Saturday Sneak Peek - watercolors

abstract wisteria - it is looking good in real life.

I so need a new camera - these colors look muddy, but in real life they aren't!  The greens aren't yellow and there is just a nice light blue wash - not gray, and not pastel blue...

Blending practice

Still not a great image - I don't understand why the camera is graying the pictures so and am not going to take the time to adjust!  But I hope you enjoy anyway...

Where God's Love Leads...Looking at 2 Timothy 3:16-17 (part 4)

Another Monday post on Thursday {smiling}...

 Continuing the series that shows that "repentance" and being led into repentance is truly a 

love language...

love inspired...

love encompassed...

      

activity

  All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for
...training in righteousness...(RSV)

A brief review of different translations:

training in righteousness - NASB, NIV, ESV

instruction in righteousness - KJV, Darby, WEB, HCSB, Jubilee Bible

instruct in justice - Douay-Rheims Bible

instruction in right doing - Weymouth Bible

instruction that is in righteousness - Young's Literal Translation

for direction and for a course in righteousness - Aramaic Bible in Plain English

teaches us to do what is right - NLT

All these ideas are  rendered from a phrase "paideia en dekaiosyne" which means: 

 paideia:

1.  the whole training and education of children (which relates to the cultivation of mind and morals, and employs for this purpose now commands and admonitions, now reproof and punishment) It also includes the training and care of the body

2.  whatever in adults also cultivates the soul, esp. by correcting mistakes and curbing passions.

         en = in

dekaiosyne:

1.  In a broad sense: state of him who is as he ought to be,

2. righteousness, the condition acceptable to God

Sometimes, when we have had harsh "discipline" in our lives, we read this as using the Bible "as a hammer"...

but if reproof is the x-ray and correction is setting the broken bone or healing the injury, then we can think of training in righteousness as a time of physical therapy, in which the injured part is strengthened and brought back to its original functionality, or even better than original!  And that is consistent with the nature of God; the One Who sent His only begotten Son to die on a cross for us!  He doesn't leave us to figure this out on our own, or sit in judgement on our frailty, but along with the provision for eternal life, He provides for our walking through this life in His light as well!

I will not leave you as orphans

He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—

how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 

He knows we are but grass

He has given us all things that pertain to life and Godliness...

Who can separate us from His love?  There is no one and no thing!

waiting for the Master...

When we need a touch of the Master...

we wait patiently, 

to be an instrument in His skilled hand...

Processed with Kim Klassen's 1402 set

This old violin is part of my husband's family...
and this week I have been thinking a bit about this old poem/song myself:

The Touch of the Master's Hand

'Twas battered and scarred, and the auctioneer
      Thought it scarcely worth his while
To waste much time on the old violin,
      But held it up with a smile.
"What am I bidden, good folks," he cried,
    "Who'll start the bidding for me?"
"A dollar, a dollar. Then two! Only two?
      Two dollars, and who'll make it three?"

"Three dollars, once; three dollars, twice;
      Going for three…" But no,
From the room, far back, a grey-haired man
      Came forward and picked up the bow;
Then wiping the dust from the old violin,
      And tightening the loosened strings,
He played a melody pure and sweet,
      As a caroling angel sings.

The music ceased, and the auctioneer,
      With a voice that was quiet and low,
Said: "What am I bid for the old violin?"
      And he held it up with the bow.
"A thousand dollars, and who'll make it two?
      Two thousand! And who'll make it three?
Three thousand, once; three thousand, twice,
    And going and gone," said he.

The people cheered, but some of them cried,
    "We do not quite understand.
What changed its worth?" Swift came the reply:
    "The touch of the Master's hand."
And many a man with life out of tune,
      And battered and scarred with sin,
Is auctioned cheap to the thoughtless crowd
      Much like the old violin.

A "mess of pottage," a glass of wine,
    A game — and he travels on.
He is "going" once, and "going" twice,
    He's "going" and almost "gone."
But the Master comes, and the foolish crowd
    Never can quite understand
The worth of a soul and the change that is wrought
    By the touch of the Master's hand.

Author Notes

Myra Welch would say that she heard a speaker address a group of students on the power of God to bring out the best in people. She said she herself became filled with light and that “Touch of the Master’s Hand” was written in 30 minutes!.
The finished poem was sent anonymously to the editor of her local church news bulletin. She felt it was a gift from God and didn’t need her name on it.

