Be Still..

Hey, y'all.

I hope you have had a happy week.

I have been ticking things off of my
TO DO list, and I am happy
with what I have done.

Sometimes, we need to remember to be kind to ourselves, and rejoice in what we get done, and just offer grace to ourselves for what we didn't do.

I had to make a run to town, this week,  and boy, where is everyone going in such a hurry?

At the grocery store, a man came swerving around the parking lot like an Indy car driver. Going home, I had to slam on my breaks to avoid a man hitting me head-on while he was passing another car, and the SUV behind me was so close on my bumper, I prayed for safety.

I admit, that I understand road rage, well, to a certain extent, and I remember always running to meet a deadline, but I tried to be safe and never put anyone's

 Life in danger...I tried to think of others.

When Daddy was so sick,
it was a lesson for me
to slow down.

I pushed him many places in a wheelchair, while he gained back his strength, and marveled at the rudeness

 Of so many people running to get in front of us, lest they have to slow down.

While I rejoiced when he was driving, again, oh, how I prayed for those behind him, but I also recognized that he had just as much of a right to be on that highway, as everybody else!
He paid his dues by living a good, honorable Life.

I was forced to slow down, and I am grateful for that lesson.

I often wish for others to experience a lesson in compassion, so they, too, can be better people.

We all need to stop, and listen.

In the silence,
we can pray to be
 bound to the heart of God.

When we wander, often the gifts of the Spirit disappear, too.
Our focus changes, and we lose our compassion, and kindness.

It takes work to live peacefully with others whose values are different, but we have much to learn from each other.

Thank y'all, for what you teach me.

You are my sunshine!

I am simply blessed
to create ~charlotte♡

Click here to get a pdf of the line drawings of the 'Be Still' and 'Sunshine'

It is well...

I have been having fun learning different styles and using different supplies.

I have learned palette knife painting. It is fun, but it will never replace my traditional style of painting.

I started these canvases with the intent of painting my home church on them for a childhood friend, but cancer took her life, too soon, and I tossed them aside.

I recently reached a little window of being caught up, so I drug these out, again, and wanted to finish them.

I wanted them to be primitive, and similar to all the palette knife churches that are all over pinterest so I think that I was successful.  I simply used a #12 Flat, and using the dirty brush method, and by George, I liked it!

This is similar to my home church.

I have shared this before, but Mother was a Southern Baptist and Daddy was a Christian, until he met Momma!
😁😂🤣😃

When Mother and Daddy got married,  they agreed to find a church where they both could attend each Sunday, together.

They found Mt. Denson Cumberland Presbyterian Church.

It was a small white wooden country church that had added a basement and a brick wing of 4 rooms.

There was a slab of concrete in front that held 3 beautiful maple trees.

I would play "1,2,3 Red light" AND "Simon Says" with my friends.

The people would gather there, after church and fellowship and share. The left top corner was jokingly called "Amen Corner."

Fast forward about 50 years, and 2 new renovations have been made...the elders are dead, and so, pretty much, is the church. It is a sad thing to watch.

I hold special memories of this church. I try not to reflect on the many hurts.

Mother and Daddy served faithfully, and so did I. I taught many classes, sang many songs, played numerous hymns and designed many a floral arrangement to share on the altar.

I did my best to share the gifts God gave me.  I was taught about service, the Bible, our Denomination, and our heritage.

I made mistakes. Got angry. Said hurtful things. Acted like a brat.

I learned about forgiveness,
mercy and grace.

I wish I had never grown up to see the ugliness of churches. 😔

So, today marks 6 years
since we buried Momma.

It was truly a celebration of her life. We sang hymns, and our former pastor spoke of God's invitation of love.

Mother shared John 3: 16, 17 with people around the world.

She lived Love.

She was my greatest supporter.
Every time I showed her a new creation, she always told of someone that she would like to give it to. 😁😂🤣😃

I have found myself developing her giving spirit. I think she would be proud!

So in her memory, you may have this pattern. I will leave it here until the end of the month.

Click here to download the Free Pattern

If you have trouble downloading it, just send me a message and I will email it to You!
romaland2.1@juno.com

Each day, I am reminded of how blessed I was. I hope you have known that kind of love. If not, let me tell you about my Heavenly Father, who loves you unconditionally.

