Cast Your Cares on Jesus

Sometimes we face hardships that weigh us down physically and spiritually. We become anxious and worry to such an extent we can’t see the end from the beginning. This needs not be so! God is standing by waiting for us to call on Him, to give it all over to Him because He knows we cannot handle it on our own.

Why don’t we, then? Because we lack faith or we are fearful to muster it up and activate it. The Bible describes having faith as the, “...assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”—Hebrews 11:1. The other side of the coin of faith is fear which can be described as having the assurance or confidence that something bad is going to happen. How do we counter fear? We begin by changing our thoughts and affirming that fear, anxiety, and worry have no power over us because God’s Spirit dwells within us and we have love, power, and self-control; by, “casting all our care upon Him, for He cares for us.”—I Peter 5:7. Once we do this, “Then we will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard our hearts and minds as we live in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:7.

Here is a card I made using watercolors. I learned this technique from Tiare Smith, a Mixed media artist, and blogger who encouraged me to give my creativity wings. I made the original version in a sketchbook (see below) and decided to try it on a card.

Sketchbook Version

Card

I am also trying to really carve out time to do Bible Journaling more frequently. I spend time on Sunday afternoons watching Sandy Allnock's YouTube Bible Journaling lessons or following Rebekah R. Jones' techniques. Here's some of what I've been inspired to journal so far.

Exodus 15:20-21

Jeremiah 30:1-2

1 Peter 5:8

Psalm 84:11

Matthew 25:35

Women History Month - Mixed Media Art

I come from a family where women abound. My mother had nine children, seven of which are women (the guys were outnumbered - sorry brothers)! Because of this, you will see women featured in my work.

In my journey as an artist, I’ve been inspired to make women the focus of my art. Most of these have been put together on my computer and cut from cardstock, then embellished with fabric and other ítems. I put a lot of thought in creating these images to represent women, especially women of color.

Here are some of my latest creations:

I Am Not My Hair

She Is Bold

Every Woman Is A Queen

A Black Queen's Beauty Shines from Within

When Motivated Women Get Together

Even though I focus on women doesn't mean that men are left out, so here is this solo player:

Blessed Is the Man Who Trusts in the Lord

Living Life on Purpose - Part 1

What is purpose? As a noun, purpose means "the reason for which something is done, is created or for which it exists." As a verb, it signifies 'what one has as an intention or objective' (i.e., aim, plan, design, etc.)

Most Christians ask or are seeking to find out why God created them, to what aim and for what purpose. Some believe that being saved means having a place in eternity. This is not the case, however. We have been saved to be living witnesses to Jesus Christ! We are on this earth for a reason. God created us on purpose (verb) for a purpose (noun). He deliberately made us and planned for us. Jeremiah 29:11 states, "For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope." His intentions for us were clear from the beginning (Genesis 1:26:28).

As stated earlier, we tend to ask what is our purpose, why God made us. The reality is that we should be asking what God's purpose is for us. God has blessed each and every one of us with gifts and talents to be used to accomplish His will for our lives: to be witnesses for Him. The gifts and talents we have are to be used as platforms to give glory to His name. For example, I love to create visual graphics with inspirational, motivational, or scriptural messages. I do this during my devotional time because as a visual person, I feel I can use these images to draw others to the work of God. Other types of gifts include leadership skills, giving, hospitality, administration, and so forth. All of these are natural born gifts to be used for God's glory.

There is so much to share about living life on purpose. I will continue with this topic in my next post. In the meantime, here is my latest inspired piece. It is a mixed media art on canvas, "When motivated women get together amazing things can happen." Enjoy!