His Holy Name {Challenge 9, Redeemer}

Challenge Word 9: Redeemer
God's Attribute: Jesus is our Redeemer (Ga ‘al). Jesus was willing to pay the price to free us from the power of sin. He offered His life for all!

Webster’s definition of redeem is “to deliver from sin and its penalties as by a sacrifice made for the sinner.” Jesus was that sacrifice. He is our Redeemer! He paid the ransom price. Mark 10:45 says “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

How does this affect my daily life? It is only fitting after studying the Lamb of God that we look at the price Jesus paid for us. What price did He pay, and why did He pay it? Sin is detestable to God. We all are sinners, and “fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” (Romans 3:23-24)

God’s requires a blood sacrifice to redeem us from our sin. Jesus paid that price with His precious blood so that we could be set free from sin and to grow more like Him. He was not guilty yet He suffered for my sin and for your sin! Do you live like you have been redeemed? Are you growing more like Him over time? Do you obey Him in all things? Notice I asked “all” things. That includes making that photocopy of just that ‘one page’ in a book or burning that copy of a CD for a friend or obeying the speed limit signs even when the traffic around you is going much faster. The list could go on and on.

It was a huge cost to Jesus, and we need to live like we have been redeemed. And unbelievers are watching. Our actions speak louder than our words. Our actions can have huge consequences. Do you live like you belong to Him or the world? We are to be set apart. We are to live in this world but not be of this world. We should look different. Do your actions back up what you say you believe? Ann Spangler says “Live as though you have been redeemed.” And one of my favorite hymns says this:

To God be the Glory v.2
“O perfect redemption, the purchase of blood!
To every believer the promise of God;
The vilest offender who truly believes,
That moment from Jesus a pardon receives.

Chorus
Praise the Lord, Praise the Lord,
Let the earth hear His voice!
Praise the Lord, Praise the Lord,
Let the people rejoice!
O come to the Father thru Jesus the Son
And give Him the glory great things He hath done!"

For my page this week I wanted to use red to symbolize His blood shed for me. I also used the beautiful Gothic Crosses set from Layers of Color. I thought that particular cross was perfect for this page. The verse I chose was Isaiah 48:17 "This is what the LORD says—your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, 'I am the LORD your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go.'"

I pray you enjoy your time in His word and reading about our Redeemer. Remember to use the Keyword HHN09 when posting in online galleries, and to chat about the challenge, join us in this thread here on Splitcoaststampers! Blessings to each of you! Now, go out and live like you have been redeemed by our precious Redeemer, Jesus Christ!

Scripture Challenge 2009 {Weeks 17 & 18}

Well, today is my precious husband's birthday! We are celebrating in a big way! I hope you have something fun planned for today too! Maybe looking at your two new words! :) Here they are:

Week 17: Glory
Week 18: Fruit

In all things, I pray you remember to give Him the glory! Enjoy your study time, and please remember to use Scripture Challenge Keyword: SCRC209 when posting to online galleries. Also, please join us in this thread here on Splitcoaststampers for links to your pages and general discussion about the challenge words! I will see you again on May 10th with two new words! In Him,

And the Winner Is . . .

Good Tuesday morning! I was so excited to read all of your comments about Laura's amazing stamps! She is an amazing designer and artist! God has truly gifted her! I know Laura has been reading your comments too, and I am sure she has been blessed by your words! Thank you to all of you!

Well, one lucky person has been chosen as our winner this morning! I used the 'ol trusty random.org to draw our winning number, and our winning number is:

Here are your random numbers:
58
Timestamp: 2009-04-21 10:36:00 UTC

And who was number 58? Number 58 belongs to Dawn {Altered Artists}! Altered Artists said. . .
I would love to toss my hat in the ring. I love Laura's stamps, don't have any of these, love birds, and fleur d lis. Thanks and God Bless,~Dawn
April 20, 2009 12:00 PM

Yeah Dawn!!!! Please e-mail me so that I can get your stamp set to you this week! Congratulations, and thanks to all of you for stopping by and leaving such sweet words!!! Have a blessed day everyone!

