Jesus Calling - July 23

"Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven." - Matthew 5:16

It is frighteningly easy to get caught up in the darkness of this world. Your time with God each day is a beautiful way to refocus on the light, fill yourself with God's fire, so you can go share it with the world.

For today's craft, I would suggest you incorporate candles. My favorite candle craft involves using candle decorating wax to personalize any plain candle. You can then use your candles during your devotional time or give them away to someone who might appreciate a little more light in their life.

I like to use Stockmar Candle Decorating Wax sheets. You can cut them into shapes to stick on a candle. Another technique is to warm the wax with your fingers to mold it or smear it onto the candle for a unique effect. I have had my wax sheets for nearly 20 years and they still work, as demonstrated at the base of this taper candle. I recommend starting with a small candle and a tiny pinch of wax to get a feel for the medium. A little goes a long way. You can later move on to bigger candles if desired. I used this same box of wax to decorate the unity candle for our wedding 18 years ago!

Still plenty of wax after all these years

Our unity candle has fewer nicks and dents than our marriage :)

Jesus Calling - July 9

"Listen for my voice" is the theme today in Jesus Calling. Today we took some peaceful time to sit with God's voice. To really focus on his words and let them become our own. We chose to meditate on Love and what God intends for Love. We got out our pretty markers and copied 1 Corinthians 13:4-7. It was a long passage, so if you have a child with less patience for writing, I would suggest choosing something shorter. But this was just right for us today. Using markers required all of our concentration to avoid mistakes. Any mistakes we did make were a blessing, helping us get deeper in that word and looking for even more ways to be creative and beautify the Word.

Jesus Calling - July 6

"... the place where you are standing is holy ground." God says this to Moses in the book of Exodus as he speaks to him from a burning bush. How is God speaking to you today? Notice His voice speaking from around you. You, too, are on holy ground. Use your art (a sketch book, camera, water colors, or words) to capture God's voice in this moment. It's usually not as dramatic as a burning bush, but if you are attentive, you will hear. If the people around you are noisy, God is reminding you that He created them in His image and they are holy. Is everything silent? Do you hear your breath and the beating of your heart? You too are holy.

Count your blessings Jesus Calling - July 2

Summertime. What a perfect time to... start a new blog... add a new pet to your family...attend a camp... spend time with family and friends. God has certainly blessed us this summer! When we pray together as a family, it's a great time to think about things we are thankful for. I am thankful that so many wonderful opportunities are keeping me away from this blog, including the beautiful summer weather. I'm also thankful for this hot day to sit inside and write a few entries while my kids attend Bible camp. Photography and art are fun ways to reflect on our blessings. Here are some things we have been thankful for lately.

Our new pet bearded dragon

Babies

The collage was inspired by the Jesus Calling devotion on July 2nd. (My son would have you know that he wanted to add more, but ran out of time.) We were using art to show how God had made our lives masterpieces. What form of art would you choose? What would your masterpiece include? Enjoy pondering these questions and creating your representation of God's good work in your life.

Jesus Calling July 1

What a perfect theme for today's devotion. I haven't been taking the time to blog for the last few days and today is about fighting for your time with God.

Today make bath time = God time if you, like me, are struggling to squeeze in the extra time for another activity. Put some bubbles in. Say a prayer over your child's bath time, asking God to cleanse them inside and out.

If you have time for a craft (my daughter will always make time), grab a bowl, drinking straw, paint, paper, dish soap and water. I've had more and less success with this activity depending on the type of paint. You might also try food coloring.

1. Mix soap, paint, and water in a bowl. Be generous with the paint and soap, but it needs water to thin it enough to blow bubbles in it.

2. Put the straw in the bowl and BLOW! Warning, it would taste disgusting to suck it in, but it happens, especially with young children :). Blow a heap of bubbles so high they are almost overflowing. Like your love for God and His love for you are overflowing onto everyone around you.

3. Press the paper onto the bubble heap, making a print of bubbles on the paper.

4. Optional: Put a photograph of yourself in the center of the bubbles after the paper dries. Or draw a picture of yourself with crayons or markers.

Jesus Calling June 26

"Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me." -Psalm 23:4

What is something you fear? Is it the dark? Heights? Dogs? Speaking in front of groups? Being alone? Spiders? Snakes? Report cards? It seems that there are so many things to fear in this life.

Draw a picture representing your fear.

Paint over it with God's love to show that God is always with you. As you paint, talk about how the thing you fear might actually be a blessing to you. You might also discuss how your fear is blessing, a way that God helps you stay safe.

Jesus Calling June 25

"He will rejoice over you with singing." - Zephaniah 3:17

What a beautiful day it was for today's Jesus Calling devotion. We were fortunate enough to enjoy a nice, warm day to be outdoors in the sunshine, cooling off in the shade and the refreshing breezes. The clouds were white as fluffy cotton. Flowers were in full bloom, filling the world with color. It was easy to see God was blessing us today. And yet, isn't every day beautiful in its own way?

