Creative Inspirations

 

There is just something about that blank page staring up at me, begging to be inked on... no wait... a blank canvas thirsty for paint.... no wait... a stretch of material hankering for stitches..... no... wood for color or glass for spraying....

I can't decide.

I'm a sort of 'Jack(ie) of all trades, master of none' when it comes to arts and crafts.... and gardening and baking and ANYTHING to do with creating.  I like to dabble.  I guess that's why I owned a business for a small stretch of time, "Crafted Creations by AJ".  Ahhhh, those were the days.  I dabbled and then I stuck a price tag on it.  But everyone dabbled so few people bought... then the recession hit and no one bought!  CC by AJ folded but I still dabbled.

As kids have grown and life has gotten busy, I tended to do less dabbling than I use to.  Although, I still do invest energy in little things here and there, like amateur photography when we are on hikes or knitting and crocheting as we watch movies or pass quiet time.  However, life is transitioning again and I find more in-depth creative outlets to be relaxing and fulfilling....  life just seems off-kilt when I am not creating.

I know not everyone will share my sentiments here, however, when we consider we are created in the image of a creator God who slathered out the rolling oceans and dabbed on beautiful sunsets... He formed such magnificent vistas like mountains and valleys and master gardened bright sunflowers and fields of swaying grass.

Is it any wonder a body often years to create?  We are created to be mini-creators. 

Only, we don't form something from nothing like our amazing Father did.  We get to use all of the awesome somethings He set into motion to create more somethings which reflect His glory and Creative Power.

So, recently, my latest dabbling turned to more seriously consider photography -though I think I could use some serious hands-on tips with my new camera-  Still absolute amateur over here.  I decided to try a photo challenge.  Type that in Pinterest's search perimeters if you are curious.  I LOVED the inspiration but, as busy homeschooling mom, I was quickly overwhelmed by the daily-ness of the challenges.  My 14 year old, without a care in the world, was trucking through each daily theme while I was woefully behind.  Already, failing at photography!

Then there was the outlet... what do I do even IF I met the challenge?  Sure it is awesome and fun, but who do I get to share it with, where is there a community who shares my heart for clean, wholesome creativity?

Through these summer months I have pondered and tossed the idea around while my new camera sits snug in it's little case.  I started thumbing around Pinterest and doodles began to strike my fancy.  I've (copy-cat) doodled some pictures for my 14 year old to color... pre-adult coloring book style.  Then I break out my sketchbook and begin to challenge myself to variations.

The spark ignites a fire and suddenly I'm burning with an idea:

What if I started a creativity 'challenge' where there is only ONE topic per week plus ONE open-ended option to get creatively expressive with God's Word (that is a total of 8 challenges for the month for you math enthusiasts).  Oh, and the challenges can be done in any order on any day.

What if I doodled out my ideas in neat little boxes and scanned them in and shared them in my newsletter and then here on the site and asked others to join me?

What if I opened this challenge to all ages and stages and just made it this fun community of creative people, who use all sorts of mediums, who want to encourage each other and share what they are creating?

What if I created a weekly link-up meme for fellow bloggers with the option for ANYONE to hash tag share on Pinterest and code-names on Facebook for those of us (yes, I'm talking about myself here) who are too busy lazy to actually upload our pictures from our phone to our computer!!!

What if, each week when I opened the meme I shared what I have been doing and, from time to time, tips, tricks, websites, and tools I pick up as I go to encourage the creativity of others.

What if, I featured some of my favorites from other creators who tried to follow some of the themes each month and put the spot-light on others (if they don't mind it) so we can all be mutually encouraged?

What if I also periodically shared ideas for turning that creative nature into a way to reach others for Christ or simply fellowship with other believers?

Well, No more what-ifing... this thing is for-reals!

In July's newsletter I intro-ed and launched "Creative Inspirations".  The print out below highlights each week's (done whatever week you want to) theme.  There is also a page 2 with more in-depth instructions, hashtag keywords and Facebook reference-ology.

If your creative outlet of choice is fabric or gardening, I challenge you to think outside the box on some of these topics.

New monthly themes, drawn up like the one above, will go live on the website the first Saturday of each month.  If you want to be able to see it sooner, see the post-script below.

