Good morning, wonderful Crafters out there! I can't believe Christmas is just around the corner but I do feel the hustle and bustle of this season because I am lacking more and more sleep each day due to the many things I needed to get done at the home and family, Church and all the projects/creations due each week in the Crafting world. Because of that, it is easy to lose sight of why we celebrate this season yet, I am reminded each time I come across the scriptures that life here on earth is but temporary and that we ought to use our time wisely to fulfill what God has purposed us to do. During some sleepless nights, while posting projects here on my Blog, I have moments of thinking what benefit does this little blog do to the few audience I have? Yet, the Spirit of God speaks to my heart and gives the assurance that nothing we do for God would ever be wasted. I may not hear from all the people that are touched by the things I share but my Father in Heaven knows them all by name. And so, I push toward the goal, no matter how hectic things become, I know that His help is always there.
So, what is the meaning of this season? In my yesterday's post, I shared that the date we were made to believe as the birth of Christ is not truly the date He was born. I can be dogmatic about it but instead, I choose to take advantage of the season where people can at least focus on the fact that a Messiah was born, the Only One that can restore what man lost in the Garden of Eden and save people from eternal damnation. So, who is JESUS? Why is His name greater than any other name? Let's see...He is the "promised seed" that crushed the head of Satan (Genesis 3:15). He does not come from the line of Adam (sinner) as He was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of a virgin. In the very beginning, He was spoken of as the Word that was with God and was God. (John 1:1). And that Word became flesh and dwelt among us (John 1:14). He is God incarnate---God that took on flesh. Why? Because no man with the sin of Adam (all of us came from Adam) is ever going to save humanity from eternal separation from God. God has to come down to man and pay for the penalty of death for the treason which the first man has plunged us all into by siding with Satan. Jesus paid the price once and for all---a perfect sacrifice, possible only by who He is---100% Man and 100% God. Every false religion/belief here on earth seeks to attack the Divinity of Christ. Why so? By saying He's only man, Jesus would be tainted by the original sin and thus, will not qualify as our Redeemer. Here are a few scriptures that would prove Jesus is God and He and the Father are One in both the Old and New Testament.
"I tell you the truth," Jesus answered, "before Abraham was born, I am!" (John 8:58)
"Moses
said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God
of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is His
name?’ Then what shall I tell them?”
God said to Moses, “I am who I am." This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I am has sent me to you.’" (Exodus 3:13-14)
“You are my witnesses,” declares the Lord, “and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am He. Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me. I, even I, am the Lord, and apart from me there is no Savior." (Isaiah 43:10-11)
"She will give birth to a son, and you are to give Him the name Jesus, because He will save his people from their sins." (Matthew 1:21)
Oh, I love it when scriptures prove scriptures. This is the test? If you are in a religion or belief system that discounts Jesus as God, it's time to do some digging. Your eternal life is at stake in what you chose to believe this day. If you stumble upon the Truth, don't let go of it. As long as you are breathing, you can come to the saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. Please let me help you if you have any questions.
In honor of Jesus' birth, I would like to share with you this Card that I made for today's Challenge at Word Art Wednesday (WAW). It highlights the free Word Art we are giving away in Luke 2:14. I trust that after what I shared with you about the Deity of Christ, this verse will take on a whole new meaning. You can download it for free together with an image from Daydream Designs at WAW Blog. Now, if you have other cards that has uplifting messages, you are very welcome to enter those as well, up to 5 creations---so many chances to win. Our sponsor for this week is Daydream Designs who will be giving away a $20 certificate to spend at her store as a prize for our Challenge winner. Diane Noble (owner of Daydream Designs) has allowed us to highlight some of her wonderful images in this week's projects. These cute family of owls came with a set of many owl digis called "Owl Always Love You" and are super affordable. I can't resist featuring them in my non-traditional Christmas Card. I colored them with my Promarker/Prismacolor /Spectrum Noir Markers and added some Diamond (Stickles) glitter on their wings. I placed different sizes of googly eyes on them and they look even more adorable creating different expressions. My base card is a scallop cut at 5.5 inches using my Cricut Wildcard Cartridge, DP's are from Paper Studio, white gems from Imaginisce and I used some pretty thick pop-dots for added dimension. I paper-pieced a couple of the owls at each end to show more depth. Lastly, I stitched all over. I would love to hear any comments you have on this Card.
GLORY TO GOD IN THE HIGHEST SCALLOP CARD:
GLORY TO GOD IN THE HIGHEST SCALLOP CARD LAYERS:
GLORY TO GOD IN THE HIGHEST SCALLOP CARD INSIDE:
GLORY TO GOD IN THE HIGHEST SCALLOP CARD WITH ENVELOPE-BOX:
This Card is entered into the following Challenges:
1. Cards Galore---Christmas
2. Make It Monday---Anything Goes
3. House of Gilli---Add a Sparkle
4. Kaboodle Doodles---Christmas/Holiday Anything Goes (2/3)
5. Artistic Inspirations---Anything Goes
6. Eureka Stamps---Christmas Spirit
7. Eclectic Ellapu---Anything Goes
8. Creatalicious---Sweet Christmas
9. Lady Bug Crafts Ink TLT---Anything Goes
10. Crafty Bloggers Network---Anything Goes
11. There's Magic in The Air---Snowman or Anything Christmas
12. Crazy Challenge---Christmas Time
13. Digital Tuesday---Layers
14. Sparkles Monthly---Anything Goes (2/3)
15. Squirrel and the Fox---Christmas
16. Challenges 4 Everybody---Anything Goes
17. Hybrid Chick---Holiday Card
18. AUD Sentiments---Use Any Sentiment
19. Nutcrafters---Lots of Layers and Sparkle/Bling
20. A and T---Anything Goes
21. Cardmakin Mamas---It's the Holidays
22. Tammy's Scrapin Corner---Anything Goes/Any Artist
This Card is entered into the following Challenges:
1. Cards Galore---Christmas
2. Make It Monday---Anything Goes
3. House of Gilli---Add a Sparkle
4. Kaboodle Doodles---Christmas/Holiday Anything Goes (2/3)
5. Artistic Inspirations---Anything Goes
6. Eureka Stamps---Christmas Spirit
7. Eclectic Ellapu---Anything Goes
8. Creatalicious---Sweet Christmas
9. Lady Bug Crafts Ink TLT---Anything Goes
10. Crafty Bloggers Network---Anything Goes
11. There's Magic in The Air---Snowman or Anything Christmas
12. Crazy Challenge---Christmas Time
13. Digital Tuesday---Layers
14. Sparkles Monthly---Anything Goes (2/3)
15. Squirrel and the Fox---Christmas
16. Challenges 4 Everybody---Anything Goes
17. Hybrid Chick---Holiday Card
18. AUD Sentiments---Use Any Sentiment
19. Nutcrafters---Lots of Layers and Sparkle/Bling
20. A and T---Anything Goes
21. Cardmakin Mamas---It's the Holidays
22. Tammy's Scrapin Corner---Anything Goes/Any Artist
Thanks for visiting my blog today and my prayer is that you gained a deeper understanding on the true meaning of this season---JESUS! He is truly worthy of all our praise and adoration. All glory to His Holy Name!