Lenten Photo a Day Challenge - Day 7: Purple

Lenten Photo a Day Challenge - Day 7: Purple

Oh purple - my favorite color since I can remember having a favorite color.  The lovely amethyst is my birth stone and anyone who knows me, knows I love the jewel and the color.  I have purple scarves, purple clothes, purple tennis shoes, purple bible cover, purple ipad cover, a purple craft room and the list goes on.  I frequently point out that purple is "the color of royalty."  In the ancient world, purple was a symbol of wealth and royalty due to the lengthy process of obtaining purple dye from a certain mollusk.  It was rare and therefore expensive to dye garments with this rich purple color, so often times only the rich or royal sported purple garments.  In Jesus' time, Roman soldiers mocked him by placing the crown of thorns on his head and a purple robe on his shoulders.  They spit and laughed and called him names, but despite the mockery they created and participated in, there was, in actuality, no king greater than Jesus.   They mocked him with that purple cloak, but we praise the King of Kings that Jesus is.  During this Lenten season, our pastor wears a purple stole - a penitential color - which reminds us of Jesus' suffering and death.  But it is also a color of faith and hope.  It reminds us that our Jesus is a triumphant King who died for us and conquered death to remove our sins and reconcile us with the Father.

Lenten Photo a Day Challenge - Day 6: Reflection

Lenten Photo a Day Challenge - Day 6:Reflection

As we grow in our faith we are often able to see God's workings around us more clearly than ever and as we grow, our very selves reflect more accurately the love that God has shown us.  Reflection is an interesting word with many nuances of meaning.  Sometimes a reflection can be a clearly mirrored image, but it's not always crystal clear.  Rippling water or any shiny surface may reflect the sun and landscape, but if the surface is moving or smudged or textured, the reflected image may be distorted.  A reflection may also refer to a careful consideration of some thought or idea.  Both of these meanings apply to our Christian lives.  During Lent we often make a determined effort to spend more time reflecting on scripture and our relationship with Christ.  That time is not wasted.  That time in scripture and at the feet of Jesus will result in our own improved reflections.  We cannot be unchanged by the Word.  Steeping ourselves in it can only make us a more accurate reflection of God's love for us.

For now I see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face.  Now I know in part, then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.  1 Corinthians 13:12

As water reflects the face, so one's life reflects the heart.  Proverbs 27:19

Lenten Photo A Day Challenge - Day 4: Faith

Lenten Photo A Day Challenge - Day 4: Faith

My photo today is a close up of a scrapbooking layout I created for an online class.  I am passionate about sharing my faith through my gift of creativity.  God has blessed me in this endeavor through online teaching opportunities and encouraging me to be a part of creative events through my church.  It's an exciting ride when one listens to God to see where He would have us live out our faith!

To where is God calling you to live out your faith and utilize the gifts He's blessed you with? It may be at home or it may be in the wider community. We go through many seasons of life, I believe, but God will faithfully continue to grow and use us when we are listening to His guidance.

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Lenten Photo a Day - Day 3: Test

Lenten Photo a Day Challenge - Day 3: Test

"Sharpen your pencils! It's time for a test."  Do these words strike fear? anxiety? excitement?  I think we all approach tests differently.  Our confidence often depends on how well prepared we feel.  In my school years, I actually liked tests - at least the pen and pencil kind.  The tests of life? hmmm, not so much.  They are much harder.  I'm not always confident of the outcome.  I don't always feel very prepared to meet the standards.  In school, there was a study guide - usually I knew the content and could prepare.  In this life it's a little harder.  Tests may come up unexpectedly and the content may be unfamiliar territory.  So, how do we prepare for the pop quizzes of life?  Thankfully, we do have a study guide - the Bible.  No, we may not always know what's coming up next, but when we are in the Word we, in essence, keep our pencils sharpened.  Scripture gives us many examples of people - ordinary people like you and me - who respond to life's tests and, by relying on God, His strength, His example, His power, they remain steadfast under life's trials.  God doesn't leave us to take the test alone.  We can daily sharpen our pencils and equip ourselves through the Word to face the tests of life.

