Dancing with Simplicity

Simple Living, Walking by Faith
You are currently browsing all posts tagged with Bible Journaling

Church Online and a daily Bible Reading Plan

  • February 23, 2021 12:46 pm

Viewpoint Church:

https://www.viewpointchurch.org/

Author/pastor/speaker: Becky Tirabassi and husband Roger have a wonderful Sunday service which blesses me every Sunday morning. 10:00 Pacific time zone, or catch the archives. Enjoy the live chat, and grab your message outline before the service.

Read Through the Bible:

And Becky is right there with her daily Bible reading posts on Facebook and Instagram with her Change Your Life Daily Bible. You can join in her videos on social media and follow the reading plan by purchasing her Bible or using the PDF download plan on Viewpoint church’s page with your own Bible.

As the church physical buildings start to open, remember, there are always resources online for you to access. You may be ill, disabled, or have any number of reasons you cannot go to church, but you don’t have to look too far to find a church home on the web.

Tangles of Weeds: Can I Conquer Life’s Clutter?

  • January 25, 2020 9:47 am

Conquering Life’s Clutter

Tangles of Weeds: Can I Conquer Life’s Clutter?

Every year I say I am going to …de clutter my house, journal,
read more, bake, learn a new craft, and organize paper clutter in my office.
Sound familiar? You too? And every year it does not happen. Well, not most of
it anyway. It’s like the view from my kitchen window. Our window looks out on
our long, narrow yard. Our dogs have seen to it that no grass remains. Instead,
we have a lot of odd trees and weeds that like to keep coming back every year. A
tangled, hot mess. One year we finally paid to have the overgrowth removed. Everything
was pretty, though still not grassy. The yard cleaned up nicely. My view from
the kitchen window revealed a conquered yard! Despite the lack of much greenery,
it was something to behold… for a season. A very short season. Yard clutter.

So it is with our yearly, weekly, daily, goals, and plans. The
space is cleared. We make room in our homes, our schedules our lives, for all
sorts of things (including some me time.) Unfortunately, before we know it the
whole mess has grown back again. Weeds start filling the schedule, our
thoughts, our plans, choking out our attempts to dream some big
dreams. Bottom line, our attempts to simplify, declutter, get rid of the weeds,
are thwarted every time. Life clutter.

Now you might think this is a bad thing, but it really is no
surprise to God. He knows we have no good thing in us, and He knows our sin
entangles. A manicured yard doesn’t last long in a fallen world. The weeds will
come back. Cluttering tangled messes like anxiety, addictions, stress, depression,
pride, stubbornness, disobedience. Notice these are not all blatantly sinful things.
Sometimes, they are time robbers. Sometimes they simply drain you and zap your
energy. They grow in like those weeds, quickly, subtly, unnoticed. Just like in
my backyard. Creeping clutter.

Maybe, it’s time to
remember the weeds and clutter are simply going to be there. Instead of
being caught off guard, pluck them up and move on. If they grow back, tear them
down again. If it takes some repentance and confession, so be it Let
God’s presence fill up the overgrown messy weedy places. You may find
opposition coming back, and taking over. Opposition to your plans, dreams, and
choices comes in all sorts of forms. Though it is a battle you may deal with
every single day for the rest of your life, in the end He has conquered it all.
For now, try planting His Word in the barren yard. Do not let the yard take you
by surprise. Recognize it, expect it, and conquer it. Tear it down. Deal with
it when it grows and better yet, let Him be the gardener. Simplify your
life, by anticipating the opposition. Be prepared for it, and keep moving
forward. Behold the view from the window. He is making all things new.

II Cor 4:16 (MSG) So we’re not giving up. How could we! Even though on the
outside it often looks like things are falling apart on us, on the inside,
where God is making new life, not a day goes by without his unfolding grace.

Retinopathy Perspective, Diabetes Anniversary

  • August 27, 2019 1:16 pm

August 2019:  It’s my 49’th anniversary of my diagnosis of Type 1 diabetes. I’m currently facing some challenges with retinopathy. Having had two hemorrhages since November, and two injections and some laser…well, nothing much has improved. I’ve recently won two art classes and these I hope to make use of, vision or not! Retinopathy is not fun to deal with, and in my case does not ever resolve quickly. When the laser failed this time around, I was sent for Avastin injections. Those have not worked well either. I can’t really drive and I have numerous things I need to be out doing.

