Scripture Saturday - Bible Journaling - Psalm 147v4

Hi Stamping Freinds!!

I created another Bible Journaling page this week. I went outside my box with this one. It didn't turn out how I had hoped, but I learned a lot along the way.

Psalm 147:4 "He determines the number of the stars and calls them each by name." 

Stamps: Epic Alphabet, Back To Basics Alphabet, Sophisticated Serifs, Perpetual Birthday Calendar, Perfect Pennants, Rotary Alphabet Stamp

Ink: Night of Navy, Elegant Eggplant, Perfect Plum, Rich Razzleberry, Silver Metallic, White Craft Ink

Paper: Silver Glimmer

Accessories: Star Punch, Mini Treat Bag Framelit, Star Stencil

Here is a pic of the supplies:

I looked for starry sky images online and really liked the ones that went from dark blues to purples. That is how I chose my ink colors.

First, I simple inked up a sponge with the color and swiped it across the page going from dark blue to a bright purple.

Next, I used my Star Stencil and White Craft ink to sponge on the stars.

After the stars dried, I stamped on my words using Night of Navy ink. The small words I wrote freehand using a Pilot G-2 10 black ink pen. 

Then I used silver metallic ink to add a few more stars. These did not have the "wow" effect I was hoping for so I punch two different sizes of stars using Silver Glimmer cardstock and attached them with Glue Dots. This helped give it some of the sparkle I was looking for.

Finally, I added the scripture reference using the Rotary Alphabet stamp.

I wish I would have eliminated the bigger silver star in the center where I stamped the word "and". The Night of Navy ink does not show up well on top of the Silver Metallic ink. Also, the word "and" is too small and kind of gets lost on the page. I later changed the "and" to a larger ampersand, which I like, but the silver star totally ruins it.

Oh well. Live and learn. I tried using a marker to darken the parts that are on top of the silver, but it still doesn't show up well.

What I really need to be doing is practicing my handwriting. It needs some major sprucing up.

The best part of this whole process is I memorized another Bible verse!!! I just love that!! I can use my creativity and bring God glory at the same time. 

And I love this verse. If God knows each star by name, how much more does he not know and love us who were created in His image? So awesome to serve such an all-knowing, all-powerful God. Makes me feel loved and cared for. 

Thanks so much for stopping by!!

God bless!

Krystal

Psalm 9 For Real Friday

Hi Friends!

"I will praise you, O Lord, with all my heart;

I will tell of all your wonders.

I will be glad and rejoice in you;

I will sing praise to your name, O Most High."

Psalm 9:1-2

KINDNESS MATTERS

Stamps: Kindness Matters

Paper: Poppy Parade, Crumb Cake, Certainly Celery, Everyday Enchantment DSP, First Edition DSP

Accessories: Fun Flowers die, Elegant Bouquet EF, Vanilla Seam Binding, Vintage Brads, Spritzer Tool

This week's Psalms Bible Study with Wendy Pope looks at Psalms 9. Here is what my NIV Life Application Study Bible says about verse 1:

"Praise is expressing to God our appreciation and understanding of His worth. It is saying "thank you" for each aspect of His divine nature. Our inward attitude becomes outward expression. When we praise God, we help ourselves by expanding our awareness of who He is. In each Psalm you read, look for an attribute or characteristic of God for which you can thank Him."

Wendy pointed out how, in this Psalm, David modeled prayer with praise first, thankfulness second, and finally with the "asking". So often our prayers are all about the asking, that we forget about the praise and thanksgiving (why I created a "thank you" card for today). "Praise lifts up the name of God for who He is, thanks celebrates what He has done." 

Right now I am reading Ann Voskamp's book One Thousand Gifts. I highly recommend it. Such a beautiful read. Her writing is so poetic. In it Ann talk about how before many miracles that Jesus performed, he thanked God FIRST and then the miracle happened. Like with the loaves and the fish. "And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves." Matt. 14:19 First the thanks, then the joy of the miracle. Ann's premise is if we can live in thanksgiving, we will live in joy.