I loved watching this video, illustrating the poem and the life of the "Old Violin" :



I really did cry the first time I heard Wayne Watson sing the song:

Exploring Circles - A Shield of Protection - part 5 {Paths to Healing}...

Time for our next installment of exploring circles.  Last time, we explored using circles as containment or as calming...today, we will examine circles as "protection" or "guarding".

Now do NOT think I am moving towards New Age ideology!  I DO NOT think a simple circle can protect or guard you.  I DO NOT think circles have any magical powers in or of themselves, nor do I think drawing a circle around oneself offers protection...in fact, if you are doing that, you are actually opening yourself up to spiritual danger.

Just a quick snap shot - quality isn't very good!

However, I AM talking about this because if you are on the internet and looking for the symbolism of circles, you WILL come across that other terminology and ideology.  What I want to do is to offer some word pictures found in the Bible and reconnect you with the idea of circling prayer that the Church Fathers enjoyed so that when you do come across the dross, you have the true 'mental pictures' coming forward in your mind.

Since the ancients used the circle to symbolize God and His eternal nature, it makes sense that the circle would be employed as the symbol when entreating Him for protection!  I had so much fun finding scriptures that included this idea - the passion of the hearts and spirits of the writers is so evident: 

For You, O LORD, will bless the righteous;

with favor You will surround him as with a shield. 

Psalm 5:12

You are my hiding place; You preserve me from trouble; 

You surround me with songs of deliverance. Selah.  

Psalm 32:7

As the mountains surround Jerusalem, 

So the LORD surrounds His people 

From this time forth and forever.
  Psalm 125:2

loving kindness shall surround him who trusts in Yahweh.

Psalm 32:10

Bring my soul out of prison, that I may give thanks to your name. 

The righteous will surround me, for you will be good to me. 

Psalm 142:7 

Perhaps you can find more?

Please feel free to share them in the comments if you do! 

 

Experimenting with prayer circles asking for His protection - and Caim prayers (more in the next circles post)

End glow -

with a layer of Kim Klassen's "Appreciate" set at soft light...

Top view - with Kim Klassen's "Appreciate" and "Elevate" both set at soft light

I so wish the symbolic meaning of thistles was more positive.  I have loved the royal hues - the purples with blue AND red tints and the backdrop of golds.  There seems to be a quiet regality to them - the proud way the unique blossoms stand erect on their stalks; the crown of thorns on their heads.  Couldn't they be symbolic of Jesus, instead of the curse of sin?

  And as I typed this, I had a flash, an image...Jesus on the cross, 

fully having become sin in order to pay the price of our sin...

crowned with the symbol of the curse...perhaps this is what my spirit sees when 

thistles draw me with their beauty - it is the beauty of His sacrifice...

Joining with others at Texture Tuesday 

Worship for hard times...

A good song as some go through hard times right now...

I can hear the Spirit singing it back into my heart as promises, too...

if viewing in a reader, consider clicking over to the blog to listen...

Where God's Love Leads...Looking at 2 Timothy 3:16-17 (part 3)

A Monday post on Thursday - finally getting a little caught up on the series here {smiling}...

We've been looking at the idea of leading to repentance and love, and how this leading is an act of true grace...

Today we will look at the idea of "correction" as stated in 2 Timothy 3:16 (NASB): 

All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for
...correction...

In the margin of my Bible, I have this note written (from my days studying counseling at Bible College): 

"Correction = a changing activity.  The same word as for setting a broken bone (healing injury)"

In every common Bible translation, the Greek word  ἐπανόρθωσις is rendered "correction" or "to correct" or "correcting".  Only one, Young's Literal Translation, uses a different phrase, and that is "for setting aright".  The short definition in Strong's concordance is: correction, reformation, setting straight (right) again.

It is easier to see this as a gentle action when looking at this word alone, isolating it from the sequence of words in the verse.  When I read it directly after the word "reproof" - and even if I know the real meaning of it - the feeling of chastisement is immediate!  I totally block out the "profitable" adjective, and the truth that teaching and being taught is an incredibly fun activity!  

And when I remember that "reproof" is really "shedding an x-ray beam of light" into my soul, and "correction" is a repairing or a reforming of someplace that has been injured,  I welcome this work of the Word!  (Even if it is a little painful for a brief moment of time...)

I love that thought of "setting right again"!  Sometimes old tapes start playing in my head, and I need to "be set right again".  Maybe another person has spoken unkindly to me, and I need a little "setting right again".  Perhaps my husband hasn't met my personal expectation, and I need a little "setting straight".  Or life is pressing in, bearing down on me and that pushes me out of that place of abiding and I need a course correction. 

