The Amazing Thing about Scripture is that it Is Timeless. It is accurate and relevant more than 2000 years after it was written.
There are times when reading the scriptures and the gospels that I stop and ask why is that happening this way. Has This ever happened to you. There are some things that the scholars are trying to explain but find it difficult if not impossible to explain and prove. Others are relatively simple to explain. Much of the new testament is fairly cut and dried, or is it? The star of Bethlehem is a mystery and probably will always be so. There are many theories and suppositions as to what it could have been, none of which are proven or universally accepted.
For me there are many questions. Two of them are:
1. Why did Herod send troops to kill children from 2 years of age and younger if Jesus was in swaddling clothes?
2. Why is there no record of the deed in historical records?
Interesting enough the answer can be had by knowing the conditions and times that Jesus lived in. First of all is the slowness of transportation at the time, mostly by foot or camel.Until the wise men traveled to Israel, stopped and queried Herod of the birth of Jesus, found Jesus and left Israel without returning to tell Herod what they found and the time it took Herod to realized they would not return, it is most likely that the better part of two years had passed. Jesus could have been more than a year old when the slaughter of the children took place. As to why the deed is not in any records, Bethlehem was only a small village at the time comprising only a thousand or so inhabitants. unlike today, this was not an uncommon occurrence in ancient mid eastern civilization. The deed would not necessarily have been taken note of for a small settlement such as Bethlehem in historical records.
What is my point? Knowing some of the history and living conditions at the time of Jesus brings the reality of the life of Christ into vivid focus and brings better understanding of some of the things Jesus and the others mentioned in the bible said and did. It is not a lessening of the reality of Christ but an enrichment of it. It creates a feeling of being there. It gives an understanding of the conditions and what the purpose of the actions and words were at the time. For me it is astounding that to this day the words of Christ and God are still very much alive. By understanding the reality of the living conditions then it becomes even more wondrous.
After the holidays I need to find out who is still blogging and who is no longer following. At that time I will once again start giving shout outs. Tank you for your patience.
I have two Christmas cards to share with you today. I do not remember whom they were sent to but I know they have been received. They are both created from Stamps Happen stamp company. Sorry I could not find these stamps for sale anywhere so no link is provided. The Company owning the rights is Custom Rubber Stamp Company. Many of the stamps are discontinued.
The Copics used: C2,Y11, Y28, BG18, Y02, E000, E43
The image was fussy cut fastened with Sookwang tape. The halo was tricky. I left a small strip of card stock to connect the images and used a razor knife to cut it off after it was fastened to the card face and silver halo. The silver and the gold for the halo and star were scraps from my stash. The Noel was created in Word, cut out and attached with Sookwang tape. The card face was also scrap from my stash.
The next card does not have a Copic list with it. It was about the time I first started to note the colors used ( Several years ago ). This image is called Angel of Light. Again there is no Image for sale to refer to and is more than likely discontinued.
This was one of the harder images to color because of the fine detail. It was fussy cut and fastened to the card stock with, what else, Sookwang tape. Smile. The Stars and snowflake are Starform glitter stickers. I didn't have a star to use as the star of Bethlehem so a snowflake stick was use to represent it.
A delicate gold "Stamponit" sticker was used at the fold inside the card for a little extra interest. Not very fancy but effective.
That is it for today. I appreciate your stopping by to visit. Have a SAFE Happy New Year. Remember to always Love the Details. See you in 2016. (BOY THAT FEELS STRANGE)
Hope comes in many ways but all give joy to the Spirit and a belief in the possibilities of the future.
These past two months have been a trial by fire in many ways. The loss of my computer. The aggravation of restoring everything that was lost (Yes I religiously back everything up every day), Reloading all of the programs that were on it and dealing with the companies involved and the registrations. That followed with a loss of telephone service and the DSL that was carried over that same line and dealing with a telephone company that for the most part has become insensitive to customer service is disheartening and frustrating. I was beginning to think I was supposed to just give it all up and get off the net. Through the anger, frustration and hopelessness there is the knowledge that Christ has come and defeated our advisary. In this season of remembrance and joy of His birth and the grace he brings to us with forgiveness, He has triumphed and we are the recipients of that gift. I hear of the struggles and trials all around me. There is great strength in humility and steadfast belief in Christ for all who believe in His word and His example. It all began on the day of His birth and carried on for 2000 years.