A {RAK} Just Because!

So, I had no intentions of doing this today but then I thought "why not"!! :) I am in the mood, and I appreciate all of my subscribers and readers! So, here's the deal:

Laura, of Layers of Color, accidentally sent me two Royal Birds Clear Art Stamp sets. So, one lucky winner will get the extra set. Now, I told Laura she accidentally sent me two, and she is totally fine with me RAKing this to one lucky winner! It is a $15.95 retail value set! It will not be in the retail packaging just because the designer's stamps don't always come that way; however, they are BRAND NEW and beautiful--just missing the package! :) Here is what they look like:
Beautiful, aren't they? So, what do you need to do to win? Leave a comment here and tell me why you love this set and why you want to try Layers of Color stamps! Leave your comment by Monday, 4/20, at 11:59 p.m., and I will randomly draw one winner Tuesday morning!!! And be sure to visit this link to see what Laura has done with the set! Good luck everyone! I know the winner will not be disappointed! Have a blessed day!

Organizational {Friday} Label Those Nesties!

Spellbinders has so many wonderful Nestabilities dies that I can never remember what the names are of any of the sets that I have. I have them written down but I can't match the name with the actual die set. So, this past week, I took the time to finally label them. This is going to be SO helpful! Let's look at what I did.

First, I store my Nestabilities in the Quickutz Magnetic Storage Books. You can see my original post on storing my Nesties here. This storage method continues to be perfect for me; however, I was lacking the labels. So, I decided to use my labeler to put the name of each set in the middle of smallest die. You can see the labels in the middle of two of my sets here: Sorry for the picture not being too clear. I was having trouble getting a good picture but you get the idea. :) Now with these labels, I actually know which set is Labels 1, Labels 2, Labels 3, Labels 4, etc. Finally! And because I have 4 books full of Nesties, I also label the outside of each book. It makes it easy to see which book I need.These labels come off fairly easily too so when I switch things around, it is easy to re-label. So grab your labeler, and label those Nesties! :) Have a blessed Friday!

Are You Missing my Tutorials?

For those of you that don't subscribe to my Memory Box blog, you probably haven't seen my latest tutorials. I thought I would share the links with you in case there are some that may interest you. Here is what I have so far:

Use a Flourish Stamp to Create a Branch!
Create a Scene with Several Stamps
A {Cardboard} Card
Creating a Swatch Book {Part I}
Creating a Swatch Book {Part II}
Picking Papers & Pictures for a Layout
Creating Chipboard Elements for a Layout
Layout Finished & Distressing the Edges

Every now and then, I will update the links here so that you can come over and check out my latest tutorials. I hope they are helpful! :) Have a blessed Thursday!

Tuesday's {Tip} Machine Sewing

I love to sew! I have sewn ever since I was very young. My mother and her identical twin are AMAZING seamstresses! Mom taught me a ton! And my graduation present from high school--a Pfaff sewing machine! I still have that amazing machine plus a newer Pfaff. I sewed a lot of my own clothes when I was a teen. And I even sewed a lot of my girls clothes when they were toddlers/preschool. I also love to do draperies, Bible covers, etc. And of course, in my paper crafting, I love to sew on my creations!

Well, I have been wanting to share a sewing tutorial with you but haven't had time to get to it. But yesterday, I found this GREAT tutorial already done by Julia Stainton. If you have been wanting to sew on your pages, this is a great tutorial to reference! Try it! You might find you love sewing as much as I do! Also be sure to look at the far left column on Julia's blog. She has many other wonderful tutorials there for you! :) Happy crafting!

His Holy Name {Challenge 8, Lamb}

God put it on my heart this morning to post this challenge early. This post is so appropriate for Easter today, and I pray that you rejoice in Him today! He has Risen! He has Risen Indeed!