One thing NOT detailed in the PDF above is this:  You do NOT have to complete every single topic and if your project is taking a while to complete, partial completion is more than welcomed in sharing.  As a matter of fact, share anything creative, as long as it is wholesome and reflects the expressed values of this website.... just do whatever you have time for and share it!

I hope you will join me in these creative adventures.  The link-up meme will go live next Saturday for anyone interested in a link-up party!  I hope to see you there... I mean, here!

I pray you experience the presence of God and share his Glory through your creative pursuits this coming week!  Grab the family if you like... and a few friends or church group.... and BE CREATIVE because He is Creative♥

Blessings

Click on this link to see some of the great blogs I am linking with today...

Do you NOT want to have to wait until the first Saturday of the month to see the new challenges?  You can get the latest monthly challenge before the new month starts by signing up for my monthly newsletter.  The newsletter issues on the last Thursday of each month and, among other great content, the latest installment for the coming month's Creative Challenge will be available for early download through the newsletter.  Hop over to the right side bar to sign up!  (it looks like image below)

Building Homes and Finding Hope

But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, 

and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.

 Jeremiah 29:7

Let's paint a picture.....

Jeremiah had been prophesying the Word of God and warning the people God gave him that captivity and exile were inevitable as the result of their way-ward behavior.  And, what do ya know, he was right. 

The false prophets tried to shrug this off and tell the people they wouldn't be gone that long.  No Worries.

Re-enter Jeremiah and his "Letter to the Exiles" where he expressly says, 'get comfortable, it's gonna be a while.... a looooong while.'  Like, long enough to get married and have kids and build a life... that kind of while.  He even tells them to Build homes!!  Well, God tells them, He uses Jeremiah to deliver the message.  Building a home is a serious, long-term commitment.

Truly though, being in the bleakest situation of their lives as a nation, this letter, found in Jeremiah 29:1-23 is a beautiful letter of encouragement.  Like the good Father God is, he must punish His disobedient children, but He does not forsake them.... he still plants a sprig of hope and waters it with encouragement to get them through the dark days ahead. (Do read the whole letter, link in text, you will see what I mean)

As I meditated on this Word recently I felt God reminding me of the correlation to my own life.  Especially the last 4 years.  Granted, my displacement is not a 'punishment' for sin, rather, I am where I am because God called us to travel and then planted us here, in south-central Montana, not knowing a soul in the world in this place.

Since we have been here we have known some of our deepest heart-aches and faced some of our toughest challenges as Christians.  We have never been more tempted to loose hope or more discouraged in the plight of the church body.  We even contemplated our escape for a time!

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, 

plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.

- Jeremiah 29:11 

Yet, at every turn, we have seen and continue to see God.

We see him through songs and Scripture and 'random' calls and emails from friends far away who felt the need to encourage us.

We see him through His provision of home and vehicles and jobs which sustain us pressed down and poured out.

We see him when our children, who should be causalities of this war we face, are instead growing and thriving in their faith and understanding of His Word and what it is to be in relationship with Him.

We see him.
We trust him.
We know him.

And while we don't always know or understand what He is doing, we can be encouraged to not give up, not loose strength or hope or purpose because His purpose is being fulfilled each day we get up and step out.

We build our houses.
We grow our families.
We pray for this place.

This is God's place and we are sojourners.  He put us here and now and, even if we can't find stable ground in our surroundings, we can find a solid rock in Him and pray as He purposes us to.... as God through Jeremiah purposed the captives to pray for the pagan nation of Babylon.

As I studied up for this week's word, I was thumbing through the Chronological Bible for timeline references.  I love what the authors had to say on this section of Jeremiah:

Jeremiah wrote to the captives in Babylon...instructing them to move ahead with their lives and to pray for the pagan nation that enslaved them.  Life cannot grind to a halt during troubled times.  In an unpleasant or distressing situation, we must adjust and keep moving.  You may find it difficult to pray for those in authority if they are evil, but that is when your prayers are most needed.... When you enter times of trouble or sudden change, pray diligently and move ahead, doing whatever you can rather than giving up because of fear and uncertainty. [p1029, Chronological Life Application Study Bible]

Oh, sweet friend, maybe life is trucking along, perfectly great for you today.... I will praise God with you for that!  But perhaps it is not.  Maybe you live in a place you wish were different, whether that is the house or town or state.... maybe you are having a tough time in a relationship whether it be family or friend or church.... Wherever you are today, I pray you would be strengthened by the passages in Jeremiah today which remind us that, #1, these things are temporary and, even if we have to make our homes in this place of trouble for right now, it will pass and #2, God has not abandoned us.  He is present and prepared to hear our prayers and comfort our hearts.  He wants to work through us to those around us and it may very well be through our hurt or physical and/or emotional displacement that He might reach the population at large.