I have been given a ministry of prayer. There are several hundred in the "One Day At A Time" prayer book and they are prayed for every day. I have also been given a blog to witness and encourage others with. Both are part and parcel of His work. That includes the art and cards that you stop by to see. It has been expressed that the blog is different in many ways. All I can say is Thank You Lord. It is His work, not mine. It is an honor to be back and share as well as encourage those who visit this humble endeavor.
Today I would like to share two cards received. One is an old birthday card from my sister and brother-in-law. It is one of those cards that sing when you open it.
I considered including the sound file from the inside of the card but it is annoying if it plays too long so it is not included.
The sound byte is a LOOOOONNGG single high note. ANNOYING) I thought it was worth a chuckle or two to show the inside and comment.
The next card was just received from Em Fairly from Creative EM.
Thank you Em. You did a beautiful job with the card. My photo is a bit on the yellow side but, in person it is perfect.
That will be it until the cards I created and sent out get to their recipients. Thank you for being patient with me and thank you for your visits. I will be trying to visit as many of you as possible in the next day or two. If I do not get to you, have an exceptionally Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year and remember to always Love The Details.
Just got back online again. Our telephone service has been out since Monday and our internet is intermittent. The internet was out part of today. When I realized it was back I jumped on to let everyone know I will be back to comment and post when it is restored permanently. Thank you for your patience.
Love, Hugs and Blessings to all of you.
Jim
True religion is real living: living with one's soul, with all one's goodness and righteousness.
I love astronomy as many of you already know. The inconceivable vastness our environment is a sobering realization. There are things that will never be known to us. Science may try to unravel the mysteries of "why" and "how" but for every answer there are many more questions that come to the fore. The farthest regions of space can never be seen and every time the smallest of the small is realized something smaller is found. The complete answers will never be known. THAT is the beauty of our Lord. Religion is not something exclusive to any sect or teaching but life itself. The whole of the word of God is a teaching on how to live and the rewards of that journey when we acknowledge the truth found in them. It brings pure humility to know some one so great can create on scales we will never comprehend. The season coming up, Christmas, has many things that defy explanation. Angels, and the Holy Spirit are some things that vex science to this day. Immaculate conception? How is that possible? Hearing voices and no one physically there? Mary must have eaten something that did not agree with her or she was inebriated when those voices came to her to tell her of the Christ child to come! It must have been a coincidence when Joseph was told about Mary, right? Angels and the Holy spirit are VERY real for me and many like me. My doubts were wiped away many years ago. What about you? Do you celebrate Christmas as a holy time or is your Christmas just for the presents? If you are going to celebrate the season then celebrate the only gifts that matter, the birth of Christ and the gift of the Holy Spirit. They bring the gift of forgiveness for all who believe. With them come the healing of mind body and spirit. I assure you these gifts are real.
I have been without a computer for awhile as my old workhorse died. It has been giving me fits for some time. I am now back on line and have come to discover that several of those that I was following have stopped posting and some have even left the blogging scene. Until I figure out how is still around I will not be doing shout outs.
Today I would like to share two "House Mouse" images that I colored. The first is called "Mice Leaf Riding.
The Copic colors used are:
The second image is called "Mice Warm Dreams"
The Copic colors used are:
E41,RV00, E45, E41, E44, C2, C1, C0, C00, C4, B06, B05, B32, B00, Y00, R05
For now, that is my offering. As I get caught up I will post more. I will also visit those of you who are still posting. Thank you one and all who have been so patient with me.
Remember to always Love The Details.
I almost forgot!!! My internet connection has been very spotty lately. One more thing to slow things down. Fun isn't it?