Here is what Matthew Henry has to say about Psalm 9:1...

"Holy joy is the life of thankful praise, as thankful praise is the language of holy joy: I will be glad and rejoice in thee. Whatever occurs to make us glad, our joy must pass through it, and terminate in God only: I will be glad and rejoice in thee, not in the gift so much as in the giver."

With praise and thanksgiving to God, we will find joy. "Our inward attitude becomes our outward expression."

This past Tuesday I had the privilege of participating in Challenge Day at our local high school. Challenge Day is a secular workshop that focuses on having every child feel safe, loved, and celebrated. What a powerful experience! It broke my heart to see all the "ugly" that kids face everyday. Many do not receive any love or encouragement at home. The stories I heard were heart breaking. They have no hope. I never realized just how blessed I was to live in a caring home, where I knew that someone would always love me no matter what. I wanted to hug each and every student and tell them that they do have hope. Hope in Jesus Christ who came to take away their brokenness. I did get to tell my "family group" of five students how very special they were. That they were created in God's very own image and that He created them for a purpose. I only had two minutes to talk, but I tried my hardest to share from my heart. If you think of it, would you please pray for Bardo, Francisco, Anna, Aurora, and Rosie this week. They could sure use your prayers.

Had to make a few "guy" cards for my 40 Days of Lent challenge. I need to send out a few more cards this weekend. What about you? When is the last time you sent a smile through the mail? :)

Thanks for stopping by today!

I pray you've been blessed!

Psalm 8 For Real Friday

Hi Stamping Friends!

³ When I consider your heavens,
   the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
   which you have set in place,
⁴ what is mankind that you are mindful of them,
   human beings that you care for them?

Psalm 8:3-4

CLEARLY FOR YOU

Stamps: Clearly For You

Paper: Blushing Bride, Soft Suede, Very Vanilla, Beau Chateau DSP

Accessories: Crochet Lace, Pleated Satin Ribbon, Pearls, Perfect Pennants die, Decorative Label Punch, Oval Punch, Baja Seam Binding, Twitterpated Buttons, Finial Press EF

I almost printed out Psalm 8 in it's entirety, because I love the whole chapter. It was difficult to choose which verses to focus on. Verse 5 says, "You crowned them with glory and honor." So I just had to have a crown on my card! :)  And verse 8 mentions the "birds in the sky", which is why I chose the darling little birds on a wire. Love this stamp set. Can't believe I waited this long to get it!!

I love what Wendy Pope shared with us this week in her online Psalms Bible Study.

Here's a bit from Tuesday's study:

"There is nothing we can do to lose or add to our worth in the eyes of God. No sin, no mistakes, and no failures change how God feels about us. We have worth because we are created in His image. Determining our worth by anything other than the truth of what God's Word says about us discounts the greatness of God's creativity and reduces the significance of the sacrifice of His Son."

And here is a piece from Thursday's study:

"When we learn to live in the extent of our worth in Christ instead of in response to our feelings, we experience victory. The greatness of God's creativity is illumined and the significance of Christ's death on the cross touches our hearts in a new way."

It is amazing to think that the God of the universe loves us so much, that He created us in His image. We are His masterpiece. His final creation. Each one of us is valued by God. In the 5th -8th grade Sunday School class that I teach, our virtue for the month of February is Honor—Letting someone know you see how valuable they really are. Here is a little bit of what our 252 Basics says about honor:

"Every person has value, not because of what they do, but because each and every person has been put together by God. When God created people, He made them in His image. That means every person alive today has been put together in the likeness of God. So every person has value. And it’s our job to help everyone feel like they are valuable. Jesus showed other people how valuable they really were by spending time with them. He ate dinner with people who usually ate alone. He served people who were used to doing the serving. He paid attention to people who normally didn't get a lot of attention. If Jesus thought it was important to honor everyone, then we should follow His example."

