The purpose of this blog is to share insights and thoughts around the paintings & scripture in the watercolor calendars.
JANUARY 24
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Happy New Year!
If you would like to be added to the list to receive a monthly reminder about our devotions, please contact me: emfwlr@outlook.com
This first painting in the 2024 is dedicated to my youngest brother, Isaiah. I don't have children of my own, but if I did I would want them to be like you. Isaiah, you continually remind me of the Lord's loving kindness and I am so very grateful for you.
“Come now, let us settle the matter, says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool." -Isaiah 1:18
I have been sitting with a blank screen for days trying to figure out something to say. To be honest, it's made me rethink this whole devotion a month idea. My heart feels empty and my hands struggle to type. I was planning to talk about God's amazing forgiveness. Yet, when you've been touched by evil forgiveness can feel more like sweeping someone else's sin against you under the rug.
Yesterday, (which won't really be yesterday by the time this is published) I sat in my counselor's office and just sobbed...snot, tears, the whole magela. How can God forgive him? Does that mean I'm overreacting? I need to know that He cares about this and isn't just ignoring it because of the cross! I yelled these and many other things in my appointment. I came home and cried more tears than I knew I had. After years in counseling trying to work through life, my deepest hurt was rising to the surface. To be honest, it has me overwhelmed right now and I have nothing to offer. So I'm asking Him to encourage you when I cannot. He is actually the one who does it ANYTIME someone is encouraged by this little blog. I've asked Him what to write about. This is what He showed me:
I don't want God to hide that sin! I want justice! These thoughts among others filled my mind. I have been wrestling through the confusion of wanting forgiveness for my own sin, wanting justice for the sin against me, and not knowing how to hold both.
I want God's forgiveness. I want him to make my sins white as snow. But how can He do that and still be a God of justice? How can He make our sin white as snow while in the same exact moment not turn a blind eye to evil. I don't know about you, but I need to know that God is a God of mercy and of justice. Genesis 8 says "...every inclination of the human heart is evil from childhood..." This was where He began to show me that only He can hold both mercy and justice in perfect harmony.
Psalm 130
A song of ascents.
1 Out of the depths I cry to you, Lord; 2 Lord, hear my voice. Let your ears be attentive to my cry for mercy.
3 If you, Lord, kept a record of sins, Lord, who could stand? 4 But with you there is forgiveness, so that we can, with reverence, serve you.
5 I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits, and in his word I put my hope. 6 I wait for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning.
7 Israel, put your hope in the Lord, for with the Lord is unfailing love and with him is full redemption. 8 He himself will redeem Israel from all their sins.
Today as you read this if you need to know you're forgiven, take heart because through Jesus you can be forgiven. It doesn't matter how horrible a sin it is, He can forgive it. He is willing and able and wanting to forgive. Only He can do it, you just simply have to receive it for the free gift that it is.
"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." -John 1:9
"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God..." -Ephesians 2:8
"I am writing to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven for His name's sake." -1 John 2:12
"The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against Him." - Daniel 9:9
"In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace, which he made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence." - Ephesians 1:7-8
Perhaps instead, you need to know today that there is accountability for sin. Good news, beloved, you can also take heart. We live in a broken world, so sometimes we are hurt by someone else's sin. All you have to do is glance at the news and you'll be reminded very quickly that there is evil in the world. If this is your struggle today, you can also take heart because God does not turn a blind eye when someone hurts you (or someone you love).
"You have kept count of my tossing; put my tears in Your bottle. Are they not in your book? This I know, that God is for me. In God, whose word I praise, in the Lord, I shall not be afraid." - Psalm 56:8-11
"Cast your burden on the Lord, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved." - Psalm 55:22
"And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you." - 1 Peter 5:10
"Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness." - James 1:2-3
"For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us." - Romans 8:18
And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying: “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man, and He will live with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the former things have passed away.” And the One seated on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.” - Revelation 21:3-5
God has been teaching me a new thing about the cross this Christmas season: The cross was not only for my sins, but also for the sins done against me. Meaning, God has wrath for sin whether or not a person accepts God's forgiveness.
If we as sinners repent and turn from our sin, God will forgive us. He makes our sin white as snow because He exchanges our sin for Christ's purity. He poured out His wrath for me onto Jesus at the cross. And Jesus willingly went and accepted it- all of it. He did it for me & He did it for you -- He did it because He loves us & wants us.
If we as sinners choose to deny God's gift of grace, then we will be the recipients of God's wrath.
Either way, God has wrath for sin. That may seem harsh for a New Year's post, but I need to know that today.
I need to know that God is not okay with murder, rape, adultery, lying, genocide, torture, selfishness, etc. I need to know that praying for an abuser does not mean the abuse was okay. I need to know that if someone accepts Jesus in prison and begins to feverishly share the gospel like Paul, God will still be there to comfort the ones that were hurt by whatever action led to prison.
I am struggling, today but I praise God that He is not struggling. This is not hard for Him. We are not too much for Him. He can hold mercy and justice in perfect harmony with one another. He is both loving and holy.
