Scripture Challenge {Week 13}

Before I begin with our word for this week, I wanted to share something with you that was said in my BSF conference this weekend. We were getting ready to begin a 2-hour quiet time with the Lord, and the staff member explaining this to us said that we needed to have complete silence so that we did not disturb any of the other people during their quiet time. There were 3,000 leaders in attendance, so being silent was very important! She then proceeded to tell us that being quiet is completely different than being silent: quiet (talking softly) vs. silence (saying nothing). Then she said “Did you know if you take the word ‘silent’, scramble the letters around, you will get the word “listen.” How cool is that? And how appropriate for our study last week! She also said that we cannot listen to God if we are not silent! I just loved it, and I pray it is helpful to you! Now onto this week!

Well, I actually had another word picked out for this week; however, early Saturday morning Easter weekend (March 22), I was almost in a terrible, terrible car accident. I had to run to the P.O. that morning. I has just left the house and pulled out of the subdivision onto a large 4-lane road. You can go 55 mph on the road. I was in the right lane, and a pickup was beside me in the left lane. We were crossing a large intersection going 55 mph, and a Suburban comes from the intersecting road and pulls out in front of us. He crashed directly into the pickup! It was HORRIBLE!!! I have never in my life seen such a thing, and I have been driving for 27 years. I praise God that I JUST missed getting hit too. I immediately called 911, and I was SO shaky that the 911 operator thought I was in the accident too. She kept me on the phone for a long time because I was the witness and first caller. There were 4 people in the Suburban (which was COMPLETELY smashed). One man was unconscious, and the driver kept asking me what happened because he couldn't remember a thing. There was also a woman and a 10 year old girl in the Suburban. They had gotten out of the car but I told them to sit down until emergency crews got there. I never got to the pickup driver. His car was pushed completely out into a farm field because they hit SO hard. I cried a lot after I got home, and for several days it was hard for me to drive through that intersection. Days after the accident, I realized God’s amazing protection of me through it all. First, my girls were not with me. Second, it was a miracle as the cars spun that they didn’t crash into me, and third that I wasn’t in the accident in the first place. God is my great protector!

Week 13 Challenge Word: Protection

God cares about me, and He cares about you. Who can be against us when He is for us? He protects us from troubles and dangers each day (one’s we aren’t even aware of). I knew He protected me from being in the accident; however, what else did He protect me from that very same day that I am not even aware of? What has He protected me from today that I don’t know about? When He answers your prayer differently than what you were hoping for, have you ever thought that maybe He was protecting you from something? Maybe you didn’t really understand what you were asking for and the result of that prayer if He had answered the way you wanted Him to answer. He is Sovereign, and He sees the big picture; we don’t. He protects us because He loves us. He loves us even more than the love we have for our own children. His love and protection is incomprehensible.

Have you thanked Him for the protection He gives you? Have you thanked Him for His protection of your children whether they are at home, at school, or out living on their own? I know I feel a great sense of peace when I know He is with the girls’ at school when I am not. I know He is their great protector too. What an awesome God we have!

The scripture verses I chose this week are:

Psalm 32:7 “You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble.”
Psalm 40:11 “. . . may your love and your truth always protect me.”
Psalm 91:14 “. . . I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.”

I used the Tinkering Ink Beloved collection for my card this week. I love the colors and designs. So beautiful! If you haven't used these papers yet, they are a must!

Enjoy your study this week and be sure to join us in our discussions this week on the message board! I look forward to hearing from you and seeing your work. Blessings for a joyous week everyone!

Making Memories Album Challenge, Guest Designer & Contest!

A mini album is a great way to create a special treasure to show case your Faith. For this weeks challenge create a mini album that is an expression of your Faith or an album that pertains to Faithbooking.

Some topics and examples could include: Life Lessons, My Favorite Scriptures, Finger Prints of God, Blessings, From the Heart, Heritage or Family testimonies, Small Miracles and much much more… It is up to you. There have been many challenges posted throughout our blog that can spark inspiration for a mini album also.

We have a great gift R.A.K. for our contest sponsored by Making Memories for this weeks challenge winner! It is the Fresh Anthology Paint Set and you will be sure to want it for your own! Winner will be based on the use of Making Memories product, creative design and theme.

Upload your projects in the gallery, here to be considered for this contest.