God's love and devotion to us are what sends the adjustments we need our way...I am betting that you can remember times when a friend has shared a verse that perfectly lifted your spirits up, maybe even not knowing that you needed it!  Or of times when you turned on the radio or TV and heard just the perfect teaching; or a snippet of song; or a testimony - and God used it to encourage you and get you back on track with Him.  Or you were reading along in a familiar passage of Scripture, and all of a sudden a verse or phrase "leaps off the page" to speak to you in a way you never considered before - addressing the very heart issue that you most needed help with at that moment.  These "course corrections" are as necessary as the little adjustments we constantly make as we drive, to keep our vehicle heading in the right direction and on the proper side of the road.  

Occasionally, the reformation needed, or the setting straight of a broken place, requires the help of a skilled surgeon.    Just as it is almost impossible to set our own bones, so it is that sometimes we need another person to "set straight" the broken places of our souls.  These are the times when we could enlist the service of someone who is more experienced in the ways of the Lord to help us sort out what we need.

But what happens if we find ourselves totally lost, having made some wrong turns and maybe even using an old map (old choices, old habits)?  Well, even then we are not lost to God's love; and that situation is what we will look at next...

Till next time, abundant blessings to you...

Circle love (exploring circles post)...

 I haven't had much time to work on my exploring circles book and posts, but I thought I'd share some of my inspiration photos with you...it looks like life will settle by this weekend, and I should be back with more in depth healing through art prompts...

Clockwise from top left:  A Garland of Gratitude by Jessie Jellicorse on Minted.com; crayon scribbles from a friend;  circle collage by Daisy Yellow; doodles - Anna Pasquale; circles by Rebecca Sower; circle collage by Daisy Yellow; mixed media bird with watercolor bubbles (I cannot find the original website); center - torn paper stack by Andrea Myers

Harvest of Blessing...

Renewed every day - Garment of righteousness #1

I was working on this over the week...and I think of yesterday's word as descriptive of this image...

The background is water color - the dress is acrylic and the little eyelet design at the neckline is some texture medium applied through a doily...of course the watermark will not appear on the painting.  The painting will arrive in a sturdy package and in a protective sleeve.

9" x 12" including a white border

Water color and acrylic on 140 lb. coldpress paper

An invitation into newness...

A print of a series I did on the name of the Lord...

The gentle darkening of the sky signaled the beginning...

A quiet hush,
A quieting of the mind,
                   of the heart,
                   of the spirit...

An invitation to rest.

And in that rest - that relaxing from the external clamor and responsibilities tugging for attention...

His call:

I am here.

I am the here - and the now.

Be present to Me - 

receive from Me the mercy that is new every morning,

the strength that your soul needs,

the newness of a regenerated heart -

Let My love heal the wounds,

the sadness,

the loneliness, 

Let My love fill the empty places.

And where you have wholeness,

Let My love lavish over you

as a fragrance to you and where ever you walk.

And as you rise at the coming dawn,

Let Me clothe you again,

over and over - and over and over

until you think you cannot possibly contain anymore...

My righteousness.

Open your heart to My unquenchable flow of 

 all that pertains to life and godliness,

that you might become partakers of the divine nature...

faith

goodness

knowledge

self-control

perseverance

godliness

brotherly kindness

love.

And when you emerge into this new day

you will find that you are able to rise up 

as on the wings of an eagle.

Enter in to your new day!

© 2014Cindy Fort

 

***************************************************

Today marks the first day of Rosh Hashana, the Jewish new year...rather, it began last evening at sunset.  And as I was meditating on how (in God's mind), the new begins with entering into the evening time, the darkness which leads to rest, I was led into the above word from Him - to me at least, and you who read here were on my heart as well, so I am sharing...

May this new season, this new year in the spirit, be full of abundance for you!

The Secret to Abundance...

Give...

Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, 

pressed down, 

shaken together 

and running over, 

will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. 

Luke 6:38 NIV

I love these Rose of Sharon flowers; I have two bushes that fight for survival in our rocky property, gifts from a good friend.  One produces white blossoms and one produces...this!  And when it is time to bloom, their meager scratched and clawed existence does not hold back the bounty they are destined to give - look at the pollen!  The bees are drunk this time of year...

Processed with one layer of Kim Klassen's "The Veil" at softlight blend mode...

Other beautiful images can be found here, at Kim's Texture Tuesday link up...