He can turn all sins to be white as snow and yet not turn a blind eye to them. It is beyond comprehension, but He does it all through Jesus.
Thank you for these devotions, Emily, and thank you for sharing your wisdom through hardships. God reveals Himself the most when our challenges are the greatest. Hugs and blessings sister.
This post about God alone being able to hold mercy and justice in perfect balance is both daunting and helpful at the same time. I read in 2 Peter1:3: "For His divine powerhas bestowed on us(absolutely)everything necessaryfor (a dynamic spiritual) life and godliness, through true and personal knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence." The next verse says that through His glory and excellence He has granted us precious and magnificent promises so that by them we may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world on account of lust(disreputable, evil desire). This tells me that God has given us many promises of divine enablement so that I can share in His divine nature. I think that must mean that I can learn to hold mercy and justice in balance more like the way that He does. Verses 5-7 continue on to say, "Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love." The next verse says that if these qualities are mine and are increasing, then I'll be useful and fruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. Actually, verse 8 makes the statement in the negative, saying that I won't be useless or unfruitful in my knowledge of the Lord. Emily, thank you so very much for this devotion about January's painting with all the Scripture and your own personal experiences and feelings that you've shared. I love that Psalm 130 says that the psalmist waits for the LORD with his whole being and in His word he puts his hope. That is what you've encouraged me to continue to do today. Thank you, Emily. We are here to help , exhort, and encourage one another in the Lord. I also read last December's whale devotion(or July's). It spoke God's truth wonderfully into my spirit, too. Thank you.
The calendar. Wow. Can I just say…WOW. It started off as a fun way to raise money for medical bills. It turned into a community when the Lord would not relent that the devotions would go with the paintings. It has been so fun and so encouraging to hear the different ways God has used this little 2023 calendar. In January of this year, I knew I wanted to try to create another calendar for 2024. So I started off strong with completing the January 2024 page a whole year in advance. Then life happened and I didn’t get February done like I planned. But for the next six months whenever I could steal little moments to paint I did so- sometimes with the calendar in mind and sometimes just for fun. Then summer came and I hit a wall. You might remember that July’s whale never got his devotional. So instead of Christmas in July, how about we have July in Christmas? This has been the hardest post to write. I have wrestled with what to say or not say. My prayer is that it encourages you.
WELCOME If we have not met, my name is Emily and I am a survivor of a traumatic brain injury. I am honored to be a featured artist alongside fellow survivor, Jeremy, for the month of March at Huntsville Hospital. March is TBI (traumatic brain injury) awareness month. For more about me and my personal journey with a TBI, click here . If you are interested in hearing the story behind any of the paintings, please see the links below. Feel free to explore this little blog and also check out my shop and portfolio ! If you are interested, I would love to add you to my subscribers list. I send out an email on the first of each month with a devotional link attached. Email me if you would like to be added to our group! Thank you for being here! Thank you for your support! "Connections" I did not paint this one alone. Click here to read the story. "Peachy Keen" I haven't been able to write the story behind this one yet. Maybe someday soon. For now I wi
For Katie, a most faithful friend who hears the voice of her Shepherd. I love you like you were my own sister. Thank you for being such a precious friend to me. You've been with me and prayed for me through some really hard days. I am so grateful for you! Your love for Jesus radiates through you. "My sheep know my voice; I know them and they follow Me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand." -John 10:27-28 There is SO MUCH that can be said about sheep being used in scripture. I've had a hard time narrowing it down, so I'm just going to include as much as I can and trust the Holy Spirit to guide you to what you need. The Shepherd's Voice I remember being a kid and going on a field trip to a farm. We learned about sheep and how they only respond to the voice of their shepherd. We all took turns trying to call the sheep. The sheep completely ignored all of us. And then the shepherd stepped for
Thank you for these devotions, Emily, and thank you for sharing your wisdom through hardships. God reveals Himself the most when our challenges are the greatest. Hugs and blessings sister.
ReplyDeleteThis post about God alone being able to hold mercy and justice in perfect balance is both daunting and helpful at the same time. I read in 2 Peter1:3: "For His divine powerhas bestowed on us(absolutely)everything necessaryfor (a dynamic spiritual) life and godliness, through true and personal knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence." The next verse says that through His glory and excellence He has granted us precious and magnificent promises so that by them we may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world on account of lust(disreputable, evil desire). This tells me that God has given us many promises of divine enablement so that I can share in His divine nature. I think that must mean that I can learn to hold mercy and justice in balance more like the way that He does. Verses 5-7 continue on to say, "Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love." The next verse says that if these qualities are mine and are increasing, then I'll be useful and fruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. Actually, verse 8 makes the statement in the negative, saying that I won't be useless or unfruitful in my knowledge of the Lord. Emily, thank you so very much for this devotion about January's painting with all the Scripture and your own personal experiences and feelings that you've shared. I love that Psalm 130 says that the psalmist waits for the LORD with his whole being and in His word he puts his hope. That is what you've encouraged me to continue to do today. Thank you, Emily. We are here to help , exhort, and encourage one another in the Lord. I also read last December's whale devotion(or July's). It spoke God's truth wonderfully into my spirit, too. Thank you.
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