Make time to create!
It will fuel your soul.

I am simply blessed to create~charlotte♡

Give me Jesus

This has been hanging out in my head for awhile, so those that think my head is empty- na na na na na.😁😂🤣😃

I love my regular decorative painting, but I have to admit, Mixed Media calls loudly for me to #create! 😉

I have shared so many times that I think anyone can learn to paint, if they are willing to put in the practice.

To me, Mixed Media makes art accessible for anyone to create. I am not saying it takes no skills, but it is so wide open, that one can bring their own special talents to it, without having to know the basic strokes of Decorative Painting, or tole painting.

I continue to share my process, in the hope that it will inspire you to pick up your supplies.

Again, I encourage you to USE WHAT YOU HAVE.

I am a DecoArt girl, but that doesn't mean you can't use other things--I just don't want to think about it, though.😉😊😂🤣

To begin, I used DecoArt Decoupage to glue on a piece of tissue paper to a 6 inch wooden canvas.

I used my catalyst to smear Prussian Blue onto the piece.

Now--my catalyst. A fun silicon wedge to move paint around.  Don't have one? Then use: an old cash card, palette knife, finger, or spatula (yep, artists often raid their kitchen!😉)

I repeated the process with Aqua Sky.

I printed a map from The Graphics fairy and painted a "sun". The butterflies that were added, also came from The Graphics Fairy.

If you have an ink jet printer, spray them with a clear varnish before adding paint to them, or the ink will smear.

I glued it onto the bottom with my Matte Decoupage.

I grabbed a sheet of deli paper --yes, it is what they use to wrap sandwiches-- and stamped my saying. I hand-wrote the word "Jesus".

I used stencils by Decoart to add texture to the background.  That is my favorite thing about Mixed Media--texture! 😁😊

The above stencil was used to create the sun rays, using the 4 colors below.

Another stencil I used. My thought with this was direction. That no matter what road we travel in our journey, Jesus is with us. I think the journey is better, and much easier, when we Rise with Jesus.

Now, a lot of what we do to build layers isn't often seen in the final design, but each element plays a part.

It is just like life --we each carry scars and tear-stained lives, but we get an opportunity to heal...to become a new creation. The old is past, and needs to stay there, but we must learn from each encounter. It is part of life to be hurt, but we have the choice to forgive, freeing us from the chains that bind us. We get to SHINE...to bloom into a new and improved version of us!

How cool is that!

Maybe that is why Mixed Media calls for me...maybe...

I used oil pastel around the edges and around the sun.

I also used my charcoal pencil to shade, too.

For some reason, I glued the square of the graphics, instead of cutting around it. Ok, I was lazy, but no problem, I added the elements of the background, and they melded together--oh, a cure for the lazies! 😁😂🤣😃

I hope that you make room and time to create! It will feed your soul and make you a happier, yes, easier person to be around.😉

I am simply blessed
to create~charlotte ♡

Serendipity Sunday: I don't Need an Invisible Friend

What a beautiful Moon!  I KNOW the last full moon was called the Harvest Moon, but since it was cloudy here, I am claiming this one as my own special Harvest moon!

It is so big and so bright!

The glories of God are in full array.

I think God is kinda showing off, too!

This week, I became more aware than usual, of the importance of being a good example.

I saw a lady write about the demise of churches and how she was an atheist.

While, sadly, I agree with her about many churches, because it is MY EXPERIENCE that most serve only themselves.  I KNOW there are those doing exactly what they are supposed to be doing, but I fear, they are few and far between.  And when many of us walk out the doors, we forget that our mission is to SERVE as Christ did. I HOPE your experience is different than mine.

It is hard to believe that in America, there are people who do not know Christ.

We send missionaries to foreign lands, as we should, but we are failing our own neighbors.

I am ashamed that there are many times that the BIBLE that some see in me, causes them to turn away from Christ if I am what “those Christians” are like…heavy sigh…

I fail and fall so many times, but the AMAZING NEWS is that God forgives me and helps me to do better.

Since we are often the only Bible people see, I take it personally when we don’t set a good example.

