Freedom in Submission?

I know. The title seems to be an oxymoron, doesn't it? But those are the words that best describe what the Lord has been showing me for the past 14 months of my life. Why 14 months? Well, because 14 months ago is when my first child was born, thus the beginning of many lessons. I wish I had been smart enough and diligent enough to write down all of the lessons that the Lord has had for me over the last year. But I know that He will always have a new lesson and most often He uses my son and my own words to teach me.

So the other day I was in the store with my son, Noah and I had him in his stroller. He was locked down as locked down can get, shoulder straps and all, and this was the source of much frustration for him. His main joy in life at this point is to touch every single thing that we pass and unfortunately I am usually too slow to catch him in the act before he has grabbed, dropped and/or manhandled the object of his desire.  So as he sat their fighting and trying to figure out how those dreaded straps were keeping him from his aspiration I proclaimed, “You know Noah, if you were obedient when Mommy says something you would have much more freedom.” 

And here is where the words of Pastor Voddie Baucham come into play, “If you can’t say Amen, you gotta say ouch!”

Ouch.

Why is it that my words condemn me? Maybe it’s because those times when I feel heavy burdened and I can’t handle one more bit of drama in my life I know the reason I’m feeling that way is because I have refused to submit to the Lord. I have held back from Him, kept to myself, tried to make it on my own. I’ve decided in my heart that my ways are best and God is unable to handle the “impossible” situation that I am in. 

Now, I would never say that out loud, but that is precisely what I’m doing and exactly why I feel in bondage. The reason I feel like I have no freedom and those shoulder straps are awfully tight. The plain fact is that true freedom comes when we finally give up our “right” to it. 

If I want my son to obey me because I know “what is best” for him then why would I withhold my obedience from my risen Savior who knows so much more than my finite mind can fathom?  “If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!” - Matthew 7:11

Let us choose today to no longer be a slave to the sin of self worship but rather submit to the beautiful freedom that is found only in Christ Jesus.

Altered Box - Comic Book Style

Ok, well I can always count on my mom to give me a project or two...sometimes more! ;0) And this time she decided she wanted some decorative boxes for her cousins daughter and grandson. Simple enough! Today I am going to share with you the first box, which is for a special 15 year old boy. By the way, I can share this because my mom's cousin doesn't own a computer (gasp) and therefore cannot view my blog (GASP). ;0)

I wanted to make something very "boy" but as I've stated before that is not an easy task for me, I have a tendency to want to put ribbons and flowers on everything. Not to mention the fact that my favorite color is pink! So I headed to the scrap store and everything seemed too "babyish". Then I came across a super hero style line which I thought was perfect! It wasn't yucky or dark but rather bright, cheery and very much positive with things like "super kid" and "absolutely amazing" on it.

My idea was to have a comic strip that pictures could slide into and then I will send a sheet of thought bubble stickers so the recipient can add their own funny little quips to go along with the pictures. I used a Spider-man comic strip that I found online and with some handy Photoshopping (is that a word?) it turned out exactly how I imagined it in my head! Hope you enjoy it!








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Hero

I have a new card just in time for the 4th of July! I love these stamps! The star can be found here and the word art is a freebie and can be found here. And if you want to know what the papers are I would have to go look at my scraps because I can't remember offhand. :0)

I know there is a lot of controversy over war and all that surrounds it but I think it is very important to remember that there are many soldiers who are doing what they do because they believe their sacrifice is worth it. For freedom. Though we never find true freedom apart from Jesus Christ, we are very blessed to live in a country where we can freely express our love for the Savior. We have freedoms that other nations pay dearly for. It is important for us to remember those who have served, lost and died so that we can go to church every Sunday and own as many Bibles as our wallets can afford.

This 4th I will be thinking of the brave men who founded our country, those who risked everything so that I could be here writing this. I will be thinking of those soldiers who, right now, are away from their families. I will be thinking of the man who lived, died and rose again so that I may not only have a "good life" here on earth but that by His grace I will some day see His face and live with him in Freedom unimaginable.

Now on with the pictures. :0)



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2011 Family Reformation Ladies Tea - Door Prize

Just wanted to share a project I made last night to send as a Door Prize for the 2011 Family Reformation Ladies Tea in Metamora, IL. I won't be able to attend the event but am planning on perhaps next years. If you are able to attend, my set of boxes will be just one of many wonderful prizes, I've seen some comments on Facebook and you are in for a treat! If you would like to attend you can check out the information here, http://2011ladiestea.eventbrite.com/

And now for the pictures, hope you enjoy them!







Thanks for visiting! Have a great night!

Card Sketch Share #1

I don't know about you but with a one year old learning how to walk I am kept pretty busy! Even though I spend most of my time with my family I still want to make time to scrapbook and make cards.

It is important for me to document moments as they happen or as soon as I can with my horrible memory. I don't want to forget these special moments and days with a little one because we all know that time moves so fast and before we know it those precious little ones are married with babies of their own.

So when I do find time to sit down and create I need to make my time as efficient as I can. I don't want to have to fiddle with several photo sizes, chopping and cropping, printing and editing. I want to be able to use the photos that I have. I know that is a rarity these days with everyone being a pro with Photoshop and other editing programs, but I want my photos to depict real life and I want my layout's to depict who I am and my level of creativity, not just a carbon copy of whatever is popular at the moment.

For that reason I would like to start sharing some sketches with you, scrapbook page and card sketches so that you, too, can make the most of your time. My goal is to make sketches that use every day photo sizes and supplies. I want you to use what you've got. Don't be afraid to pull out those supplies that are "outdated" and collecting dust. Let's get creative and make the most of all that we've been given! :0)

Ok so here is the first Card Sketch and example. Hope you enjoy it!

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Old to Me, New to You!

Hello! I have a couple of cards to share with you today.I made them a while ago but never got them posted.

This first one I wanted to see what it would look like to just make the stamp the focus of the card without any patterned papers or embellishments. I am actually rather fond of it. :0) The stamp is Pure Innocence and can be found here. I altered her a little as I am not fond of fairies so I clipped her little wings and turned her wand into a flower.



This next card features a Pure Innocence stamp as well and can be found here. I love these stamps, they are adorable! For this card I just used up some of my old scraps. It is very hard for me to throw paper away. There is usually some sort of use, even for the smallest scrap. Try making a card, tag or embellishment with those scraps. I occasionally challenge myself to not buy any new paper until I've used up many of my scraps. Or you can even donate them to a hospital children's ward or local nursing home.



I hope you've enjoyed the cards today. Have a fabulous weekend!! Thanks for stopping by!

Love at First Byte

Well, I've been meaning to get this posted for some time now (considering hubby's birthday was 3 weeks ago!) but with 3 birthdays and 2 grandparent visits, I've been kept fairly busy!

I saw this stamp on Etsy several months ago and knew I wanted it for my hubby's birthday. It was hard waiting so long to use it! You can find the stamp here. The papers are from the "Guy Stack".

For the card template I just Googled "apple" and saved the image I liked the best. Then I put it into Photoshop, blacked it out and printed it. I'm sure there was an easier way but I do so love my Photoshop. :0)

Hope you like it!




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