Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Peace on Earth

Some of the greatest freedoms we have in this amazing country of ours were given to us by our Founding Fathers, great men of God. Through the First Amendment to the Constitution, we were given the Freedom of Speech and the Freedom of Religion (among other liberties we possess).  I praise God that I live in, what I truly believe is, the greatest country in the world.  Many men and women have fought and given their lives to defend our rights and freedoms, and I remain eternally grateful for those who serve and have served.  I praise God for the freedoms we have.  I respect every person's right to speak what they believe.  It's a beautiful gift.  But I find it ignorant and rude to insult any group of people - whether we agree with them or not.  I have more class than that.  I also feel blessed to know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that although people disagree on many issues, absolute truth DOES exist.  I believe that the absolute truths are given to us by God through His holy and precious Word, the Bible.  It was God-breathed, written by God Himself, and that He used men to translate these words into what we now know as the Holy Bible.  With that said, you can disagree all you like.  But the absolute truth is still the absolute truth.  The Bible tells us "not to throw our pearls to the dogs or swine, for they would not know how to value it".  That simply means that we can write all the nice things from God's Word that we want, but that the foolish with reprobate hearts won't understand or accept it.  I can only feel sorry for this deep ignorance.  Just for the record, I DON'T judge people.  I have no right to judge people.  Only God can look into someone's heart, including my own, and see our sin - and call it sin.  I ask God every day to forgive me of my sins and to help mold me into the person He wants me to be.  That's all I can do.  I can only work on me.  I also want you all to know that as the Administrator of Word Art Wednesday Challenge Blog I can assure you that we have never said anything negative or judgmental about anyone or any group of people, and we never would.  All we have ever done is to honor and uphold God's Word (and we simply delete entries that don't meet our very clearly-outlined Challenge Rules).  If you have a problem with God's Word, take it up with it's author, Jesus Christ - God Himself!  I didn't write it, but I WILL obey it.  We respect our participants, our Design Team, and our awesome sponsors, and we would never disgrace any of them.  God has continued to bless us exceeding abundantly, so we know we're doing right in His eyes and that's what really matters.  We treat people with love and respect, and would appreciate the same in return.  So, just for the record - those who the Bible calls "fools" can spout off all they like.  It doesn't change absolute truth - it only shows your hatred and ignorance.  Take it up with God!
The card I made for this week's challenge uses Simple Stories Handmade Holiday patterned papers, a Papertrey Ink angel die-cut and stamp, her wings (which I painted and glittered), the star border, peace die-cut, and the vellum window die-cut are also all from Papertrey Ink.  I just LOVE creating with die-cuts by using paper, wool felt, and other materials to give my projects texture and personality.  Die-cuts are so much fun to use.  I also used this week's free word art/scripture file from Word Art Wednesday, some seam binding, a glittered button tied with May Arts jute, some machine stitching, and Tim Holtz ink.

Twist of Faith Card Challenges - Challenge #67 - Traditional Christmas

City Crafter Challenges - Challenge #189 - Christmas Colors - Kraft, Red and White

Flourishes Stamps Challenge  - Challenge #250 - Christmas/Words to Inspire -My words to inspire for the coming year are "Peace on Earth".  We may not all see eye to eye on everything, but we need to be kind to one another and live in peace with one another.  It's possible, but it starts with each of us doing our part to love one another.

Mark's Finest Papers Sketch With a Twist - Challenge #76 - Use Stitching Real or Faux - I used real machine stitching, and lots of stamps (non-MFP this time)
 
Have a wonderful week, and please stop by Word Art Wednesday to play along.  Our sponsors/prizes this week are the amazing Nice Crane Designs.  Their owner, Ignacio, has been a supporter of our challenge blog for several years, and we are SO grateful for their support.  They are offering one lucky winner some of their amazing shabby vintage images/collage sheets.  Our second sponsor this week is the wonderful Verve Rubber Stamps and they are offering another lucky winner a $25 gift certificate to their amazing store.  They have the most wonderful stamps and die-cuts.  If you've never shopped Verve Stamps, you're in for a real treat.  So, I encourage you to check out both of these wonderful shops.  Special thanks to all our amazing sponsors.  We praise God for you, and pray for His continued blessings on your business!
 
Thanks for stopping by, friends!
My Cup Runneth Over,
Karen

23 comments:

  1. Beautiful project Karen - love the way you have shaded the letters in the word peace.
    Blessings
    Maxine

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  2. That is a wonderful goal for the coming year, Karen! Thank you for playing in my Flourishes challenge!

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  3. Beautiful card! I just love how you include so much texture in your projects with layers and different materials! Love that sweet angel on the top!

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  4. Love the die cut angel!! Very pretty card, Karen!! God bless.

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  5. Beautiful image and card; love the real stitching! Thank you for playing along with us at MFP Sketch With a Twist Challenge.

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  6. Amen to your post. Love your pretty card and the red is SO pretty and bold. Amazing job with the die cut!

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  7. I complimented your lovely card earlier. I didn't know you submitted it in our challenge so I wanted to come back and thank you for playing along this week at Twist of Faith card challenge. Your image and scripture is a perfect pair.
    Princess--DT Member

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  8. Beautiful card, Karen!! Home spun yet elegant!!

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  9. superbe, très poétique, magnifiquement mis en place, biz

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  10. Karen, I am quite sure there was a celebration in Heaven when you wrote that heartfelt entry. . You card is a beauty and PEACE that passes all understanding is a much needed state.
    Advent Blessings of Hope and Peace,
    Carole Robb Bisson

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  11. Karen this is so beautiful ... Thanks so much for playing along at CCCB!!

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  12. Karen, this is absolutely beautiful. Your creativity astounds me, and you give me so much inspiration to go out of the box and try new things. What a blessing you are!

    Have a joyous, Christ-filled Christmas.

    Love, Ginny B

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  13. We are most certainly blessed to live in a country where we can express our faith, an you did it beautifully through your card. That angel came out gorgeous. Blessings, my friend!

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  14. We are most certainly blessed to live in a country where we can express our faith, and you did it beautifully through your card. That angel came out gorgeous. Blessings, my friend!

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  15. I always LOVE your sweet cards, and this one is no exception. It's just darling. Great blog post, too. I enjoy your blog so much and love getting inspired by you!
    Sierra

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  16. I adore this! Great work as usual. You rock!

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  17. As always, beautiful Karen!!!! Thanks for sharing this week at CCCB :-)

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  18. Karen, your cards always amaze me!! I wish I could make beautiful cards like you!! Thanks for sharing with us at Twist of Faith this week. Merry CHRISTmas!!
    Blessings,
    Zella

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  19. What a beauty! Love the homespun feel of this! I am so glad you could play along with us this week at Flourishes for our Timeless Tuesday Challenge! :)

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  20. Today I heard a minister say that when God spoke from heaven some people heard him and others said it sounded like thunder. He was emphasizing that some don't have hearts open to hearing God. Thanks for sharing. Karen, you have so many lovely elements on this card. Your die cuts and papers go really well with the angel image. I was amazed by the subtle effect of the vellum behind the angel. I'll have to try that! Thank you for sharing with us at Twist of Faith.

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  21. Beautiful post and card... Thank you for joining us at CCCB!

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Thanks for your comments. They mean so much to me.