This week at church we looked at Scripture from James 1:2-4, and it rang true that we are tested and tried by many things as we grow.   In hard times I am reminded that this life is temporary, and trains us in many difficult things, and I wonder what will become of me.  The seasons pass and the wind blows hot or cold,  storms rage and the sun rises and sets, and if this is all there is, I am at the mercy of the wind to blow me where it will.

But in Christ, we have a longer perspective, and having weathered the years, accepted the discipline and persevered in patience, we will be led into wholeness.

James 1:2-4 says this;

²My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;

³Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.

⁴But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.

Looking up some of the words gave even more depth to the scripture.

From verse 2:

count – thoroughly explain, account

all – the parts which make up the whole, and the whole which is made up of the parts

joy – gladness of heart

temptations – testing

From verse 3:

trying – a means of proving

faith – confidence in the gospel

patience – hope

From verse 4:

have – wear

perfect – purpose

work – result

entire – whole like the perfection before the fall

nothing – not even one, no matter what

My prayer might go like this.

Dear friends,  account and thoroughly explain every bit of gladness in your heart when you are tested by things from within and without, because your confidence in the gospel of Christ is proven in hard times and will result in hope.  Wear hope and let its purpose make you whole through its work, with the result of leaving you not wanting for even one little thing.

When you’re in a storm, look up, you can weather it, and your trunk will grow strong and your branches will reach wide, having become mature.  Ephesians 4:13 says the body of Christ may be built up ‘until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ’.

That’s why the big oak got my attention.  Its full, broad branches reaching to the sky spoke of patience, hope and fulfilling of its purpose, through all types of weather, in the passing of many seasons, to become what it was intended to be from the beginning.

Continue on dear friends, and grow strong and tall, reaching wide until your heart is full, not wanting even one more little thing.  Then you will have become mature.  May God bless your growth.

Feb 13th – Feb 19th

There seems to be a theme this week – food & babies : )

3 gifts found behind a door today:

130. the baking cupboard smells like vanilla……love it!

131. birdnest meringues for Small Group tonight with fresh fruit and real whipped cream

132. Friends at church tonight

3 ways you feel the love of God:

133-135. Dropping Red Velvet cupcakes to our three kid’s families on Valentine’s Day.  Thank you Lord for all of them.

(Wish my frosting looked this good!)

136. a gift in losing something – sometimes when you lose your way, you get to explore new territory

137. a gift in finding something – help for the one I love

138. a gift in making something – the best of hard things

3 gifts in shadows:

139. a couple of hours of quiet at a friends home

140. a baby hidden in the shadows of its moms womb, Number 4!

141. knitting a baby blanket in the quiet of dusk for another’s # 1

3 gifts found giving/serving:

142. hope for a seemingly hopeless situation

143. a new plan of attack

144. a person of integrity in a fallen world

3 gifts on paper:

145. The reassuring words of King David in Psalm 35 – remember whose the battle is.

¹ Contend, LORD, with those who contend with me; fight against those who fight against me.
² Take up shield and armor; arise and come to my aid.

¹⁵ But when I stumbled, they gathered in glee; assailants gathered against me without my knowledge. They slandered me without ceasing.
¹⁶ Like the ungodly they maliciously mocked; they gnashed their teeth at me.

²² LORD, you have seen this; do not be silent. Do not be far from me, Lord.
²³ Awake, and rise to my defense! Contend for me, my God and Lord.
²⁴ Vindicate me in your righteousness, LORD my God; do not let them gloat over me.
²⁵ Do not let them think, “Aha, just what we wanted!” or say, “We have swallowed him up.”

²⁶ May all who gloat over my distress be put to shame and confusion; may all who exalt themselves over me be clothed with shame and disgrace.
²⁷ May those who delight in my vindication shout for joy and gladness; may they always say, “The LORD be exalted, who delights in the well-being of his servant.”

²⁸ My tongue will proclaim your righteousness, your praises all day long.

146. Kirsten’s new print; In Him All Things Hold Together

Kirsten Malcolm Berry is one of the exceptional artists at Vine & Branches Gallery.  Her work may be purchased at vbgallery.com

147. finding this sweater that I will have to knit on the Interweave site.  Isn’t it wonderful?

