Tuesday, February 28, 2023

Creative Bible Journaling - January Pages

Come along with me each month as I journal my way through the Bible.  I'm not artistic at all, so you won't see beautiful illustrations and calligraphy, but what you will see is what I gleaned from the scriptures every day and how I creatively journaled what I have learned in the margins of my Inspire Bible.

I really did a lot of Bible Journaling pages last month.  The winter months are perfect for spending a lot of time in God's word!  I did a whopping 22 pages!  Because I have so many pages to show you,  I'm gonna make my commentary on each page very brief and let the page speak for itself.
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All but this page are in the book of Job.  I must have forgotten it in last month's Bible Journaling post.

This is a page of the last chapter of 1 Samuel.  I used my "Enduring Hope" ephemera  to illustrate some thoughts and notes I had on this chapter.  1 Samuel 31 is the end of the King Saul's reign and shows how God started to clear the way for David to become the next king.  It also shows how God always has "mighty warriors" waiting in the wings to carry out his will.


The rest of my pages are all in the book of Job.  This is a page I created in response to how we should treat our hurting brothers and sisters in Christ, instead of how sadly Job's "friends" treated him.


In Job 17 I was reminded of how our prayers don't get answered in our own timeline and that we have to "worship in the wait".   The victory will come in endurance.


On my next page I just hand wrote some notes from the Enduring Word Bible Commentary that really resonated with me.


Job begged his friends to have mercy on him during this difficult time.  I used sticker outlines to write the main thought "have mercy" and then I added some notes on a ticket die.  


This is probably the most famous verse in the book of Job, there's even an amazing Christian song by Nicole C. Mullen based on this verse.


In Job 21,  Job asks his friends to "Listen closely". so I built a page around listening to suffering Christians and then hand wrote a verse from James 1:9 about being "quick to listen".


Even though Job's friends were judgemental and not very kind, they did have some awesome things to say about God, like this verse:


Another beautiful verse about God.


Even though Job got depressed and questioned where God was in all this, he never sinned against Him.


Here I used ephemera from my "Illustrated Faith" kit "Enduring Hope" to illustrate how God's Word is wisdom, which is manna for our souls.


For this page I took a statement Job made about his previous life and added some personal notes about how when we help others, we are blessed.


For me, most of the book of Job is about him wanting answers from God, but never really getting them.  In my own life, I often feel frustrated when prayers go unanswered.  But then I am reminded that there is a never not an answer to prayer but it's either 1) Yes, 2) No, or 3) Not yet, or "I have something else in mind for you".


This is a page I created after reading a commentary on Job 31.


More of Job wanting answers, of which he repents of in Chapter 42.


A beautiful verse on God the creator.


Oh, I struggle so much with wickedness and evil being done in the word and not seeing justice.  But Job 34:21 reminds me that God does see everything.  I then made a checklist of things to fully surrender over to God that really make me fume!



Hebrews 12:4-11 explains that sometimes God disciplines us through adversity so that we can share in His holiness.  We may not always understand why troubles come our way, but one thing we can always ask ourselves is "What can I learn from this situation?"


One of the most incredible things to me about the book of Job is that it is the oldest book in the Bible yet has modern scientific statements in it.  I mean how did they know about how it rains in 37:27?  


A pretty page for a pretty verse!  Often when I'm down and out, just getting out in nature and seeing all of God's handiwork cheers me up!


I love this verse because I really feel that when there are issues or problems in my life that the Bible doesn't have a clear answer for,   the Holy Spirit gives us guidance.


 I hope you enjoyed my very long Bible Journaling post this month.  Next month, will not be so lengthy, I promise.

Have A Great Day!  Amy

Linking Up with these Fabulous Blogs HERE!

Wednesday, February 22, 2023

Hiking Parfrey's Glen in Winter

Every year my husband and I like to take a little weekend trip not too far away to celebrate Valentines Day.  Last year we went winter hiking at a golf course in Black River Falls and we also did a beautiful snow shoe trail in the Black River Forest.  This year we went to Parfrey's Glen in the Wisconsin Dells area.

