Designated Space

Hello Friends,

I'm just popping in to share with you my little designated painting space. The biggest challenge is keeping that little work space clear to ... you know... work.

Thanks for stopping by.

Blessing hugs,
Teresa

Sunday's Little Blessing - Contemplative Mary

Hello Friends,

This week I have a Christmas image for you - a contemplative Mary. She was inspired by the Mark Lowry song, "Mary, Did You Know?" I have included it below.

Blessing hugs,
Teresa

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Six Faces

Hello Friends,

Do you find that God especially likes to answer very specific prayers? Perhaps it is because our faith is activated when we can envision for what we are asking. The first time I saw this in action was nearly 40 years ago, when I asked for a rental house with a fenced in yard within a specific price range. I found exactly that, even though it seemed very unlikely at the time.

Recently I felt led to ask our church's sponsored missionary what his dream is for the children and young people at the orphanage he runs in Mozambique, Africa. He told me that these children are the first in many generations to have dreams for their futures, and not just hoping to survive. They want to be doctors, teachers, pilots and many other things.

Post secondary education is expensive in any country. Child sponsorship pays for basics only . Knowing that God seems to like specific prayers, I asked my friend how much it would cost to send six students to college for one year. He estimated about $20,000 so I have begun praying for that amount and for those six students. I don't know who they are and neither does my missionary friend. There are many more than six with ambitious dreams, but we are starting by praying for six.

Last night, during our family worship time, I drew these six faces in my journal. I started them with an Artist Cellar (Jane Davenport) profile stencil and did them with a blue NeoColor II water soluble pastel. I didn't have good natural light when I took that picture so the colours are way off. Sorry about that. It is also regular paper so blending was a challenge.

Will you join me in praying for them?

blessing hugs,
Teresa

PS - This is Face #11 in the 100 Faces challenge at Praise Heart Creative Community.

We Dance

Hello Friends,
I would like to share a journal entry with you from July 12, 2016.

We Dance

Sing, O childless woman, you who have never given birth! Break into loud and joyful song, O Jerusalem, you who have never been in labor. For the desolate woman now has more children than the woman who lives with her husband," says the LORD. (Isaiah 54:1)

As I listened to the Stephanie Frizzel song, "We Dance", this morning I pictured a small girl, about 3 years old. The girl was dancing with Jesus. Sometimes he would pick her up. She would put her hands on his cheeks and they would smile at each other; sometimes they would giggle and he would spin her around.

Sometimes Jesus put the girl down and let her spin pirouettes. Often she would grab hold of Jesus' finger. Skipping and toddling around the room, she would take him with her. He smiled and let the tiny girl lead him. Instinctively, I knew that he would not let her go any place that was dangerous. He was happy to give her the freedom to make her own choices and to tag along as she explored.

Often, as Christians, we are afraid to explore different opportunities lest we step out of the will of God. We think that every little decision somehow affects our destiny and live in dread of screwing it all up.

We say things like, "Lord, should I go here or should I go there?" "Should I apply for this job or that job?"

These can be relevant questions and sometimes God will answer them. More often he wants us to explore various opportunities, all the while holding fast to his finger. In other words, he wants us to invite him along into our process and trust him for the outcome.

My husband and I had always wanted to adopt children, as well as to have our own. This desire developed (unknown to each other) during our teen years. In 1993 we decided to make this dream become a reality.

We went through the home study process, which held its own challenges and was not cheap. That took about a year.

Then for nearly three years we searched for a child or sibling group to adopt. We poured over albums filled with child profiles and went to Toronto twice for conferences where the profiles of adoptable children were displayed. Each time we applied for a child or sibling group we thought was a good fit for our family, someone else was chosen over us. There was never any explanation. Just the disappointment and pain of rejection.

Then the adoption worker for our location retired and was not replaced. There was no representative for us which meant we had no way to continue our search for a child to adopt.

In the summer of 2003 we received a call from our local child services office from someone who introduced herself as the new adoption worker. By this time, we had determined that God was steering us away from adopting, as every time (there was a private adoption opportunity as well that fell through) we had attempted, it failed.

By this time, Terry was no longer employed, we were in our late 40s and we did not know what the future held for us. The adoption worker said she would call back in a few months to see what our situation was.

Having our dream thrust back into our laps, after we had already laid it to rest, was unsettling; especially since we were no longer in a position where we would be eligible to adopt a child. Neither of us was employed, my health was not the best and we were, frankly, getting older.

We continued to ask the Lord for guidance about our future and in a few months we were sure he was leading us to sell our home and move from Ontario to Prince Edward Island. I was in the midst of packing when I got the call from the adoption worker. I had forgotten all about it by then.

Since moving to PEI my husband and I have been involved in ministries to children. In 2010 we pioneered a mid-week ministry in our church called Deeply for Kids. It began very small, as a group for children (aged 6-12) who desired a deeper relationship with God. Now it is a collection of ministries to families, from babies to grandparents, that meets on the same night and time.

Like the little girl in my vision, our exploration of adoption was a journey where Jesus let us take the lead while we held fast to his finger. He drew us back each time from the edge of where we were not to go. The process was painful, but necessary.

It developed in us the Spirit of Adoption which is in Papa God's own heart. It also left us painfully aware of our need to have children in our lives.

