More Memorization

Hello Friends,

This was my biggest chunk of recent scripture memorization - 5 verses. I did it in a couple of steps and over a few days. I meditated on John 15:1-5 over about a 2 week period, journaling, doing art and repeating the verses out loud. I don't know how long I will retain everything I have been memorizing. Things don't stick to my brain as well as they did when I was younger, but I believe that God will bring them back to my memory whenever I need them. The initial work is mine. He will make up for my lack of brain-memory cells.

This is the verse that started me on the path to bible verse memorization. I used it as part of a lesson for the children I teach and it got me thinking. How can I hide God's Word in my heart except by trying to commit it to memory? I really want to influence 'my' kids to read their bibles and memorize scriptures, but I don't like to ask them to do anything that I am not willing to do myself.

Thanks for dropping by. I appreciate your visit.

Blessing hugs,
Teresa

You are Loved

Hello Friends,

Last week I shared how I have been attempting to memorize scripture, using colour and repetition. For John 17:20-23 I read aloud a line at a time, adding a new line with each repetition. Then I wrote, "Father loves me as much as he loves Jesus" on the facing page and continued repeating the verses as I coloured and embellished. It almost seems too marvelous that the God of the universe loves me as much as he loves Jesus, but there it is in verse 23. Jesus spoke these words himself so I have to believe they are true. Wow. Father God loves me (and YOU) as much as he loves Jesus. Can you just breathe that in for a minute and let it give you Life, Love and Total Acceptance? Yeah. Big WOW.

Thank you for visiting my blog today. I hope you are filled with the wonder of how very much you are loved. You are precious and there is no one else like you.

Blessing hugs,
Teresa

Honey Bee

Hello Friends,

Last Sunday a friend was worship dancing with various coloured flags in church. (If you want to know what worship dancing is, do a Google search and you will find lots of beautiful images) She was so lovely to watch, I was often brought to tears as God's love washed over me through her dance. "Honey Bee" popped into my mind as I watched.

Through the first part of this week I prayed about what "Honey Bee" might mean for my friend. While I prayed, I made art and then finally a poem.

First I drew this silhouette and made it into a digital drawing, which you can take to use in your own art. I printed out 9 copies; adhered them in layers with texture paste mixed with black paint; then covered the finished piece with a mixture of pouring medium and black paint; before the pouring medium was dry I lightly sprinkled on fushcia/purple glitter. The glitter was actually to cover a smudge when I handled the piece too soon. It was a lucky mistake. :)

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I braided specialty yarn with twine and glued it into a circle/mound, like a bee hive. I added a pin and flower/bee die cut. I also braided purple tulle with a different fibre to represent the flags my friend uses in her worship dancing.

I made a batch of egg carton roses months ago. I thought one would go nicely on this mixed media piece, especially since my friend has a hobby farm, including laying hens. I glued a piece of white tulle under it for some soft, feminine texture.

The background of this canvas I made last year, as a demonstration piece for a mixed media class I taught. I added more K&Company die cut flowers, used some stamps, sequins and other embellishments to complete the piece.

This angle shows a bit of the dimension, which is one of the things I love about mixed media art.

Here is the completed piece. I hope my friend will sense my love and God's love when she looks at it.

I really wanted to write a letter or something as an interpretation to this art piece. I spent some time praying and writing until I came up with this poem. I made it into a printable, using a page border by Lilac & Lavender.

Thanks for visiting my blog today.

Blessing hugs,
Teresa

John 14:23

Hello Friends,

Today I have layout from my scripture memorization journal. This time I focused on John 14:23. I slowly wrote the verse out three times, meditating on its meaning as I read it out loud many times. I always wrote a little poem and another verse (Psalm 127:1) to reflect my thoughts.

Thank you for visiting my blog today. If you come back tomorrow I will have a special surprise for you.

Blessing hugs,
Teresa

Scripture Memorization

Hello Friends,

Recently I decided to focus on scripture memorization and develop some creative techniques for doing so. I have a little journal that I am using almost exclusively for this purpose.

For this one, I simply repeated the verse as I coloured the pages and made my decorative cross.  This was fairly effective, especially when I added only a few words at a time, repeating all until I reached the end of the verse.

I plan to make a record of the various techniques (for memorization) I discover and pass the information along to the children I teach at our church. Do you have any specific techniques you use to assist you in memorizing scripture (or anything else)?

Thanks for stopping by.

Blessing hugs,
Teresa

I am a New Creation

Hello Friends,

May's "I Am" statement for the Take Me Deeper group at His Kingdom Come is "I am a new creation". I made this page for my mini journal.

Front (chalk paint, acrylic paint and a butterfly I made from a book page):

Back (This one was a big oops. I meant to use the outer part of the butterfly as a stencil, but the low-tack sticker pulled up the paint when I tried to remove it. I let it stand as a statement that  although I am a new creation in Christ, I am being continually changed and my mistakes are an important part of my journey.):

Thank you for visiting me today.

Blessing hugs,
Teresa

I am in Christ

Hello Friends,

Over at His Kingdom Come, a free online faith art community, the Take Me Deeper group has been exploring our identity as Christians. Part of that is bi-monthly creative prompts (with technique tutorials) and "I Am" statements. April's DNA statement was "I am in Christ". I made this simple page for my mini "I Am" art journal.

Front (Gelatos over an embossed piece):

Back (spray inks):

Thanks for stopping by.

Blessing hugs,
Teresa

Unlocking the Heart of the Artist

Hello Friends,

Recently some creative friends and I got a group together to study Matt Tommey's book - Unlocking the Heart of the Artist. I altered a notebook cover to use as my journal for the study.

Matt Tommey's book is rich with insight and encouragement for every creative person. I am looking forward to making my way through the book and discussing it with others.

Thank you for visiting my blog today.

Blessing hugs,
Teresa

100 Faces - 2nd Face

Hello Friends,

Recently I took a 100 Faces challenge at Praise Heart Creative Community. This is the 2nd face I drew for the challenge.

I started off thinking I was going to draw a man's face. Here is the pencil sketch:

Next I started colouring with my water colour pencils, darker skin tones first.

Then the lighter tones:

My 'man' was starting to look like a pretty, athletic woman, so I went with it. I also decided to incorporate this face into a Take Me Deeper faith art page - a devotional group at His Kingdom Come.

Even though this did not end up being what I had intended from the beginning, I am happy with it. I love it when my creativity takes over and leads me down a different path. It usually ends up being more interesting in the long run.

Thanks for stopping by and sharing my journey with me.

Blessing hugs,
Teresa

100 Faces Challenge

Hello Friends,

Recently I signed up for a 100 Faces challenges at Praise Heart Creative Community. This is the first face I did for the challenge, inspired by Lisa's tutorial. (Lisa is the owner of Praise Heart)

Thank you for visiting my blog today. I am going to try to get back into the habit of blogging again, now that my puppy, Samson, is pretty much house trained.

Blessing hugs,
Teresa

Mothers Day Sentiments

Hi Friends,

I know I have been MIA for quite some time and hope to rectify that soon. In the meantime, here are some sentiments for Mother's Day.

Enjoy and Happy Mothers Day to all of you mothers out there.

hugs,
Teresa