To extend this devotion, spend some time in nature. Write a descriptive paragraph about the natural beauty God has blessed you with today. Or get out your camera, as I did, to capture some of the beauty. You could then practice some photo editing techniques by cropping your photo, playing with color treatments, making a collage, or adding frames. Print your finished product or send it to someone with a kind note to bless their day as well. I'll post my photo here for you!

Thank you for following my blog. I hope you have a beautiful day!

Jesus Calling June 24

"He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be shaken." Psalm 62:6

Take a walk today while thinking about God: His strength, guidance, and constant presence. Look for a rock while you are walking. Keep it in your pocket as a reminder of his strength. Or if you would like, paint it. Put it in a place where you will see it and be refocused on Him.

Jesus Calling June 23

"So be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid and do not panic before them. For the Lord your God will personally go ahead of you. He will neither fail you nor abandon you." -Deuteronomy 31:6

Today's devotion revolves around keeping our focus on God. To remind us that God is with us as we walk through our day, we will make friendship pins to put on our shoes. You may have made these when you were young, like I did. All you need are safety pins and beads. You will want to make sure they are coordinating sizes. I used a small pin (.75in) and tiny beads (2-3mm) which fit very well on a shoelace. I also chose to use three colors for the trinity, the three in one. My kids wanted to use bigger beads, so they used a bigger pin. My son used rock beads because Jesus is our rock. You can get as creative as you would like!

Jesus Calling June 21

"I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, "who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty." - Revelation 1:8

Just to backtrack a day, yesterday's Jesus Calling was about time. It was appropriate for the summer solstice, the longest day of the year.

Today's project related to the science of time. We will look at the amount of daylight and remember that all time is God's time. From today, the longest day of the year, to the shortest day of the year for all eternity.

1) Cut a construction paper circle out of black paper and one identical circle out of yellow.

2) Find the center of the circles. There are many ways to do this. You could make an additional circle out of scratch paper, fold it in quarters, then cut one fold to the center of all three circles.

3) Fit the yellow and black circles together.  Lookin up sunrise time and sunset time. Calculate the percentage of the day the was light and show it on your pie chart.

4) Look up winter solstace and show the day length on your pie chart. Thank God for watching over your days and nights and inviting you to spend eternity with Him and His son in heaven.

[pictures forthcoming]

Back from from vacation - Jesus Calling June 22

We had a wonderful family vacation to South Dakota and Colorado, so blogging got put on the back burner. Now we're back with new ideas.

Today's Jesus Calling was about thanking God for our troubles. We said prayers thanking God for things that were troubling us. Then to reinforce the idea, we wrote the prayers on book marks along with related Bible verses. My daughter thought the story of Paul and Silas praising God while in prison was a good example of praising God through our challenges (Acts 16:16-40). I'm so proud of her!

Steps for this simple project:
1) Cut strips of paper (2-2 1/2" x 8 1/2"), preferably out of card stock.

2) Write a prayer thanking God for your troubles. Decorative pens help make this part fun, but pencil may be preferred for perfectionists.

3) Choose a Bible passage or two and write the chapter and verse as a reference to read when you are troubled.

4) Add decorative touches to your book mark.

5) Place your book mark in your Bible at a helpful place to open up next time you are troubled.

Jesus Calling - June 7

But seek His kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well. -Luke 12:31

As God provides for the birds of the air, so we can trust Him to provide all that we need. We will have troubles, but trusting in His ultimate care for us will lift the burden of worry.

Make a feeder today for God's precious birds (or squirrels).

1) Search out a pinecone. If you cannot find one, a pretzel will do well.

2) Tie a string on it for holding and hanging.

3) Spread peanut butter around the pinecone. Think of it as spreading your worries, taking them from inside you and putting them on the pinecone.

4) Roll the coated pinecone in birdseed (alternately, air-popped popcorn). Turn your worries into a life-giving force for the birds.

Jesus Calling - June 6

The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. -Psalm 19:1

Today's devotion is all about God's creation and seeing Him in His wonderful work. We can know of his love for us by seeing the care He put into every detail of creation. So our project today is to record that beauty in a drawing using perspective.

1) Draw something from nature in great detail, like a flower mentioned in the devotion.

2) Add a background: mountains, a forest, an expansive blue sky. Don't forget to give your drawing something to anchor it (ground for your flower, a sandy beach for your starfish).

3. Don't be afraid to add your own flair of creative inspiration.

A realistic interpretation

A more abstract interpretation - rivers of love & mountains of peace

Jesus Calling - June 5

You shall have no other gods before me. - Exodus 20:3

Today's project is most certainly not a craft, per se. It is a day for service learning. A day to recognize what we hold in high regard, even over God Himself. It would be a great day to make a sacrifice by making a donation. Give your child power to decide what to donate. You may be surprised at their generosity. Maybe the idol for them is not material goods, but they could use the time they would spend playing video games, for example, to choose something to donate and deliver their donation. Or they could donate time and talent to a service project. You might even deliver some craft projects to friends in a local nursing home. The sky is the limit. Putting God first in our lives is the focus.