Faith Sisters is pleased to announce our first Guest Designer:

Wendy Sue Anderson lives in a beautiful mountain valley in Utah with her handsome and supportive husband and their four beautiful children. She has been paper-crafting since she was a little girl, thanks to a mother who encouraged her to make her own creative cards and gifts. She has always kept a scrapbook, but became obsessed (in a good way, of course) with scrapbooking shortly after she and her husband were married in 1993.

She has been fortunate to work with some of her very favorite manufacturers over the years. She is currently designing for Making Memories, and has been doing so since 2000. And she's also happy to be on the American Crafts "local design team." Wendy has had several projects published in various magazines, including Creating Keepsakes, Paper Crafts, Simple Scrapbooks, Scrapbook Trends, and Cards. Wendy is passionate about journaling and recording her thoughts and feelings as well as the "who, what, when, and where."


"Scrapbooking has definitely helped me focus on the most important aspects of my life – namely family – and I'll forever be grateful for the lessons I've learned, people I've met, and wonderful opportunities that have come my way in the last several years."

You can view Wendy Sue's personal blog at http://www.wendysueanderson.blogspot.com/


Wendy Sue talks about her album for the challenge this month:

I am so excited to be a guest designer on Faith Sisters this month!

I was asked to create a mini album using the fun Making Memories Fresh Anthology products. Since these products are a favorite of mine, this assignment was easy! I had an older 7 Gypsies chipboard album in my stash, so I brought it out to use for my album. I decided to use the topic of a talk given by the President of my church, Gordon B. Hinckley. The talk focused on 6 "be's" - be grateful, be smart, be clean, be true, be humble, and be prayerful. Whether you are of my faith or not, the "be's" are a great summary of how to be a good person and live a good life -- good general advice.

The journaling in my album comes straight from President Hinckley's talk. The photos are just random photos I love of my kids. Each page has a simple design, and of course, each page has a bit of machine stitching (my favorite technique). I want the kids to look at this book often, and I want it to last a long time, so I used lots of mod podge so the pages would be protected. When the pages were finished, I couldn't fit the original binding rings back on, so I used some large rings from Junkitz (and my cropodile tool) to bind the album.


If you have any specific questions about my album, please feel free to e-mail me! (wendysueanderson@hotmail.com)


Thanks again, to Sunny and the FS crew, for asking me to join you this month!



Happy Spring!

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Click on the front covers of each album in order to see the rest of the creation!

Album by Co-Owner, Karma


Album by Co-Owner, Michelle


Album by Co-Owner, Sunny


Album By Creative Team Member, Alisa


Album By Creative Team Member, Anne


Album By Creative Team Member, Charrie


Album By Creative Team Member, Ericka


Album By Creative Team Member, JackieAnn


Album By Creative Team Member, Jaz


Album By Creative Team Member, Krystal

Album By Creative Team Member, Tammy

Easter Challenge Winner

This week we are featuring one of our Faith Sisters Designers, Emma (AKA: Eyelets Scraps). She used one her new kits that she designed for Easter. You can find it in our shop.

We love how she used the black and white photo and the realism of the elements.

Scripture Challenge {Week 12}

Happy Easter! I pray that you had a joyous day as you celebrated the Resurrection of our precious Lord Jesus Christ! Our day was wonderful but busy! Now onto our new word for this week:

Week 12 Challenge Word: Listen

How do you know God is speaking to you? Do you hear a roar of thunder? Or does a lightening bolt hit you and you say “Agh ha!” Is there a billboard along side the road that tells you what He is saying? No! Sometimes we wish His words would come to us that clearly but they don’t. God’s Word tells us that we are to listen to Him. At the time of the Transfiguration, God was speaking to the disciples from the cloud. Matthew 17:5 says “While he was still speaking, a bright cloud enveloped them, and a voice from the cloud said, 'This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!'" Though we don’t hear that audible voice like the disciples did, we still are to listen to Him and obey Him. We need to take time and shut out the things around us to truly listen. And He is listening to us! When we pray, He is listening. He loves to hear from us each day as we studied during Week 9 when we studied Prayer. He is eagerly waiting to hear from us each day. But we also need to listen and pay attention to what He is telling us.

