Hello there, guys! So, we began another
Challenge at Word Art Wednesday (WAW) over a week ago featuring another
Scripture Word Art which you can download for free at the WAW site.
It comes from Isaiah 55:11 which says, "So
shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return
unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall
prosper in the thing whereto I sent it."
For the first twenty years of my life, I was part of the "world" simply because I didn't have a personal relationship with my now Lord and Savior---Jesus Christ! I subscribed to a bit of religion, ever relying to what others say and think about God or Jesus. I remembered reading briefly the first few chapters of the Book of Matthew after receiving a pocket-size Gideon New Testament Bible distributed for free at my elementary school. But I quickly lost the motivation to continue as reading was not my favorite pastime. It took several years before my next encounter with God's Word and it happened when my best friend asked me and another friend to go with her to a home bible study in our neighborhood. She told us that her school friend invited her so many times in the past and that this time, she couldn't think of any excuse to decline the invitation so she wanted us to go with her for support. Not knowing what to expect, I ended up jotting down every verse the preacher shared. My mission was to check the validity and accuracy of the Bible verses they quoted. The three of us declined the invitation to come to the Lord, repent of our sins and invite Jesus to be our Lord and Savior that night because my friends and I agreed not to do so before we arrived at the Bible study. But when I arrived home, in the privacy of my room, I hunted for another Gideon Bible (both Old and New Testament) that I received many years ago from the same school and started to see the truth that was hidden from me by my religion. The verses were crystal clear about Idolatry and how abominable it is in the sight of God. From that day on, I haven't looked at the idols (images and statues) in our home or outside with Godly fear and reverence. I believed that God planted something special in my heart that time.
It took several years more before I came to surrender my life fully to the Lord. Things happened here and there till the moment I felt hopeless and life seemed meaningless. I could say it was my "rock bottom." There's truly a void in a man's heart (which we heard many talked about) that nothing/nobody can ever fill! That void can only be filled by God! It's hard to explain but for them who haven't given their lives to Jesus Christ, it is a reality! We heard of many famous personalities who reached the pinnacle of success yet so unhappy that they decided to end their own lives. As created beings, something in us longs for that perfect/untainted relationship with our Creator in the Garden of Eden before the Fall of man happened. It was such a glorious time when we can freely commune with our infinite, powerful and loving God. We messed that up and there was no hope of redemption from eternal damnation. God's ultimate solution was for Jesus, His One and Only Son, to carry the sins of the world and nail it on the Cross. Jesus came and accomplished everything He had to do to save us from our bondage to Sin. 1 Peter 2:24 tells us, "and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed." Then Jesus rose from the grave and sealed our victory over Sin and Death that whoever believes in Him is no longer condemned but have life everlasting in the presence of God. For His victory is our victory! Ever since I embraced and trusted God's Word, the void in my being no longer exist. Trials come and go but I never felt alone and hopeless. The world may turn away from me but I will always have a loving Father through Jesus Christ and the guidance and empowerment of His Spirit inside of me.
So you see, even before I knew Him, He already chose me. He drew me to Himself and allowed me to respond to His love. Romans 8:29-30 says, "For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified." Thank you, Lord! Looking back, I saw how God planted His Word in my heart and though it took some time, His Word sprouted and grew to bear much fruit in accordance to His purpose in my life. Our Father will surely use all of us believers (Born Again, John 3:3) to plant His Word to those who are still in the world. While we may feel discouraged not seeing growth where we planted (people we care and love), we have to keep going! Some may take weeks, some months, some years but when we plant the Word of God, it shall always bring forth a harvest. For the Word of God is trustworthy, now and forever!
For this Card, I used an image from
Stampendous called "
Scenic Sampler" that I colored using my Paper Studio Brush markers and The Creative Expert Alcohol Markers. The base is white CS, cut and scored to make a 5.5 inches center step design. The DP's are from Paper Studio, the glitters from Stickles (Crystal) and the whit nail head gems are from Imaginisce. I used Nestabilities to die cut the lacy circle and the circle layer after I printed the Scripture Word Art. I also stamped a sentiment on the envelope tag from the same stamp set where the images came from. Lastly, I stitched all over this project.