Lenten Photo A Day - Day 2: Virtue

Day 2: Virtue

Day 2's word is virtue.  The first thing I thought of was the Proverbs 31 woman.  Looking at a few different Bible translations, she is referred to as a "virtuous woman" a "wife of noble character" or "an excellent wife." She's quite a woman to live up to.  She works hard, generously gives to others, and cares for her home and family well. My Bible says she wears purple (v22) - always a noble color (and my favorite). She speaks with wisdom and shares her wisdom with others.  This woman does not seek praise, but her children call her blessed and her husband praises her (v28).   According to verse 10, she is worth far more than jewels, and my translation specifically mention rubies, thus my photo.  The "jewels" I used belong to my daughter.  The small purse was handmade by my mother.
When I think of my mom (now resting in heaven from her work on earth), I remember many virtuous qualities - she worked hard and took care of us well. She was a seamstress and a gardener, so it's easy to picture her as the Proverbs woman.  She was many things, but she was not perfect - none of us are.  My daughter is five - so young but wanting to be so grown up.  I have much to teach her and pray daily for wisdom as I do so.  I hope she one day sees the Proverbs 31 woman in me.  She'll know I'm not perfect, but I hope she'll rise and call me blessed and memories of me will be worth far more than rubies in a purse.

Lenten Photo a Day Challenge

Lenten Photo a Day Challenge - Day 1: Dust

Growing up Catholic, we always gave up something for Lent.  Since I'm no longer Catholic, it's not something I regularly do, but I still feel like I should be doing something to mark the season.  For the last few years, I've focused more on adding something to my Lenten journey with the goal of drawing closer to Christ during the 40 day walk towards Easter.  This year I'm participating in a Photo a Day Challenge.  My list is from the Catholic Sistas (I know, kind of funny because I am now Lutheran, but with a few changes I like their list and the idea to keep it on Instagam).  Each day's photo is taken and published on Instagram and any other social media platforms I wish.  I'll be taking a photo each day, but I also feel a desire to write a few words to accompany these photos.  I will share the small book I'm creating to record my photos and devotions as soon as it's ready.  Each day's word is something for me to examine in my own quiet time and study and if I'm led to write and share, I will.  Today's word is dust.  Unfortunately, it wasn't too difficult to find a bit of dust in my home.  I carved a cross into that dust and it got me thinking.

Don't you hate it when the morning sun shines through the window and everything that looked clean and dust free the night before now sports a thick layer of dust with the light of day?  I swear I just dusted the house two days ago! Truth is, it was just harder to see in the dark.  Maybe I did just dust a couple days ago (or perhaps it's been longer), but it re-gathered and re-settled and was clearly evident as the sunlight hit it at daybreak.  A wee bit like our own hearts, don't you think?  We work so hard to keep it clean, but it's hard, impossible really, to get every last speck of sin swept out.  Try as we may, as soon as we think we're clean, more sin settles on down and is clearly revealed in the light of the Son.  It's why we need a Savior.  We just cannot do it on our own.  It's why we need a Savior - the Son who stands against sin, death, and the devil.  It's why we need a Savior.  So we can stand in the presence of the pure source of light and love.  Through Christ alone are our hearts made clean.  I'll keep working on the dust, but I'll also keep turning to my Savior to allow Him to continue His work in me.  He does a much more thorough job.  

Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within in me.

Psalm 51:10

Circle Punch Border

I'm always looking for a quick way to dress up a layout and showcase beautiful patterned papers.  One technique I often turn to uses my trusty old circle punch.  It's a great technique for using up scraps of paper and livening up a layout. Simply punch circles from your coordinating scraps and layer them down the side (or top or bottom) of your layout for a quick and colorful border.  Add a block of photos, your title, and journaling, and you've completed another memorable layout.

These papers are from an older DCWV stack, Fun in the Sun Glitter Stack.  The title includes mini letters from Cosmo Cricket and American Crafts chipboard letters.

Try these ideas for working with paper scraps and punches:

Pinterest Board: Layouts with Paper Scraps

Pinterest Board: Layouts with Punches

This Week's Topic at My Creative Life 2014 is Punches!

If you're looking for even more ways to use punches and paper scraps in your scrapbook layouts, as well as use up more of your scrapbook stash, you'll want to check out my class at My Creative Classroom.  It's packed full of sketches, layout samples, and lots of ideas for digging into your creative supplies and using what you have on hand to create awesome layouts.  

Join me for Scrap That Stash! at MCC!