In my Bible, there was a wonderful devotion written by Eugenia Price. Part of the devotion says, “The voice of God is always speaking to us and always trying to get our attention. But His voice is a ‘still, small voice,’ and we must at least slow down in order to listen.” How true that is. We all get so busy with schedules, running kids around, and doing things for others that sometimes the slowing down and taking time to listen can be hard. I challenge you this week to make a point to slow down and listen each day whether it be during your daily prayer time, in the shower, after dropping off the kids at school, whenever. Do something different in your routine. Listen for Him. Be mindful of things that happen each day which might actually be God trying to get your attention. John 10:27 tells us “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.” What a comfort that is. He knows my voice, He knows my name, He knows everything about me, and He just wants me to listen and follow Him.

Once again there were many, many wonderful verses on this word. And the three I chose were:

Proverbs 8:33 “Listen to my instruction and be wise; do not ignore it.”
James 1:22 “Do not merely listen to the Word and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.”
John 10:27 “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them and they follow me.”

For my card, I used up some older scraps, and I tried to photograph it like Erin had done last week but hers came out so much nicer. I still love the idea of photographing the cards on my Bible. Thank you Erin!

May the Lord bless you this week as you listen and obey Him. What a blessing it is to have such a Father that cares and listens to us. He still wants to hear from us even when we mess up. He is there to listen, and He wants us to listen to Him as our comforting, loving Father. Have a joyous week!

HUGE Kit with $15 Purchase, NEW in Shop!

Easter Challenge

Have you created a page to share the depth of HIS love for you and your family?

He showed His love for us through the cross ~ take time this Easter to share the story of His life and His love and His gift to us
in your faithbook~ this is a layout that could impact eternity.

- My favorite song in celebration of Easter is Arise My Love by Newsong. I have included the song here for you to enjoy!

*NewSong is giving away the first 100,000 copies of their brand new album for FREE! Click here to Order Yours -

John 3:16 For God so loved the world that he gave his only son, that whosoever believeth in him will not perish but have eternal life.

Luke 24:6 He is not here but is risen.

• Find other Easter Scriptures in the Faith Sisters Scripture Concordance.

• Find more Easter layouts in our gallery and post your Easter Challenge in the Challenge area.
• Find TONS of digital products that will be perfect for your layouts in our shop.
  

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See credits and details for these layouts in our gallery!

Layouts by Co-Owner - Karma




Layout by Creative Team Member - JackieAnn


Layout by Creative Team Member - Anne


Layout by Creative Team Member - Tammy


Layouts by Creative Team Member - Ericka


Layouts by Creative Team Member - Jaz


Layouts by Creative Team Member - Alisa


Layouts by Creative Team Member - Eva


Layouts by Creative Team Member - Krystal

Redirection Challenge Winner

The journaling says it all in why this weeks spotlight goes to "LevisMomma"

The challenge of redirection sure hit me like a ton of bricks. In 2007, my life was changed in every aspect. Daycare for 21 years, the college shut it down. I had benefits, I had to go where they placed me. It has been 6 months and I now love my job. At 1st it was like, "why God"? Daycare is all I know! I also had a Christian staff. It was time to pull me out of my comfort zone! Hmmm! Then, I got ill and went through months of testing and a major chest(VATS) surgery Jan. 2008. And through all this was separated from my husband which ended in divorce. Geez Lord, enough already, lol. Oh, not through the bad health but I worked hard at losing weight! I wanted to be healthier! I went from 202 pounds to 135!! Wahoo. Anyhow, through each and every trial, I have grown so much in Him. He is taking me and molding me the way HE wants!

St. Patrick, Do You Know Him?

Layout below by Creative Team Member, Eva
Saint Patrick (Latin: Patricius[2], Irish: Naomh Pádraig) was a Christian missionary and is the patron saint of Ireland along with Brigid of Kildare and Columba. Patrick was born in Roman Britain. When he was about sixteen he was captured by Irish raiders and taken as a slave to Ireland, where he lived for six years before escaping and returning to his family. He entered the church, as his father and grandfather had before him, becoming a deacon and a bishop. He later returned to Ireland as a missionary, working in the north and west of the island, but little is known about the places where he actually worked and no link can be made with Patrick and any church. By the eighth century he had become the patron saint of Ireland. The Irish monastery system evolved after the time of Patrick and the Irish church did not develop the diocesan model that Patrick and the other early missionaries had tried to establish.

The available body of evidence does not allow the dates of Patrick's life to be fixed with certainty, but it appears that he was active as a missionary in Ireland during the second half of the fifth century. Two letters from him survive, along with later hagiographies from the seventh century onwards. Many of these works cannot be taken as authentic traditions. Uncritical acceptance of the Annals of Ulster (see below) would imply that he lived from 378 to 493, and ministered in modern day northern Ireland from 433 onwards.

