His Holy Name {Challenge 18, Rock}

Challenge Word 18: Rock
God’s Attribute: God is my Rock. He is my Yahweh Tsuri. He is the Rock that always keeps His promises, He never changes, He protects us, and He is always with us.

How does this affect my daily life? Have you ever been fearful of something or someone? Sure you have. We all have. Well, this week, my dear sister-in-law lived through that fear, and I know God, my Rock, was with her as a man tried to rob and abduct both her and my niece in broad daylight. Praise God he was caught and arrested, and he will probably be in jail for a long time to come. The day after the incident, I sat down to study God as my Rock. He gave me this amazing scripture which was so appropriate for this week:

2 Samuel 22:2-4 “The LORD is my Rock, my fortress and my deliverer, my God is my Rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation. He is my stronghold, my refuge, and my savior—From violent men you save me. I call to the LORD, who is worthy of praise, and I am saved from my enemies.”

You may have never been that fearful of something, and I pray you never will be but we can all trust that He is the Rock whom we can trust and who will give us a peace no matter how big or small that fear is. Ann Spangler put this so perfectly. She said “What better word than ‘rock’ to represent God’s permanence, protection, and enduring faithfulness? When you pray to the Lord your Rock, you are praying to the God who can always be counted on. His purposes and plans remain firm throughout history.”

He does protect us, and we can always count on Him. I encourage you to build your life on Him—the Rock—that firm foundation—and you will not be shaken. Psalm 62:1-2 says “My soul finds rest in God alone; my salvation comes from Him. He alone is my rock and my salvation; He is my fortress, I will never be shaken.”

For my page this week, I was inspired by the bright colors of the Sassafras Lass paper. I did not want to use grey tones or a picture of a rock. I wanted something that showed warmth and happiness knowing He is my Rock. Knowing that completely comforts me. Papers: Bazzill, Sassafras Lass Vintage Yummy
Stamps: Layers of Color Old World Flourish
Stamp Ink: SU summer sun
Embellishments: Bo Bunny button, hemp from Hobby Lobby, Fancy Pants flowers, misc. brads, Shimmerz candle light, DMC floss, Rose Moka alpha stickers, Pink Paislee aqua alpha stickers, Stickles walnut stain

The scriptures I chose were:
2 Samuel 22:47 "The LORD lives! Praise be to my Rock! Exalted be God, the Rock, my Savior!"
Isaiah 26:4 "Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD, the LORD is the Rock eternal."

Enjoy studying about our never-changing God, our Rock! Remember to use Keyword HHN09 when posting in online galleries, and to chat about the challenge, join us in this thread here on Splitcoaststampers! I will see you again on September 13th with a new study and attribute. In Him,

Scripture Challenge 2009 {Weeks 35 & 36}

With school starting in a lot of areas, teachers returning to work, and other changes happening in many families right now, I believe these next two studies will be perfect for this time of year.

Week 35: Leading {God's}
Week 36: Treasure

Who leads you and guides you daily and through the change of seasons? Let Him lead you because you are His treasure! I hope you enjoy your time of study, and 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. Blessings to each of you and see you again on September 13th. In Him,

Tuesday's {Tip} Camera Strap Cover Tutorials

Have you purchased a fun, fabric cover for your camera strap? Or are you interested in making your own? I have purchased a couple from etsy, and while I like them I would also like to make my own. I have several fabrics on hand that I love, and it would be fun to make them for myself or even as gifts. I have searched the web and found several tutorials. I thought I would share them with you just in case you are a seamstress and would like to try making a few. Here is what I found:

Camera Strap Cover
Camera Strap Cover Tutorial (this is the one I think I will try)
Camera Strap Slipcover
Quick Change Camera Strap Tutorial

The pattern I will try uses interfacing, and she shows you how to fit it perfectly to your camera strap. That has been the problem with some covers I have purchased--they haven't always fit correctly. Now I can just use this tutorial to make my own. I am excited to try this tutorial. I hope you will too! Have fun!

Picture Heavy Monday {It's Hilton Head}!

Yes, I have been quiet. Yes, I haven't posted. I have been relaxing on Hilton Head Island, SC. We took our annual trip home, and it was wonderful as always. Now it's back to complete craziness, full calendars, and a never-ending list of things to be done! But before I dive into work, I thought I would share a few of our photos with you.

First, most of you remember that I LOVE my morning prayer time on the beach riding my bike. Well, we took one family bike ride to the beach and of course it was amazing but a little later in the day than I usually like to go. But hey, with family, anytime is right! Then, we always love going down to the lighthouse and seeing the wonderful boats and shops. And then we always love going down to South Beach Marina to eat, shop, and look at the parrots. It was hard to peel the girls away from the birds because we should have our precious parrot home with us soon--maybe even in 2 days! We will find out today when she will be here! Yeah!
And my absolute favorite are the alligators. Why, I don't know because at heart I am a HUGE chicken except around these guys! Ugh, what's wrong with me? The first guy was across the street from our house in a pond there. I was maybe 5 feet from him. He wasn't too happy with me. You can see his mouth open has he threatens me. Ooops! And the second photo is of a guy in the pond behind our house. I love how you can see is back feet and tail through the water. Well, I hope you enjoyed my photos. I can't wait to print them and begin scrapping a few! Have a blessed week ahead, and thanks for stopping by!

