to him, 'If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.'"

We find out from this passage - that hell is a place of constant torment and anguish. There is no hope of escape or relief.... There will be constant agony in suffering. There will be total awareness of what is going on - bodily and emotionally - it will not be total oblivion. Hell is TRUTH (you will KNOW that who God is) discovered too late. You will die in your sins - you will take them with you forever - and pay the penalty of sin.... Hell is the place where GOD is NOT. It is not a place you want to go....

But YOU have the CHOICE - you CHOOSE where you will spend eternity..... God has given you a way out - "For God so loved the world (you) that He gave His only begotten Son (Jesus) that whoever (you) believes in Him, will not perish, but will have everlasting life." (John 3:16) God is NOT willing that anyone should perish - that means YOU - He wants YOU as a part of His Kingdom.

Will you choose to follow God's way - believe in His Son today - before it is too late....

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Come to Faith Scraps to get this free word art...

Is This Your Life?

There is so much wisdom in the verse for today. (There is so much wisdom in all Scripture verses....)

James 3:17-18

¹⁷But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. ¹⁸And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

God has given His wisdom through HIS Word - we can discover key things that can help us to live good lives....

• Purity - "having no faults; sinless"; we need to live lives that are good, we are "holy" - set apart for God.
• Peaceable - "freedom from disputes"; we need to live lives where we are making peace with others - no discord.
• Gentle - "kindly or tender nature"; we need to live lives that are kind to others - caring, loving - considerate.
• Open to Reason - "willing to yield"; we need to live lives where we don't have to get our own way all the time.
• Full of Mercy - "not getting the punishment that we deserve"; we need to live lives that are compassionate to others - we were forgiven of much - we need to forgive others so much more....
• Full of Good Fruits - we need to live lives that reproduce - are we sharing the love of God with others???
• Impartial - "Free from undue bias"; we need to live lives that is fair, loving towards ALL people - no matter what - this is "unconditional" love in action...
• Sincere - " In accordance with truth"; we need to live lives that are genuine, are we Sunday Christians only - or does our love for God permeate our whole lives?

If we are living a life that reflects these principles - we will have a happy good life. We will be living in peace with others - we will see this righteous living reflected in peace.

I am so thankful that God loves us so much that He gives us principles to live by. Our lives are so much more pleasant when we are considerate of those around us. We CAN live happy productive lives - with God's help.

Do you have God's help??? Do you know that God loved us so much - even in our sinful, rebellious state - that He sent His only Son, Jesus - to die on the cross for ALL of our sins??? God is waiting, with open arms to welcome you back - He greatly desires to have a relationship with you! Do you also know, that Jesus rose from the grave - He no longer is dead - He is a living Savior - He is God over all the universe? He knows and cares what is happening to you.

Run home - to the God who LOVES you so much....

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Come to Faith Scraps to see how to get this Word Art for free...





 

What Does Your Life Look Like???

Hi all,

As I was thinking about this week, it has been a hard one in some ways - but a great one in other ways, I came upon a few thoughts that I would like to share with you....

So what does your life look like? What do other people think when you enter a room / place?

"Oh no, here comes that person that drags others down" - or are you an encourager - are you "giving thanks in everything"?

or

"Oh no, here comes that person who makes fun / insults everyone around" - or are you an encourager - But we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved
by the Lord, because God from the beginning chose you for salvation
through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth, 2 Thess 2:13

or

"Oh no, here comes the person who thinks they are the only one who is right" - or are you an encourager - Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." 1 Peter 5:5

Jesus warned us to...


Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." Mt 26:41
We need to be so careful in what we do. Do we bring people down? Or do we lift them up? Do you need an attitude check?

I know I do.... I have been feeling down a bit the past few days. It is hard when you see someone else going down the wrong path - and you want to warn them - but when they don't want to listen... it is so hard. But then, we need to just leave them in God's hands. If we have done our part - then that is what we need to do. (I felt God leading me to talk with this person - and I responded.) But I was reminded this morning, in my prayer time.... in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 1 Thess 5:18
So... Thank you God, for bringing to mind, this person that I needed to talk to. I thank You for the strength to talk to this person. I thank you that You LOVE us so much -- that you care about what is happening in each of our lives. I thank you that You are in control - and that you KNOW what is going on. I thank You that You are a GREAT and Awesome GOD!!!
So, what does your life look like? I pray that you can encourage someone today.....