If we had adopted a child, that ache would have been temporarily alleviated. She would have grown up and probably left home by now. And we would again have this hollow in our hearts that God actually built into us.

We were always meant to adopt children - many children -- but we were intended to adopt them into our hearts rather than into our home.

We are already getting to see some of our beloved children grow up. As teenagers, some are now leading worship, going on mission trips and one is the right-hand man of the children's pastor, as he pushes towards his goal of becoming a children's pastor himself.

But it doesn't end there because each year we get a new batch of darlings to adopt into our hearts.

As painful as it was, I am glad for the years of frustration, disappointment and heart break that our adoption journey brought into our lives. It let us feel a little of the longing in our divine Papa's heart to gather all of his children into his heart and home. It is with that same longing -- that not one of them will be lost -- that we point them to him.

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Sunday's Little Blessing - Alpaca

Hello Friends,

This week's free image is an alpaca. This one has just had a haircut. :)

Enjoy your Sunday!

Blessing hugs,
Teresa

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The Blessing

Hello Friends,

I have been following a bible journaling challenge to make art for one portion of scripture in each book of the bible. Today's scripture is Numbers 6:24-26, The Hebraic Blessing that the Lord commanded the priests to speak over the Israelites.

"The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face upon you and give you peace."

This was God's heart for his people then and it is his heart for all of his followers today.

1) He wants to bless me. Bless: a thing conducive to welfare or happiness. The Lord wants me to be well and happy. Illness and depression are the opposites of what he desires for me.

2) The Lord wants to keep me. Keep: (Shamar) to guard, watch, protect, save, preserve, treasure. The Lord wants to protect me; he watches over me and treasures me.

3) The Lord make his face shine upon you. The Lord is happy; he is smiling when he looks at me. He is proud of the me that he created.

4) The Lord is gracious to me. Gracious: to show favour or kindness. The Lord wants to favour me. he gives me preferential kindness. I can expect good things in my life because the face of God is shining his favour upon me.

5) The Lord turns his face towards me. Papa God's attention is fully turned toward me. he is always watching over and waiting for me. He is not angry at me.

6) The Lord gives me peace. Peace: (Shalom) The Hebrew word is actually Shalom. Shalom is a state of wholeness, without deficiency. The Lord wants me to be whole in all ways - physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. The Lord gives me all the good things that I need. I lack for nothing.

I may not see the full evidence of all of these blessings in my life at present, but this is God's desire for me. This is what he wants me to understand. His intentions towards me are always to bless and never to harm. He loves me, he loves me, he loves me. And I love him back.

Blessing hugs,
Teresa

Blow the Trumpet

Hello Friends,

This week my son presented his dad with a Yemenite Shofar. This is something Terry has wanted for a very long time. When Terry asked Paul what the gift was for (early Christmas?), the reply was, "Because I love you..."

Leviticus 25:8-13 talks about the Year of the Jubilee, when all debts would be forgiven and all lost properties would be returned. It happens every 50 years, according to the Jewish calendar and this just happens to be a Jubilee year. On the Day of Atonement trumpets (shofars) are blown all over the land.

I used a picture of my Terry blowing his new shofar to create art in my bible.

Thank you for stopping by. I wish you many blessings on your day and the remainder of your week.

Blessing hugs,
Teresa

Sunday's Little Blessing - Budgie

Hello Friends,

Today I have a digi of my little budgie, Chicken, who passed away earlier this year. She was a sweet little bird, packed full of personality. She loved to fly to a finger on command and nestle in for some snuggles. She gave sweet little birdie kisses, including making a loud kissy sound. I sure do miss her. I hope you enjoy using her image in your art.

Blessing hugs,
Teresa

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Sunday's Little Blessing - Puppy

Hello Friends,

This week I another puppy for you, but this one is straight out of my imagination. I hope you like him.

Blessing hugs,
Teresa

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A Day Like Exodus 23rd

Hello Friends,

There is a bible journaling group on Facebook called Visions of Scripture. Recently they started a challenge to do an art journal entry for each book of the bible. I already did something for Genesis. I chose chapter 23 of Exodus for the next book and I have a very special reason for doing so.

In 1995 I was walking in a local park where I used to live in Ontario, communing with the Lord. I suddenly felt compelled to take a particular path to an open field. In the field was an elderly man with a dog. I felt very strongly impressed that I should speak to him. Not knowing what to say, I remarked, "It's a beautiful day."

"There hasn't been a day like this since Exodus 23rd," the man replied.

Rather stunned by his reply, I headed back for my car. There I got out my bible and opened to Exodus 23. My eyes fell on verse 20: "See, I have sent my angel ahead to guard you along the way to the place I have prepared."

Some months later I had a dream of a seaside location. The same elderly man I had met in the park was in the dream.

In 2003, after 2-3 years of prompting and guiding by the Holy Spirit, my husband and I moved to Prince Edward Island. A few years after moving here, I came upon the exact seaside location I had seen in my dream.

I don't understand why it was so important that we moved to this beloved Island. We have a limited sphere of influence and are not well known. But I believe that every person has a divine destiny, whether it is to touch one life that will influence another that will influence thousands, only God knows.

Thank you for visiting my blog.

Blessing hugs,
Teresa