Tuesday's {Tip} Create a Color Idea {Book/Rolodex}

Today I wanted to share one of my recent articles for Scrapjazz.com/Scrapbook.com. This was a fun color Rolodex I created so that when I need a little inspiration, I can pull out something from the color ideas in here and get to work.
The cute stamp I used to make my dividers is called Polka Dot Love by Layers of Color. You can see my article and complete details of my Rolodex here. I hope you enjoy it and be sure to create one for yourself! Have a blessed Tuesday!

His Holy Name {Challenge 17, Faithful}

Challenge Word 17: Faithful
God’s Attribute: God is Faithful. As the hymn “Great is Thy Faithfulness” says:

Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father;
There is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not;
As Thou hast been, Thou forever will be.

Great is Thy faithfulness!
Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see.
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided;
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

How does this affect my daily life? Do you ever get discouraged because the world is full of distrust and unfaithfulness? Unfaithfulness in business, marriages, friendships, etc.? It definitely can be discouraging but for believers, we can hold onto our Heavenly Father and know that He is faithful in all He does. And He is faithful all of the time! That is so comforting to know that in any difficulty we face, we can completely trust that He is there, and He is our constant shield. Psalm 91:4 says “He will cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you will find refuge; His faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.” And 2 Thessalonians 3:3 says “But the Lord is faithful, and He will strengthen and protect you from the evil one.”

Even when things in our lives seem rough or we are walking through a difficulty, we can lean on Him and know that He is faithful in all situations. Arthur Pink said “Far above all finite comprehension is the unchanging faithfulness of God. Everything about God is great, vast, incomparable. He never forgets, never fails, never falters, never forfeits His Word.” Oh such a wonderful thought. Do you doubt His faithfulness or do you cling to Him with assurance knowing that He is faithful in all things?

I have been super swamped these past few weeks, and I only had time to study and write it up for you today. I thought it was more important to give you the study than to get my page completed for you. :) I hope you understand. So, I may not have a page to share but when I create it, these are the two verses I have chosen to use:

Deuteronomy 7:9 “Know therefore that the LORD your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commands.”

1 Corinthians 1:9 “God, who has called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful.”

I urge you today to cling to Him with assurance that He is faithful in all things! 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. Until next time, In Him,

Scripture Challenge 2009 {Weeks 33 & 34}

This week we have two amazing words to look at. I truly enjoyed these studies as we did them last year, and I pray you do too. Here are your two words:

Week 33: Heart
Week 34: Blessed

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. Enjoy and be blessed as you study His Word. In Him,

Thursday {Updates}

Hello dear and wonderful blog readers! :) I have a few things to share with each of you! First regarding my Friday {Organization} posts. I haven't forgotten about them, and I haven't stopped them. I am just extremely busy right now. Probably more so than I ever have been. I will resume these posts in September. I have a few things lined up for you just not enough time to get pictures and post. So, please hang in there with me, and I will start them up again soon!

Second, we have another $100 Memory Bucks Contest going on at Memory Box! This is your chance to win $100 in Memory Box Bucks to spend at your favorite Memory Box store (brick & mortar or online)! For complete details, see my post here. I hope you will join in the fun!

And now I just ask for your prayers as I try to take care of many, many things during this busy month with designing, homeschooling, BSF, and everything that seems to be thrown at me right now. I truly appreciate each of you, and may you all have a blessed weekend ahead!

Welcome to Our New Designers at CPC!

This past week has brought several amazing changes to Christian Paper Crafts! We have THREE new designers joining the team! I am so excited to announce that:

Chelsea Cook
Mary Collins
Natalie Houston

are all joining us on the design team. They each bring their amazing talent and love for the Lord to the Design Team! Christian Paper Crafts is continuing to grow, and we are blessed to have them join us on the team. Please be sure to visit their blogs and congratulate them! Congrats girls! We are overjoyed to have you with us.

And be sure to join us at CPC. We have daily challenges, Bible verse challenges, CASE challenges, etc., not to mention the sharing of our love for the Lord and being able to pray for our members. I hope to see you there! Have a blessed Tuesday!

Tuesday's {Tip} We R Memory Keepers

Well, today's post should be called Tuesday's enabling! If you don't want to be enabled, don't read anymore. Close this post--quick! :)

I wanted to share my secret for buying my favorite We R Memory Keepers products. I buy them directly from their site--shopWeR.com. Oh goodness, they have such deals! And their ring albums and page protectors are my FAVORITE. I used to use CTMH albums but I didn't like the post binding. Now switching over to these albums has been amazing. They are currently 20% off for the 8x8 size (which I love). They also have their mini albums on sale for $1.49; they were $9.95! Previously I had purchased their metal hardware kit for under $10 (it had been $29.95)!

