Easter Week

Hello, friends! I am sorry I missed last week, although I'm sure I'm the only one who noticed. ;) I was down with bronchitis and slept all day long. It was glorious and needed. But, I'm back with a new post this week!

The Easter week is one that spur many to rethink and change. I look forward to each year as the Church offers an initiative at www.mormon.org/easter to help me focus my week more fully on the Savior, plus the beautiful Easter video (click to watch, or watch below). This year is no different, and I am so excited!

I love that there are four choices for me to choose from that I can use as my focus this week. The options are "Love Your Neighbor", "Look to God", "Focus on Family", and "Embrace Hope". After reading each section, along with activities to help keep each focus, I am torn between two--"Look to God" and "Embrace Hope". I will make my decision this evening, then be back next week with a report!

After I read through this page, I decided to start thinking about what I could do to help others feel the spirit of rebirth at Easter. With that in mind, I counseled with my husband and we have decided to make special Easter candles to take to specific people on Easter Sunday. I have made a tag to go along with it.

Here's the tag:

It measures 2" x 3". If you would like a PDF sheet with these (without the watermark), please find them HERE! Feel free to email me at onastampage @ gmail.com if you have trouble accessing the file.

I leave you with my favorite Easter video.

Have a blessed week, friends!

My Strength Comes From My Savior

This is my submission for this week's Word Art Wednesday: Psalm 18:2 and Scripture Thursday Link Party: Be of Good Cheer.

I don't know of a better reason to be of good cheer--our Savior has paid the price for our sins, and we can all be made free!  I'm so grateful for this Easter season that helps me to remember all that God has given me.  I hope you'll indulge me and let me share a few more thoughts about this scripture in light of Easter.

The Lord is my rock: My Savior brings me comfort through the knowledge that He paid not only for my sins, but also knows my sorrow personally.  He suffered ALL pain and grief for each of us, making Him our sure foundation. {Isaiah 53:4}

The Lord is my fortress, and my deliverer: Jesus Christ brings me divine protection through His Atonement.  Because of His infinite Atonement, I can have protection from sin as I strive each day to live the Gospel and become a better person. {Numbers 14:9}

The Lord is my God...in whom I trust: What does the word God mean to you?  To me, it means a perfect being. A Personage that can be trusted completely.  An unchanging Friend that will never let you down.  This perfectly describes our Savior. {Hebrews 2:13}

The Lord is my strength: I know that through the Atonement of my Savior, my weaknesses can become my strengths.  I can become perfected in Him.  I can have the strength to stand for truth and righteousness each day in any situation I find myself when I put my trust in Him! {Ether 12:27}

The Lord is my buckler: The definition of a buckler is a round shield or protector.  Jesus Christ protects me spiritually from sin and emotionally from sorrow through His Atonement. {Isaiah 54:17}

The Lord is the horn of my salvation: Through Christ's words and actions, I can learn how to be forgiven of my sins.  Through my faith in Jesus Christ, I can gain salvation and eternal life with my Father. {Doctrine & Covenants 14:7}

The Lord is my high tower: My Savior has higher ground than I do here in mortality and can see things I cannot see.  He can send comfort to me when I need it in order to help me through the difficulties that my life brings because He knows what my future brings--and that is HOPE. {Proverbs 3:5-6}

Thank you for indulging me and if you've read this, I hope that you've felt of the Love that our Savior has for each of us.  May we always remember Him, in all that we do and say, that one day we might sit down with Him in the Kingdom of our Father.  He is risen!

Christ Loved Us First!

Hello!  I have to say, I was incredibly pleasantly surprised to see that I won last week at Word Art Wednesday!  And the prize was from the fabulous Eclectic Anthology site by Avalon Rose.  DROOL.  Amazingly gorgeous vintage images, y'all!  So, of COURSE, I HAD to use one for my project this week! 

I've used an image from the Antique Catherine Klein Watercolor Paintings Graphics Collection.  Say that 10 times fast!  I chose to use an image of two love birds for this week's Word Art Wendsday challenge (John 4:19).  It'll make sense once you see it, I think. :)  I've also used other free digital scrapbooking elements that I felt matched the watercolor fabulously! 

Also, one last thing before I show you the print, I would like to submit this into Little Birdie Blessings' Scripture Thursday link party as well. :)

Here is my designed print~

And now, my thoughts on this verse.  I have often found that in order to find love in someone else, I need to first love them.  It is possible to love everyone--I know it is!  I also know it's incredibly hard.  But I have been in situations dealing with people I deem "difficult" and have been able to have a prayer in my heart that God will let me see how HE loves them.  And I have to tell you, it is one of the most amazing things I have ever experienced.

I work with children who have special needs.  It is very hard to be patient with them at times, and so loving them is the key.  Knowing how God loves them, that they are HIS children, and that their limitations will be for this life only, help me each day to be able to treat them with more Christ-like charity and to form bonds and relationships with them that are pleasing in His sight.

I also come in contact with many different personalities in people on a daily basis, as I know you do.  Where there is a difference of opinion, a disagreement on how things should be done, a dispute on what was said/meant, I know that a basis of love helps immensely.  Loving someone first creates a deeper bond with whichever brother or sister we are dealing with and helps us to remember that we literally are spiritual brothers and sisters.  When we do this, we continue to build God's kingdom on earth and become more like Him.  Which is our purpose here in mortality! 

God is our Father.  Because He loved us, He sent His Son.  Because His Son loved us first, we now love Him as our Savior and Redeemer.  I hope that this Easter season we each strive to do a little bit better each day, that we each try to build relationships based on Godly love, that we find greater happiness and joy in doing so.  Happy Easter!

(PS: Please feel free to use this for personal use--see the bottom of this blog for more details on the privacy clause of my creations.  Make sure to click on the image before saving and printing! :D)

Religious Easter Print

Hello, friends! I've made a little print out that I will be giving to my Primary class for Easter and thought I'd share it. Click it to make it larger and then save and print. Please make sure to use it for personal use ONLY. See the bottom of my blog for more details. Happy printing! :)