Welcome to Stampin' Sisters in Christ, where our challenges are inspired by Scripture. We pray you will be blessed by your fellowship with us, as we are blessed by yours!
Before we get to our next challenge, I just want to say that due to some blogger issues this week, some of our DT were unable to leave comments on your wonderful entries. Please know if you did not receive a comment from us, it was not due to our lack of trying. We appreciate all our players and we will keep trying to comment! *Ü*
We welcome back Digital Delights by Louby Lou as our sponsor this week! One of you lucky players in our challenge will receive your choice of 3 free digis *Ü* 
Please be sure to stop by Digital Delights by Louby Lou and show her some Stampin' Sisters in Christ love!!
I (Kris Breach) am your challenge hostess this week.
Have you ever owned a great necklace? Maybe a relative passed one down to you… or a friend gifted you one for your birthday or Christmas?
Janice Hanna says in her book “Everyday Love: Spiritual Refreshment for Women”, that “In some ways, love is like an exquisite necklace, one you deliberately choose to wear. Each bead or stone represents one person you’ve loved or someone you’ve forgiven. It encircles you, reminding you of God’s endless love. And it hangs near your heart, a constant reminder that He is only a heartbeat away.”
God’s love IS endless and we are to share the love of Christ with everyone. Loving those who are close to us might be easy, but we are also called to love our enemies. While our country might consider some places “enemy territory”, I’d be hesitant to consider anyone I know personally to be my enemy. But I’m sure we all could name people that make it very challenging for us to love. Those people that push your buttons, say things to make you feel small and unworthy, who might even question your integrity or motives and just makes you either cry, get angry, or just plain make you want to turn and run the other way when you see that person coming.
The truth is, we ALL have “private battles” we are fighting and we don’t always know what someone else is going through. They may have just had the worst week of their lives and their actions or words to us is all they could muster up in light of the huge weight they are feeling. We just need to love on them no matter what they might be going thru. Maybe send them a card and share that they were on your mind. Do something nice for them. Our immediate reaction when treated wrongly might be to harbor resentment and bitterness… even revenge, but it’s through Christ’s love for us that we can forgive and show love to even those who do us wrong.
It’s so true that “A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” Prov. 15:1
I read somewhere that 9 out of 10 times when you smile at someone, they will smile back. It’s contagious. Same goes when you harbor bitterness and anger towards someone who did you wrong. It spreads like dominoes. Pastor Cordeiro tell this funny but relational story…
A man gets yelled at by his boss. And at the end of the day he goes home and then yells at his wife. And this infection spreads throughout the family because now the wife yells at their son. The son punches his sister. And so the sister kicks the dog. The dog then bites the cat. And, the cat bites the head off the doll. All in all, it’s a domino effect. So if you get yelled at by your boss, just go home and bite the head off the doll! By doing so, it’ll save everybody!
Only funny because we all know there’s some truth to this as we remember a time this happened in our own home! But all laughing aside… it would help to remember our verse for this week; “Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart." Proverbs 3:3
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I didn’t mean for this to be so long… and while this next part was not originally what I planned to share, it was laid on my heart to do so.
My Christian Radio station, Klove is linking arms with CURE… to show love to children and families in Afghanistan and throughout CURE’s network of hospitals by knitting. Please watch this video and visit their website and if God lays it on your heart to help, many blessings to you!!
CURE Knit Pray Love from CURE Video on Vimeo.
Please read the instructions on the site. It’s important that we don’t buy hats and blankets… these are suppose to be knitted by you… an authentic expression of yourself as a follower of Jesus Christ to a mom or child in a CURE hospital. So we ask that you provide a personal message with each hat you send(a card maybe?)
There are knitting patterns on their site and instructional videos if you care to learn.
“They’ll know we are Christians by our Love!”
~Kris
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Hope you’ll join us for a Valentine Blog Hop February 9-13
Challenge:
Make a {HEART} stand out in your card/project.
20 comments:
Awesome devotional this morning Kris. So true about smiling. My grandmother use to tell us "you get more with honey then you do with vinegar." She was a deaconess and she was big on Proverbs, she had the gift of breaking things down for us children to learn the meanings.
I agree with Becky... and I love your gran's saying Becky! Bril!
Great devotional Kris! Wonderful words to start the week. I will be sure to try to smile more often this week as I go out and about.
I love reading your devotional each week. I don't always get a chance to join your challenge back will this week. Thanks so much.
Kris, you had some good food for thought ideas in your devotional this week! I remember reading this saying once, "If someone doesn't have a smile, give them one of yours." Some people just seem to wear a smile wherever they go, and it does make a difference!! Thanks for sharing your thoughts this week!
Really great devotional that's made think a lot. Lovely challenge and fabulous inspiration to go with it.
Super Dt projects thanks for the fun challenge.
DIANA L
http://dianamlarson.blogspot.com/
loved the commentary on Prov 3:3 Kris-really insightful-and I loved the story you quoted-too funny-thanks for anotehr fun challenge
Fantastic Challenge. Thanks for the chance to play along.
~Lacey
www.stampandcreate.com
Love-ly Challenge. Amazing work by the DT.
Hugs,
Riti
Great DT! Thanks for the fun challenge!
Carri-abusybee
www.doubleclickconnections.blogspot.com
As a constant in my mini album I put a heart on each page.
WOW! ladies gorgeous projects and thank you for the challenge!!
Hugs,
Norma
Each time U hear a(-) thought come in2 Ur heart, try(& it's not easy)
2 remove it by transfering 3 YES 3
(POSITIVE) thoughts/phrases. If u pratice this w/in 3 days U will B easily rejectin' the Neg, & will B
carryin' a greater positive out-look, w/in-U&self, & w/others.
On that note did you know that it's harder to be positive that it is tio be negative. SO when you hear others knocking someone,and this can be anyone being putdown, BE BRAVE, and asks theat person to now see if trhey can say9or even you can say 3 positive things about that person,..i.e. group of womqan( we know we are all guilty of this even at out church socials, is someone says "OH suesie thinks she's all that cause her muffins always rise, you can say "oh yes and have you ever had 1 of her pies they are so flakey and moist, say nothing about how fluffy her biskets are, and thoses
baked beans are so well cooked!:)
Beautiful creations ladies!
Deanne :)
Thanks for all of the inspiration and the great challenge. :D
New follower
Thank you for a fabulous challenge--I'm hoping to get to link up way more because I REALLY think your challenges are fabulous and needed in this world! The DT creations are amazing--thanks for the inspiration! :)
Thank you for the comforting and thought provoking words. I loved the necklace.
Thanks for a GREAT challenge!:)
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