I read a blog post on Ash Wednesday by Karen Ehman titled: Don't Give Up Something For Lent. In a nutshell, she says how maybe we shouldn't "give up" something for Lent, maybe we should "take on" something during Lent. Like work in a soup kitchen, or help a hurting soul. She plans on writing a note of encouragement or thanks to someone each day during Lent. Now this is something near and dear to my heart!! And what better way to show someone how valuable they are to you, than by sending them a handwritten note. And it would be even more special if that note were written inside a beautiful, unique, handmade card. :) I've sent out two cards already. I look forward to see who God puts on my heart to send a card to next.

Make sure you check out my next post for today. I'm participating in the Stampin' Addicts 3rd Anniversary Party Blog Hop. I hope you will hop with us!!

Thanks for stopping by!

I pray you've been blessed!

Psalm 7 For Real Friday

Hi Stamping Friends!!

Psalm 7:1

"O LORD my God, in thee do I put my trust: 

save me from all them that persecute me, and deliver me: (KJV)..."

MIXED BUNCH

Stamps: Mixed Bunch, You're a Gem

Paper: Daffodil Delight, Whisper White

Accessories: Blossom Punch, Adorning Accents Edgelits and Embossing Folders, Blossom Bouquet Punch, Limeade Ruffled Ribbon, Black Button

This Psalm study was great, but it was tough to come up with a card for it. I chose the sentiment 4 EVER because we can always put our trust in God. He will always be there for us... FOR EVER! I think I'm going to use this card for my hostess club this Sunday. I've seen similar cards like this one on the net. It's simple and pretty and uses lots of new toys! :)

The Matthew Henry commentary had some interesting thoughts on Psalm 7 and putting our trust in God:

"David, thus basely abused, has recourse to the Lord. The injuries men do us should drive us to God, for to him we may commit our cause. Nay, he sings to the Lord; his spirit was not ruffled by it, nor cast down, but so composed and cheerful that he was still in tune for sacred songs and it did not occasion one jarring string in his harp. Thus let the injuries we receive from men, instead of provoking our passions, kindle and excite our devotions."

I love the thought: "The injuries men do us should drive us to God..." and also, "Thus let the injuries we receive from men... kindle and excite our devotions." Use the hurtful things that people say and do to you, to bring you closer to God.

Here is what my NIV Life Application Bible has to say about Psalm 7:

"Have you ever been falsely accused or so badly hurt that you want revenge? David wrote this psalm in response to the slanderous accusations of those who claimed he was trying to kill Saul and seize the throne. Instead of taking matters into his own hands and striking back, David cried out to God for justice. The proper response to slander is prayer, not revenge, because God says, "It is mine to avenge; I will repay". Instead of striking back, ask God to take your case, bring justice, and restore your reputation."

One thing I learned from Wendy Pope and this week's lesson on Psalm 7 is that my words have the power to hurt or to heal.

So often, when someone says something hurtful to us, or about us, our first response is to say something just as hurtful back. But this psalm of David teaches us to stop, and give it to God instead. Do not try and seek revenge on your own. Even through words or conversation. Instead, lay it before the feet of the one you can always trust to protect you.

Some thoughts from Wendy: "Words hurt. Words heal. And in order for the right words to come out of our mouths, the right words must go into our heart. God wants our words to be gifts."

Here are some great verses to remind us of the power of our words:

Ephesians 4:29 "Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen."

Proverbs 12:18 "Reckless words pierce like a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing."

Proverbs 16:24 "Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones."

What a wonderful lesson to learn! I constantly need to be reminded of the power of my words. And I need to remember to ask God for assistance in keeping me from wanting to have the last word. Psalm 141:3 says, "Set a guard over my mouth, O Lord; keep watch over the door of my lips." There are many times my mouth should be locked up! I come from a long line of "arguers". We all love to get the last word. I literally used to have to bite my tongue to keep myself from answering back. Now I just let them have the last word. It's not worth hurt feelings, just to prove a point.


