Everyone is born with creativity. But those people who appear to be super creative have a secret. They know that creativity has to be developed and exercised to come easily. I am on a quest to immerse myself in creativity of all kinds. I hope you will join me!

 As with all groups doing bead soup, selecting beads is the most fun part of the project.




 Stringing and crimping.


 The final jewelry.  Notice the bracelets all include heart charms?

for everything you do flows from it.

 One final mission trip project in the dining room at First Step.


One small can of paint.


One brush.





 Seems like everything I did today has a slight list to the right.  Must be the wind blowing.



Somehow, I managed to take the worst brush I own with me. How does that always happen? It was a challenge using it, and I threw it away afterward. With relish!

Take your Vitamin C!

Show and Tell Saturday

 Tonight was Girls' Night In at the rescue mission.  GNI is a women's ministry for the women of my church. Tonight, we had kind of a beach party with a game of beach bingo, popsicles, and decorating flip flops for the craft.

When we go, we hang out with women of all ages, who are there for all reasons. In the last four months, the number of women residents has doubled. Things are tough here in Michigan and not getting better yet. It is not always easy to design a craft that everyone can do with success, but I knew they would like flip flops.

This is the pair I designed.  I layered colors of felt circles and flower shapes, stitched the layers together, and glued the flower to the shoe. I made circle templates for tracing, and we got down to business.

 The only time they get to do projects like this is when we come. Some of the women do not have experience with crafts at all. I found some who had never made a single stitch with a needle and thread. After a couple craft projects with us, they find their stride and creativity starts to blossom. I love this part.

 Oh, the piles of craft materials we have gone through.

 These were made by a young girl. I love that she made the dark outlines.

 Here she is with her Mother. Mom thanked me and we had a chance to chat. Daughter loves to do crafty things, but she never gets the chance. Mom does not craft and does not want to craft. But, Mom hovered watching through the whole project. It is an awesome feeling to see the pride on both faces. Living in a rescue mission with 60 other women, being told what to do and when, there is not much opportunity for pride or creativity. I love that some felt squares and 2 hours of our time can bring real smiles.


This gal went completely to her own design. It may be only felt on a flip flop but there is no substitute for a good job well done.

That goes double for women following God's call to use their skills to encourage those who really can use it.

Take your Vitamin C!

Working with the Holy Spirit in Your Creativity

Today, I had the opportunity to spend time at the high school with a group of artists and art lovers discussing Christian Art.

Aak. I am not an artist so much, but those kids were!  I am also not an expert on the subject, but I talked about my own story and then we got into some good discussion. Made us all think. It was good.

The preparation for the presentation was a gift for me. It made me see all of the amazing things God has led me to in my art ministry. 

Several years ago, I visited an art ministry house in Grapevine, TX. It was a small house in an historic community that was so stinking cute. The artist owners decorated it very artsy. It made me want to move in immediately. They had classes, parties, bible studies, all kinds of great stuff going on. And I wanted to have one just like it. I felt God saying yes to an art ministry.  I waited and waited until finally I realized He gave me an art ministry of a different kind.

It has taken me to different locales and taught me many things. When I was preparing today and made a list of all the things I have been allowed to do in my art ministry, my eyes were opened. And I am very thankful!

Take Your Vitamin C!

Here in the Detroit area, more than 500 churches have banded together in a program called E.A.C.H. Meaning Everyone a Chance to Hear, the program is about evangelism and service here in our own community. This is one of the most desperate areas of the country. Detroit needs what this program is about.

Service projects like mobile medical and dental, and programs to feed people are being manned by a variety of churches. Every church agreed to a certain amount of service hours and there have been all kinds of creative projects like building a house and giving it to a family, tutoring in downtown Detroit, and tons more.

Evangelically, we have all joined together  in prayer walks that have covered almost every neighborhood in SE Michigan, and in 2 Word Stories. Thousands of us have 2 word stories that we are sharing. I have seen yard signs, t-shirts, buttons, bumper stickers, and banners with 2 word stories. The stories reflect something about ourselves before we followed Jesus, and something about how our lives changes since following Him. They are stories of victory and joy, all with happy endings.

 The room was packed tonight, kind of chaotic, very noisy. We met a lot of new residents and they have children living with them there.

 We were a little underprepared because we did not know the numbers were increasing. I don't think everyone got a snack or a drink, but everyone did have a chance to make a craft, play a game, and to visit with at least one of us.

On the nights we are there, we laugh and enjoy the activities together. We get to know the women and look forward to catching up with them. The mood is usually "up."

Once in awhile, we hear a story that breaks our hearts. Stories like that abound, it is the nature of rehab. Tonight, we looked for one of the women we have been visiting with for a year. We looked forward to celebrating with her because her graduation day is April 15. She was not there tonight, and when we asked, we found out that she had left.  They know that she is homeless and living on the riverfront.

Over the year, we watched her start in a state that was close to non-functioning. She grew into a happier person who spoke to us, crafted, and played games. She changed so much. And now, just shy of finishing the program, we are reminded that the pull of whatever landed her in the rescue mission, remains strong.

 Our craft tonight was donated by our friend Carol who is a rubber stamping instructor. She took time to cut papers and cardstock to the perfect sizes and package it all for us. It had to take her some time to do it.

How awesome it is to see artists and crafters share what they do with people who need that exact encouragement. The ladies loved making cards. Some of them were quite creative in adding their own design abilities to the projects. As we sat, I saw some of them write notes inside the cards to loved ones. Carol's contribution is real and appreciated.

How can you use your art skills to encourage someone who needs it? Think about it?

And take your Vitamin C!