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Do you like hybrid projects??? How would you like to make this delightful gift bag set?
For a limited time you can get it for free in the KJOI Challenges. Please come join me in this fun challenge. I made mine for a wedding gift - it was a lot of fun!!!

Being Kind to Others

HI all,

The verse for today is one of my favorites....

Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, ^{forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. Ephesians 4:32}

<sup>It is a great verse on how we should treat others.

First we are to be kind to each other.  This is thinking about other's needs.  Being highly concerned with others - being nice to others.  It is treating others with respect, friendship, in a loving manner...

Next, we are to be tenderhearted to others.  Having compassion towards others.  Look at their circumstances and try to understand what they are going through.....

In every caring relationship - we will need to forgive others.  Things happen, we are in a sinful world - we will get on others nerves.  We NEED to have a forgiving heart - remember God forgave us through Jesus Christ of so much more....

If we follow this simple verse - our relationships will be so much happier!   We will be at peace with others.  We will have very meaningful relationships....

The most important part of this verse is to remember what Jesus Christ did for you....

He came to earth as a baby....

He grew to be a man....

He was tempted in all things - but never sinned....

He - the spotless Lamb of God - became the payment for OUR sins.  He willingly died on the cross to save us from the wrath of God.  He became the full payment for us - we can live eternally with God - only because Jesus died in our place. 

Have you believed in this wonderful thing that Jesus - the Son of God - did for you? 

I thank God that He loves us so much..... 


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Come to Faith Scraps and see how you can get this Brag Book for free...</sup>

Forgive Each Other

Hi all,

The verse for today is....

"If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over.” (Matthew 18:15)

It was a good reminder of the message we heard in church today. We have been looking at the Lord's Prayer (disciples prayer). Today was on forgiving our sins - as we forgive those who have sinned against us....

It is so important to keep current with those in our lives. To keep any rifts from becoming big - we need to seek forgiveness and offer it. We should always seek to confess our sins / wrongs to each other and to God. If we are willing to have a humble spirit and apologize.... we will definitely see our relationships grow. Also we won't allow bitterness to grow inside of us.... God is so WISE - He knows how to let us have a better life - in HIM!!!

Have you ever trusted Jesus as your saviour??? Do you know that the penalty for sin is death - eternal separation from God? But do you know how to right your relationship with God? Do you know what you have to do??? NOTHING - you can do nothing to fix your relationship with GOD - but GOD demonstrated His love for us - by sending HIS one and only SON Jesus to die in our place. He died so that we can have eternal life with GOD. All you have to do - is believe that Jesus died for your sins so that you can live.

Have you chosen to believe in Jesus the Christ, The Son of the Living GOD???

What do you do when you are down?

What do you do when you are down?

Many years ago, I started having "panic attacks". I did not know that is what they were at the time.... I would just get so worried and I would start panicing..... That word describes it so well....
A lot of the time, it was because I was dwelling on some problem and I would just keep thinking and worrying about it.... and then my insides would reak havoc....

How did I combat this with God's help??? I started listening more to Christian music.... especially during these times. I listen to music a lot - I LOVE music. I love singing - I love playing music on piano, violin etc.... (I rarely have the time right now for the latter).... But with a large family, I had gotten away from music a bit.... I was reminded to focus on things of God....

So everytime, I started feeling down, I would turn on my music (or I would ask one of the kids). It does not matter how big a problem it is, or how sad - it does not take long and I am reminded of what a great and powerful God we have....

So this morning - I turned on my music - I needed to refocus.... we have a busy day ahead of us, and I was thinking about this blog post. Here was the 1st song I heard on my Christ Tomlin - "Hello" CD....

Sing, sing, sing
And make music with the heavens
We will sing, sing, sing
Grateful that You hear us
When we shout your praise
Lift high the name of Jesus

What's not to love about You?
Heaven and earth adore You
Kings and kingdoms bow down
Son of God, You are the One
You are the one

You are the love that frees us
You are the light that leads us
Like a fire burning
Son of God, You are the one
You are the one we're living for

Sing, sing, sing
And make music with the heavens
We will sing, sing, sing
Grateful that You hear us
When we shout your praise
Lift high the name of Jesus

What's not to love about You?
Heaven and earth adore You
Kings and kingdoms bow down
Son of God, You are the One
You are the one we're living for

Sing, sing, sing
And make music with the heavens
We will sing, sing, sing
Grateful that You hear us
When we shout your praise
Lift high the name of Jesus

I love the line about God listening to our prayers! So since this week is about prayer - I thought I would share the song with you....