Jesus Calling - June 4

Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds. James 1:2

What a beautiful verse and a huge challenge for us as humans. Today, let's wrap up our challenges like the gifts they are meant to be.

1. Write down something that you are struggling with right now.

2. Place the paper inside a small box.

3. Wrap the box in wrapping paper. Alternatively, use plain paper and decorate with marker. Maybe you'd even like to add a bow!

4. As you wrap, discuss all the ways you are learning and growing through the trials. Know that God is holding your hand and keeping you strong. You are turning your problem into your gift.

Jesus Calling - June 3

It would be nice to get a step ahead on this blog, so you can have the craft ahead of time, but this is where we are at the moment - sitting in the car on a field trip day. So no craft pics to post, but here is our idea for June 3 in Jesus Calling and focusing on God's love.

1. Decorate an empty paper towel or toilet paper tube.

2. Draw a heart on a piece of plastic wrap with a dry erase or permanent marker.

3. Rubber band the plastic over the end of the tube and peer through, seeing everything through the light of God's love.

4. Optionally repeat steps with a second tube and tape the two together as binoculars!

Focusing through God's love on my Acer laptop. I hope this blog is a blessing to you.

Jesus Calling - June 2

I must confess, it was not as simple to think of a craft to go with today's devotion. I guess that's why God had us start the blog yesterday. Today's devotion wandered briefly over many topics, focusing mainly on putting ourselves in God's presence, and settled on Psalm 46:10, "Be still, and know that I am God."* The kids and I discussed what would help us feel at peace and focused on God. We talked about needing to involve all our senses (taste and smell being integrally linked, no licking this craft item). Off I went to raid the craft stash for soft items along with card stock and tacky glue. Then I turned the kids loose.

Flannel, velvet ribbon, feathers, cotton balls and pipe cleaners

Here are my and my daughter's results:

Psalm 46:10

(I will spare you the flannel board Mayflower story created by my son. It's really creative, but not exactly on topic. However, we did discuss that the Pilgrims came to the United States for the freedom to worship God.)

To summarize the basic steps:

1. Think of a symbol that reminds you of God when you see it. Draw it on card stock and cut it out. (For young children you could have several choices such as a heart, cross or dove precut.)

2. Trace your symbol on felt, cut it out, and embellish as desired. ALTERNATIVELY decorate your card stock shape with soft items that will help you feel calm when you feel them.

3. Add a tiny drop of lavender oil to the felt shape to smell as you breathe calming breaths.

4. Sit with your object in the quiet near an open window to hear the sounds of God's creation. ALTERNATIVELY listen to calming music to put yourself in God's presence. What does He have to tell you today?

*for the curious, we are using the Hands On Bible, New Living Translation 2nd edition that was given to my son by our church when he was in second grade. It is well loved!

I am with you always

"Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Matthew 28:20

Here is another kid-created craft. My daughter has plenty of her own ideas. This craft was inspired by Jesus' rising and His promise to be with His disciples always.

Matthew 28:20

1. Trace hands with closed fingers and thumbs touching. An older child may be able to do this themselves.

2. Cut out traced shape.

3. Create antennas with paper or pipe cleaners and attach behind the butterfly's head with a small piece of tape.

4. Write the Bible verse on the butterfly and decorate. My kid used White-out correction tape, colored it with marker, and smudged it with her finger. I love her creative use of media!

5. Optional: Punch holes and add a string for hanging your butterfly where it will remind you of Jesus' presence - like around your neck.

Though you are a lowly worm

My 10-year-old is a big fan of bugs, so of course he connected with Isaiah 41:14, "Though you are a lowly worm, O Jacob, don't be afraid, people of Israel, for I will help you." He created his own project:

Isaiah 41:14

1. Draw a long, curving line without overlapping.

2. Turn the corner to make the other side of the long, skinny worm.

3. Write the verse on the worm's body and add decoration with colored pencil or fine-tipped marker. (This would be easier than cutting it out first, the way we did it.)

4. Cut out your worm to remind you that God sees you and redeems you, though you are very small.

Jesus Calling Crafts - June 1

Today is Day 1 of homeschooling my 2nd grade daughter. I'm going to have to get more crafty! We did our daily devotional from Jesus Calling: 365 Devotions for Kids by Sarah Young and at the end my sweet daughter said, "That's it!? What about a craft?" I couldn't argue with a girl who wanted more time in the Word. So this craft was born out of the June 1st devotion.

Isaiah 41:13

1. Trace your (or your child's) hand with a wide tipped marker and cut it out.

2. Place cut-out hand on a sheet of colored paper and outline. Cut out the larger hand.

3. Copy Isaiah 41:13 onto the hand and add any embellishments with colored pencils or fine tipped pens.

4. Glue your hand into God's hand with a glue stick to remind you that you are created in His image, He is bigger, and always holding you. Do not be afraid.

I'm guessing this girl will keep me hopping in the craft department. I will share our future ideas here.