Challenge Word 8: Lamb
God’s Attribute: Jesus is the Lamb of God (Amnos Tou Theou) or Lamb (Amnos). He voluntarily gave up His life so that we might have eternal life.

How does this affect my daily life? God requires a blood sacrifice to make atonement for sin (to reconcile God to man) for the wages of sin is death. (Romans 6:23) Not just physical death but spiritual death and lost fellowship with God. Even as far back as Adam and Eve, we see the sacrifice of an animal to clothe them for their sin. (Genesis 3:21) A Bible Study Fellowship lesson this year put this in such an amazing way:

Salvation requires the shedding of blood.
*One lamb for one person (Adam and Eve, Genesis 3:21)
*One lamb for one family (at the time of Passover, one lamb could stand for one family, Exodus 12:3)
*One lamb for a nation (at the Day of Atonement at Sinai, Leviticus 16:34)
*One lamb for the world (blood of Jesus alone atones for all; no salvation apart from Him, John 1:29).

We no longer have to repeat the Old Testament sacrifices to atone for our sin because Jesus was the ultimate sacrifice. His blood was shed for me, for you, for all.

I shared the following in my Scripture Challenge last year. It was so wonderful and such a visual for me that I think it is appropriate to share it here also. Max Lucado in his book “He Chose the Nails” said:

“Between His hand and the wood there was a list: our mistakes, our lusts and lies and greedy moments. A list of our sins. The list God has made, however, cannot be read. The mistakes are covered. The sins are hidden. Those at the top are hidden by His hand; those down the list are covered by His blood . . . What kept Him from resisting? He knew the price of those sins was death. He knew the source of those sins was you, and since He couldn’t bear the thought of eternity without you, He chose the nails. Jesus Himself chose the nails.”

Jesus was not a victim. He was the Lamb without blemish that willingly gave up His life and His spirit on the cross for you and for me. (John 19:30) God the Creator came to earth as a Son, lived a blameless life, and became the Lamb that shed His blood so that our sins might be forgiven, and we can live and have eternal fellowship with Him. What an amazing gift He has given us! Have you accepted that gift? If not, will you do that today? Feel free to e-mail me with questions. And if you have accepted His gift, will you thank Him for His sacrifice for you? Will you live for Him daily so that others might also receive the gift?

For my page this week, I used papers from Crate Paper and the stamps are from Our Daily Bread Designs. The scripture I chose was:
John 1:29 ". . . Look the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!"

Remember to use the Keyword HHN09 when posting in online galleries, and to chat about the challenge, join us in this thread here on Splitcoaststampers! Blessings to each of you, and enjoy the rest of this Easter Sunday thanking Him for His priceless gift and His amazing love for you! In Him,

Scripture Challenge 2009 {Weeks 15 & 16}

Happy Easter everyone! I pray that you have a wonderful day planned with family and our precious Lord! Here are your two new studies for the weeks ahead:

Week 15: Joy
Week 16: His Presence

I pray you find the joy in each day as you study these next two weeks! Please remember to use Scripture Challenge Keyword: SCRC209 when posting to online galleries. Also, please join us in this thread here on Splitcoaststampers for links to your pages and general discussion about the challenge words! I will see you again on April 26th with two new words! In Him,

Sharing Part of My News! :)

Can you believe it is Easter weekend already? I know I can't! Where does the time go? Well, seeing how the Lord has been moving mountains in my life these past two weeks, I thought I would share one other amazing thing that the Lord has brought to me. I have one other amazing thing that God has done in my life but I may not be able to share that for a couple of months. I didn't want to wait that long to share this one with you!

Laura from Layers of Color has invited me to design for her. Laura is a beautiful woman who loves God dearly and wants to glorify Him in all she does! She designs all of the stamps for her company, and the family is completely involved--husband, children, grandparents, etc., all help with the company! I have learned so much already, and I am humbled that she would invite me to be a part of Layers of Color. The current design team members are phenominal--everything from scrapbooking, cards, inchies, ATCs, to mixed media!

