Pages

Followers

Tuesday, April 15, 2014

April 16, 2014 Strength

I love you, O Lord, My strength.   Psalms 18

 

 Since this is the post before my Easter post I will keep it short. For us as Christians this is a joyous time of the year. The fact that Christ went though a great deal of mental anguish and struggled with his fate should give us strength and courage to face what we must. He did have a choice, as we do, to do God's will and receive the ultimate reward or not. Our trials are the building of our strength and of our resolve to follow Him. His call to us is no different than that which he faced. Our walk is in faith just as His was. His love for us is our strength to go forward and the shield that goes before us to protect and preserve us in all that we must face. What is required? 1 John 4:7-10 "My dear friends, let us love one another, since love is from God and everyone who loves is a child of God and knows God. Whoever fails to love does not know God, because God is love. This is the revelation of God’s love for us, that God sent his only Son into the world that we might have life through him."
The New Jerusalem Bible. (1985). (1 Jn 4:7–9). New York: Doubleday.


Had He chosen to do other than the Father's will we would have no hope. 

 That brings us to the card for today's post.



This was the first aperture card for me. The card itself is a 4 1/4" X 5" card. I cut a 1 5/8" hole in the upper left hand corner with Martha Stewart's Circle Cutter. I cut a matching disk from Glitzy Glitter Premium pack paper. I also punched an edging strip 3/4" wide with the Martha Stewart Swirling Lace edge punch that was part of a goody package from Grace at Th-INK-ing of You. I trimmed 1/2" from the right edge then used 1/4" Express IT tape to attach the swirling lace edge to the card. The same tape was used to fasten the disk inside the card and within the circle as shown.


A cross from Memory Big Ideas which has its own foam adhesive backing was place in the center of the disk so that when the card is closed it will look like this.


The ivy was stamped around the window using Rubber Tapestry Stamps to add interest. The image is from Our Daily Bread, "Children of God", and was colored with Copics. The colors used are E57, E59, C2, B16, B18, E11, E41, RV0000, E84, W1, W4 and E77. The image was fussy cut and attached to the card using small foam glue dots. This provided a low profile dimension to the image.

Originally I stamped a sentiment with an Our Daily Bread sentiment but it did not fit the card at all. We have few sentiment stamps of the proper size and configuration. The sentiment is computer generated in Microsoft Word.  It reflects the passage in the comments section of this post. I included an alpha symbol on top and an omega symbol on the bottom to help cover the stamped sentiment underneath. The symbols are also appropriate in that  they represent the beginning and the end.

That is it everybody. Just one card today. Friday I will post my special creation for the Easter weekend. It is done and it was a challenge. It does not look as good in photographs but I is striking. I will see you then....Hold on.... How can I see you when you aren't here? We will talk then? We will share then? Oh well! I will be there. Hope you visit and comment. Until then Do like I do and LOVE THE DETAILS.

29 comments:

  1. What a wonderful message and an equally wonderful aperture card. That is quite the glitzy glitter paper but it really works well in this card. I like how you saved the greeting once you realized the first one wouldn't work.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Jim, this is sensational! I love the image and your beautiful coloring on it and the way you did the cross in the circle window. So very lovely.
    Hope you and Jill have a beautiful Easter.
    Lynn

    ReplyDelete
  3. A beautiful creation! I really like the vine over and partially around the cross. God is Love is a wonderful reminder for the upcoming Easter....or, any other time. Wonderful post.

    ReplyDelete
  4. A beautiful card in every way. Design, image, sentiment, just lovely.
    Chris
    x

    ReplyDelete
  5. This is so beautifully put together! I love the gold glitter paper, and the ivy is so scrummy.
    And now you've gone and reminded me I've not made an aperture card in at least a year! I guess that's something I'll have to rectify in the very near future.
    If I don't manage to stop by before, have a wonderful Easter. x

    ReplyDelete
  6. Before I forget to comment...Again, I am impressed with your creative card making. I like how you came up with the idea of putting an aperature on the front for the cross. Great stamping, and coloring, and design.

    ReplyDelete
  7. This is so beautiful, I love this image which you have coloured perfectly, and i like the design of the card with the cross and the ivy. Beautiful!!
    Kevin

    ReplyDelete
  8. Beautiful card and stamping, lovely words too. I hope you have a wonderful Easter
    Vic x

    ReplyDelete
  9. Wonderful card - and thank you for your thoughts - you always give me a different point of view to ponder, which I love.
    Blessings
    Maxine

    ReplyDelete
  10. wow, what a beautiful card. Love how you used the cork too. Great post.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Hi Jim,you made a lovely job of this card ;)I like how you have placed the cross inside for added interest.
    Nessa x