I try to check the site every few weeks because you never know what great deal they will have. I have received two e-mails with their sales listed but they don't seem to mail them regularly (which is probably a good thing). LOL! Anyway, I hope you find some good deals, and sorry to be the enabler today. Have a joyous Tuesday!

A Few {New} Creations!

Happy Tuesday! Today I wanted to share a few of my newest creations with you. The first is a layout for Layers of Color. This precious baby blue jay appeared in our yard on July 13th. For two days he stayed on the ground with the parents coming down to feed it. We think he was learning to fly. Then by day 3, he was gone. I did try to put him up in a make-shift nest one day to keep him from our three dogs but one squawk from him, and "mommy & daddy" were all over me! So, there he stayed until he could fly on his own.

My layout uses two beautiful stamp sets from Layers of Color--Garden Borders and Royal Birds. I also used the new Basic Grey 6x6 June Bug papers. So many fun colors in this paper pack. Papers: Basic Grey June Bug, Bazzill
Stamps: Layers of Color Garden Borders, Layers of Color Royal Birds
Stamp Ink: SU night of navy
Embellishments: Distress Stickles scattered straw, Basic Grey boxer buttons, misc. buttons, Rose Moka navy alpha stickers, Karen Foster scrappers floss white, Bazzill card

Next, here are a few creations from Memory Box. All of these creations use the new Memory Box holiday releases which includes over 30 stamps (wooden and clear), 3 new 6x6 paper packs, and new jewels! Note that all of my Memory Box creations have step-by-step instructions available on my Memory Box blog, Create x3. Supplies are listed there also.

I hope you enjoyed today's creations and inspiration. Have a blessed Tuesday, and thanks for stopping by!

Tuesday's {Tip} Vintage Buttons

Michelle Wooderson created a great tutorial back in March on how to make cute vintage button accents. These adorable button accents can be added to any paper creation--layouts, cards, tags, ATCs, altered art, etc. I know I will probably be using these instructions a lot because I love buttons and ribbon, and this is the perfect accent for anything! You can see Michelle's great tutorial here. Thanks for a great tutorial Michelle, and enjoy everyone! Blessings,

His Holy Name {Challenge 16, Judge)

Challenge Word 16: Judge
God’s Attribute: God is Judge. He is God our Shophet. He judges all people in His truth. As our Maker, He is the Law Maker and the Judge. James 4:12 says “There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy. But you—who are you to judge your neighbor?”

How does this affect my daily life? Have you ever been wrongly accused of something? Have you ever judged or wrongly accused someone else? I am sure we can all answer yes to those questions. At one time in our lives, we have acted as judge and we have been misjudged ourselves. God is the only Judge, and only He knows the hearts and motivation of each person. He knows the secrets of our mind, and only He has the power to judge rightly. J.I. Packer said “When the Bible pictures God judging, it emphasizes His omniscience and wisdom as the searcher of hearts and the finder of facts. Nothing can escape Him; we may fool men, but we cannot fool God. He knows us, and judges us, as we really are.”

And one day, we will all be judged by Christ Himself. Unbelievers will experience a punitive judgment and will pay the penalty for sin. This will be dreadful judgment, and if you have not accepted Christ as your Lord and Savior, I urge you to do so today.

Romans 2:5-8 “But because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God's wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed. God ‘will give to each person according to what he has done.’ To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger.”

2 Thessalonians 1:8-9 “He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power.”

Believers will experience an evaluative judgment on how they have served Christ.

2 Corinthians 5:10 “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.”

2 Timothy 4:8 “Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.”

I pray that the next time you think of judging someone that you will remember there is only one Judge. I also pray that you will live mightly serving Him who Judges all.

For my page today, I used the newer Basic Grey papers, June Bug, and the wonderful Layers of Color stamp set called Nature Walk.Papers: Bazzill, Paper Trey Ink, Basic Grey June Bug
Stamps: Layers of Color Nature Walk
Stamp Ink: SU night of navy
Sketch: Suepup Sketch D
Embellishments: Heidi Swapp chipboard alpha, Bazzill brads, KaiserCraft pearls, American Craft felt flowers

The scriptures I chose were:
Isaiah 33:22 "For the LORD is our judge, the LORD is our lawgiver, the LORD is our king; it is He who will save us."
Romans 14:12-13 "So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God. Therefore, let us stop passing judgment on one another."

I pray you enjoy and really think about today's study. 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! I will see you again on August 16th with a new study and attribute. In Him,

Scripture Challenge 2009 {Weeks 31 & 32}

Wow, are we truly on Weeks 31 & 32 and starting the month of August 2009? Where does the time go? I am sure your albums or ATC holders are really looking beautiful about now! Here are your next two studies:

Week 31: Choice
Week 32: Believe

Enjoy, and 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 post your next two studies on August 16th. See ya then, and have a blessed Sunday!