While we ALL have the right to post WHATEVER we wish on our walls, once posted, it is out there for everyone to see, and is fair game for comments. If you post it, then expect disagreements. THIS is why I take it personally to remind us ALL to be careful WHAT we say and HOW we say it.

The nice lady made one last comment, that was in no way unkind, that I also agree with.  She said she did NOT need an “invisible friend to make me happy”.  Me either.

I do NOT have an invisible friend.

I have a friend that is ALIVE, Living and working in my life every single moment of every single Day.

He makes His presence known in the Full Moon, the clouds in the sky, the mountains, valleys, all living creatures, the sea, the oceans, the rivers, the rolling hills of Middle Tennessee, the sun rise, the sun set, the birds, bees, puppies, flowers, fields of grain, vegetables in the gardens, the gifts He gives us to survive, to make a living, in the kindness of a stranger, the smile of a child, the laughter of friends, the hugs, the tears, the pain, the joy, the love, the service of those who can, the hope of adventures, the planting of a dream, Oh my, I could sing of His Praises for many more words.

BUT, I want to kindly remind us that while God loves us and wants ONLY the best for us, He has given us free will, and He allows us to reap the consequences of our actions.  Bad things happen to good people.  Bad things happen to bad people.  Good things happen to good people. Good things happen to bad people.

So, today, I am SO HAPPY that “I SERVE a LIVING Savior, who is in the world Today.  He walks with him and talks with me along life’s narrow way.  He Lives.  He Lives. Salvation to impart. You ask me HOW I KNOW He LIVES.  He LIVES within my heart.”

I am so happy that I do NOT need an invisible friend to make me happy.  I am overjoyed that I have a Living Father who loves me, guides me and Keeps every single promise that He has made to me to give me EXACTLY what I NEED.  Amen and Amen.

I hope you have Him in Your heart, too…If you don’t, all you have to do is to ASK HIM to come into your heart.  Every single sin will be washed away and you shall be as white as snow.  You know, He is watching over you, even if you don’t think He is.  He loves you with a love like you have never known.  He doesn’t want to condemn you.  He wants to walk with you.  It really is that simple.  Go and sin no more.~charlotte♡

REFLECT the Reason for the Season

Happy Merry Christmas in July!

 WHERE in the world has time gone? Here we sit, only 5 months away from Christmas Day.

I guess my first question is are we to send all those posts about not forgetting the reason for the season, but all the while continuing to paint and share SNOWMEN instead of REASON symbols? I don't  understand that at all...BUT don't get me wrong. As an Artist, I know we need to paint what sells, but we need to be VERY careful that we are following our own advice!

AND are we to remind everyone to be SURE NOT to say HAPPY HOLIDAYS, all the while sharing snippy posts about our political views that share ANYTHING but LOVE and what we PROFESS is what MERRY CHRISTMAS is all about...

And by all means, don't forget to complain about the Christmas items being out in the stores right now...HOW DARE anyone buy something Christmas BEFORE Thanksgiving!!  THE NERVE of those who dare to purchase items when they have the money throughout the year! We are SUPPOSED to STUFF our faces on Thanksgiving day, ACT as if it is a PAIN to gather with our friends and family, be SURE to share all that you have HAD to do for the gathering, watch our watches until the stores open and THEN, and ONLY THEN, we are to RUN and KNOCK people over for all those GREAT BARGAINS...Be SURE not to do this UNTIL after you have had your Thanksgiving meal and then it is A-OK...WHEW!!! 

 It makes me sad to see us being LESS than we tell people what we are...seems our words speak louder than our actions.

A friend wrote me and shared how confused she is by all those professing their faith yet acting otherwise. IT made me pause to reflect on my actions. I wonder often if I do any good in furthering the principles that Christ taught or am I simply a sounding GONG that is described in the LOVE CHAPTER.

 I  wanted to send a friend a message the other day to tell her how disappointed I was to see her consistently sending scriptures only to be followed by a hateful post bashing our President...THAT IS NOT HOW A CHRISTIAN SHOULD ACT...but I decided I need to make sure my own glass house was in order before throwing stones....I bowed my head in shame.

