Childrens Art Contest for Patches’ New Coloring Book

childrens art contest for patches new coloring book

CHILDREN’S ART CONTEST

Create a coloring page for Patches’ Farmland Adventures –a Biblical Coloring and Activity Book

Parents, Grandparents, Sunday School teachers–challenge your class to enter.

Picture  your budding artist when his/her drawing is accepted in Patches Farmland Adventures, our newest Biblical Coloring and Activity Book!  Winning artists will have their drawing published in the book with their name, and receive a free copy of the book.

Easy to Enter

Art Contest for Patches’ Second Book is open until February 14, 2019. Click here for more information and a downloadable entry form.

Patches’ Farmland Adventures will prove true to it’s title! Patches will have comments and Scripture for every drawing that is included.

Adults, encourage your budding artists to send entries right away. Click Art Contest tab above for more information and a downloadable entry form.
The form must be signed and included with each entry.

Our judges will be looking for many entries to choose from for this exciting adventure.

We want drawings from little ones in Kindergarten and older ones in high school.  How exciting to anticipate the drawings that soon will flood the mailbox! Fun!

Also featured in Patches’ Farmland Adventures will be Curly-Que BBQ.  Does that sound like a country picnic?

Pictures can be as simple as a picnic basket or as busy as a hillside filled with animals and people.  Let your young ones be creative and encourage them to meet the deadline. Each entry must be mailed by February 14 to qualify.

After the artwork is chosen, Patches will be busy writing comments and creating puzzles and other activities.  It’s an exciting time for a little turtle to be on a farm!

And exciting time for this author … wow!

Hugs,

Click here for more information and downloadable form.

Making the Christmas Story Personal

making the christmas story personal

Making the Christmas Story Personal

Making the Christmas Story personal can be a challenge. We know the story well. We’ve read it, told it, sang it. This year the characters have become more real to me.

This season I feel I “met” the characters for the first time. I know them as real people with emotions and desires just as we. They made choices, they grew weary, they questioned, they obeyed. At one point in history, God changed the focus of each of them and changed the world forever.

Mary, Mother of Jesus

Mary was betrothed to a young, handsome carpenter in Jerusalem. A betrothal meant the couple was seen as married although the bride-to-be would remain a virgin in her parent’s home for a year. Consider her strength when the angel announced that she would be the mother of Jesus.

Her faith in God gave her strength to tell Jacob the amazing story, to face certain ridicule from family and friends, and eventually make the long trek to Bethlehem while very much ‘with child’.

Joseph, the Earthly Father of Jesus

The young, strong carpenter loved his bride-to-be, he wanted the best for her. He knew to accept Mary’s story could bring shame and ridicule upon them both. Would they believe Mary had been faithful? Or that he had not slept with her before marriage? Was he prepared so soon for a wife and a child?

The Birthplace of Jesus, the Messiah

Over seven hundred years before Jesus’ birth, the prophet Micah predicted the Savior would be born in Bethlehem. Micah 5:2  Yet, Joseph and Mary lived in Nazareth in Galilee. How could he be the One? Just prior to Jesus’ birth, Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world which required Joseph and Mary to make the journey to be taxed. God is not limited by any boundaries or time or space!

Meet Simeon in Luke 25-35

It was reveal to Simeon that he would not die until he saw the Lord Jesus, the Christ. Imagine the love as he held that baby and blessed him. And, it was Simeon that announced to the world in Luke 2:32 that Jesus came as a light to the Gentiles as well as the Jews. Jesus was to be the Savior of the Whole World!

Anna, the Prophetess

Widowed after just seven years of marriage, young Anna served the Lord faithfully in the temple for over eighty years, praying night and day. She rejoiced with praises that baby Jesus was the promised Messiah..

Jesus’ first recorded words at age 12

Read Luke 2:49. Jesus left his parents and went to the temple to listen and to preach. When asked about it, he simply stated that He must be about His Father’s business  .For more on the birth of Jesus including videos, click here

Consider these truths; ponder them in your own heart; make them a part of your daily life.

  1. God’s Love will calm your fears. Wherever He calls you to go and whatever He calls you to do, God is with you.
  2. God will provide all your needs. He provided for Joseph and Mary and met their needs in ways they could not imagine.
  3. God is with you now; do not have to look as Simeon for Him. He wants to live in your heart  Does He? Be sure, be very sure.
  4. God will fill all your empty places. It’s okay to be old and alone, or young and alone … because with Jesus in your heart, you are never alone.
  5. God has a plan for your life. Jesus was about His Father’s business at age 12; that must be our plan as well. What has God called you to do?

 

Hugs,

For some of my healthy snack options, click here.

 

 

Giving Thanks in All Circumstances

Giving Thanks in All CircumstancesGiving thanks when my schedule is overwhelming.

Giving thanks when my schedule is overwhelming could prove difficult. I will never catch up.  It will be Valentine’s Day before I can decorate anything!

! wondered about you. If I know you well or only slightly, I am praying for you and your family, I hold you in my heart. I wonder how your life is going and if, in even the least of ways, my notes have truly offered you help and hope.

For a message by Billy Graham on Being Thankful for All Things, click here.

Giving thanks even for a few moments can change your day.

It was wet and brutal cold yesterday. Today I woke up to the sun shining through my lacy curtains.  Outside as I was giving thanks to God for His provision, I drank in that cool, clean air, and felt as though I could conquer the world (for a brief moment). I’m thankful for those times. I wish fresh air and sunshine for your busy days.

Later as I rushed through the grocery store, I was greeted with young people wishing me happy holidays and sharing bear hugs . I wish for you hugs from wee ones; they warm our hearts and put life into perspective.

Giving thanks results in sharing with others.

When I do take time to thank God for all He has provided, He nudges me in some way to share with others. It may be simply buying an extra carton of on sale canned goods for the food pantry.

One time, it was to simply get a large cup of flavored coffee to drop off at a shut-ins. The smiles gained when she sipped that brew she could no longer get out to enjoy was priceless! Another time, I paid it forward for an older fella who had stood patiently in the grocery line to pay for his bag of donuts. “God bless you, sir!” His smile told the story; he had been blessed indeed!

Many of you are busier than I, struggling to make it through the day. While I can’t drop in with a treat or hold your hand or hug your neck, perhaps there are a few things I can do for you today.

While giving thanks for you –

1. I can encourage from an understanding heart. I have been there, in the trenches and in the good times. I know firsthand that every caregiver, parent, or child needs hope, love and understanding.

2. I can pray for you. I believe that the love of God knows no boundaries. I believe He cares for us in ways we cannot understand. I believe He wants to comfort you and strengthen you and those you love.

3. I can listen to you. I am a good listener. Sometimes, just talking helps. I want to encourage you, if nothing else, to set aside a few minutes each day to journal your thoughts and your feelings. Be honest with them. And, please let me know when a column meets your need. Let me know how I can be a better encourager for you personally.

Lots of chattering today. Sometimes it’s good to just sit down and talk to an old friend. I really do care about you; I hope you know Jesus cares.

A tried and true method of learning to be thankful in all things is reading Scripture verses. Click here for some verses to copy and meditate upon.  Looking forward to hearing from you soon.