    ReplyDelete
  12. Enjoyed this post immensely. Had just read an email describing explicit details of the suffering on the cross, and how seldom can our tiny minds realize just how cruelly painful that suffering was. Made me shudder & cringe just to read it, as usually we don't give a lot of thought to the actual physical cruelty that He underwent for us. Had He chosen not to say "Not My will, but Thine" - knowing what was coming, we would be truly lost. What a powerful gift & such love. So this was good to see just after that particular email. Loved your card. Great use of the stamped image, and liked your cut out around that pretty cross & the stamping embellishment. Great way to add the sentiment, with the alpha & omega symbols with the sentiment. Good for you in finding the symbols in Word too! TFS & hope all is going ok. Happy Easter.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Jim - I always enjoy your thoughtful mediations on spiritual truths. We would do anything rather than choose to suffer, so His choice is truly amazing. Your card is beautiful - this was the first Bible verse I learned as a little child - God is Love. Fifty yeares later, it's the foundational truth of my life! I especially love the white space which emphasizes everything else. Thanks for including the photos of how you did it! Wishing you and Jill a very meaningful Easter as you celebrate the hope and joy His death and resurrection has won for us!

    ReplyDelete
  14. You really put a lot of work and thought into this, Jim, and it's very lovely. Fantastic job making an aperture card! With company here, I may not see you Friday, so I will wish you a Happy Easter now! Hugs, Darnell

    ReplyDelete
  15. Oh, Jim, this is a beautiful post about Easter and what a wonderful time to celebrate the resurrection of our Savior Jesus and remember the price He paid for us! I love your first aperture card, and you've done a wonderful job on it! So glad you've joined us this week for the ODBD Shining the Light challenge! Hugs!

    ReplyDelete
  16. What a wonderful pre-Easter post, Jim! Love this image and the aperture with the holly around it that shows off the cross so beautifully! Great save on the sentiment! I look forward to your Easter post!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Your card is beautiful with the details and gold sparkle! Very pretty for Easter!

    ReplyDelete
  18. A beautiful post about Easter and it's true meaning. Your card is beautifully done as well.

    ReplyDelete
  19. This is such a beautiful card. Your image with Christ with the children is so precious, and your gold accents are really stunning and highlight this design so well! I hope you have a very blessed Easter!

    ReplyDelete
  20. Nice! I really like the vine around the outside of the circle. I've got some Rubber Tapestry Stamps in my drawer that I haven't used in ages. You've inspired me to go see what I have and maybe put them to use. Happy Easter!

    ReplyDelete
  21. What a beautiful card!! Love the image! Thanks for sharing your faith wit us. Happy Easter!!

    ReplyDelete
  22. A wopnderful pre-Easter post Jim! And a beautiful card!

    ReplyDelete
  23. Fabulous card Jim really stunning huggles Sue x

    ReplyDelete
  24. This is beautiful! Hoping you and Jill have a wonderful Easter.

    ReplyDelete
  25. I LOVE the DETAILS!!! This is beautiful! I love your alpha and omega sentiment! I will be honest a lot of Easter's have passed me by in the past few years without me giving extra attention to it. My husband's days off rotate so he isn't off on a lot of Sundays and very few Easter's over the past 20 years so.....I have just let it go by. When the kids were younger we would do an Easter egg hunt with plastic eggs filled with symbols of the Easter story. A wonderful way to tell the story for young children but as the years have passed we haven't done much. This year though, it feels very significant to my heart. I am not sure how to set Good Friday apart with my family but I have my thinking cap on. I want tomorrow evening to have a moment of remembrance for us all. Thanks for sharing your beautiful card!!!

    ReplyDelete
  26. This is such a beautiful Easter Card, Jim!! I love the Jesus image and your addition of texture. The glitter paper and the cross are a beautiful touch!! Thanks for sharing it with us at ODBD. A beautifully written post!!! Have a blessed Easter!!

    ReplyDelete
  27. Love the cross and how you did it so it sees through on the front. I also really love that Ivy and it does add interest. Still absolutely love your posts! You are so on the right track with everything. Hope to meet you and Jill in person one day! Hugz!

    ReplyDelete
  28. A beautiful card celebrating the love of Jesus as well as your powerful written words! Love the cross, the ivy, textures and esp the image! Thanks for Shining the Light celebrating Easter with us at ODBD!

    ReplyDelete
  29. This is beautiful! I saw you were a winner! Congratulations!
    I really love this awesome creation! Great message too!

    ReplyDelete

All comments are moderated. SALES, ADVERTISEMENTS OF ANY KIND, OBJECTIONABLE LANGUAGE OF ANY KIND WILL BE DELETED. Thank You to those who spend a few moments to comment. It is much appreciated. I will try to return your comment by commenting on your blog. For me to do so you must make your comment window a popup window. Thanks.