Transform Vulnerably!! TMD Week 2

This week's study is from 2 Corinthians 12:7-10. The verse that stuck out to me the most was "His Grace is sufficient." I looked up the meaning of Grace and here is what I found. Grace= The free and unmerited favor of God, as manifested in the salvation of sinners and the bestowal of blessings. The Greek word for Grace is Charis (this is also where the word charisma comes from). Synonyms for grace= beauty, ease, dignity, elegance, poise, refinement. I thought it was interesting that all of these words could also be used to describe God. So in essence, His very being is grace!! Isn't that fabulous!!

What does Grace mean to me?

With my relationship with God? I know That no matter what my afflictions are, His Grace surpasses all of that and is sufficient.

In my own life? I am not perfect, things in my life are not perfect, in fact, I am a serious mess most days. But I am a child of the one who's very being is perfect and elegant, refined, beautiful, dignified and refined (Graceful), and that brings me comfort.

Relationship with others? I am learning that I must give others the grace that God has offered me so freely.

In my Church? My Pastor likes to say that Church isn't a museum for saints, it is a hospital for sinners. I have learned not to put too high of expectations on people in church. Especially not with the leadership; they also need God's grace and forgiveness as much as I do.

My Journal piece is about how in the midst of the pain, sorrow, confusion, chaos and sinfulness this world has to offer, His Grace is sufficient...He is Grace!!

For Logos365 this month, I have made an Acrostic out of my word Trust. I wrote down what I wanted to learn from my word. At the end of the year, I will make another one and see if what I have learned changes.

If you haven't joined the Take Me Deeper journey, I encourage you to join and start whenever. This challenge isn't about completing every week,it is about growing deeper in our relationship with our Creator. Oh, and the art is fun too!!

Peace and Blessings,
Shonna

The Take Me Deeper Project is Here!!

Today is the first Week of the Take Me Deeper Project at His Kingdom Come!! Every Friday a new Devotion/Bible Verse and Worship Music video is posted and then you  have a week to respond creatively. There are several different art groups (Mixed Media, Faithart Journaling, Photography, Textile/Fibre, Digital Faithart, Bible Journaling, Scrapbooking, and Crafts, Cards & Stamping). Each group has 1 or more Moderators who will post ideas on how they responded to the devotion for that week. So you can get plenty of ideas for your creative response.

January Theme: Transformation

Week 1: Transform Willingly

As a Moderator of the Faithart Journaling Group, I responded with an art piece in my art journal.

The verse for Week 1 is Romans 12:1-2. We have a worksheet in the TMD Group that will help you  "go deeper" in your study of God's word. This worksheet helped me out tremendously.

My art piece is a story of a girl who was once broken, lost, lonely and unhappy in her heart. One day she cried out to the Lord telling Him she was done living life her way. She gave her life completely and willingly to Him and instantly her heart began to transform and her brokenness became beautiful.

I heard this song and immediately knew I had to include it in this blog post.

I hope you join me in this year long journey and let Him take your brokenness and make it beautiful.

Shonna

My Word....TRUST

                                                                        Lo·gos

ˈlōˌɡōs,-ˌɡäs/

noun 

Greek for "Word"

My Logos365 word for this year is "Trust." I want to trust in my savior more in 2015 and I know He is going to teach me many things this year and has been working in me already. I have a hard time with trusting sometimes; I want to control the things in my life and force them to turn out the way I want them to, but that NEVER works out...ever!! So this year, I want to learn to let go of control and give control to the One who ultimately is in control. How could I go wrong?


     Front Cover of my Art Journal                                   Back Cover of my Art Journal

I'm going to get a little "real" here. Since launching His Kingdom Come officially on Nov. 1, 2014 we have come up against some challenges behind the scenes. Challenges technically, emotionally, and spiritually. Living out the word "Trust" didn't just start for me today. God has started early with teaching me how to live out this word (in November). I have already learned to lean on him more through these challenges. I am going to undoubtedly learn many more lessons this upcoming year, but I feel like I have already learned so much. Every time a challenge arises and I want to try and control the situation, He is helping me recognize this almost immediately. I then stop, take a deep breath and pray "Lord, I am going to trust that you will work this out and that it will be for your glory." So much can come out of trusting in the creator of the Universe and I know I have so much more to learn.

I have attached a Bible verse to my Logos  that will be part of my being everyday in some form or another. It is this: "Trust the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding."-Proverbs 3:5. I will study other passages in the Bible that have to do with my word, but this verse will be my "manta" (if you will). I have a sticky note with this verse in front of my art desk and the very first page of my Art Journal as well.

The first day of each month on His Kingdom Come, we will give you some free "prompts" or ideas on how to incorporate your Logos into your life. Come join the site and then join the Logos365 group to receive the prompts. We also have a Facebook Group as well. Come join us and learn to live out your Logos!!

Happy New Year!!

Shonna

What is your word for 2015?

Have you heard about His Kingdom Come's two projects for 2015? One is Take Me Deeper and the other is Logos365. Go to to HKC, sign up and join these two groups. These projects start on January 2, 2015.

In the Logos365 group there is a worksheet that will help you discover what your word for the year will be. We will provide a prompt each month to help you incorporate your word into your life throughout the year.

Take Me Deeper is a weekly devotion where you can respond creatively in the art medium of your choice. We have several different art groups on the site with Moderators who will provide their art as an example for you.

I hope to see you there!!

Take Me Deeper is Almost Here!!

It's not too late to sign up on His Kingdom Come site for the year long project "Take Me Deeper." The members of the HKC site are getting excited and everyone is talking about what Journals they are going to use and showing how they decorated them. I finally made my cover a little while ago and made a video of the process, I shared it on the site but I forgot about my blog (Duh...total blonde moment). So here is the video for ya

If you haven't joined the community, here is the site link: His Kingdom Come
Come join the fun!!