The last time we hiked Parfrey's Glen was in the summer of 2012 when we still had kids at home!  It looks really different in the summer than in the winter, and it is a little more challenging to hike because of the snow and ice.  I think I enjoyed the beauty of Parfrey's Glen more in the summer than in the winter because you can see all the ferns and moss, but it was still fun to view it in winter too.  If you'd like to see what Parfrey's Glen looks like in summer, go to THIS POST.


The trail starts out nice and level through a forest.



Very quickly you will come upon a babbling brook and from then on will be following it all the way till the end of the trail.



You know you've officially arrived in Parfrey's Glen when you start seeing huge rock formations.


Here's where you need to be careful.  In some spots the snow/ice is covering the water and you could be walking right on top of water and not even know it.  It's not deep, but you sure don't want to break through the ice and get a soaking foot in the freezing cold.



You have to step on rocks to cross the river several times, and those rocks are slippery in winter.  Be sure to wear footwear that grips well and bring walking sticks if you can.  I put my walking sticks right in the water to stabilize myself as I stepped on the rocks.



It is only 0.8 miles to the end of the path that leads to Parfrey's Glen.  From there you are not allowed to go any further, and frankly, it's kinda tough as you really have to rock scramble if you want to see the small waterfall.



At its uppermost part the glen reaches a depth of 100 feet.  The walls are sandstone embedded with pebbles and boulders of granite. 



Parfrey's Glen is Wisconsin's Number One snow shoe trail.  I however would not recommend wearing snow shoes here because of all the rock scrambling.  No one on the trail had snow shoes on, so how this trail earned that title I have no idea.  However, it is a nice winter hike!




Sorry that I'm in most of the photos, but it was Valentine's Day weekend and I think hubby was a little enamored with me.  I do think however that having a person inside the photos gives you perspective of the size of the glen walls.





This is as far as I went as the trail was sheer ice at this point and lots of rock scrambling.  My poles were useless here as the spokes couldn't poke through the hard ice.  Hubby went a little further to hunt for the waterfall, but he said it wasn't much to see as it was only a few feet high.



Even though it was a beautiful day, this was the only hike we took.  I've been having issues with my leg and we didn't want to push it.  I had hoped to start physical therapy this week, but now we have a winter storm coming so I may have to cancel.  Bummer!  I've been waiting weeks to see a physical therapist.



There's a large outlet mall in the Wisconsin Dells so after our hike we grabbed some lunch and did some shopping.  Hubby was thrilled.  JK!  This picture was posed!  I didn't buy much:  just this cool new frying pan and a couple of Under Armor hiking tops.  Oh, we did go downtown to get some fudge and that was incredible!



 Have A Great Day!  Amy

Linking Up with these Fabulous Blogs HERE!

Thursday, February 16, 2023

Random Acts of Kindness with Ageless Style

Ageless Style is a monthly style challenge and link up for women of all ages.   Each month we pick a different theme and style an outfit based on that theme.  This month's theme is "Random Acts of Kindness" and was picked by Marsha.

Because the holiday "Random Acts of Kindness" fell on the same week as our monthly Ageless Style post, Marsha decided to pick it for our theme.  I must admit, I found it a bit challenging as "Random Acts of Kindness" is not a fashion item, but I think all the ladies and I have found a creative way to meet this challenge.

I started by wondering what the Bible had to say about "kindness".  I'm always careful with any popular worldly phrase or movement and I always check and see what the Bible has to say about that before I jump on board, so I searched the scriptures to find verses on "Kindness" and I found this one:

"Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you."
Ephesians 4:32

When I found that verse, I remembered I had a little decoration given to me by a Bible study leader.  I decided to use that decoration as an inspiration piece to create an outfit.




I created an outfit using the same colors that were in the decoration:  teal/blue, grey, and black.



This is a brand new top that my son gave me for Christmas.  It's from Amazon, and you can find it HERE or a V-Neck version HERE.

 


I love sleeveless tops because they work so well under cardigans in the winter:  no extra bulk on the arms.  They serve double duty for both cold and warm weather.



On this day, I wore my new top with a cardigan, because it is winter and cold outside.  But I included a few photos without the cardigan so you could see the entire top on its own.