You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.  

I will be found by you, declares the Lord...

- Jeremiah 29:13-14a

Blessings,

Click on this link to see some of the great blogs I am linking with today...

Be sure to go to the sidebar and sign up for my Monthly Newsletter (I promise, I won’t spam you!)  It looks like this:

There is some exclusive content you won't find anywhere else on my site along with a monthly encouraging word on faith.

Newsletter Details and Give-a-way Announcement

The new Newsletter has officially made it's debut.  It was a ton of fun to create and is my new favorite part of the Faith and Home collection!  I hope you were able to sign up for the debut issue but if you missed it, don't despair... each month I will kick out another!

Last month I discussed WHY I am doing a newsletter and hinted at some of the content to pique curiosity.  Now that the cat is out of the bag, so-to-speak, I thought it was time to give you more details!

Faith and Home Times is more than just a fancy new heading... though I do love the look and the great images I am able to find at pexels.com!  No, it is a chance for me to bullet-point the core of the Faith and Home website.

Each month I will have a short, exclusive, featured article on:

• Faith - a short reflection of something God has planted in my heart for the month
• Home - a tip relevant to that coming month and the Art of Housewifery
• Homeschool - a special article on matters of homeschooling

Also included each month as FREE printables:

• A 4-box lay-out of the month's Sunday Scripture Pictures from my Facebook page which can be printed in full-color, cut out and hung around your home or handed out to others for encouragement (exclusive to newsletter subscribers)

• A monthly menu with recipes and quick tips for most of the meals (another subscriber exclusive) 

• Early option to print the month's Creativity challenge (in-depth details coming this Saturday for those who didn't subscribe and catch this announcement last month)

Which brings me to other newsletter features... early peeks at upcoming content on the website.

I hope to expand the newsletter content and offerings as I get use to the new platform- and pray and wait on where all God will take us with it.

I love the different context a newsletter provides... it feels like I get to be closer with YOU!  And, because I love the book, What Every Christian Ought to Know by Adrian Rogers so much I have decided to extend my sign-up give-a-way!! Here is how it will work:

Each month between now and the end of December, I will give away TWO copies of What Every Christian Ought to Know by Adrian Rogers to two blessed winners* who have signed up for my newsletter at any time during 2017!  

That's right....

If you sign up, your name stays in the 'jar' (yes, I have a literal drawing jar cause I like old-school stuff like that!) every single month giving you 2 chances every single month to win!! Once (or if... but I like the sound of once) you win, then your name will go on my board of winners... (I have a literal one of those too! yup, old school!)

So, if you have already signed up for the Faith and Home Times, you are in the running.  If you haven't, sign up soon to increase your chances of winning!

Also, if you want to sign up for the newsletter but you DON'T want to be entered to win the book, that is ok.  If/when your name is drawn, I contact you by email before announcing publicly.  At that time you can let me know you are not interested in the book give-a-way and I will pick someone else.  Sound good?

If you have any other questions about the newsletter or the give-a-way, please don't hesitate to let me know.  You can comment below or shoot an email to: amanda@faithandhome.com  I also take requests under consideration for content!

I look forward to hearing from you!

Blessings,

Click on this link to see some of the great blogs I am linking with today...

*Give-a-way rules: Must be a U.S. resident, if you are not a U.S. resident, and would like to enter to win, please contact me to discuss alternatives. The drawing will occur on the first of each month from now until January 1, 2018 with the winners being randomly chosen. The winners will be contacted within 24 hours and will be announced on Facebook and this blog.  If the winners do not wish to have name announced, this must be stated when contacted for mailing address.  A copy of the book (up to $10 value) will be mailed directly to the winner from Amazon, shipping times may vary. I will contact winners for address information using the e-mail submitted to my newsletter database.  If you do not want to receive your package directly from Amazon, the winner needs to let me know when I contact them for their address and we can discuss alternative source methods.  No purchase necessary.  Void where prohibited by law.