Peace and Blessings,
Shonna

HKC Happenings!!

We have been so busy behind the scenes of His Kingdom Come and it is so exciting to see what God is doing!! We officially launched on November 1 and as of today we have right around 845 members on the site!! Praise God!!

When the idea of this site came about,  Diane Marra and I didn't just want to create art projects for people to do and then leave, we wanted to create a community. A God centered Art Community and I am so happy to say that we are on our way to that! We also didn't want one style of art to be represented, so we have all different types of art groups on the site. Everything from Bible Journaling and Mixed Media to Photography and Fiber Arts. Each art group has one or more Moderators who are hosting the groups, creating swaps, posting challenges and discussing all things relating to that group. 

Our big project is "Take Me Deeper" which will start on January 2, 2015. Each week on HKC, we will post a bible verse, devotion and worship video and then all of the group moderators will post art showing how they responded to the challenge. Then the members will have a week to respond creatively. We will do this for 52 weeks. 52 weeks may sound like a daunting task (I am the queen of not finishing things), but here is the thing... Our goal in doing Take Me Deeper isn't to have a huge completed journal at the end of the year (or whatever medium you choose), it is to grow "deeper" in our relationship to Jesus. So, even if you finish 12 devotions, you will still be closer to God than you were, right? That is how we see it, no pressure, just a chance to grow closer to Him.

We also have online workshops on the site and our latest one is by Donna Salazar. She will teach you how to make your own Coptic Stitch Mixed Media Art Journal for personal use or for the Take Me Deeper project. The class is only $12 and will be available on Friday, Dec. 5. Check out the site for more information.

I have only mentioned a few things we have going on right now, but there is so much more! Come and visit the site and take a look around.

Website: www.his-kingdom-come.com

To Join the "Free" Take Me Deeper Project for 2015 click Here

To sign up for Donna's Class, click Here

What word is God giving you in 2015?

His Kingdom Come will be leading our members in Logos365 during 2015.

His Kingdom Come believes that there is great power in the Word of God.  Many people choose one word that represents what they want to see more of in their life during a year. There are websites and books dedicated to this.  New Year resolutions come and go very quickly, but this process is allowing God to work in your life and for your focus to become His word for you that lasts an entire year in your life. People choose this word through thoughts or through a word occurring in their reading or devotion time that “speaks” to them. At His Kingdom Come we believe that God will guide us to what he wants to see more of in our lives during the year. 

The logos365™ project is our way of finding your word through prayer, bible study and reflection. What do you do with your logos365™?  You live with it, you invite it into your life, and you let it speak to you. You follow where it leads you.  Your logos365™ is not some promise you will keep for the rest of the year to be better. The intent of your word is that it will become a part of your for the rest of your life.  Your word builds upon each other each year, and springs forth from the places you feel you left off from your previous word.  Each word you choose builds upon each other as God’s heart becomes embedded in your character. So, the question is

As you consider selecting a word for yourself this year, remember there is no right or wrong choice. Words like abide, abundance, obey, expect, prayer, surrender, delight, submit and listen can be a very powerful experience as you allow God to guide you in your word.  This happens in your daily life, in prayer, relationships and bible study.  

So how do you find your logos365™?  Feel free to use the self- assessment tools posted at His Kingdom Come in the logos365™  group to help you identify your word and to set some personal goals around your word.  If you have participated in a one word program before choose the logos365™ returning student worksheet, or if you are totally new to the process use the logos365™ new student worksheet.

To make logos365™ real in your life, consider keeping a logos365™ journal, or creating a scrapbook or a photo book. Keeping a journal throughout the year is crucial to making this word project not just a new year’s resolution, but a change in your walk- a transformation!  If you are participating in the take me deeper process, then you can incorporate your logos365™ into your journal.   If you are not participating in the take me deeper process here are some logos365™ suggestions.

1.     Journaling: There are many kinds of journaling you can do. Pick one that works for you.

·       Open a word document on your computer that you write in each day

·       Get a spiral notebook, that you use to journal this process

·       Buy a blank page journal where you can do some doodling, drawing, and pasting pictures, etc

·       Create an art journal where you can write and play (can use your Take me deeper journal)

·       Create a weekly, monthly or quarterly post on your blog or at His Kingdom Come about your logos365™ journey.

2.      Accountability: share your logos365™ with your local small group.  If you don’t have a local small group, we invite you to share at His Kingdom come. Share your word and stay accountable with the online group throughout the year!   Find an accountability partner either in person or on HKC. This would be someone that you can share your deepest thoughts with and who will hold you accountable to your own goals and process. 

3.      Local small group:  Schedule specific meeting dates that you can discuss with your small group and your accountability partner during this stepping out in faith.

4.      Online group at His Kingdom Come: we will spend a few weeks in January seeking our logos365™. There are worksheets available for free to assist you in the process of spending time with God and discovering what logos365™ He provides to you.  Quarterly we will have a weekly discussion about your ongoing progress, any struggles, any praise reports and would love to see how your logos365™ has intertwined throughout your life.

5.     Create- make something to keep in your home, at your desk like a canvas, quilt, photo, poem, art journal, wooden word art that will keep your logos365™ in front of you throughout the year. See His Kingdom come for lots of creative examples.

Go deeper

Find out how logos365™ will impact your daily life

And draw you closer to the person God wants you to be

Will you walk out in faith with us in 2015 and live by your logos365™?

Come and have fun, faith and friendship for free at His Kingdom Come!

Join us at http://his-kingdom-come.com/ and sign up for the logos365™ group.

Join the Group http://his-kingdom-come.com/groups/logos365