If I'm not stamping, I'm usually reading. Here are a few of the books I've read in the last few months:

And here are some of the books on my list of books to read next:

What about you? What have you read lately that you would recommend?

I hope you have been blessed today!

Thanks for stopping by!

Happy Stamping! (and reading!)

Psalm 6 and 14 Days of Love Day 10

Hi Stamping Friends!

"I am sick at heart. 

Return, O LORD, and rescue me.

 How long, O LORD, until you restore me?
 Save me because of your unfailing love." 
Psalm 6:3-4 NLT

WORD PLAY

Stamps: Word Play, En Francais BG

Paper: Sahara Sand, Blushing Bride, Pale Plum, Very Vanilla

Accessories: Paper Doily Sizzlit, Fashionable Hearts Embosslit, Bird Punch, Blushing Bride Pleated Satin Ribbon, Circle Punches, Basic Pearls

The theme for Psalm 6 is: Deliverance in trouble. God is able to rescue us.

This is the Word Study that Wendy Pope emailed us this week:

Word Study

Psalm 6:4
Turn, O LORD, and deliver me;  save me because of your unfailing love.

Turn is the Hebrew word shub (shoob), defined as turn back.  Sin driving a wedge between us and God.  The longer we wait to repent the wider the wedge becomes.  God will never leave or forsake us however during the time between sin and confession we often feel as if God has turned away from us.

David is experiencing this sense of separation.   David asks God to turn back to him.  He longs to feel the closeness he once knew.

I heard this saying years ago, “When you feel far from God ask yourself, ‘who moved?’”  This is a question I will ask myself today.

That last question really caught my attention... "who moved?" When we feel apart from God, it's not because of something that He has done, it's because of something that we have done. And until we confess our wrongdoings, we will continue to feel separated from Him. God does not move away from us. We move away from God.

Here is what Matthew Henry says regarding these verses:

IV. The pleas with which he enforces his petitions, not to move God (he knows our cause and the true merits of it better than we can state them), but to move himself. 1. He pleads God's mercy; and thence we take some of our best encouragements in prayer: Save me, for thy mercies' sake.

I chose the sentiment "You're in my thoughts, you're in my heart" from Word Play because it made me think of how God must feel when we stray from Him. He continues to love us in the midst of our sin. We are still "in His heart". He's waiting for the day when we will confess our sins and turn back to Him. God will never leave us. I love the truth in Romans 8:37-39:

³⁷ No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. ³⁸ For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,^[a] neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, ³⁹ neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Wendy wonderfully summarizes this Psalm in a few short sentences:

• Ask for mercy (1-2)
• Let God see our sorry (2-3, 6-8)
• Be confident that God hears our prayer. (8b-9)
  This lack of confidence keeps us bound to our sin.  The sin God forgives.

I've been so blessed by studying the Psalms. Each week I have discovered another amazing piece of Truth from God's Word. I pray you to will be blessed too.

And now for Day 10 of the 14 days of LOVE!!

TEENY TINY WISHES

Stamps: Teeny Tiny Wishes

Paper: Wisteria Wonder, Whisper White, Lucky Limeade, Pool Party, Sweet Shop DSP

Accessories: Small Heart Punch, Tulip Frame EF, Pool Party Seam Binding, Basic Rhinestone, Baker's Twine, Dimensionals

I saw this design on Stampin' Connection and just knew I needed to CASE it! I changed up the colors and added some ribbon (new Pool Poarty Seam Binding found in the Occasions Mini Catalog!). A nice, simple Valentine. I'm still lovin' the Sweet Shop Specialty Designer Series Paper. In fact, I need to order some more Pool Party card stock I've been using so much of it!

I hope you've been blessed and inspired today!

Thanks for stopping by!

Happy Stamping!

Psalm 5 and 14 Days of Love Day 3

Hi Stamping Friends!