3 gifts that were ‘Plan B’s:

148. Taking a walk across the frozen lake instead of a nap – a much better plan

149. Making healthy (flax seed, protein powder, raisens, nuts, oatmeal) cookies instead of chocolate chips

150. Sometimes I think I know Plan A, and B, and C, but God shows me they are not even close.  After He allows me to try my plans in faith, he redeems them with what’s best for me and I learn.  So my plans are really Plan B, and I will be shown what Plan A is by God when He is ready.

My take away?  Don’t confuse my plans with God’s purposes.  He knows best and His Plan is always Plan A, even if it comes after my plans.

But the plans of the LORD stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations.

Psalm 33:11

²⁰ Listen to advice and accept discipline,
and at the end you will be counted among the wise.

²¹ Many are the plans in a person’s heart,
but it is the LORD’s purpose that prevails.

Proverbs 19:20-22

Thanks for stopping by!  Praying you have a week of God’s blessings ahead.  If you start counting today, you too will be encouraged by the application of this simple discipline of thankfulness, eucharisteo.  Click on the link pictured below to get started.

Blessings abound,

Laurie

{images:Laurie Ashbach}

Feb 6th – Feb 12th

If you haven’t started counting your gifts, it’s never too late.  Join Ann from a holy experience and count with the community of faith that gathers each Monday to give thanks.  You’ll be blessed!  All you need to do is click on the button above and search for joy dare to find your printable list – February’s Joy Dare: capture these gifts.

This week my search led me to these gifts…..

3 gifts found outside:

109. feather

110. the birdbath

111. the frozen pond

3 gifts red:

112. Red jacket hanging in the staircase

113. Happy Anniversary!  37 years

114. gorgeous red paper

115. a gift broken – my 3 needle bind off is not working!  What’s wrong?

116. a gift fixed – the drain

117. a gift thrifted -25% off yarn for 2 baby blankets with yarn receipts at Sheephy Yarn Shoppe – yippie!

3 gifts that were surprises – unexpected grace!

118. 3 free  bagels from Brueggers Birthday Bash…yumm

119. Mae’s thankfulness that shelves she got from our remodel 20+ years ago are still in loving use.

120. Paella dinner at the kids house

3 times you heard laughter today

121. We are going forward!

122. Pinterest giggles over this picture with Leslie

They….can’t….see….me…..hold….still…

Here’s the link – http://inothernews.tumblr.com/post/7042760396/a-damselfly-peeks-from-behind-a-stalk-of-grass-in

123. Loving laughing Johnnie

3 gifts found in working:

124. clean sheets on the bed

125. a sparkling bathroom

126. my purpose being fulfilled more every week

3 hard eucharisteos:

127. being in the ‘waiting room’ requires a lot of faith

128. fasting from ‘things’ strengthens faith, by building only on the foundation of Christ

129. what is best for us is not always what we want, and it’s often harder than we thought

By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as a wise builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should build with care.  For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.  If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw,  their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work.  If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward.  If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved—even though only as one escaping through the flames.

1 Corinthians 3:10 – 15

Building quietly,

Laurie

Blessings to you this weekend,

Laurie

{images:Laurie Ashbach}

This week a surprise opened inside, as three of my orchids bloomed.  With all the icy whiteness outside it was such a contrast to see the blushing pinks of the tropical flower quietly open its petals.  The big orchid had not bloomed for at least a dozen years.  Summers it would reside on the north deck outside, lucky to get watered.  Winters it would come inside and be equally ignored as it sat on the laundry room floor.  One day a new stem emerged and a few weeks later….. another breathtaking miracle.

“The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands.  And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else.

Acts 17:24-25

May God take your breath away in seeing or experiencing His beauty this weekend!  See you soon with more from the little blooming orchids.

Gifts abound,

Laurie

{images:Laurie Ashbach}

Jan 30th – Feb 5th

In case you don’t know what this list is about, you may want to check out this post, The Joy Dare 2012, Week 1, and start counting your gifts today!  This counting, this thanks, is changing me…..and giving peace.

