Pumpkins

 K loves the pumpkin carving/painting tradition at Grandma Cindy's.

Kaelyn drew on the faces and had mom and dad help carve them. Sadly a hungry squirrel ate the face out of one as soon as we set it outside our house. We had one exasperated 5 yr old. Oh well, I'm sure the fuzz ball enjoyed it and luckily we still had one to light up. :)

Hope you have a fun filled night!

Logo Design

While attending college several years ago, we graphic designers were pushed hard on creating logos. It was redo after redo of creating logos. Nothing seemed to make our teacher happy... and then after what seemed like the 100th attempt on making the logo as clean and timeless looking as possible, we finally got his approval, and seriously after that approval you wanted to do a happy dance. Though somewhat hard to see at the time, I am very thankful for that "hard" teacher. I learned the most from him while attending college and I believe my work as a graphic designer shows his teachings. Recently I was given the opportunity to design a logo for the upcoming business, Agilify Group. It was a fun project and led me to look back at just a few other business logos I have designed...

Each logo is made to be unique and "fit" the business. A simple, clean look should give a timeless feel which can then be used for many years to come. If you happen to be interested in having a logo designed, rates range from $50 to $250. You can email me at enduringarts@gmail.com for more information. :)

Monday's Message

 

So do not fear, for I am with you;

do not be dismayed, for I am your God.

I will strengthen you and help you;

I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Isaiah 41:10

 

I am depending on these words... for Him to strengthen me and help me. I am very hopeful that we (me and Him) can get my health turned back around. I am leaning on God to help because I cannot do it alone. Due to my gut being in bad condition, I can no longer eat dairy, wheat, gluten, oats, rice, corn, fructose, sugar of any kind, anything processed, nightshades (tomatoes, potatoes...) plus more. I had given up most of it quite awhile ago, but oats and rice have been hard. I started a new meal plan today, I am excited and hopeful for good things to come. It will take time and I know it won't be easy. One of my prayers is to get better and then help others going through a similar situation to regain their health as well. That is what God wants us to do, help others.

 

“Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food”
―  Hippocrates

House Tour

Just because we love unique details in a home...

Hope some of you gained some interior inspiration.

Have a great weekend!

Establishing Our Steps

Last week some energy returned (thank you God!), so I cleaned out a few areas in the house to move my art studio/print shop to a bigger space. As I was going through things I came across several little papers where I had written bible verses. It is funny how verses hit you differently depending on what you are experiencing at the time. This was one of my favorites I came across...

In their hearts humans plan their course,

but the Lord establishes their steps. Proverbs 16:9

 

Our little family had a good, exciting weekend... we couldn't have planned it better ourselves. :)

Guide Me {mixed media painting}

First of all, thank you to those who read my last post and sent emails and texts of support. It means so much to know you care. I normally don't like to share the not so good things on my blog, but felt like I should in case someone else is going through something similar. I also don't mind the additional prayers. :)

Ok, moving forward, many of you probably remember seeing glimpses of this mixed media painting in progress. It has been finished for awhile but I just got prints made and I'm happy with how they turned out.


{"Guide Me" mixed media painting}

"Guide Me" is another one of my views of not being in control. A sailor cannot control the weather/wind just as we cannot control every aspect of our own lives. At some point in our life we realize (hopefully) that there is a bigger power guiding us. Which direction will you go? Only God knows the answer and your journey continues. Allow your sails to move freely. Yes, I find this extremely difficult to do, but I am to the point where I have no other option. I can't even guide my sails. He is in complete control.

"Be Still & Let God" was another one of my mixed media paintings that had a similar meaning.

The original piece measures 20 inches by 16 inches and was done in graphite and acrylic paint on wood. My dad was an avid Hobie cat racer when I was younger and pretty much always took home the winning trophy. He inspired this painting. :)

 

Prints available in the shop.

Struggling {Health & Faith}

 My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.  2 Corinthians 12:9-10

 

We all have struggles and weaknesses in this imperfect world. There is no way around them. Each person deals with these difficulties differently. Do you turn to the Lord or do you push against Him? For me, God's word is sometimes the only thing I have to give me hope. I'll be totally honest and say I have been very weak lately. My health has been dwindling for awhile now and it is scary. No matter how hard I try and fight it doesn't seem like enough. The only place I can turn to for encouragement is the Bible. I know I have grown so much in the Word since first being diagnosed with Graves Disease, and for that I am thankful. It is crazy to think that some need struggles in their life to make them focus on the Lord. I have always been a believer but I hadn't been one to really study the Word. As my health continues to spiral down I often wonder why? Why God can you not help me get better? We have been attending a new church and I find myself hanging on to so much that is said. One Sunday they showed a video of some of the church's youth kids and they were talking about things that were important to them. I won't forget that one of the girls said that she welcomed brokenness, so she could get to know the Lord better and become closer to Him. Wow! Those words coming from a young girl were so powerful! I can't say I have ever looked forward to difficulties in my life. I want things to go smoothly and easily... who doesn't? But then who will really grow in Christ? Hardships are like a test; do we get mad at God and turn our backs on Him for allowing such awful things to happen to us or loved ones, or do we choose it to be a learning experience and hold on to the hope of His promise that better things are coming, that He is here for us and loving us through the entire journey?

 

 Since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord

Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.  Romans 5:1-5

 

It is so hard to rejoice during times of suffering, but I know there is so much growth that is happening because of it. I am working on focusing on the hope. The hope keeps me going.

 

What helps you get through struggles in your life?