My 49’th Anniversary? Wow! A lot has changed since my diagnosis in 1970. No more urine testing, injections (I use an Omni Pod insulin delivery system), and much more technology. If you are dealing with diabetes and its complications, feel free to leave a comment. And blessings to all of you!

© Tracie Koziura | Dreamstime Stock Photos

Sprinkled Hearts

  • April 3, 2019 5:31 pm

I’m working on digital products. You can obtain this poem in a few ways. Here’s one link for some nice tea glasses.

Dancing with Creativity: Daily!

  • March 8, 2019 4:53 pm

Dancing with Creativity

Having been a recent recipient of two art classes, a member of two mentoring groups and a lifelong craft and writing lover…well, I have not been generous with my time and attention to these arts. Life gets in the way. I had a thought recently:  why not create something every day? This is probably not a new concept to anyone.  I quite often hear writers stating that they must write every day in order to keep moving forward. I suppose artists say the same thing.

If I begin a project, I can give myself permission to keep it going a day or two before moving on to another endeavor. Why not? If in fact, God has gifted me to create and I am not doing it, then perhaps I am not being a good steward of the gift. What do you think? Can anyone relate to putting off the use of these kinds of gifts because they are too time consuming? Isn’t life too short to wait?

When I started this blog, my thought was that we are often dancing around the very thing we are called to be doing. Dancing with, toying with but not doing. Walking by faith is more stable, or should be. But life it seems, is a dance and we are swirling around the very things we want to do but cannot seem to ‘get to.’ I’m going to attempt this. Create a time for colorful art, writing or creating something. Dancing with creativity…daily.

 

Happy Thanksgiving 2017

  • November 22, 2017 12:01 pm

The holiday season is upon us, and it’s time for you crafty folk to have some fun.  Please visit the sites in the sidebar for your supplies, and some Black Friday specials.  Bible journaling, scrapbooking and more…….please note, I am an affiliate for these sites.  I appreciate your purchasing through the links.

Have a blessed holiday season.  And let’s remember to give thanks.

Psalm 100:1-5 (NASB77)
1   Shout joyfully to the LORD, all the earth.
2   Serve the LORD with gladness; Come before Him with joyful singing.
3  Know that the LORD Himself is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.
4  Enter His gates with thanksgiving, And His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him; bless His name.
5  For the LORD is good; His lovingkindness is everlasting, And His faithfulness to all generations.

Calling Christian Crafty folks! (Writers too!)

  • January 9, 2015 10:58 pm

dreamstimefree_187386[1]Within the framework of my simple living theme, there lies a huge desire to incorporate crafts into this blog. I have things planned for the future but for now I want to call your attention to a new community I found online for Christian crafty folk!

I was on my Facebook page one day when I was attracted to a group on Bible Art Journaling.  Immediately I was amazed at the talent and the desire members had to study the Word, meditate on it and then craft away in their Bibles. You can access the group Journaling Bible Community, on Facebook.  If you are from that group and found your way here, please introduce yourself.  I would love to post some of your work!  The idea of adding art to your Bible may be a little unusual to some. I do believe however, you will see the heart of these men and women in the Scriptural pages they design.

If you are like me and don’t quite feel like an artist (though I have a huge desire to study and learn), don’t fret. You can still do this. You’ll find many in the group who simply are trying their best and learning as they go. You’ll find others whose work probably belongs in a gallery. Awesome stuff!

From that group, I ended up in another online community known as His Kingdom Come . Within the group are two study groups for 2015, and many smaller groups built around different forms of crafts and art. There is also a Facebook group for this community under HKC-Take Me Deeper 2015. Logos365 and Take Me Deeper, are the two study groups. With one focusing on choosing your word for the year, and the other focusing on weekly devotionals, both offer a chance to join with a sub group to create something based on Scriptural prompts.

Ok, if I have not lost you, visit the link to His Kingdom (see the sidebar for direct access) and check out the site video. There are so many wonderful videos, and tutorials (paid and unpaid) within the community you may be overwhelmed. Take your time and look around, and feel free to ask them or me for help. Check out the two Facebook groups as well. I want so much for this blog to reflect the arts, and crafts community. I feel God has created artists, and employed them in this world. More to come on that later. Have fun looking at the sites! By the grace of God, I’ll be attempting to create something most weeks of the Take Me Deeper study…

 Warning: Faith Art, Bible Journaling or any other craft in which you work from Biblical prompts, can be life changing.  If nothing else, I can say that participating in the art community and focusing on the  prompts, has caused me to meditate on the Word.  And isn’t that what we are supposed to be doing?