Welcome to a very exciting blog hop. 

Today we are celebrating the launch of a brand new online Christian Creative Community: His Kingdom Come.

This is an online Community where fellow Christians can encourage, share and learn about Christianity and explore the God-given creativity that He has put in us all.  It will be a safe place to share your faith, be inspired, and explore creativity across many art mediums – journaling, mixed media, painting, bible journaling, textiles, watercolor and more.  His Kingdom Come will offer free tutorials, technique classes, devotionals, crafts to celebrate the holidays, opportunities to go deeper in your faith and in your knowledge of God and the Bible.   The website will also offer Christian artists a platform to host classes (free or fee-based) which you will be able to sign up for.

A team of talented Christian artists have come together to launch this exciting new community.  This blog hop is your chance to get to know them.

It doesn’t matter where you start within the blog hop.   Or you can start at the beginning with Diane.  Each blog has the complete list of participants.

Diane Marra

Bernice Hopper

Mary Brack

Marjolaine Walker

Merri Dennis

Justine Dandrea

Libbi Byrd Corson

Anita Van Hal (that’s me!)

Shonna Bucaroff

As you visit each blog you will be given a letter eg. D.   When you have collected all the letters they will make a word.  When you have worked out the word, email Bernice (hkcbloghop@gmail.com) with the word.  We will randomly choose 3 people who have the correct answer to win a prize.   All entries must arrive by Noon (Pacific Time) on Monday 3rd November.

The letter to collect from my blog is U.

Who am I?  I’m a wife, mother and grandmother.  I am blessed to be married to my husband and best friend, and we have four grown children, one daughter-in-law (one daughter and three sons) and two beautiful granddaughters.  I accepted Jesus Christ as my Savior in June, 1983.  Prior to becoming a believer, I had struggled my entire life with depression and zero self-esteem, believing that I was stupid, fat, and ugly; and in high school I developed a drinking problem.  By the time I was 25 years old I was living a life of despair and I was an alcoholic.  Since coming to faith in Jesus Christ in June 1983, my life finally “makes sense,” and I no longer worry about being a people pleaser, and my faith has helped me to remain sober for over 33 years.  Although I may from time to time become depressed, depression is no longer a way of life for me…I have discovered through my faith that there is a reason for me being here in this world, and that my life does have value…that even if I grew up in a very abusive and dysfunctional home, that doesn’t have to remain a way of life.  I could let go of my past.  I could become the person that I was created to be.  My faith gives my life meaning.   While some may think the Christian faith is a crutch, for me and millions of other believers, it gives us purpose and a strength incomparable to anything else this world has to offer; including money, power and “things.”

I have been creative most of my life, but it wasn’t until I developed a chronic headache, as well as other chronic pain issues such as fibromyalgia, degenerative disk disease, etc., that I turned to art as a way of coping with the pain…it helps to engage my mind.  I get bored easily, and being creative gives me a plethora of options, opportunities, and new goals to achieve…while initially being creative was “my” thing, it became clear that it also became a way of using the gifts God has given me, not just for my own pleasure, but as a way of worship and glorifying Him.  I’ve now had the headache for ten years straight, and while it has affected my way of life, I’m very sensitive to light, loud noise, and heat, it has given me not only a creative outlet, but a means to engage with other creative people as well as an income and the opportunity to teach, both online mixed media art, art quilt, and art doll classes and Bible-based life coaching studies…but most of all, I have met many amazing people that I otherwise would not have had the pleasure to get to know.  I love living the creative life I’ve been given.

I’m primarily a mixed media/doll artist, but about five years ago I began to dabble with digital art.  I became enthralled with the possibilities this medium provided, and after being laid off from my job four years ago, I enrolled in art school as a graphic design major.  I found I really did not enjoy creating logos, etc., and preferred to “do my own thing” and began doing hybrid art journaling.  This involved painting digital backgrounds or elements, and using them in my own art journaling.

That evolved into designing digital backgrounds and wall art full-time, and I opened my first Etsy shop a little over two years ago…I opened my second Etsy shop this past summer.  I still enjoy working with acrylic paints and inks, and color pencils are about my favorite medium for “coloring”, but creating digitally has ultimately become my favorite medium.

I will be a co-moderator for the digital design group at His Kingdom Come.  Next year I’ll likely begin offering workshops of my own which I’m hoping will not just be art classes but Bible studies as well.  Art may be my vocation but studying God’s Word is my avocation.  I’m also a a seminary student, and studying theology, biblical Greek and biblical Hebrew as well as other subjects is my life’s work.

I have great dreams for this community.  I want to stress that one does NOT have to be a follower of Jesus Christ to join, although everything we do will be from a Christian worldview.  There will be a huge variety of options available for both free and fee based classes, including art journaling, Bible journaling, fiber arts, digital art, etc…there is no fee to join the community!  I believe His Kingdom Come will provide an active, safe, caring and sharing community where one can experience love and acceptance no matter what your background!  A place where you can find encouragement, share your heart (and art), your problems, and find help from a fabulous group of very caring and loving women!

To join our community, please visit His Kingdom Come!

You can find me here:

Just Be Yourself Etsy shop

Just Be Yourself Too Etsy shop

Pinterest

Flickr

Facebook

Twitter

The letter to collect from my blog is U.

I hope you are as excited as I am at being part of this online venture.  Our vision is to build an online community not just be a project-led site.  A place where you can find encouragement, share your heart and your problems and find help.

To join our community please visit His Kingdom Come.

Thank you SO much for stopping by today!

Love and hugs!