God's hand was completely in this, and His confirmation was one I will never forget. As I was writing my good-bye to the Unity design team, welcome messages from Laura came pouring in at the EXACT same time. It was a wonderful moment, and I am SO excited that Laura has given me this opportunity, and I can't wait to share my creations with you!

Now, if you want to see some amazing and inspirational pieces, visit the Layers of Color gallery! And hopefully, I will be sharing some inspiration with you soon! Thanks for letting me share, and thanks to Laura for giving me the opportunity! Have a blessed Easter weekend everyone!

Do You Want to be Published?

Do you want your work in print? Do you want to share Christ with others through your creations? Well, here is your chance! Christian Paper Crafts Magazine is seeking your Fall ideas! We are looking for scrapbook pages, cards, tags, altered art, etc., for our Fall issue. Here are the categories:

FALL (deadline May 1)
Sympathy/Comfort
Trees/Outdoors/Camping
Fall Scenery/Trees/Pumpkins, etc.
Thanksgiving/Food
Birthday/Birth Announcements
Animals/Fish

We are also looking for articles on craft rooms and other articles ideas that we could incorporate into our Fall issue! Deadline for submissions is tight for our first issue! They are due May 1st! So get crafting, and for submission guidelines and other upcoming calls, see our Calls Page here. We can't wait to see your submissions!

Organizational {Friday} Using Ink Sample Sheets!

Last week, I shared how I organized all of my stamp inks and how I create my ink sample sheets for reference. Today, I want to show you how I use those sheets to help me when designing. If you missed my post last week, you will want to see that post first. You can find it here.

Once I select my papers and I know I am going to stamp or ink the edges of my paper, I grab my notebook with my sample sheets. I then place the paper next to the ink samples to find which ink will work with my paper. As you can see, none of my Stampin' Up! inks really match my paper. For this particular creation, I am looking for an ink that matches my patterned paper.Then I tried my Colorbox inks, and while there was one that might have worked here (first picture), I didn't like it as well as the Memento Angel Pink (second picture) for what I was trying to accomplish.Here you can see the finish product and how the Memento Angel Pink works perfectly on the white cardstock to match my pink paper which is what I was looking for. Sometimes I will use an ink that matches perfectly, and sometimes I will use an ink that is just a bit darker than my paper. These sample sheets help me quickly find what I want to use without wasting time or wasting paper because the color "wasn't just right." I am amazed at how fast this process is for me now, and I am really enjoying it.

If you haven't organized your stamp ink or created sample sheets, I highly recommend it! Happy crafting everyone!

Hip Hop {Thursday} My Farewell!

Welcome to my final Hip Hop! You should be joining me from Heather B's blog! I know she had something fun for you over there! And if you haven't joined me from Heather's blog, hop back to the Unity blog to start the entire hop from the beginning! You wouldn't want to miss any of the fun!

I created a Thank You card today to say "thank you" to Angela as I leave the team officially today. It's been fun! For my card, I used my 'favorite of favorite' background stamps--the Unity Distressed Dots stamp. Can you find it? Yes, it's on the strip of paper with the ribbon and the butterfly. I then used two other Unity sets on this card--the Unity Simply Said set (sentiment) and the Unity April KOTM Fresh Beginnings (butterfly). And see how I squeezed a bit of my favorite color (baby pink) on here. :) Now hop on over to ***Valerie's blog*** to see what fun she might have waiting for you! Valerie is our Unity KOM Contest Winner! Yeah Valerie! Have a blessed Thursday everyone!

Guest DT Work for Cut Card Stock!

Okay, so I titled this "Guest DT Work." Well, it really wasn't work! It was a joy designing for Norma and Cut Card Stock! Norma is a beautiful person inside and out, and I was more than happy to work with their amazing cardstock! They have not only many different weighted papers but amazing colors and textures! I played with the Pop Tones Cardstock and the Greengrocer's Brown Bag products! Oh goodness, all fun and so glad I have this in my stash now! Here is what I created.

