Grace

"Grace is the recovery of that which is oldest, and most original - the heart of God as expressed through Jesus Christ.  He was the plan of God from before the foundation of the world."
~Sheila Atchley

I wrote this in my art journal last night...using colored inks and scroll-y borders.  No photos yet...I'm keeping it private for now, as I attempt to master dabble in both art journaling and mixed media art.  I use inks, guache paints, watercolor paints, collage, pastels, and charcoal pencil.  But the art journal I use for reading and recording thoughts is mostly .01 and .05 micron colored ink pens.

Somehow, using color and Scripture inspiration, the words and phrases come to me easily...I guess because my brain is working on both the beautiful ideas, and making the beautiful ideas more beautiful.

I love it.

Quotable Quotes

"A new beginning!  We must learn to live each day, each hour, yes, each minute as a New Beginning, as a unique opportunity to make everything new.  Imagine that we could live each moment as a moment pregnant with new life.  Imagine that we could live each day as a day full of promises.  Imagine that we could walk through the year always listening to a voice saying to us, "I have a gift for you and can't wait for you to see it!"

Imagine!"

~Henri J.M. Nouwen

Old Covenant "Shadows"

The Old Testament (Covenant) is a book of illustration.  The New Testament (Covenant) is a book of explanation.

Please, let the New explain the Old.  Please, please, please.  I will shamelessly beg you, if that will convince you.  Please let the Cross be superimposed over your understanding of Old Covenant. 

Please let "Moses and Elijah" disappear from sight, and see the Lord Alone...Jesus, in all His glory.

Never, ever read the Old Covenant through any other lens or perspective but the Finished Work of Christ, unless you just love having a veil over your head.  In the Old Covenant  (which those who were His loved it, indeed.  It was all they had.  Profound, huh?) they looked forward TO the coming Christ.

From our vantage point, we look back THROUGH the Finished Work of Christ.  Any other perspective - whether that be law for the sake of law, or keeping the law in an effort to be blessed and mistaking that for Biblical faith - any other perspective will at the very least make you a poor Bible scholar, and will at worst make you a Pharisee.

Please, fear God in your approach to His Word.  Fear Him enough to turn loose of your Old Covenant perspective, no matter how secure or holy or mystical or special or important or spiritual it has made you "feel".  He has spoken in these last days through The Son.  In no one else is the Father "well pleased".  Put yourself  IN Him, by grace through faith, not through your own efforts to be well pleasing.  This is revelation, and I pray that you can finally hear it.

But you sort of have to humble yourself and want to hear it.  Or at least I had to.  Maybe you are the exception to every precedent.  That still is no nevermind to me, so long as you hear and you see and you put your whole trust in He who once walked the streets, two thousand years ago, breaking rules left and right, but fulfilling the law down to the last jot and tittle.  Oh, the cleverness and surpassing wisdom of God!


Strive to be a good student.  Rightly divide the Word of truth.  Rightly.  Divide.  It.  One is illustration, the other, explanation.

That Was SO 46 Seconds Ago!

46 seconds ago, there was Another Super Bowl Victory for a Manning.  I'd rather a Manning get another trophy than a Tom Brady any day.  No offense to my Patriot-Fan friends, but...

holla! 

I'm feeling smug. 

You Are the One That We Praise! You Are the One We Adore!

Lyrics to Wonderful, Merciful Savior:

Wonderful, merciful Savior
Precious Redeemer and friend
Who would have thought that a lamb could
Rescue the souls of men
Oh, You rescue the souls of men

Counselor, Comforter, Keeper
Spirit we long to embrace
You offer hope when our hearts have
Hopelessly lost the way
Oh, we hopelessly lost the way

[Chorus:]
You are the one that we praise!
You are the one we adore!
You give the healing and grace
Our hearts always hunger for
Oh, our hearts always hunger for

Almighty, infinite Father
Faithfully loving Your own
Here in our weakness
You find us
Falling before Your throne
Oh, we're falling before Your throne

[Chorus:]
You are the one that we praise!
You are the one we adore!
 You give the healing and grace
Our hearts always hunger for
Oh, our hearts always hunger for

Photoshop Class - Homework

...results of this week's Photoshop Class...a little rough around the edges (literally) but this is the first draft, and it took me only about a half an hour to do it.  Now, to master the technique could take more time...I need to work on constraining my proportions, I need to play with the white balance in one of the above photos, and I want to add a layer of dreamy "wash" over the whole thing.  I'll share results, as I work on this some more over the weekend. ("Please, Lord, let me find the time!") .

And now for the very best part. Are you ready? This particular class I am taking is a "paid" class - very reasonable charge, I must add.  But the instructor is offering a free basic Photoshop class in March! The class is being offered for either CS or Elements users - whichever program you have or wish to purchase (if you don't already have Photoshop). If you do not own a version of Photoshop, the software itself you do have to purchase - mine was a generous gift from The Preacher awhile back - but once you have it, the basic class on how to utilize Photoshop that I am telling you about right now is FREE!

Trust me when I tell you...I've played with Photoshop all by myself, trying to wrap my head around such a powerful program.  I've bought a book, "Photoshop For Dummies."

Not even kidding.

But nothing...nothing...has helped me make sense of this program like the lady I am about to introduce you to.  You will be emailing me, after your ten sessions of class (FREE), thanking me so much for making this introduction for you.  I am happy to be of help.  ::smile::  I am truly committed to sharing the best of the best with you, when I find it.  And oh.  I.  have.  found.  it. 

So, please click on the link below, and go "meet" the incredibly talented and very sweet Kim Klassen!  (We've never met, but we've emailed.  And she answers her email in an admirably timely fashion.)  



    

PS.  I am one of those mystics who believes that names have meaning and can be very prophetic.  Note Kim's last name:  Klassen.  As in "Class" with a "K".  You truly will find her to be a gifted online teacher, who painstakingly puts together quality classes.

Mine and The Preacher's Strategy





The Preacher and I have a strategic plan for reaching people for Christ. It isn't bullet-pointed, or Power-Pointed, nor is it a pointed finger at everyone else, wondering how many churches do they plan on planting.

Our strategy really is...doing stuff.

Lots of stuff. Every day. Doing stuff with people, for people, about people, with loving people at the top of our agenda.

We are fanatical enough to believe God meant what He said when He said that if I say I love God, and  don't do stuff with people, for people, about people, with loving people being the driving force....well,   He says we don't actually love Him as much as we say we do.  If we don't love our brother who we can see, maybe we simply aren't that fond of God - or at least we aren't fond of properly portraying said love.

So yeah.  No detailed plan.  Just do stuff...with and for people...letting the love of God touch them in life-changing ways.