The True Meaning of Christmas - Challenge Part 8 of 9

* The Wreath: A symbol of the never ending eternal value of …having no end.

* The Gift Bow on the Wreath: Tied as we should all be tied together in bonds of goodwill forever.

For the next 2 weeks we will be doing challenges based on a story by an unknown author. The story is about the true meaning of the Christmas Symbols. Each week we will take the different symbols in the story and do pages with them. After the 2 weeks are over and including the challenges from the last 7 weeks, you should have a beautiful reminder that you can share with your family every Christmas as to what the TRUE Meaning of Christmas is and that is of the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ.

See the first and full challenge and story by clicking here!

(Week Eight) Santa brought out a beautiful wreath made of fresh, fragrant greenery tied with a bright red bow. "The bow reminds us of the bond of perfection, which is love . The wreath embodies all the good things about Christmas for those with eyes to see and hearts to understand. It contains the colors of red and green and the heaven-turned needles of the evergreen. The bow tells the story of good will towards all and its color reminds us of Christ's sacrifice. Even its very shape is symbolic, representing eternity and the eternal nature of Christ's love . It is a circle, without beginning and without end. These are the things you must teach the children."

Some verses to go along with this part of the story could be:
Proverbs 11:27
He who seeks good finds goodwill...

1 Kings 10:9
Praise be to the LORD your God, who has delighted in you and placed you on the throne of Israel. Because of the LORD's eternal for Israel, he has made you king, to maintain justice and righteousness."

We hope that you will join us in creating this keepsake for your own family! We would love to see what you do! Please upload your creations in our gallery!

Blessings,
Karma

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For a limited time, you can download this digital mini kit for FREE to continue your album with!

Download the mini kit here.

If you would like help getting your pages done faster, you can pick up my Quick Page for this challenge in the shop!

The following layouts are by our Creative Team Members and will give you some inspiration on what you might like to do with your album pages!

by Connie Jean


by Kim


by JackieAnn


by Tammy


by Victoria


by Dana


by Erin


by Kay

Made Ya Look Monday! Gallery Standouts

On Mondays we feature some amazing layouts in our gallery that just "Made Ya Look!" We invite these ladies to snag our featured blinkie to wear all around the net!

by JackieAnn


by shawtyp


by Side by Side


by krispysky


by kkklatt


by amystoffel


by gonewiththewind


by RuthMeLoDy


by pinkscrapper


by happymomkelly


by Chelly


by WendyW


by arianescrap


by m2m


by Cherry Limeade


by Niamari


by WendyW


by snojewel

Scripture Challenge {Week 48}

Week 48 Challenge Word: Give

Last week we talked about giving thanks. This week the Lord wants us to look at giving during this season of celebration and giving. What has God given you? A family? A home? Food? Good health? Salvation through His precious Son? God gives to us so that we can share with others.

John 10:28 “I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand.”
Romans 8:32 “He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?”

Max Lucado says “Though God has given us many blessings and rights, we should be willing to give them up if it would help someone to know Christ. Why not give up your right for free time or watching a movie and use the time to share with a new Christian a lesson you have learned recently.”

What a simple but most important way to give!!! God will use you to meet the needs of others. It is impossible for us to out-give God so give abundantly!

There are so many ways to give not just by giving money. As I looked through almost 1,000 verses on Biblegateway, I noticed these words as I read: “Giving strength, knowledge, understanding, peace, rest, thanks, comfort, aid, shelter, attention, love, instruction, approval, praise, forgiveness, etc.” The list could go on and on. These are amazing ways our precious Lord gives to us but also ways we can give to others.

And God reminded me yesterday not to give up on our children! Being a parent is definitely a roller coaster especially when you have children with ongoing medical problems or special needs. He has a plan for them. They were born in His image just as you and I were. He wants us to give them the love, the praise, the support, etc., especially when times are hard. Give them more of you and more of God; don’t give up! Galatians 6:9 says “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”

For my card this week, I used Basic Grey Urban Prairie papers and several Unity stamps. The butterfly stamp is from the Friendship. Love. Miracles. set, and the frame on the back is from the Our Life Our Stories set. And the small stickers are from 7Gypsies and were included in the November kit from Create My Keepsake. They were just perfect!The verses I used were:
Matthew 5:42 "Give to the one who asks you and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you."
Matthew 10:8b "Freely you have received, freely give."

I pray that you will take these weeks ahead and watch for areas where you can give—maybe a listening ear to a child or teen, a hug to a friend that is suffering, a meal to a sick neighbor, etc. Watch for the opportunities God brings to you to give. Blessings,