Sunflower~A~Day 15

Exceeding Abundance.

Now to Him

who is able to do exceedingly abundantly

above all that we ask or think,

according to the power that works in us,

to Him be glory

in the church by Christ Jesus

to all generations

forever and ever.

Amen.

Ephesians 3:20

Sunflower~A~Day 14

"You've been halfway living your life for too long . . .

when it's time to die, go ahead and die,

and when it's time to live, live.

Don't sort-of-maybe live, but live like you're going all out,

like you're not afraid."

~August Boatwright~

from The Secret Life of Bees

by

Sue Monk Kidd

It is good and fitting for one to eat and drink,

and to enjoy the good of all his labor

in which he toils under the sun all the days of his life

which God gives him;

for it is his heritage.

Ecclesiastes 5:18

Live like you mean it.

Now.

When life is good,

enjoy it.

Praise God.

When it is bad,

lean into God.

Praise God.

Gratitude for blessings.

Gratitude for His strength.

Sunflower~A~Day 13

The grass withers,

the flower fades,

but the word of our God

stands forever.

Isaiah 40:8

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~ Linking with Soli Deo Gloria Sisterhood ~

Sunflower~A~Day 12

an excerpt from The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd . . .

"Was your Big Mama the one who taught you to keep bees?"

August took off her glasses and cleaned them on the scarf at her waist.  "She taught me lots more about bees than just how to keep them.  She used to tell me one tall bee tale after another."

I perked up, "Tell me one," I said.

August thumped her finger on her forehead like she was trying to tap one of them off some back shelf in her head.  Then her eyes lit up, and she said, "Well, one time Big Mama told me she went out to the hives on Christmas Eve and heard the bees singing the words of the Christmas story right out of the gospel of Luke."  August started singing then in a humming sort of way, "Mary brought forth her firstborn child and wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in the manger.'"

I giggled.  "Do you think that really happened?"

"Well, yes and no," she said.  "Some things happen in a literal way, Lily.  And then other things, like this one, happen in a not-literal way, but they still happen.  Do you know what I mean?"

I didn't have a clue.  "Not really," I said.

"What I mean is that the bees weren't really singing the words from Luke, but still, if you have the right kind of ears, you can listen to a hive and hear the Christmas story somewhere inside yourself.  You can hear silent things on the other side of the everyday world that nobody else can.  Big Mama had those kind of ears . . . "

*

~

*

 I get that.

I hear that.

This makes me feel like I'm not the only one.

Like hearing those things

is real

is good

is ok.

{I know.  This is just a fiction book.  But I relate.}

This is what I get:

God speaks my language.

He knows each individual language.

Deeper than English, Spanish, Japanese.

He know the language of my individual, unique, authentic heart.

Of your individual, unique, authentic heart.

And if I listen wholeheartedly

He will speak to me.

And if you listen wholeheartedly

He will speak to you.

In the core of your being.

I believe that.

That is when the words jump of the page in my Bible.

And that is when He is speaking to me

through birds, butterflies, stars, flowers, my kids . . .

on the pages of my journal and through paint and pictures . . .

{like August and the bees}.

*~*

That passage reminds me of this:

For since the creation of the world

His invisible attributes are clearly seen,

being understood by the things that are made,

even His eternal power and Godhead,

so that they are without excuse.

Romans 1:20

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~

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Sunflower~A~Day 11

Vincent VanGough ~1890~

"I feel the desire to renew myself,

and try to apologize

for the fact that my pictures are,

after all,

almost

a cry of anguish,

although in

the rustic sunflower

they may symbolize

gratitude."

Vincent VanGough,

"The way to know life is to love many things."

Visit Studio JRU

for Sneak Peeks

into Inspirational Artist/Writer Studios:

Sunflower~A~Day 10

Thus says the LORD:

"Cursed is the man who trusts in man

and makes flesh his strength,

Whose heart departs from the LORD.

For he shall be like a shrub in the desert,

And shall not see when good comes,

But shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness,

In a salt land which is not inhabited.

Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD,

And whose hope is the LORD.

For he shall be like a tree

planted by the waters,

Which spreads out its roots by the river,

And will not fear when heat comes;

But its leaf will be green,

And will not be anxious in the year of drought,

Nor will cease from yielding fruit."

Jeremiah 17:5-8

Sunflower~A~Day 9

For the LORD God is a sun and shield;

The LORD will give grace and glory;

No good thing will He withhold

From those who walk uprightly.

O LORD of hosts,

Blessed is the man who trusts in you!

Psalm 84:11-12

Sunflower~A~Day 8

But seek first the kingdom of God

and His righteousness,

and all these things

shall be added to you.

Therefore

do not worry

about tomorrow,

for tomorrow will worry about its own things.

Matthew 6:33-34

Sunflower~A~Day 7

Jars of Clay:

But we have this treasure in earthen vessels,

that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.

We are hard-pressed on every side,

yet not crushed;

we are perplexed,

but not in despair;

persecuted,

but not forsaken;

struck down,

but not destroyed--

always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus,

that the life of Jesus

also may be manifested in our body.

2 Corinthians 4:7-10

Sunflower-A-Day 6

Therefore we do not lose heart.

Even though our outward man is perishing,

yet the inward man is being renewed day by day.

For our light affliction,

which is but for a moment,

is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory,

while we do not look at the things which are seen,

but at the things which are not seen.

For the things which are seen

are temporary,

but the things

which are not seen are

eternal.

