Anything Goes - #380-#381

It's time for another fun new challenge here at Word Art Wednesday, and I'm running late!  Thank you all for helping to keep me on my toes.  We all understand that life gets busy, and I appreciate your patience when things run a bit behind schedule on my end.  We have lots of great things planned for this challenge including an awesome sponsor, a brief devotional, winners, lots of great inspiration, and SO much more for y'all, so let's get started.

Our word art scripture is Hebrews 12:2 which says "Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God".  When we read these particular verses in Hebrews, the Christian walk is being likened unto a race.  Like any good racer, the Christian must be prepared for the race.  We look to Jesus the "author and finisher of our faith".  He is the one who started the race for us by His perfect example, and He has set the standard for completing the race, and He has perfectly prepared the trail on which we are travelling - even the detours.  The verse also tells us that Jesus is the one who blazed the trail before us....He has prepared the way for us - never sending us into anything that He hasn't already experienced in human flesh Himself.  And another trait every good racer needs is the ability to stay focussed during the race.  The racer doesn't have any distractions with him while racing (no phone, no television, etc.) and this gives us the concept of keeping our focus on Jesus as we race/go through life (staying focussed and centered) with our eyes fixed on securely on HIm.  A good racer keeps his eyes on the trail and doesn't allow himself to be distracted by shiny objects along the way (LOL) - staying focussed on our journey is important.  But the good news is that God gave us an instruction manual (the Bible) to help us find our way when we encounter roadblocks, etc.  This verse also tells us that "He despised the shame" which tells us that He was humiliated and shamed by the experience of what He endured; but He did it because He was the ONLY possible (holy and perfect) sacrifice to endure the cross on our behalf, and we also read that He did it all "for the joy set before Him".  He wants you and I to be part of that joy, and to experience it fully with Him.  And finally, the verse tells us that He "sat down" at the right hand of God.  This "sitting down" signifies that His work on the cross was COMPLETE, so He could rest at the right hand of God - His rightful place.  It shows His holy position, and always signifies that the work was completed.  Wow!  That's a whole lot of wonderful in one little verse.  We are SO blessed to have His precious Word (the Bible) to guide and bless our lives.  I hope this one is a blessing to you this week.

As always, you are welcome to save the free scripture/word art file to your computer, but are never required to use it in order to play along in our challenges.   We welcome you share your all your art with us; remembering that Anything Goes as long as it's family-friendly, and uses an encouraging or uplifting sentiment. This includes any type of altered or digital art (not just limited to cards).  You may link up to five (5) projects each week, for a total of ten (10) entries per two-week challenge. The more you enter, the more you increase your odds of winning.  It is our desire that God's Word will be a blessing and encouragement to you as we share it. If you have any questions about the rules, be sure to read the complete list of rules under our page tab for "Challenge Rules".  Because our ultimate goal is to honor God, we have no other choice but to delete any entries that do not adhere to our guidelines.  Please know that this doesn't mean we are judging anyone.  We're simply attempting to honor God and follow His rules.  Let us know if you have any questions, and thanks for your understanding and participation!

Here is this week's word art.  We hope
that it will be a blessing to you.

Check out our AWESOME sponsor for this challenge:

Pink & Main is an AWESOME on-line stamp

and die shop that carries DARLING stamps,

patterned papers, stencils, glossy dots, and

SO much more.  One very lucky participant

will win a $20 voucher from Pink & Main to

spend on whatever their little heart desires.

What a FANTASTIC prize!

Pink & Main Stamps

AND NOW......Another Lucky Winner:

Our sponsor for the last challenge was the
WONDERFUL and charming Heffy Doodle.
This is a new sponsor for us, and they have
the cutest stamps, die-cuts and more.
One lucky person will win a 15 pound
prize to spend on some new crafting supplies
from Heffy Doodle Stamps.  The lucky winner
of this fabulous prize is......
Lucky Entry #203 - Fabiola

Winner from Karen's Heffy Doodle
Giveaway is......#3 - Gail Scott

And Our Top 3 Honors Go To:
Entry #38 - Rosina
Entry #42- Elena

Entry #107 - Meghan

Please email Karen if you'd like a
Top 3 Badge for your blog.  All winners
must also email Karen per the Rules Page.

May God bless all our AWESOME sponsors.

We appreciate them all SO very much!

AND NOW.....Here's a bit of inspiration to get you started:

Our March Guest Designer, MariLynn DeGroot

 

Holly Lau

Natalie Houston

JoAnn Atterbury

Second View (Flipped Open to reveal scripture)

Maxine Diffey

Tamara Dixon

Stephanie Wright

Second View of Stephanie's Card Using Pink & Main

Patterned Paper Called, Take Flight.

An InLinkz Link-up