All in the Name of Love- Valentine's Day

Maybe it is because my birthday

 is the day before Valentine's Day.

Or maybe it is just because I LOVE hearts.

A favorite collection is 100 year old Valentine postcards.

But, I love bringing out the nostalgia

 and the vintage for February.

February 1940 Home Arts magazine?  oh, yea.

A glass jar of red and white marbles?  Yup.

3-D Valentines- many from Germany.

A collection of keys?  the older the better.

The key to my heart?  The best.

Grade school Valentine's?

The more the better.

Nostalgia and red.

A valentine tree with vintage red and white handkerchiefs?

And lights on the dark days?

A heart florist's container is now a bit harder to find.  

Yes, yes,  I love it all.

For the greatest of these is LOVE.

Worship into the Week- Shine Light

 

Matthew 5: 13-20    Shine Light

Jesus speaks to His followers and helps them to think

 about their presence in the world. They are different.

They are to let their light shine in the darkness.

It is to be seen, not hidden.

They bring good flavor and preserve goodness,

 just like salt did in the ancient world.

Believers are to have a positive impact

 in their families and communities.

When they do good things and show care,

 it is not to make themselves important.

 but to reflect God's love to others. 

Jesus is working to help those listening to understand

 that His new words are not meant to abolish the Law

 that rules the world of the Jewish people.

Jesus frames his speech with simple teachings that fulfill

the Law and it is made perfect in Him.

The righteousness is deeper than mere outward compliance

 and keeping the Law to the letter.

It is a heart matter and Jesus gives the power

 to have a "heart made right."

This is Tiberius on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. 

The shoreline at the top would be Capernaum and Magdala. 

This would have been one of the hills that shone light

 in the dark at the time of Jesus.  Another possibility 

would have been the Roman city of Hippos- (Sausita) 

across the lake. Standing on the shore at night

 it is very easy to see how Jesus used -

 "right where you are" object lessons with the disciples

 and His followers. 

Shine Bright!!

Supplies:

Visual Faith Ministry Printable

vcy-graphics-only-february-2026

Postage stamps

Colored pencils

Gel pens

Word tape

Calendar Journaling- January 2026

 

Devotional Journaling January 2026

A subdued and quiet entry into the new year.

Four colored pencils and a fine point Sharpie.

Phrase take aways from a favorite devotional-

Streams in the Desert.

Lord, what do you want me to SEE this month?

The Gospel of John and the Art of Sally Beck- Part 4

Just hangin' out with Scripture and an image.

Thinking about the people involved in the story.

How were lives changed?

What was different for them 

after they "hung out " with Jesus?

How did their stories change 

after an encounter with Jesus?

How do I share my story and tell the Good News

 about time with Jesus?

Lord, lead me.

Worship into the Week- What does God Require?

 

Worship into the Week- Micah 6:1-8

Micah was a native of Moresheth,

 a village about 20 miles from Jerusalem.

He lived at the same time as Isaiah and Hosea.

The time period of his prophesies in the later half

 of the eighth century BC was ruled by self-serving rulers, 

judges who were corrupt, and idolatrous people.

the people of Israel didn't listen to Micah 

and were conquered by the Assyrians in 722 BC.

Micah waged war against an erring culture.

This world was filled with false worship, fraud,

 cultic prostitution, bribery, occult practices

 and many other evils.

There was no peace with God for these people.

Micah speaks of the compassionate Shepherd 

who will gather and guide His people.

God moves in the world as merciful, 

compassionate, and faithful.

These words of Micah in Chapter 6 are well known 

and reflect a righteous God to the world.

How do we we showcase our God as His reflection?

Now is such time to stand in the gap 

for the rights of the poor, 

and the downtrodden in our society.

How do followers of Jesus 

show compassion and care and mercy?

This is what God REQUIRES-

to do justice, walk humbly and love kindness 

and to walk humbly with our God.

Supplies:

Visual Faith Printable

Graphics 2-2025

Magazine Cutouts

Vintage Postage Stamps

Watercolor Pencils

Distress Ink

The Gospel of John and the Art of Sally Beck- Part 3

 Sometimes the simple lines of Sally Beck's

 work just point directly to the main thing.

I like working with watercolor pencils on these images.

 They are very forgiving 

and it is fun to see an unexpected result.

Just adding a few stamped spots

 adds a bit of dimension.

The lines on the sketches draw you into the story.

Sometimes the journaling helps 

to cement the time in the Word.

Each image stands alone as a study time 

and I love to revisit the individual pages of this journal.

The Gospel of John and the Art of Sally Beck- Part 2

 

More from my time in the Gospel of John 

with images by artist Sally Beck.

I love finding snippets of found things 

around the studio. Pieces of this and that.

The small collage images were actually

 made by Sally Beck

 and given to me with "some treasures".  

Loved pairing the two things together.

Using black and white papers as the base unites

 the whole work even though each page is very different.

More Sally Beck collage images paired

 with the John 2 reading.

Enjoying the journeys always....