Yes - in times when I am down - I seek out God - because I know HE is the only One who can help me with my problems. He is the only One who will never fail me!!! He is the only One who will love me unconditionally. He is the only One who has power over everything that I may face. He is the only one who could send His one and only Son - to die on the cross - to permanently pay for the penalty of sin - "death" - eternal separation from God.

I PRAISE GOD

What's not to love about You?
Heaven and earth adore You
Kings and kingdoms bow down
Son of God, You are the One
You are the one we're living for


Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.” (Romans 8:1-2)

National Day of Prayer

HI all,

Today was rather busy.... I ended up sleeping later than I planned - my youngest slept fitfully all night... Not sure if she is working on a tooth or not.... SO I awoke about 1/2 hour before our scheduled prayer time (for 24 hours of prayer for our church). I got all 9 kids up in time and even hubby was able to join us on IM. It was such a blessing for us to pray together as a family - even when 1000s of miles separates us....

As I think about this time of prayer, it was pretty special... but it is NOT the only time we pray. Prayer is a part of our lives.....

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (English Standard Version)

^{16 Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.}

<sup>We should always pray! There is never a time when we should not be praying - we should in all things go to God in prayer. How can we pray without ceasing, you may ask??? It is an attitude of prayer - always thanking God for what He does - for creation, for safety, etc. As our day goes by, it is recognizing that HE is in control of ALL things!!!

Thank you God for loving us so much!!!</sup>

Meaningful Things

Hi all,

In my daily devotional, I read John 6:26-27...

²⁶Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, you are looking for me, not because you saw miraculous signs but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. ²⁷Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. On him God the Father has placed his seal of approval."

What are the meaningful things in our lives??? In these areas, what is reflected....

Time??? Money??? Energy??? Think about???

How important are these things? What would you change if you knew that tomorrow was your last day on earth???

I have been really thinking hard about the things that I do and why I do them..... I am so thankful that God loves us and cares about our days. I am thankful that He guides us to do the things that are important.

Are we too busy to invest time in our families lives??? Are we spending time with others??? Are we sharing the Good News???

I pray that everyday, I think about what I do - and that it is of lasting importance....

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Come to Faith Scraps to see how to get this template for free...

The World Around Us

I LOVE spring!!! 

We live in the midwest - we have snow in the winter - it gets cold etc....  So when spring comes - it is so refreshing!!!  The brown grass turns green - the plants start to bloom - and my tulips appear.  I love God's creation!  He gave us so many beautiful things to look at. 

One summer, as we were driving through the back-roads in Nevada / Utah - I was amazed at all of the different scenery.  I marveled at how God did not make the world mundane....  He gave us mountains, hills, valleys, deep valleys etc. - and that is just the ground.  Take a look at all of the different plants, trees, grasses etc that there are....  You would not believe all of the different varieties we even have in our yard - and we do NOT have a huge property.  Take a look at all the animals. 

Take a look at all the people - God made us unique!  We are made in the image of God.  He loves us so much that He made us this special world that we live in....

The Bible verse for today is Romans 1:20...

For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.

All of this wonderful things I have been talking about - are not here by accident - they are proof that God created them. This beautify could NOT have just developed by chance - they are made by an intelligent Creator - God!!!

As you look at the wonderful things in nature that GOD has created - I hope that you can praise Him!!!

Even more precious - is how God views you!  He sent His only Son to this world - to die in your place so that you can live forever with God!  Have you trusted in Jesus as your Savior?  Do you believe that He died on the cross for you?  Do you know that the penalty for sin is death - and the only acceptable payment - is the blood (death) of Jesus?  But do you know the BEST news of all?  Jesus did NOT stay dead - He arose from the grave 3 days later - because HE IS GOD!!!  He was the perfect payment for our sin!!!

Please accept Jesus' free gift - of taking your place / payment today - while you still have time!  You will never know what tomorrow might bring - and it may be too late....

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Come to Faith Scraps to get this tulip CU item...

Monday's Motivation - March 23, 2009

Hi all,

Well I need to get motivated - so I thought I would make a list of what I need to do.  It has been a hard couple of weeks - but yesterday at church really encouraged me to keep on keeping on....

My goals are...
1 Be regular at posting on my blog
2 Catch up with emails (LOL  never ending)
3 Scrap at least 2 LOs
4 Get ready for the Digi-Gathering and hopefully go (we may have the stomach flu.... waiting to see)

In my morning devotion, I just read this....

Though many people historically have made great sacrifices for a greater good, and some undoubtedly still do, we are more likely to act as if avoiding sacrifices is the greater good.  We seek safety, comfort, security, and pleasure, often at the expense of doing God's will.