First, I created two different cards with the Pop Tones Cardstock. I embossed the cardstock on each card, and I even added a bit of white ink to the pink card so it would give a fun look to the embossing. Aren't the colors amazing? LOVE these papers! Next, I created another matchbook notepad using the Greengrocer's Brown Bag products. The colors of the Greengrocer's Brown Bag are just so rich and beautiful! And they sort of feel like a brown bag even. They are REALLY fun papers! This particular notebook was created for a friend. I pray she gets it in the mail today! :)

Well, thanks for letting me share my creations. And a HUGE thanks to Norma and Cut Card Stock! If you want to check out their papers, visit the Cut Card Stock website and blog. Have a joyous day!

Tuesday's {Tip} My Favorite Tool!

Today I wanted to share my new favorite tool with you! I can honestly say that I have not been this excited about a tool in a long time!!!! Now some of you will think I am crazy because you have probably been using one for years. Well, I just never thought I needed one so why spend the money. Well, OH MY!!!! Now I can see why people love it! What is it you ask? It is:

A Stamp Positioner!

I purchased the A Muse Stamp Positioner after seeing this You Tube Tutorial. I received mine in the mail a couple of weeks ago. Now, how did I ever get along without it before? Oh my! I truly, truly am in love! This thing makes lining up all of my stamps so easy! It makes using a portion of a stamp so much easier. It makes creating a border SO easy! It makes stamping in general easier! :) I have used it with my Unity stamps, with my Memory Box and other wood mounted stamps, and it can be used with clear stamps too!

I found a great home for this new tool when I got it but it rarely gets put away because I am constantly using it when I stamp! I find it is out on my desk more than it is put away! :)

Some people use a Stamp-a-ma-Jig but I chose the A Muse positioner because it was all clear. I really find I love the clear acrylic!

So, if you are in need of birthday ideas, add this to your list. It costs $14.99 and is worth EVERY penny! :) Be sure to watch the video! It is GREAT! Well, if you don't want to spend $14.99 don't watch it! LOL! Have a joyous and blessed Tuesday!

Organizational {Friday} Label Your Ink!

Labels, labels, labels--one of my favorite things to keep me organized! Well, I did not have all of my stamp pads labeled and because of that, I did not use a lot of them. I found I was only using my Memento inks because they WERE labeled and I had a sample sheet of the colors available.

Well, this week, I took the time to label ALL of my ink pads and make sample sheets. What a huge difference it makes! First I made all of my sample sheets. This is a HUGE help in finding the right color I need. I will show how this helps in my post next Friday. I already had my sample sheet for my Memento inks made. That's one of the reasons they were the only inks I used. Here is that sample sheet:And here are the new sample sheets I made for my Colorbox inks, Ranger inks, and Stamin' Up! spots:After my sample sheets were made and put in my binder, I then labeled all of the ink pads and organized them in the same color order as my sample sheets. Here are my Stampin' Up! spots organized in a drawer of my Stampin' Station: And here are my Ranger and Colorbox inks organized in my Stampin Things Elite Organizer:And finally, here is a close-up of my Memento inks and a couple of other inks organized in my Stampin Things Topper unit:Now, you probably wonder why I have them in three different places. Well, first, I have so many inks that I truly need two Stampin Things units. Second, I can reach ALL of these by a swivel of my chair. My room is only 9 1/2 feet by 7 feet. :) Small but VERY fun, and I love every bit of it!

The labeler I use is a Brother P-touch labeler. It was a refurbished model I got off of eBay many years ago. Love this thing! I also use my Dymo labeler and tags with jute for various other things in my room. Gotta have labels! :) They are the key to my organization!Next week, I will share how the sample sheets help you when paper crafting, and the week after that I will share with you a quick idea I came up with for labeling my Nesties! So, this week get your items labeled and see how it truly helps you as you create! Have a blessed Friday!!