2 Corinthians 4:16-18

Sunflower-A-Day 5

To everything there is a season,

A time for every purpose under heaven:

A time to be born,

And a time to die;

A time to plant,

And a time to pluck what is planted;

A time to kill,

And a time to heal;

A time to break down,

And a time to build up;

A time to weep,

And a time to laugh;

A time to mourn,

And a time to dance;

A time to cast away stones,

And a time to gather stones;

A time to embrace,

And a time to refrain from embracing;

A time to gain,

And a time to lose;

A time to keep,

And a time to throw away;

A time to tear,

And a time to sew;

A time to keep silence,

And a time to speak;

A time to love,

And a time to hate;

A time of war,

And a time of peace.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

Sunflower-A-Day 4

Two are better than one,

Because they have a good reward for their labor.

For if they fall,

one will lift up his companion . . .

Ecclesiastes 4:9-10a

Sunflower-A-Day 3

Through the LORD's mercies

we are not consumed,

Because His compassions fail not.

They are new every morning;

Great is Your faithfulness.

"The LORD is my portion," says my soul,

"Therefore I hope in Him!"

The LORD is good to those who wait for Him,

To the soul who seeks Him.

It is good that one should hope and wait quietly

For the salvation of the LORD.

Lamentations 3:22-26

Sunflower-A-Day 2

"While the earth remains,

Seedtime and harvest,

Cold and heat,

Winter and summer,

And day and night

Shall not cease."

Genesis 8:22

Sunflower~A~Day

Sunshine

on my

shoulders

makes

me

happy.

~

John Denver.

*

To close summer

on my blog

I'll be sharing

a

sunflower

a day

for the rest of August.

Simple

everyday

wild

sunflowers.

Enjoy!

Linking today with Jen

and

so many bloggers

lovin' Jesus.

Soli Deo Gloria Sisterhood

In The Studio ~ New Supplies!

My art "stash"

of supplies has grown recently

"in the studio"

So here's my sneak peek!

A mini-type-set was

A flea market find

for $12.

But my favorites

are from my community.

Irma.

My husband and his friends

grew up with her

as the volunteer librarian,

Bible Club teacher,

and she also gave music lessons.

Although I am loving my Tim Holtz Distress Ink & Crackle Paint

and my heavy body Liquitex acrylics

and the new Stampin' Up Craft Spots,

they cannot compare

to Irma's postage stamps

and US History pictures cut out and filed.

The buttons, paper doilies, and applique designs,

the vintage wallpaper book

from Lushbough's in Sturgis,

I'm guessing early 70's . . .

and kids craft and school books.



I also have a box

of patterns that belonged

to Jeanette B.

my dear friend Neoma's mom

who passed away earlier this year.

And neighbor Ann B.

brought me some finds from a recent auction.

So much meaning and heart

is added to art

that is created with items

that have been held by the hands

of people known and loved.

I have my new art supplies.

But what I really love

is taking things that would otherwise

hide in a box

in an attic

or basement

or maybe even end up

in a fireplace or garbage dump,

and give it a place to shine.

It's kind of like a

resurrection,

redemption,

taking the

old

and

making

it

new.

And that is just

what

my

Lord Jesus

did

for

me.



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Put your wings on!

Erin's 4 year old wisdom:

Every

day

is

an

occasion

for

a girl

to

put her

wings

on.

So, put 'em on girls!

No matter how old.

No matter how hurt.

No matter how afraid.

No matter if there is dirt or mud.

No excuses.

Put on your wings.

~

In Sue Monk Kidd's spiritual memoir,

When the Heart Waits,

she writes,

Most of all,

we have to trust

that our scarred hearts

really do have wings.

~

When I think of "putting on wings"

this is what comes to mind from God's word:

put on the new man {woman} who is

renewed in knowledge

according to the image

of Him who created him {her}.

{Col 3:10}

AND

"Therefore as the elect of God,

holy and beloved,

put on

tender mercies

kindness

humility

meekness

longsuffering {patience}

bearing with one another

forgiveness

. . .

above all

put on

love

the bond

of perfection.

{from Col 3:12-14}

AND this:

be renewed in the spirit of your mind

{ahhh, there is that butterfly metamorphosis!}

and put on the new man {woman}

{wings}

which was created according to God

in true righteousness and holiness.

{He creates our wings, not us}

{He gives us true righteousness & holiness, not us.}.

Oh, Erin,

there is so much that God teaches me

through you

and your

sweet little wings.

Shabbiness Doesn't Matter

Sunflowers are a love of mine.

You'll see them all over

in my photographs

and art.

Of course,

my little sass-a-frass here

is another love.

So great light + spontanaeity = sunflower shots.

One of my favorite quotes

is from

The Velveteen Rabbit:

. . . when you are Real, shabbiness doesn't matter . . .

I so agree.

Be Real

is one of my encouragements

to others

and to myself.

Because I am so imperfect.

And I so despise bull.

I hate putting on a mask of fakeness.

I have done it.

And it just ate away at my heart.

So we are just all about

shabbiness and realness here.

So Erin didn't have her hair brushed

yet for the day.

And her shirt wasn't ironed.

And her fingernail polish was chipped.

And the sunflowers weren't perfect either.

And her toenails weren't polished either.

And I couldn't get a real smile out of her.

And the mosquitoes kept biting so she had to itch her legs.

But it was real.

And shabby.

And it was still overflowing

with

beauty.

I'm so stinking excited about all of the

"likes" I'm getting on my new facebook page

for Jodene Shaw, Mixed Media Art & Photography.

I'd love for you to check it out.

I have not figured out yet how to put the "like" button here on my blog.

But I am working on it.

In the meantime, just type me into the search on facebook,

and I'll come up.

Thanks everyone for the PARTY of encouragement, my friends!

*

Linking with Jen at Soli Deo Gloria Sisterhood

Such a great group of inspiring women

who love Jesus!

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