Are we looking for the easy life?  One with no complications?  One that is smooth and perfect?

Yesterday at church the verse that stuck out at me was....

^{1 corinthians 16:9}for a wide door for effective work has opened to me, and there are many adversaries.

I have been down lately after having a great week.  Things seemed to be going great - and then it was like I was being held down.  I kind of forgot the truths of this passage.  If we are doing something good for God - the enemy does not like it.  He does not want God to be victorious.  BUT we KNOW the end of the story - GOD IS VICTORIOUS!!!

“Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.” (James 1:12)

I for one am going to Keep on Keeping On!  I am going to get back up and fight the good fight!!!


How about you???  Will you stand up and make a difference for God?  Do you know Jesus as your Savior?  He died on the cross for YOU - so that you can enjoy this victory that GOD has done!!!

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Come on over to FaithScraps and find out about my new venture making clipart and how you can get this tree for free...

What kind of Legacy are you leaving?

What kind of LEGACY are you leaving behind?  What will people remember you by?  I know that this is an important to us as scrapbookers - as this is our goal in doing LOs - to leave a legacy of our lives. 

But what about more important things - spending time with family, making those meaningful moments with our family.  Are we so busy scrapping, designing etc that we miss these opportunities???

How about life / death???  Do you know where you will be when you die?  Will you be greeting your Saviour - Jesus Christ? 

The verse for today talks about this....

“who has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time,” (2 Timothy 1:9)

God wants a relationship with us - he planned it before the beginning of time.... He knew that we would need a Perfect payment for our sins - anything less would not suffice.  So He sent His one and only Son - Jesus - the only perfect one (He NEVER sinned) to die in our place.  He took our penalty for sin - our prison sentence (so to speak) - He took our punishment on Himself so that we could live forever with God.  Have you accepted Jesus' great love for you??? - He died for YOU!!! 

If you have accepted what Jesus is offering to you, what are you doing with His great love?  Are you sharing this Good News with others?  Are you spreading His great love with your family, friends?  Are you sharing your love in your LOs. 

Let's leave a legacy that really counts!  Make sure that future generations know where you stood in Christ!!!

Proverbs 3:35
The wise shall inherit glory, But shame shall be the legacy of fools.

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Speaking of Legacy...  Here is a LO I did of my daughter...



Here is the Word Art I made for you....



Download here

If you like my freebies - please leave me some feedback.  I want to know whether or not anyone finds these items useful....  THANK YOU!!!

What About Me???

God is so good.... I should not be surprised when He amazes me so. It is so neat how His Word, from different sources all link together - today.....

The verse for the day...
Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.” (1 John 3:18)

Goes so well with other verses I have read for today.... I am doing a daily devotional in the morning - as well as other things throughout the day - when time permits. I am being so encouraged & empowered by God!!!

I could have titled today's inspiration as - How could God use me? There are so many others who are equipped more than us - know more - studied more.... but God has chosen each of us to spread the "Good News"..... If we look at the Bible Heroes of the Faith - their great deeds they did for God can be so discouraging.... but look again - they each were sinners. They just let God use them in their weaknesses.

A good friend of mine sent me this last night - it really touches home on this subject....

If we truly believe what God says about our VALUE to Him, (more valuable than many sparrows that God clothes & feeds) our lives will be dramatically altered.

1. Believing our great value to God frees us from much hypocrisy.

- The bottom line of hypocrisy is the need for people to think more highly of us than we really are. Let's face it. It's easier to act than to clean up our act.

2. Believing our great value to God frees us from unnecessary fear.

- If we are in His fold and are called His friends, Christ's word to us is this: don't be afraid; you are worth more.

3. Believing our great value to God frees us to acknowledge Him shamelessly.

- If He is not ashamed of us, in all our imperfections, how can we be ashamed of Him, our Redeemer and our Deliverer?

4. Believing our great value to God frees us from the need for riches.

- If we believe our value to God and believe our life does not consist in the abundance of our possessions, why do we have such an abundance of possessions?

5. Believing our great value to God frees us from much worry.

- Christ's remedy for worry is to be like the ravens and lilies--trust God to do His job.

- Am I going to trust my worries or trust God?

I pray that with this FREEDOM you can be BOLD for God - let's spread the Good News that Jesus died on the cross for our sins!!!

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Happy Kite was my very 1st kit - it was inspired my an outfit I had for my little girls....



Happy Kite Kit