Layout to the right by one of Amie's CT members, Crystal.


Find the "Don't Get Pinched" kit By Nikki Painter at 25% off in our shop and Amie's Luck O' the Irish kit, along with some other "Green Themed" Kits there too!

You can find more about St. Patrick and St. Patrick's Day here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Patrick

Scripture Challenge {Week 11}

Do you separate your “religious” activities from your “regular” activities? Are you grouping your daily or weekly tasks into tasks for God, tasks for the family, tasks for the school, etc.? I think you get the idea. Well, our precious Lord does not want us to live by grouping our activities and tasks. He wants us to understand that everything we do, everywhere we go (even the grocery), falls under His precious Kingdom. We are to live a Godly lifestyle daily not just on Sundays, Wednesdays, or days we are at the church. Living for Him is a lifestyle. His precious Word teaches us how to live our lives daily for Him. It is our instruction manual on how to live.

Genesis 6:9 tells us that “Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked with God.” Are you walking/living for God or the world? Noah was more concerned about pleasing the Lord than pleasing people. How about you? So, if you haven’t guessed by now, our word for this week is:

Week 11 Challenge Word: Live

It truly is a challenge to live for Him daily but He gives us the Holy Spirit to guide us. Shoot up a quick prayer if you feel like gossiping, worrying, complaining, etc. Ask the Holy Spirit to give you His words. And another great thing to think about is the acronym WWJD (What Would Jesus Do). If you aren’t sure about something, ask yourself “What would Jesus do?” Follow His example. Jesus is our perfect model for relating to the world.

To choose my scriptures this week, I used Bible Gateway. I love that site, and I think a lot of you use it too. Anyway, when I searched on the keyword “live,” it gave me 1,112 scriptures. And yes, I looked through all of them! My eyes were a bit cross-eyed by the time I was done. There were scriptures about where people lived, what cities people lived near, how many years they actually lived, etc. Well, then I discovered that I should have searched on “exact phrase.” When I did that, I only got 617 scriptures. So, hopefully this little tip will help you if you use Bible Gateway to search the scriptures. And I found 24 scriptures that I loved. But the three I chose to put on my card this week were:

Amos 5:14: “Seek good, not evil, that you may live.”
Colossians 1:10: “And we pray this in order that you may please Him in every way, bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God.”
Galatians 5:16: “So I say, live by the Spirit and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature.”

And I used miscellaneous goodies from the Create My Keepsake February kit, and I used a one of the new 7Gypsies ATC transparencies. They are really fun with many different designs in the package.

As you go out this Holy Week and the days and weeks ahead, remember how Jesus lived, how He is our perfect example, and that He sacrificed so that we might live! Have a blessed week!

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Redirection Challenge

This week, share in a layout, altered item or journal how you have been redirected by following the spirit. Record a time in your life when God offered you redirection in, your career path, personal goals, family or altered your priorities in another way, to align more with His.


There are many in my times in my life to share. When my husband quit driving long haul diesel, after 15 years to be home with our family. When I prayed for a friend to be an example and that would help me make right choices in my life. Another example, when I knew it was time to let go of past feelings of hurt and to forgive others.

I hope this challenge will be of inspiration to you and to see your work in our gallery this week. Here is the layout I created for this challenge.

The journaling reads:
I had given all my heart and a lot time to building Scrap in a Snap & Leaving Prints grow. When each company went out of business I wasted time wondering why? Upset that this would happen to me...again? As time passes the Lord helped me see there was a new path. I then saw that these roads had lead me to some of the most important people in my life.


Here are some scriptures that may inspire you while creating a layout for this challenge. Psalm 62:8 "Trust in Him at all times, you people; Pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us."

Isaiah 30:21 (NKJV) Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way, walk in it,” Whenever you turn to the right hand Or whenever you turn to the left.

Jeremiah 29:11-13 (NKJV) 11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. 12 Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. 13 And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.

Upload your Redirection layout in our Inspiration Gallery.

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Layout By Creative Team Member, Alisa






























Layout By Creative Team Member, Anne






























Layout By Creative Team Member, Charrie






























Layout By Creative Team Member, Eva






























Layout By Creative Team Member, JackieAnn






























Layout By Creative Team Member, Jaz






























Layout By Creative Team Member, Krystal






























Layout By Creative Team Member, Tammy






























Freebie by Krystal Hartley, you can find it in our shop!