"Give ear to my words, O LORD, consider my meditation. Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my King, and my God: for unto thee will I pray. My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O LORD; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up."

Psalm 5:1-3

THOUGHTS AND PRAYERS

Stamps:  Thoughts and Prayers

Paper:  Pool Party, Lucky Limeade, Peach Parfait, Naturals White, Everyday Enchantment DSP (Sale-A-Bration)

Accessories:  Top Note Die, Fancy Favor Box Die, Beautiful Butterflies Die, Perfect Polka Dots EF, Scallop Trim Border Punch, Stitched Poly Ribbon, Hemp Twine, Button (retired)

Today I chose to share the Psalm 5 passage in the King James version.  When I was in Jr. High and High School, we used to sing these verses as a song in youth group at church. I still remember the tune. For me, the easiest way to memorize scripture is to sing it. There are so many wonderful Christian songs that are scripture taken straight from the Bible. Love that!!

This week's online Psalms Bible study with Wendy Pope focused on prayer.  That is why I chose to use the Thoughts and Prayers stamp set. It fit perfectly with what I had been meditating on. And I know exactly who I will send it to. I might have to make more cards with this set. There are quite a few people I know that would benefit from knowing that someone is thinking of them and lifting them up in prayer.

After reading through the Psalm 5 scripture passage a few times, I turned to my BibleWorks program which brought up Matthew Henry's Commentary on these verses.  Wow!  There is so much to think about in just these 3 little verses it is amazing.  I would love to share it all with you, but I don't want to bore you with my book reading. Here are some of my favorite thoughts from the commentary:

1. Give ear to my words, O Lord! Though God is in heaven, he has an ear open to his people's prayers, and it is not heavy, that he cannot hear. Men perhaps will not or cannot hear us; our enemies are so haughty that they will not, our friends at such a distance that they cannot; but God, though high, though in heaven, can, and will.

2. Unto thee will I pray. "Others live without prayer, but I will pray." The assurances God has given us of his readiness to hear prayer should confirm our resolution to live and die praying.

3. Morning prayer is our duty; we are the fittest for prayer when we are in the most fresh, and lively, and composed frame, got clear of the slumbers of the night, revived by them, and not yet filled with the business of the day. We have then most need of prayer, considering the dangers and temptations of the day to which we are exposed, and against which we are concerned; by faith and prayer, to fetch in fresh supplies of grace.

4. That he will patiently wait for an answer of peace: "I will look up, will look after my prayers, and hear what God the Lord will speak, that, if he grant what I asked, I may be thankful--if he deny, I may be patient--if he defer, I may continue to pray and wait and may not faint."

The area I struggle with the most is #3. I'm somewhat of a "night owl". I can't seem to get to bed before midnight each night. Night is the only time I am all alone. And I relish in it. (Being a homeschool mom, I'm not alone very often.) It is also the time I read my Bible and pray. But I'll be honest, I am quite tired by the time I get to the praying part and I've been know to doze off once in awhile. To wake up before anyone else in the house, seems like a daunting task to me. I would rather stay warm and cozy in my bed for another hour. But after reading about praying myself up and my family for the day ahead, I may have to try and turn a new leaf. Well, maybe when the weather warms up a bit. ;)

My Life Application Bible has some great thoughts on this passage as well:

"The secret of a close relationship with God is to pray to him earnestly each morning. In the morning, our minds are more free from problems and then we can commit the whole day to God. Regular communication helps any friendship and is certainly necessary for a strong relationship with God. We need to communicate with him daily. Do you have a regular time to pray and read God's Word?" 

Lots of things to think about and ponder.  :)

And now on to Day 3 of the 14 Days of Love!!

