Illustrated Faith: God Speaks To Us Because Of Love

We got back from our 2 months trip to Indonesia last week. Just in case you were wondering why I did not blog regularly in the last 2 months 🙂

Originally plan was only to attend my youngest sister’s wedding and spend time with my parents and my family so that our daughters get to know them in real life not only through Skype callings.

But God has different plan for us this time.

For 8 weeks we spent in Indonesia, we learned God’s desire to see every tribe and every people to stand before His throne worshipping Him in every language they speak.

We took our daughters who are 6 years old and 2 years old on this trip. This was a tough trip for them but we prayed and we asked lots of people to pray for us and the girls, asking God for what He wanted to teach and show us this time.

He spoke us through the situations, people we met, and even places we visited. He opened our eyes to see the needs of His word in their lives, He showed us why they need Him, and He put the desire even more in our hearts as family to serve Him there.

As Jesus gave His command to His disciples, this command is also for us, His church, in Matthew 28:18-20. This commands is also known as the Great Commandment.

Supplies: My Mind’s Eye Decorative Tapes, Freckled Fawn wood veneers, Elle’s Studio tags, Stickos Alpa stickers, Target tags & alpha stickers, Faber Castell PITT Artist Pens and Big Brush, Martha Stewart Glue Pen

Maybe you think this command is only for those certain people who called themselves “missionary.” But this command is given to each of Jesus’ follower, to each of us, to you and me. We all are called to go and make disciple, to teach them the truth, to baptize them and to teach them to obey God’s commands. That means, you and I are missionaries, the messengers of God’s message to this world where we live.

When we visited a city, we found out churches in that city are scared to step out of their comfort zone to reach out to the local people who are 100% non-believers and this people group is one of the Unengaged, Unreached People Group.

The question is: Why they are scared?

My heart is broken. I keep praying for this people group and for those believers who live among this unreached people group that they will have courage to go out and reach out to them, to go sharing the Good News to them.

Supplies: Abigail’s Handdrawing heart, Faber Castell PITT Artist Pen, My Mind’s Eye Decorative Tape, SU Journaling Card

God’s love endures forever. He is patient enough waiting for each of us to repent and come to Him. His love never ends. His love never fails. His love for the people in Indonesia is the same love he has for us who live in the States or anywhere else.

There are at least 400 languages groups (people groups) who have been waiting to know God’s unfailing love to them, waiting to hear He speaks to them in the languages that they understand best in their mind and hearts.

For this reason we went. For this reason we wanna go back to serve there alongside with national translators and national churches to accelerate the proces of translations of God’s word into those 400++ languages!

Supplies: Field Notes pocket notebook, Pilot Gel pens.

This is the truth. The center of the Bible is the Gospel. And the center of theGospel is Jesus Christ. That concludes that the center of the whole Bible is Jesus Christ.

We attended a church with our friend, the preacher said something that reminds us that wherever we are sent to go, we share the Good News, we share Jesus. When we preach, we preach Jesus.

Supplies: My Mind’s Eye Decorative Tapes, Freckled Fawn wood veneers, Elle’s Studio tags, Stickos Alpa stickers, Target tags & alpha stickers, Faber Castell PITT Artist Pens and Big Brush, American Crafts Glitter Marker, Martha Stewart Glue Pen

Few times I was asked why we wanna take our family to go and live in Indonesia, where we could get everything and living comfortably in States. The only answer to that question is because we love Him. To love Him is to obey Him and His commandments. Our prayer is to love Him with all our hearts, souls, minds & all of our strength.

Serving Him is an act of love. Because without love it is impossible for us to serve full heart. For only God who gives you and I the power and desire to serve Him (Phillippians 2:13).

Supplies: Alpha Die Cut by The Cut Shoppe, Silhouette Cameo, CTMH White Daisy Cardstock, CTMH Cork button, CTMH studs, CTMH heart enamel, CTMH Mini Stapler, Prima Marketing Chalk Edgers, Elle’s Studio tag, Faber Castell PITT Artist Pens.

It is only one reason. That is because God is so loved the world. He sent Jesus not to judge and condemn. He sent Jesus, His only Son to save and redeem us back to be His.

He calls and sends you and I to go to our “Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and The End of The Earth” – to our families, neighbors, friends, and those who we do not know – is to share who He is and why He loves them that much.

Would you go to where God send you?

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The Cut Shoppe – Cut It Out August Challenge

Inspire Me Monday – Week 187

Silhouette Challenges #28

100th Mother’s Day Anniversary and DIY Gift Ideas

HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY!

Do you know that this year is the 100th Mother’s Day Anniversary? Here’s what I found about Mother’s Day on Wikipedia:

The modern American holiday of Mother’s Day was first celebrated in 1908, when Anna Jarvis held a memorial for her mother in Grafton, West Virginia. Her campaign to make “Mother’s Day” a recognized holiday in the United States began in 1905, the year her beloved mother, Ann Reeves Jarvis, died. Anna’s mission was to honor her own mother by continuing work she had started and to set aside a day to honor mothers, “the person who has done more for you than anyone in the world.” Anna’s mother, Ann Jarvis, was a peace activist who had cared for wounded soldiers on both sides of the Civil War and created Mother’s Day Work Clubs to address public health issues.

Due to the campaign efforts of Anna Jarvis, several states officially recognized Mother’s Day, the first in 1910 being West Virginia, Jarvis’ home state. In 1914 Woodrow Wilson signed the proclamation creating Mother’s Day, the second Sunday in May, as a national holiday to honor mothers. In a thank-you note to Wilson, Jarvis wrote of a “great Home Day of our country for sons and daughters to honor their mothers and fathers and homes in a way that will perpetuate family ties and give emphasis to true home life.” Jarvis became critical, however, of the commercialization of the day.

To celebrate this special day this year, we didn’t buy any gifts for my husband’s mom and grandma, we made them. Here’s what we made for them:

Sunflower Topiary

Celebrating 100th Mother's Day Anniversary & DIY Gifts| http://helengullett.com/?p=4705 #diy #silhouetteamerica #silhouettecameo #papercrafting #giftideas #mothersday #silhouettechallenges

I used my Silhouette Cameo to create this sunflower topiary gift. The cutting file I used is 3D Sunflower Round Topiary from Jamie Cripps collection. On Jamie’s blog, she has the tutorial how to put this topiary together. The papers I used is Dream Pop (retired), White Daisy and Topiary cardstock from Close To My Heart. For the green grass I cut gift bag wrapping paper I had in stash from Christmas 🙂

The second gift is 3D Paper Tulip with burlap wrapped bottle vase:

Celebrating 100th Mother's Day Anniversary & DIY Gifts| http://helengullett.com/?p=4705 #diy #silhouetteamerica #silhouettecameo #papercrafting #giftideas #mothersday #silhouettechallenges

For this one I used 3D Tulip from Lori Whitlock collection. I tell you, this is the easiest tulip flowers I ever made! All you need to make this flower are:

  • Silhouette Cameo, cutting file, cutting mat, and blade.
  • Cardstocks: White Daisy, Gypsy, Cotton Candy
  • Burlap
  • Glass bottle (I repurposed sweet tea glass bottle)
  • Gardening sticks (I found a pack at AC Moore). You also can use dowel or flower wire and wrap it with flower tape.
  • Glue Gun (or strong glue)

To make the tulips is very easy, cut the shapes, fold the pieces in half and glue them to it’s neighbor. Then insert the stick/dowel  and glue them with glue gun. I skip the leaves.

And for the vase, I wrapped the layers of burlaps using glue gun starting from the bottom and worked my way up to the top.

Hope you have the best Mother’s Day ever!!!