Monday, November 30, 2020

Advent Words Day 2 ~ Hope

 


Day 2: Hope

“We wait in hope for the Lord;
    he is our help and our shield.
In him our hearts rejoice,
    for we trust in his holy name.
May your unfailing love be with us, Lord,
    even as we put our hope in you.”  Psalm 33:20-22

"For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ." Titus 2:11-13

 

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time." 1 Peter 1:3-5

 

The theme of the first week of Advent is hope. Author, Bobby Gross, says the four weeks of Advent, “train us in hopeful waiting”. We read passages in the Old Testament of how the Israelites waited and longed for the Messiah to come and save them. As we wait to celebrate the birth of that Savior, we get in touch during Advent with the same longing and waiting of the Israelites as “we wait for the blessed hope” ~ the second coming of Christ. 

We anticipate a time when we will see God more clearly. A time when we will be fully like the Son – pure and holy – fully transformed. This is “the inheritance kept in heaven”, the “inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade”. This is what we wait and long for.  We wait in hope for the Lord.

Jesus Christ is our living hope, and as we wait for His second coming, we have a call to live now as people of hope ~ “to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age”. This is an active hope.

For God’s people, hope is a promise, not a wish. The foundation of our hope is found in the resurrection of Jesus, giving us confidence that He will do as He promised. Hope helps us live now in expectation of a glorious future. We can live in hope despite trials, pain and suffering, despite pandemics, lockdowns and grief. We live in hope because our hope is living. Our hope is living because it is in the living God!


Share you responses on Instagram using #adventwords2020 or in the Words Art & Faith Challenge group on Facebook.


Sunday, November 29, 2020

Advent Words ~ Day 1:Come

 


Advent Words Day 1: Come

"At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”
Luke 21:27-28

Today is the first day of Advent 2020. The word advent comes from the Latin word 'adventus', which means arrival or coming. Advent has been called "a two-fold gaze"; looking back we remember that Christ has come, while getting in touch with the longing the Israelites had for the promised Messiah. Looking forward we anticipate Christ's promised return, His Second Coming. Then, as now, the cry of Advent is "Come, Lord, Come".

The anticipation of the Israelites, waiting for the Messiah to save them, is our remembrance. We look back on the events leading up to the birth of Christ, celebrating the arrival of the One they had anticipated and longed for. We join in their anticipation and longing as we look ahead, waiting for Christ's return, when our deepest longing to see Him face to face will be fulfilled. Jesus Christ is both Immanuel - God with us now - and the One who promises, "Yes, I am coming soon." (Revelation 22:20)

Advent is a season of waiting, longing, reflecting, and preparing - all based on the hope we have in Christ. Augustine said,
"The whole life of the good Christian is a holy longing. That is our life, to be trained by longing. You do not yet see what you long for, but the very act of desiring prepares you, so that when He comes you may see and be utterly satisfied."

The Advent season is a time to slow down and join with Christ-followers of ages past as we anticipate the Christ's arrival. We, the church, are His bride, and Advent is the time we set aside to prepare for the arrival of our bridegroom, Jesus Christ.

"The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let the one who hears say, “Come!” Let thone who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life...He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon.”

Amen. Come, Lord Jesus." Revelation 22: 17,20

 

Would you like to join the Advent Words Challenge? Here's how:

  • I will post daily Bible study devotions, along with how I responded creatively, on this blog each day beginning today. You can follow this blog by email or there will be daily links to the posts in the Words Challenge Facebook group, which you can join HERE.
  • Respond with whatever creative practice you choose: art journaling, mixed media art, scrapbook, photography, digital art, poetry, creative writing, calligraphy - any way you choose! As you take in the Scripture and devotions into your heart and mind, let it sink even deeper as you practice creatively with your hands.
  • Join the Words Challenge Facebook group where you can share your art and ideas and join the conversation through the Advent season and beyond.  I host a number of Words Challenges throughout the year. 
  • If you belong to the Everyday Journal group/livingyourord2020 that I co-lead with Valerie Sjodin and Bernice Hopper, Advent Words will be our theme for December.
  • Share on Instagram and other social media with the hashtag #adventwords2020.




You can download a printable version HERE





Thursday, November 26, 2020

Prepping For Advent And Beyond

 Prepping For Advent And Beyond

I finally finished my journal for this year's Advent Words challenge. It's actually the second one I made. The first was made with old book covers and a few signatures, but it just wasn't going together right. So I put it aside and started over with a simple one signature pamphlet journal. I covered the pages with painted papers and some patterned papers. I decided to number my pages this year using gold painted paper. I'm ready to begin the challenge on Sunday! Would you like to join me? I will post daily devotions and art to go along with the daily Advent Words. I invite you to respond to the words and Scripture readings with any creative practice you choose. Post on Instagram using #adventwords2020 or in our private Facebook group: Words Art & Faith Challenge Group

This year's Advent Words calendar can be found at the end of this post.








I also added a list of the Advent Words to my Everyday Journal.


For some time I've been thinking about how I want to set up my Everyday Journal for next year. I haven't decided on a word of the year yet, but I did know that I wanted to do something with weekly page spreads. I didn't do much of that type of journaling this year because I just didn't find the right kind of set up. I don't connect much with doing the the planner style or something like a diary. I'm more interested in something like a visual commonplace book. A place where I record quotes I like and passages from books I'm reading and notes from Bible study or sermons, bird watching notes, and notes about things I find when I go thrift shopping, little bits of collage, things I'm grateful -  the things that make up MY life.

So I made a template to use as a guide for laying out my weekly spreads. 



Along with a monthly title page and various pages through out the year about my word of the year, I now have a plan for journaling in 2021. My Leuchtturm journal I used this year is only half full so I'm going to continue using it next year. As journaling and art challenges come up I'll make separate journals for those.



If you choose a word of the year or keep an Everyday Journal I am part of a group of women who share their art and their faith with each other. We supply ideas for helping each other live out our word of the year. Join us! Living Your Word of the Year Facebook Group




Click HERE for a printable version

Saturday, November 7, 2020

Introducing Advent Words 2020

 


In a year where daily change has been the norm, there are some things that do not change, such as calendars. In just a few short weeks the Advent season begins. I, for one, am pleased to have something to focus on that feels familiar and full of hope. I am ready to embrace a season that reminds us that in this time of constant change, Advent helps us focus on what does not change.

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. ~Hebrews 13:8

"He has come and is coming. One day, He will come again." ~Kris Camealy. 

I need this break from the chaos, to take time to slow down and focus on Scripture and art and the promises that the Advent season envelops us in. 

Would you like to join me? Here's how:

  • I will post daily Bible study devotions, along with how I responded creatively, on this blog each day beginning on November 29. You can follow this blog by email or there will be daily links to the posts in the Words Challenge Facebook group
  • Respond with whatever creative practice you choose: art journaling, mixed media art, scrapbook, photography, digital art, poetry, creative writing, calligraphy - any way you choose! As you take in the Scripture and devotions into your heart and mind, let it sink even deeper as you practice creatively with your hands.
  • Join the Words Challenge Facebook group where you can share your art and ideas and join the conversation through the Advent season and beyond.  I host a number of Words Challenges throughout the year. 
  • If you belong to the Everyday Journal group that I co-lead with Valerie Sjodin and Bernice Hopper, Advent Words will be our theme for December.
  • Share on Instagram and other social media with the hashtag #adventwords2020.
  • In the weeks before the Advent season begins reflect and prepare: choose the creative form you will use for your daily practice. Make or buy a journal that fits your creative form.
I, actually have not decided what type of journal I will use this year. But I have made the calendar!




You can download a printable version HERE.