I'm wearing a Medium for size reference.  It is very loose and baggy, which I love since I'm always trying to cover up my midsection, but some women might not like that and may want to size down...although the Medium fits me perfectly in the chest and bust so sizing down wouldn't work for me if I wanted it less baggy in the midsection.



I wore this outfit to church with straight leg jeans by Mavi and grey suede booties.



Happy "Random of Acts of Kindness" day!  But let's not have it be just one day of the year and may we be "kind to one another" all the time.


 And now be sure to check out how the other ladies in the group are interpreting this theme and be sure to link up with us as well.

Have A Great Day!  Amy

Linking Up with these Fabulous Blogs HERE!




Amy ~ Amy’s Creative Pursuits

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Bo ~ Bo's Bodacious Blog

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Leslie ~ Once Upon a Time and Happily Ever After

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Marsha~ Marsha in the Middle

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Mireille ~ Chez Mireille Fashion Travel Mom

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Rosemary ~ Distinctly Southern Style

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Tuesday, February 7, 2023

How To Make Valentines Using Everyday Stamps

This will be the first year since my daughter got married that I will not be going to visit her by myself this winter.  Every year I have always taken a winter break and either flew by myself to Florida, or drove myself to Illinois or Indiana, depending on where she lived at that time.   I always got so nervous before the trip, during the trip, and usually the whole week I'm with her, I worried about driving home by myself.  I finally decided now that I'm sixty, I will stay home and save myself all the anxiety.  I also felt that since my oldest grandchild is now in school, she would not like it if she had to go to school instead of staying home and playing with Grandma like her two younger brothers can.  

When I did visit, I always brought them a Valentine  and lots of inexpensive treats and toys in a gift bag.  This year, since postage is getting quite costly, and my daughter doesn't want the kids to have too many treats, I decided to just send Valentine cards with a restaurant gift card in each card.

Because I have two grandsons and one granddaughter, I decided that instead of the usual pink and red colors/cards for Valentine's Day, that I would use normal stamps and colors but add a little Valentine touch to each card.


My first card I made for my grandson Atticus.  I thought he'd like the koala bear image.   All the stamps I used for all three cards are old and retired, but if I can remember the names, I'll let you know.  This koala bear stamp is from Gina K. Designs.  I don't think she's even in business anymore.  You can also google koala bear images on line and print them out.  The background was created with Stampin' Up! "Bamboo" background stamp.  I painstakingly colored the stamp with Stampin' Up! water based markers, huffed on the rubber, and stamped it on white card stock.  I love the way it turned out and it made me wonder why I didn't use this background stamp more often.

The koala's were stamped on a separate sheet of card stock, colored in, cut out, and then popped up on dimensionals.

The sentiment is from the same set.  I thought it was perfect for Valentine's Day.  I cut the sentiment out using an MFT banner die, then I adhered it with a pink heart brad...my only pink on this boy card.  I think the little heart made the card more appropriate for Valentine's Day.



On the inside, I stamped a Valentine's Day sentiment.


My next Valentine card is for my granddaughter Alethea, so I let this one be pink.  The image is not an image solely meant for Valentine's Day, but can be used for any occasion. It's from My Favorite Things and is called "Cool Beans".   I chose it because I thought it would work very well for Valentine's Day and that my granddaughter would love it.  


 

I stamped the image directly onto the white card stock.  Then I stamped a sentiment from the same set onto a pink heart that I cut out with an MFT die.  The little hearts were made from a heart paper punch, then glued randomly onto the white card stock.  I put a little yellow glitter on the girl's flower hair bow.



On the inside, I stamped a true Valentine sentiment and some red hearts.



For baby Elisha's card I chose this sweet penguin image from "Sweet and Sassy Stamps".  I loved the sentiment, especially for a winter holiday.



I stamped both the main image and the sentiment directly onto the white card stock.  Then I punched a few snowflakes out of glitter paper using a Cuttlebug die and randomly glued them to the card.  



On the inside, I stamped two sentiments:  one was from the same stamp set as the penguin and the other is a traditional Valentine stamp.



 I hope I've given you some ideas of how to create your own Valentines without buying special stamps for the holiday.

Have a Great Day!  Amy

Linking Up with these Fabulous Blogs HERE!