Scripture Series: Rejoice at His Birth Card---Join us for Another Family Friendly Challenge at Word Art Wednesday!

Happy Wednesday, friends!  It's time for another Anything Goes Challenge at Word Art Wednesday (WAW).  You may choose to use the free Scripture Word Art I'm highlighting today by downloading it from the WAW site.  Today's Word comes from Luke 1:14 which tells us, "And thou shalt have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth.” This verse talks about the the miraculous birth of John the Baptist and how he would be used by God in a special way.  That is to prepare the hearts of the people for the coming of the promised Messiah (Jesus Christ) and to bring awareness of sin among Israel so they could receive the salvation from sin offered by the Savior.

Historically, God's people were scattered and ruled by the ungodly for many years (due to idolatry and utter disobedience).  Each time,  they have picked up the ways, culture and mindset of these people which drove them even farther away from God.  John was given a special task---to call people to repentance and paved the way for the coming of the Savior.  The birth of John the Baptist in itself is an act of God as not only was his mother barren but that both his parents (Zechariah and Elizabeth) were both very old.  This shows us that nothing is impossible with God!  Many of us knew very little about this wonderful prophet of the New Testament and I would like to share what I found online to tell us more about the ministry this extraordinary man of God fulfilled. (Source: gotquestions.org)

"There are several lessons we can learn from the life of John the Baptist. First, wholeheartedly believing in Jesus Christ is possible. John the Baptist could have believed in and worshiped any number of gods available to him before Jesus arrived on the scene. But at some point in his life John knew that the Messiah was coming. He believed this with his whole heart and spent his days “preparing the way” for the Lord’s coming (Matthew 11:10). But the road was not an easy one to prepare. Daily he faced doubters of various influence and popularity who did not share his enthusiasm for the coming Messiah. Under hard questioning from the Pharisees, John shared his belief: “‘I baptize with water,’ John replied, ‘but among you stands one you do not know. He is the one who comes after me, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie’" (John 1:26-27). John believed in the Christ and his great faith prepared him for hardships, but it kept him steadfast on his course until the time when he could say as he saw Jesus approach, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29). As believers, we can all have this steadfast faith.

Second, anyone can be a strong and serious witness for Jesus Christ. John’s life is an example to us of the seriousness with which we are to approach the Christian life and our call to ministry, whatever that may be. We pattern our lives after John’s by first examining ourselves to be sure we are truly in the faith (2 Corinthians 13:5). Second, like John, we are to know and believe that “to live is Christ and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21), so we can be fearless in the face of persecution and death. John lived his life to introduce others to Jesus Christ, and knew the importance of repenting of one’s sins in order to live a holy and righteous life. And as a follower of Jesus Christ, he also was unafraid of calling out people such as Herod and the Pharisees for their sinful behavior.

Third, John shows us how to stand firm in our faith no matter what the circumstances. Paul reminded Timothy that “everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Timothy 3:12). But for many of us who live in freedom, persecution takes on a very mild form. As he lived in an occupied country, John had to be aware that anything contrary to utter devotion to the king or emperor was asking for trouble. Yet his message was unchanging, bold and strong. It was John’s belief, his message, and his continual rebuke of King Herod that landed him in prison. While it is hard to know for sure what John was feeling as he sat in prison, we can be sure that he might have had some doubts about the Lord who tested his faith. In fact, John gets a message out to Jesus asking, "Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?" (Matthew 11:3). As Christians we all will have our faith put to the test, and we will either falter in our faith or, like John, cling to Christ and stand firm in our faith to the end."

For this Card, I used an old image from Sassy Chery's Digi Stamps which is called "A Dance in the Snow" (Retired)  and colored it using my ProMarker/Prismacolor markers.  The base is a white A7 card that comes with an envelope from Paper Studio.  The DP's I used for paper-piecing are from my scraps from Paper Studio as well.  I incorporated some Liquid Pearls (White Opal) and glitters (Stickles-Diamond) for added dimension and completed this design with regular and fancy stitching.  Another simple yet meaningful creation.

                                                 REJOICE AT HIS BIRTH CARD:

                                             REJOICE AT HIS BIRTH CARD LAYERS:

                                            REJOICE AT HIS BIRTH CARD INSIDE:

                                      REJOICE AT HIS BIRTH CARD WITH ENVELOPE:


This Card is entered into the following Challenges:

Fresh Brewed---ATG Christmas
DL Art---Christmas
Crafty Girls---ATG
Crafty Rocket---ATG
Papertake Weekly---Fun, Fun, Fun
Craft Your Passion---ATG
Crafting from the Heart---ATG
Snowflakes Promise---Winter/Christmas
CCC Digi Creations---ATG
Crafty Sentiments---Christmas Card
Pile It On---Christmas/Winter
Crafty Gals Corner---ATG
Creative Corner---Sparkle and Shine
Inspiration Destination---ATG
Jo's Scrap Shack---Christmas Joy
Sisters of Craft---ATG
Scrap and Craft---ATG Christmas
Crafts Galore---ATG
Allsorts---CAS
Fantasy Stampers---CAS Christmas
Gem of a Challenge---ATG Christmas
Penny's Paper Crafty---ATG
Simply Papercraft---ATG
Creative Card Crew---Holiday Season
Brown Sugar---ATG
Card Mania---Christmas
Christmas Card---Christmas
Crafting by Designs---Here Comes the Holiday
Crafty Creations---Happy Holiday
Creative Moments---ATG/Traditional Christmas
DoubleClick---Snowman
I Love ProMarkers---ATG
Little Red Wagon---Snow Much Fun
Crafty Addicts---ATG/Celebration
Whimsy Stamps---ATG (Holiday)
Your Scrapbook Place---ATG


Make sure you join us at WAW Challenge.  You can use the free Word Art in your creation and link it to our Challenge but is not a requirement.  As long as it's family-friendly, uplifting and inspirational, you can submit up to 5 entries.  Our wonderful sponsors for this week are Flying Unicorn ($25 GC to their shop) and The Cutting Cafe (Digi or Cutting files).  So excited to see what you come up with.  Anyway, cheer up and let the joy of the Lord overtake you today.  We have hope in this world because Jesus has already won the victory.  Praise be to His Holy Name!