Be strong therefore! WAW #332-333

Hello Delightful friends and family!

Word Art Wednesday our Anything Goes - Family Friendly challenge #332-333 starts today! It's a two week challenge and you can link up 5 new projects a week for a chance of winning a prize.  Our sponsor this week is Winnie & Walter be sure and check out their shop and blog for lots of creative inspiration! Maybe you will be the winner of the $25 gift card. They are involved in the Mega Sponsor Blog Hop that ends this Friday (May 4) with lots of prizes so check that out too.  

I really enjoyed coloring this Penny Black stamp (Aviary) with my Zig Clean Color Brushes and look forward to using it again, maybe coloring with Prismacolor pencils or Copics.  I stamped with Archival Tree Branch to give a more natural feel, no dark lines. I've used Strathmore 140# cold press watercolor paper. The only thing I would change is to print the sentiment on vellum.  It just looks a little odd in the photo.  It's not quite so bad in person, but it does take away from the roof line on the birdhouse. Perhaps if I had resized it a bit smaller it would have been better.  I'm still learning the art of digital images!  I usually have the Scripture Art printed in a couple different sizes ahead of time so I never know how it's going to work on the card! 

Note to self: print on vellum and have a variety of sizes to work with! 

Here is the Scripture art that is free to use if you'd like to use it in the challenge:

What a wonderful promise to King Asa in 2 Chronicles 15.  He was encouraged by these words and continued to remove the idols and restored the altar of the Lord.  A lesson for us for sure.  It's not always easy to do what's right in the Lord's sight especially in our culture. People mock and try to cause you trouble.  But if you seek the Lord, the Word of God says "He will be found by you" .  I'm so glad that even when we fail, God truly does show us grace and mercy. Of course we need to repent and return to Him to receive that grace and mercy! We are to be "strong in the Lord and in the power of His might" and when we remember that He is faithful and is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him, it enables us to stand strong and be obedient to His Word. So I want to encourage you today to be strong in the Lord Jesus and when you are feeling weak and inadequate (that's not really a bad thing) He then can be your strength and will be with you in the work He has called you to do. To God be the all the glory - His faithfulness endures to every generation!

Thanks for visiting today!!

Need Wisdom? Word Art Wednesday Anything Goes Challenge

Hey Delightful Friends and Family! 

 Hope is all going well, I'm finally over this nasty cough and congestion.  That was my second bout with the crud and I'm so done with it!  Glad that Spring is finally here, although I call our Humboldt County weather "psycho spring" because #1 you have to dress in layers #2 it can be raining, then sunshine, then raining, then windy, then hailing all within an hour or two.  Crazy weather is our normal Spring season!  

Well it's time for our Anything Goes Challenge (Family Friendly) #330 & 331, over at the Word Art Wednesday Blog.  Hope you'll play along.  I've used a couple of items for this challenge from our Sponsor's store called Stamp Simply. Be sure and visit the shop and blog and get inspired. Thank you Sharon Johnson! We appreciate our faithful sponsors! 

Here is my card:

This die set called Coffee or Tea? has two different sizes of cups to choose from, check it out HERE.  I've used the larger cup and handle and now that I'm looking at the picture I see I forgot to add the "steam", it's somewhere on my craft table because I know I diecut it out! 

I diecut the cup from watercolor paper, then stamped the rose, masking off most of the stem.  This stamp set is called Thinking of You Rose.  It is an exclusive Stamp Simply set and you can see all of the additional stamps included in the set HERE. I think I need to get the Rose die that coordinates with this! After stamping the rose with Archival black ink, I colored the image with green Zig Clean Color Brushes (leaves & stem) and some of the red that was on my palette for the rose, then added Antique Linen (Distress ink) around the edges. The cup is popped up with dimensional tape. I also "distressed" the doily before adhering it to the pattern paper (Webster's Pages - from my box of 6x6 paper pads I am hoarding!). The Scripture Art this week is from the epistle of James chapter 1 verse 5.  I cut it out using a Fishtail Banner die (My Favorite Things) and the finishing touches are the bow and some red bling!

You can link up 5 projects each week for the challenge and also grab the free Scripture Art and use it, too!

This week we are looking at James 1:5 and are challenged to consider how we can rely on the Lord to give us wisdom if we ask. It takes faith to ask for it.  Are you needing wisdom?  I know I sure am, EVERY day!  Knowing that if I pray and ask for wisdom, the Lord will give it to me is a fabulous promise.  Have you ever gone through a trial and just didn't know how to proceed, but then you prayed out of desperation?  You needed wisdom and direction to know what to do and then "the light goes on" and you receive the knowledge and help you need "out of the blue" well, there are no coincidences, the Lord knows what we need and when.  But He also wants us to learn that the testing of our faith is going to produce patience, He wants us to ask in faith, believing He will direct us.  If you continue reading this chapter in James, there are so many faith building lessons that can help each of us grow spiritually - our goal is to reflect Jesus Christ, our Savior to this lost and dying world. So let's be doers of the Word and not just hearers. (you will find that in James chapter 1 also, it's just full of great doctrine for successful Christian living.  To God be the glory!

Thanks for visiting and if you read this long post, I thank you and pray that the Lord blesses you real good!!