VALENTINE COLLAGE

Stamps:  Tiny Tags, Pretty Postage, Filled With Love (retired)

Paper:  Pretty In Pink, Real Red, Whisper White, Red Glimmer Paper, Silver Glimmer Paper, various retired designer series papers

Accessories:  Owl Punch, Tag Punch, Postage Stamp Punch, Bird Punch, Heart Punch, Heart to Heart Punch, Cupcake Punch, Scallop Circle Punch, Circle Punches, Perfect Polka Dots EF, Basic Rhinestones, Baker's Twine, retired rub-ons

This is a CASE of a similar Valentine collage created by Nancy Riley at iStamp. I had to change mine up quite a bit since I did not have same stamps and punches as she did. But it was a great source of inspiration. 

I had a blast making this. I was excited to find the white frame at our local Big Lots. It is an odd size for a picture frame, but perfect for paper. It is an 8 1/2x11 size. Most portraits come as 8x10. Strange. But perfect for me!! Each square is 2x2. I used TONS of retired product on this collage. But all of it is from Stampin' Up! It was fun going through all my scrap DSP. It was like walking down memory lane! I love all the Glimmer paper. It makes everything so sparkly.

Here is a close-up of the collage:

I hope you've been blessed AND inspired! Come back tomorrow for more Valentine love!

Thanks for stopping by!

Happy Stamping!

Psalm 4 For Real Friday

Hi Stamping Friends!!
Happy Friday!!  I'm so excited to have TWO blog posts today!!  Can't say as I've ever done that before.  I really wanted to be a part of the Stampin' Addicts Sale-A-Bration Blog Hop, but I also wanted to share what I learned this week in Psalm 4.  And in order to accomplish that, I decided to have two blog posts today!!! 


Psalm 4:6-7 "Many are asking, "Who can show us any good?" Let the light of your face shine upon us, O Lord. You have filled my heart with greater joy than when their grain and new wine abound."

FABULOUS PHRASES

Stamps:  Fabulous Phrases

Paper:  Melon Mambo, Whisper White

Accessories:   Heart to Heart Punch, Perfect Polka Dots EF, Petal Card die (retired), LOTS of current and retired ribbon!!

Quick how-to on this technique.  Super easy.  I covered a piece of "chipboard" (really just the white piece of backing that comes in our Designer Series Paper packs) with lots and lots of adhesive, then layered strips of ribbon on it, then ran it through my Big Shot!!

These verses caught my attention right away.  They are the "happy" part of the passage.  Wendy Pope kind of went a different direction with the study, but these are the verses that I kept coming back to.  I love knowing that our joy comes from the Lord.

Here is what my NIV Life Application Bible has to say about verse 7:

"Two kinds of joy are contrasted here - inward joy that comes from knowing and trusting God and happiness that comes as a result of pleasant circumstances.  Inward joy is steady as long as we trust God; happiness is unpredictable.  Inward joy defeats discouragement; happiness covers it up.  Inward joy is lasting; happiness is temporary."

That new outfit, or purse, or stamp set ;) may bring us temporary happiness, but only God can fill our hearts with pure joy.  Joy that goes beyond our circumstances and day-to-day "life".  We can all "put on a happy face" to get us through the day.  But real joy is a reflection of God's light shining through us.  It is something that can be seen and felt.  It comes from the heart.  Thus the heart on my card today.  That's also why I made my heart bright and colorful and fun.  That's how I look at joy.  As bringing color to the world.

My hubby is a seminary student and he bought this fancy schmancy Bible program.  Bummer is, he has a Mac Book and this program was only available for PC (which he didn't realize until he tried to download it).  Lucky me!!  It's called BibleWorks and it is well beyond my scope and sphere.  It has Greek and Hebrew and a gazillion translations and cross references.  But I was excited to read this about verse 7 from the Matthew Henry Commentary:

"This is what, above any thing, they rejoice in (v. 7): "Thou hast hereby often put gladness into my heart; not only supported and refreshed me, but filled me with joy unspeakable; and therefore this is what I will still pursue, what I will seek after all the days of my life." When God puts grace in the heart he puts gladness in the heart; nor is any joy comparable to that which gracious souls have in the communications of the divine favour, no, not the joy of harvest, of a plentiful harvest, when the corn and wine increase. This is gladness in the heart, inward, solid, substantial joy. The mirth of worldly people is but a flash, a shadow; even in laughter their heart is sorrowful, Prov. xiv. 13. "Thou hast given gladness in my heart;" so the word is. True joy is God's gift, not as the world giveth, John xiv. 27. The saints have no reason to envy carnal worldlings their mirth and joy, but should pity them rather, for they may know better and will not."