 

 I just had to delete a post that I shared in fun BECAUSE of those who had to TELL me HOW smart they are...I can ONLY hope ONE DAY to be HALF as smart as some people THINK they are...People sure do LOVE to ruin others JOY...Why is THAT?

We HAVE TO DO  BETTER...all of us...look at our country...We can send all the posts we want about getting prayer back in school, but THAT is not the problem  We have to get prayer back in our lives, in our homes and in our actions!!!  We have to STOP using the excuse that we are  ONLY human and start TRYING AND DOING BETTER!!  WE need to stop pointing at THEM and saying THEY need to stop taking away our rights and we need to open our Bibles and READ and understand and PRACTICE what we are taught...

YES...this is the SEASON and we have a REASON to spread love....compassion...mercy...forgiveness...Hope...we MUST become a reflection of the change we wish to see in the world...

You know, the birth of Christ PROBABLY happened at this time of year instead of Christmas...Did you see the planets align recently to create a BRIGHT STAR...many historians believe that this is what occurred on the night of the birth of Christ. The date of Christmas that we use to CELEBRATE was a Pagan holiday...hmmmmm....guess it won't be long until  Fanatics start to boycott Christmas because, like Halloween, it was a Pagan Holiday...I just don't know what to do but to shake my head...

We MUST stop calling people out in Public that we THINK have done us wrong...We are taught to go to a person in private...And by all means, do NOT pretend it is alright when you don't NAME the person...PEOPLE KNOW...ENOUGH of the DRAMA!!

We need to stop  using public forums to ATTACK those we THINK are wrong or who have stolen from us...We are taught to keep our enemies CLOSE and God will take care of the rest.

We MUST stop saying whatever we WANT to say because we are OLD and tried of holding our tongues...GOOD GRIEF, I PRAY I will never be that old person who just opens my mouth because we are TAUGHT to do EVERYTHING in LOVE...I STILL shudder when I think of 3 old people at our church who CRUSHED my spirit by telling me how FAT I was...I DO have a mirror and I KNOW I did it to myself...To this day, because of them, I make SURE to let someone whom I haven't seen in a while KNOW that I KNOW that I am FAT so they don't have to point it out to me...I just wish they could see how much my HEART has grown instead of just my body...sigh

I PRAY this will be the SEASON where we start to evaluate our lives and our actions.  I PRAY that JUST BECAUSE we WANT something and because the CONSTITUTION says it our RIGHT, that we will look at the PROOF that our young people are killing each other at an alarming rate and THAT is a PROBLEM...That people are killing people instead of talking and solving problems...That we have LAWS in place that MUST be enforced...That WORDS DO HURT and destroy.

I PRAY that we will CELEBRATE LIFE every single day, not just on appointed days...That we will give GIFTS to those in need...That we will spread Holiday CHEER instead of negativity...That we will ENCOURAGE instead of letting our petty jealousies attack those who are just doing the best they can, JUST LIKE YOU AND ME...

 I PRAY that we will learn Self-discipline and learn that JUST because we WANT it and have the RIGHT to have it, does in no way mean that it is is GOOD for us...EVERY single action has a consequence...Choose WISELY so that the consequences are POSITIVE!

 I PRAY, starting with ME, that we will each LIVE the CHANGE we want to see...that we will stop PREACHING (ooops...I already blew that with this post...heavy sigh) and allow our ACTIONS to reflect WHAT is truly important in life.

I want my HEART to be saddened by the things that sadden God and rejoice at WHAT HE says is good...Mother, I SO UNDERSTAND now what you kept telling me about NOT being OF this world...I GET IT!!!  I wish every little child could have a parent that TAUGHT them by example like you and Daddy did...not just words, but ACTIONS...I HOPE you are happy at who I am trying to become...

 YES...THERE is a REASON for this SEASON...LIVE your life as a REFLECTION of HIS LOVE...it is really so simple...why complicate things?  KNOW that WHEN you LOOK in the mirror, that YOU will see a REFLECTION of one that was CREATED in God's image and that He LOVES so much that He gave His ONLY SON so that we could CHOOSE to live FOREVER with HIM in eternity...You are NOT your past...You are FORGIVEN and LOVED if you but simply ask and receive...Blessings to YOU~charlotte