3 old things seen new

88. The Word of God

89. Jesus, every day

90. amazing grace

91. a gift found on a paper – The Beatitudes from the St. John’s Bible

92. a gift found in a person – a good listener

93. a gift found in a picture- my digital MetalSmith is here : )

94. a gift found at 11:30am- a large skim latte .50 off with my own mug, on the way to knitting clinic

95. a gift found at 2:30pm – a quiet drive home

96. and a gift found at 6:30pm – ahhh….time to relax

3 things overheard today, all gifts

97. it was like a flashing light, 140 beats/min

98. birthday thankfulness with highs and lows

99. helping someone who said, “I have a fevo of a hundred and fwree”

3 gifts found in writing

100. a merger verified

101. a document signed

102. clues unraveled in the Winter Carnival Treasure Hunt

3 gifts found when bent down

103. Miss Reagan

104. The Jackman

105. Johnnie!

106. one gift stitched – a purple afghan square

107. one gift hammered – my series of initials

108. one gift woven – my lap quilt for knitting and Bible Study in my favorite chair

Make all of your days count!

Laurie

{images: Laurie Ashbach}

Who gives birth to the frost from the heavens
when the waters become hard as stone,
when the surface of the deep is frozen?

Job 38:29b-30

Jan 24th – 29th

3 things blue:

70. blueberries in my smoothie

71. Blue on the St. John’s Bible print

72. blue gemstones;  iolite, aquamarine, swiss blue topaz

73. a grace borrowed - a quiet and safe place to go

74. a grace found - knitting friends

75. one grace inherited – carafe

76. one gift before nine am - mmmmm…morning coffee

77. gift before noon - truth from BSF lesson on Acts of the Apostles

78. a gift after dark - holding hands

3 gifts that might never have been:

79. a KTIS friend

80. a connection with someone else’s loss 30 years ago in ‘Becoming a Servant of God’ seminar

81. a deepening faith

3 graces found in your friends:

82. a praying friend

83. a generous friend

84. three laughing friends

85. a song heard – Great I Am

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGv5d8EE34k

86. a soft word – did that help grandma?

87. where you saw light – from Ann’s blog,

simply take the time to

quietly

unfold

into all His light…

http://www.aholyexperience.com/2012/01/weekends-are-for-unfolding/

Thanks friends for counting gifts along with me, and thanks to Ann who gave us this list.  I feel like I’m on a spiritual treasure hunt every day.  What a gift!  See you all next week.

Laurie

how much more did God’s grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many!

Romans 15:5

Nestled on an island at Northwestern College lies a tiny gothic inspired chapel.  It has a serene quality, and above the door is a beautiful glass mosaic in vibrant blues, golds, browns and greens depicting the archangel Gabriel.

In his hands is a banner that reads, REGINA ANGELORUM ORA PRO NOBIS, when translated from Latin reads, “Queen of the angels, pray for us”.

From every angle this chapel is little jewel in the woods, just waiting to be appreciated.  Wishing for you, a peaceful weekend.

Laurie

{images:Laurie Ashbach}

It made sense for Arise Designs to focus in on a few avenues like handmade, a fresh perspective, a personal touch, meaningful words, the Bible (since most of my work is inspired by faith), and on things I love, like nature and color.  Not wanting to look like a jewelry store, bead store or craft fair, but rather like a quality catalog showing creative handmade product and fresh ideas.  So the hunt began for props which would bring this vision to life.  It was an adventure as items were collected and I practiced learning how to see through the camera, and how to capture the essence of my pieces.  What an invigorating creative and learning process, and so much more in depth than anticipated.  During this exercise I learned what ignited more energy and what did not work, as each step of the process helped inform the next, and the decision making process progressed.

Click on Downtown Photo Shoot to see how many of the materials above were used for the rotating photo’s which will be on the Arise Designs home page.

That’s all for now, but next post I’ll be back with Arise Designs: Content & Look.  Until then, have a creative week and allow yourself time to ask questions, seek answers and find your style, no matter what your area of interests are.  Explore your passion and be original!

{images: Laurie Ashbach}