Things are a Changin'

Happy Friday everyone! I thought I would share a little update about me and my design work. I have been praying for some time for God's direction in my work. I need to be using my work to glorify Him in all things! I thought I had my answer a few weeks ago but wasn't sure. You know how you want to see that "billboard" sometimes. :) LOL! Anyway, He clearly showed me this week what I am to be doing for Him. Of course, the His Holy Name and Scripture Challenges will continue as they have been. In fact, He has already given me thoughts for 2010. How awesome is that? I am SO excited. These challenges are one of my favorite things I am blessed and able to do!

Second, He has called me to step down from my design team position with Unity Stamp Co. It has been a fun journey but I must go where the Lord leads. Thank you Angela for an amazing 9 months on the team! My last day should be our Hip Hop {Thursday} this coming week, April 9th.

Third, He has called me to be part of a new publication--Christian Paper Crafts Magazine. Our first pub will be out in August 2009! You can find out more about it here. Please know that this is a work in progress so be sure to bookmark it and check the website often! :) I am SO excited.

And fourth, He has called me to one more thing that I cannot share just yet. I was approached this week, and it was truly the "billboard" that set these changes in motion! Praise God for His clear guidance, and I will share as soon as I can. :)

There will be a few other changes in the month or so ahead but my work for Memory Box Co. will continue also. I am SO excited about that venture too! Dave is amazing to work for! I will also share some guest design team work for Cut Card Stock next week and in July for Jillibean Soup! Yum!

Thank you to all of my subscribers for your comments, your support, and prayers. My other posts (Tuesday's Tips, Organizational Friday, etc.) will also stay the same. I guess I just want to let you know where I am going and how the Lord is leading me. I pray you will continue to join me on my journey of papercrafting for Him! Have a blessed and joyous Friday everyone!

Unity Blog Candy Winner

Okay, for the winner of the blog candy from yesterday's hop, I decided to do something different. Instead of using random.org as I usually do, I had one of my daughters pick a number between 1 and 87. Thankfully, she picked kind of low so I didn't have to count through too far. LOL! :) Anyway, the number my daughter picked was 25!! And lucky number 25 is:

Kathy H.!

Yeah Kathy! Be sure to email eryn@unitystampco.com and let her know that you were the winner from Patter's blog! Have a great day, and congrats! :)

Hip Hop {Thursday} 'Take Note' Notepad!

Welcome to another fun Thursday with Unity! You should be joining me from Heather B.'s blog! Isn't she amazing? If you didn't start at the Unity blog, you will want to head back there so that you don't miss any of the amazing design team inspiration and fun!

Today, Angela is releasing two sets today--Tickled Pink and Bouncy Blue. Yes, you guessed it, they are wonderful baby themed sets! Angela wanted us to share a baby photo so here is a picture of me with my mom from Easter 1966. Yes, I was 8 months old there! Isn't my mom beautiful? She still is just as beautiful inside and out! I am blessed! Love ya Mom!!
Now what "mom-to-be" doesn't need a notepad nearby? I always told people in my childbirth classes that "your brain cells shrink as your uterine cells stretch." So, in an effort for any mom-to-be or goodness ANY MOM to remember things, I created this fun matchbook style notepad. It measures 3 1/2"x4 3/4", and I fill it with junk paper. Why not use the back of the paper for notes and recycle a bit? It's super easy to make and so cute. I made my first one in 2007 but it was a bit larger. I like the smaller size to fit in my purse. I used the Unity April KOM (the butterflies and the scroll stamps) for my notepad. Once I cut the scrap paper, I use my Crop-a-Dile to punch holes through all of the paper and ribbon. The brads are larger brads, and you can add more paper as needed!

Thanks for stopping by today. Now you can head on over to Linsey's awesome blog to see what she has in store for you today! Enjoy the rest of your day everyone!