Tuesday, December 31, 2013

The Butterfly Glorifies God

 

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No matter how hard I try I just can’t get away from the “butterfly”.  I really wish I was one I think.  I am 99 % sure that every one would have to agree, butterflies are beautiful.

Most of all the process of metamorphosis is amazing.  Ever since I became a Christian I always think of metamorphosis when I think of the change that takes place in an individual when they accept Gods invitation to come into their lives.

We are born as humans learning all about the world, people, relationships, rules and regulations, acceptable and unacceptable behavior just as the caterpillar is crawling around.  We get our education and hopefully we have someone who cares enough about us to introduce us to God’s Word.  But even if we don’t, He has a plan.  People who have never even read the Bible have been known to accept Him as their Lord and Savior.  What a Wonderful Holy Spirit.

But as we begin that turn in our spiritual lives, the caterpillar is spinning that cocoon around itself and we are spinning round and round with decisions as God begins to deal with us to reach us, offering us His Love and Freedom. 

Upon opening the cocoon from certain death if the caterpillar stayed there or excepting Christ as our Savior in comparison we are freed from death and the chains that sin grips us in.  We step out into the same world as a new person, but with so much more potential to become even more beautiful, inside and out.

So upon exiting that cocoon, God gives us wings to fly.  We are free as individuals to work out our own Salvation and free to fly as high as we possibly can for Him, the One who gave His only Son to free us.

And there are so many other ways to compare the metamorphosis process to our Christian lives.  I believe God gave us the butterfly for more reasons than something beautiful to feast our eyes upon.  I believe He gave us the butterfly to help us to understand Him better.                                       

 

The butterfly glorifies God.

 

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Sunday, December 29, 2013

The Uniqueness of God

 

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As I began working on this rose, I knew that my goal was to make it unique somehow.  Which took me to the dictionary to confirm what I already knew about the meaning of the word, “unique”.

I got phrases such as, the only one of it’s kind, special, different from all others.  Of course all these phrases and definitions led me to the conclusion that God is definitely unique.  There are others who have gods that they worship, but there is only One God and He is Unique.

He is unique because He created something from nothing.  No other God has created an earth or a person, a plant or an animal.  Without God Almighty, there would be no other gods for people to worship, for He is the Creator of all things.  He gives us the freedom to choose Him or other things to worship.

He is loving.  He knows that our lives will be full of mistakes, so He gave us a Book and the Holy Spirit to guide us.  Neither of which He holds over our heads to constantly tell us how terrible we are or to threaten to take our heads off if we don’t follow every single word.  But to guide us in love and to show us the need for good and pure things in our lives like, forgiveness for our on sakes.

Think about how unique God’s Word is.  Two people can read the same verse and get two different meanings, two different applications to their individual lives.  Because it is written for us all and we are to work out our on salvation.  We are all at different places in our lives spiritually.

What other God came down from Heaven in human form, died a physical death and rose again, alive.  Only the One and Only, True and Living God could have ever accomplished such a transformation.  That transformation is unique.

How about drug addicts, criminals and others who are in the depths of despair.  God can pull them up out of the pit and change their lives forever.  And from evil, He brings something wonderful out of it all.  Unique.

God was, He is and He will be.  Not another thing or person on this earth can be all of that.  No one can deny, that is uniqueness!

So, I wanted my little flower, even though it seems so insignificant compared to God, to be unique.  Something for your eyes to behold, unlike anything you had ever seen.  Something that would make you stop and wonder what the meaning of it was.  It could say different things to different people.  God takes our lives and makes us beautiful on the inside and it helps us become beautiful on the outside through the helpful and caring deeds we do for others.  The swirly little designs on my flower represent the peaceful, happy inside that glows through the petals to make them even more beautiful than they are already.

                                       

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I’d like to be a rose so beautiful and red,

and every day the sun would shine in my flower bed.

I’d like to be a rose that bud’s in the spring,

to stand up and pose for every living thing.

I’d like to be a witness so beautiful and fed,

and every day God’s love would shine from His Word’s I’d read.

I’d like to be an example for God, as the bird is when it sings,

to spread His love and hope and faith for every living thing.

 

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And the tears?  They are tears of joy!

Monday, December 16, 2013

Paper woven with LOVE


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Such interesting items can be created when the mood, setting and inspiration is just right.  The more natural the ingredients are, the more inspired I am.  This little crafty artwork consists of wood and paper.  There is a bit of wire and a few nails, but the basis is “natural”.  God has given us so much to work with, seems a shame to let it go to waste.  Do you have abilities or talents God has given you?  Do you use them to glorify Him?  What happens to our talents when we don't use them?  I almost let mine slip through my fingers, or I don't know maybe it did slip through my fingers and that is why I am struggling with it so.  Don't let that happen to you.  Realize what you have been given and use it while you have it.  I still keep trying and this is my latest attempt.

You can see through the woven paper, so the wall you hang it on will be the background color behind the woven heart.  The buttons are wood with an acrylic wash of the colors, lilac, green and orange.  Then white polka dots applied with a paint pen.

You may want to recreate it yourself.  Try it, put your own personality into it, use whatever word you would like.  Try putting a butterfly or a peace sign in the middle instead of a heart.  You can do it, it’s simple, here’s how.

You will need:  Check out the products in my store here.
Paper rush
Stretcher strip frame
Natural hemp
Wood buttons
Craft wire
Nails
Glue

Here’s the steps in creating this piece:
Put your stretcher strips together to make the frame.  Put a little glue at the joints.  Paint the front side of the frame with the color you desire using acrylic paint watered down to just tint the wood.

Once dry,  attach strips of paper rush from the top to the bottom of the frame on the backside with nails.
Then attach the strips of paper rush to the back side of the frame on one side with a nail, then weave in and out of the strips that run from the top to the bottom on the frame, then attach to the opposite side with a nail.  Do this until you get the fill you desire.  You might like less than I have in the piece or more.  It’s up to you.

Turn the frame over to see the front side, be careful of the nails.  Use the acrylic colors of your choice watered down, so you will only get a tint of the color and apply to the woven paper rush.

Choose your shape and use wire to apply it to the woven paper rush, wrapping it around the paper rush strips as you go to help it keep it’s shape.  I chose something easy for this first time, a heart.

When you are happy with your shape, use natural hemp to macrame’ using the wire as you inside cord.

Apply paint to your shape, which is the natural hemp.  Keep the paint watered down just to tint the shape outline.
 
Once the shape is complete, use more of the natural hemp to weave in and out of the paper rush inside the shape you have chosen.

To make your word, begin twisting natural hemp around craft wire, clamping the end of the wire over the hemp.  Once you have enough twisted onto the wire to shape your word, clamp the end.
Shape your word and attach to the woven paper rush with small pieces of wire.  If you desire you can also paint your word with the same acrylic colors and watered down technique as you used on the frame, the paper rush and the hemp.

Clip off the excess nail tips on the front of the frame with a wire cutter.

Paint buttons with your choice of acrylic colors watered down.

Using a strong glue, dab a small dot on top of the nails, lay buttons onto the glue spots.
Once dry, you can put little white polka dots on the buttons if you like with a paint pen.

When everything is dry apply a hanger to the back of the frame and you have a wonderful gift or a new piece to hang in your own home.

See what all you can do with this artsy craft.  I’d love to see what you do.

Here are some different views of this piece.  If you don’t like the open air look with out anything behind your weaving, you could put fabric, cardboard or even colored matte board behind it.  Use your imagination.


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Hope you enjoy making this.  Happy artsy crafting!