(Hafta say that I LOVE the beautiful, rich language.) "True joy is God's gift..."  Yesterday I chatted with our next door neighbor who told me her battle with cancer has returned and with a vengeance. Her doctor has given her only 2 months to live.  As we stood talking on my front porch, I could sense joy in her, even though her circumstances are so utterly grim.  That is a gift from God.  That is not something you get by just determining to "look at the bright side".  Yes, I'm sure she has her down days, we all do, but it is that "inward, solid, substantial joy" that keeps her heart shining for Jesus.  I pray that you will find that kind of joy this week!!!

Thanks for stopping by!

Happy Stamping!

Psalm 3 For Real Friday

Hi Stamping Friends!!


Psalm 3:3-4 "But you are a shield around me, O Lord; you bestow glory on me and lift up my head. To the Lord I cry aloud, and he answers me from his holy hill."

Nature Silhouettes

Stamps:  Nature Silhouettes

Paper:  Basic Black, Island Indigo, Old Olive, Naturals White, First Edition DSP

Accessories:  Black Embossing Powder, Decorative Label Punch, Round Tab Punch, Stripes EF, BRads, Brayer, Old Olive Grosgrain (retired)

I really enjoyed this weeks study of Psalm 3 from Wendy Pope. She gives some wonderful insight into passages I normally would just skim over. In this Psalm, King David is running for his life from his son, Absalom. He is being threatened on all sides. He is quite literally surrounded by his enemies.

Here's an excerpt from my NIV Life Application Bible:

"David was not sitting on his throne in a place of power, but he was running for his life from his rebellious son, Absalom and a host of traitors. When circumstances go against us, it is tempting to think that God also is against us. But David reminds us that the opposite is true. When everything seems to go against us, God is still for us. If circumstance has turned against you, don't blame God - seek him!"

It's so easy for us to have ourselves a little "pity party" when life doesn't seem to be rolling down easy street. But David shows us that we need to have a change in our perspective, and in our thinking, which will result in a change in our behavior. As Wendy says, we need to stop our "stinkin thinkin" and start reciting positive scripts into our lives. 

The verse she shared to help defeat these negative thoughts is Philippians 4:8

"Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things."


Ann Voskamp has a book entitled: One Thousand Gifts - A dare to live fully right where you are. A few FB friends and I have taken on her "one thousand gifts" challenge.  Ann has a list of three things everyday that you are to find thankfulness for. One day it was: one thing in your fridge, your bag, and your heart. Yesterday you had to share 3 graces given to you by people who love you. It is a wonderful challenge to continue to look through the entire day to find things to be grateful for. It really does change your perspective.

I know when I try to find the good in things, life just seems to roll a little more gently. It reminds me of Pollyanna and the "glad game". Can you see through your circumstances and find something that makes you glad? David did. That's why I chose verses 3 and 4 of Psalm 3 as my key verses today. It's at this point in the passage that you can feel David playing the "glad game" and getting rid of his "stinkin thinkin".

Some times we just want to tell people to "put their big girl panties on and get over it!". But we can't "get over it" alone. We need the Lord. We need to cry out to him, when we feel like their is no one else to listen. That's why I chose the wolf stamp from Nature's Silhouettes. It looks like the wolf is crying out. And isn't it a comfort to know that God is there for us? He is our shield and the lifter of our head. He bestows glory on us and sustains us. He takes away our fears and delivers us.

The final verse in Psalm 3 says, "May your blessing be on your people." I pray you will be blessed this week!

Thanks for stopping by!

Happy Stamping!