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Acts 2:45 They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. 

The new converts to Christ on the Day of Pentecost recognized that they had received the Kingdom of God.

Matthew 13:45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. ⁴⁶ When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.

Nothing is more valuable than God’s Kingdom.

The night I asked Jesus to forgive me and be the Lord of my life, I left the church building went home to my husband and said to him through tears, that is it I have become a Christian, everything has to change, I can never be the same again and everyone has to know. I didn’t learn that from years of being in church or bible studies this was my second time in church, except for weddings and funerals, in 12 years. I wasn’t brought up in a Christian home none of my close family were Christians.

I felt like God had been pursuing me for about a year and I had been resisting because I wasn’t ready to commit my life to Him. On that night in a small church with a preacher who was a ventriloquist, using a monkey puppet to speak to the kids I knew that this was my chance to respond to God and before I knew it I was standing up and was totally transformed by the power of God. I would never be the same again, the Kingdom of God, His rule, His reign, His plans and purposes became all important to me, the trappings of the world became less important.

The Kingdom of God doesn’t change sometimes our attitudes and commitment to it change. I have found the pearl of great price and I want to recommit my life to sharing that Kingdom with others.

 

 

PARIS

 

During my recent visit to the antique mall I found a 1951 book about Paris with 160 black and white photos of famous Parisian buildings. I was so excited to be able to use some of these wonderful architectural prints in my pictures. I realize that due to fear I have tended to use pastel shades for my backgrounds so now I am also experimenting with stronger colors, I am really happy with the results. The more I practice the bolder I get. Looking forward to working on more pages this week.

 

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• Petit Paris (adorninc.wordpress.com)

In England a yard is an area that is concreted or has flagstones, a garden is an area with a lawn, bushes, trees and flower beds. My dad is a keen gardener we had perfect lawns and he grew flowers and vegetables from seeds in his greenhouse. I always loved the idea of gardening  I would spend hours looking at his gardening books, one in particular “Everyday Gardening in Colour” written by a man called Percy Thrower who was the Michael Jordan of the gardening world. He was later succeeded by Alan Titchmarsh, funny how we have heroes in every walk of life.

I still have a love of gardens although gardening in the Midwest is more of a challenge than gardening in the temperate climate of England. Flowers last so much longer there and grass stays so much greener.

I think my love of gardening and gardens is more of a spectator pastime, a bit like an armchair sports fan. When I lived in England I was a member of the Royal Horticultural Society and loved to visit Wisley Gardens on the outskirts of London. It was my oasis from the noisy, hustle and bustle of London. It was a special place for me to get away from the crowds and spend time alone with God just surrounded by the beauty of His creation.

Now that spring has turned into summer, once again  I am being inspired by flowers and gardens but this time with new camera technology I can capture a moment of beauty immediately and share it with others. So here are some photo’s from my friends garden I hope you enjoy them as much as I do. These are for my dad too, Happy Father’s Day and thanks for giving me a love for gardens.

 

 

 

 

Esther has never been my favorite story in the bible, mainly because as a woman whenever you are asked to speak this is the first passage that comes to the mind of the person asking (usually a man).

 

In my early days as a Christian I only saw this story as a tale of a beautiful woman whose good looks got her into the right place at the right time.Now after a few years have passed I see a story of a woman who was an orphan brought up by her cousin and then chosen by the King’s representatives to be a concubine (A concubine is generally a woman in an ongoing, marriage-like relationship with a man whom she cannot marry for a specific reason. It may be because she is of lower social rank than the man (including slave status) or because the man is already married. Wikipedia) This lifestyle wasn’t a choice she made it was made for her because of economic reasons. Like all of us she most probably wanted to marry someone she loved.

She was instrumental in rescuing her people, the Jews, from wholesale destruction at the hands of Haman by daring to enter into the King’s presence without permission. You know how nerve racking it is asking your boss for time off, imagine if  there was a 50/50 chance of being killed for your request.

So let’s look on Esther as a courageous woman of faith not a privileged beauty queen. A woman, who instead of wallowing in self pity because of the misfortune in her life decided to take up the challenge given by God to save a people from death. She was brought to that place for such a time as this.

We may feel bitter about things that have happened to us in the past but God is able to comfort and heal us and use us to help others. What is He requiring of us at such a time as this?

 

I found a picture in a magazine of the face of a women and it made me think of Esther so that sparked the idea for this mixed media piece. Unfortunately there is a light reflected on her face but hope you like it.

I bought my first camera in years yesterday and am excited about uploading some of my attempts at mixed media art. So here is my first picture using watercolors, stamps, stencils and scrapbook paper. My friend suggested I frame it and hang it in our new home when we get it, so that is my plan.

I took some advice from a mixed media artist in a magazine. As there never seems to be enough time to complete a piece, she suggests working on the backgrounds of a few at once and then at a later date you can work on each one individually. So this morning I painted the backgrounds for 3 more pieces and am excited about finding the right materials for adding to them later

 

There is just something about looking at Blue and White china that I find peaceful. I’ve collected a few pieces over the years, I kept it a small collection so that it was easy to pack and move to every new house we’ve lived in over the past 36 years which now numbers 14. I found it was a comfort to me, it was the first box I unpacked and placed on a shelf and then the house became home. It was a constant in my ever changing world.

Now we hope to stay for a while so I plan to buy some more blue and white china for everyday use. For so long I’ve thought about practicality and functionality, now I’m going for beauty. Praise God that He is never changing so we can trust Him and that He creates things that are so beautiful for us to enjoy.

Since leaving Champaign IL in September 2010 and embarking on a 7 week car journey across America I have come to realize more and more that the Journey is the Destination.

For so long I have missed out on the enjoyment of the moment because I have always been focussed on some future event or goal. Yes goals are important but in our relationship with God it’s about the journey, it’s about the developing relationship and enjoying intimacy with our Father. It’s about Him changing us daily to be more like Jesus, which let’s face it takes a life time.

I had a new insight this week too about the different crafts I do. I noticed that the finished item was always at the forefront of my mind whether it be a blanket or a collage. My son has been trying for so long to get me to use my imagination more and to just enjoy the process of making art. I was always too afraid of spoiling the paper (there’s always more paper) choosing the wrong color ( there are no color police) wondering what others would think of my creation, instead of just doing it for my pleasure.

Well today I did it I took time to put color on some watercolor paper then glue scrapbook paper to it and stamp and stencil over it too. Whatever I felt like putting on the page I did, you wouldn’t believe how hard it was but how satisfying it was too. So now I am going to keep practicing and just enjoy the feeling of creating something totally unique.

I am going to enjoy this journey of life too with all it’s different facets because God said “My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life”.