BUT IT SHALL ACCOMPLISH CENTER STEP CARD
BUT IT SHALL ACCOMPLISH CENTER STEP CARD LAYERS
BUT IT SHALL ACCOMPLISH CENTER STEP CARD INSIDE
BUT IT SHALL ACCOMPLISH CENTER STEP CARD ENVELOPE-BOX
This Card is entered into the following Challenges:
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 enter up to 5 times this week. Great prize to
be won from our wonderful sponsor---Pretty Little Studio (Special Prize).
So excited to see what you come up with. Anyway, don't be weary in sharing the Good News of Salvation and what Jesus has done in your life. The very reason we are still alive today is because there's still some planting of God's Word that needed to be done. Let the Holy Spirit guide you and empower you.
Ready to accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior? Find out how on the sidebar...
A striking card JoAnn - and a powerful testimony!
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Maxine
Very nice card.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing it.
Nicolette DT 2Sistersontheblog
Very pretty card, JoAnn! Love your great details and papers. Thank you for playing at Creative Creases Challenge and hope you can join in again soon.
ReplyDeleteDebbie
Secrets To Stamping
Sweet card!! Thanks for joining us this August at Die Cut Divas.
ReplyDeleteGreat fold to focus on your scene and verse. Thank you for joining us at Allsorts.
ReplyDeleteYour beautiful card is so creative and inspirational, Jo Ann. Thank you for joining our Frame It challenge on The Paper Shelter Challenge Blog. Good luck with your entry, and hope to see you again. Hugs, Lori - DT
ReplyDeleteSuch a fun card and love your fold and design..
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for joining in with our challenge at Little Red Wagon, hope you will play again..
Luv CHRISSYxx
Nice card. Thank you for entering the Anything Goes Challenge at Lil Patch of Crafty Friends.
ReplyDeleteWonderful beach scene. What a great shape too and love your attention to detail for both inside of outside of the card. Thank you for entering the Die Cut Divas August challenge for shaped cards.
ReplyDeleteA lovely scene. Thanks for joining Aud Sentiments challenge. Elaine
ReplyDeleteJoAnn, thank you for sharing your testimony along with your fun fold card with Creative Creases.
ReplyDeleteKaren, DT
A delightful scene. Thanks for joining us at Allsorts challenge.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful creation! Thank you for sharing with us over at Let's Craft and Create.
ReplyDelete~ Sherry DT/Admin xx
Lovely center step card... perfect way to showcase the Scripture. Thank you for sharing your testimony with us. It's amazing how God's timing is not always our timing.
ReplyDeleteThis is such an amazing card, in so many ways, Jo Ann! I love the little scene and all that stitching is wonderful. Thanks so much for sharing your beautiful card with us over at CRAFT Challenge!
ReplyDeleteFANTASTIC! Beautiful scene you've created! Thanks so much for joining in the fun at our Sisterhood of Crafters challenge! Good Luck and we hope you’ll come back often. We appreciate your support!
ReplyDeleteDarlene
Sisterhood of Crafters
DAR’S CRAFTY CREATIONS
Beautiful card for a beautiful bible passage. Thank you for sharing and playing with us this week.
ReplyDeleteSuper:)Thanks for playing with us at Let's Craft and Create :)Ines DT
ReplyDeletehttp://inka-mojmalyswiat.blogspot.com/
https://letscreatechallenges.blogspot.com/http://
Beautiful card!!! Thanks so much for participating in my PINSPIRATIONAL challenge!!! I appreciate that you play along and I enjoy visiting your blog!! Have a happy crafty day!!
ReplyDeleteDeanne at A Little Bit O’ Paper
Beautiful card and a great scene. Love the card design. Thank you for sharing with us over at World Wide Open Design Team Challenge.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely beautiful and what a great card shape!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for sharing at my Crafty Wednesday challenge! Hope you'll stop by again tomorrow when a new linky will be posted!
Ellie
Ellibelle's Corner
Great addition of details and layers. Thank you for joining us at Cardz 4 Galz xx Lynda/Loopyloo DT
ReplyDeleteBeautiful card. I love the center step card. Thanks for playing along with us at World Wide Open Design Team Challenge. Deanna DT
ReplyDeleteA really lovely card. I love the scene. Thanks for joining us at Cardz4galz. Love Dawn x
ReplyDeleteBeautiful card. Love the fun fold technique you used as well. Thanks for joining the challenge at Crafty Gals Corner.
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