by this, we know love.

good morning, truth seekers.

i went to bed last night hoping in someone else to make me happy, and when i awoke i was still hoping in that person to fulfill me. you know what i got? absolute zero fulfillment. Jesus was gently wooing me unto Himself this morning, but i wanted another person to fill me up with security, love, and hope.

thinking through this concept; i turned to 1 John 3, which is soaked in the truth of all that Jesus' love offers. I don't know about you, but I think I have feared going deeper into the love of Jesus. something within me shouts, "don't do it, you'll be disappointed! He isn't really going to love you the way He promises!" and like a foolish girl, I listen to it. I nod my head and tell myself, youre right. there is no way Jesus could love me completely and fully. I walk away defeated and find myself trying to find that love elsewhere. Have any of you ever done this same thing?

friends, this is a lie straight from the enemy. he wants us to believe that Jesus' love will come up void so that we do not dive further into it; discovering the truth, that it IS in fact all the Bible promises it to be! I will tell you this, the more I am diving into Jesus' heart I am finding this; His love really is beyond all that we could ever ask or imagine. within His presence is fullness and abundance of joy.

"By this we know LOVE, that He laid down His life for us..."--1 John 3:16 (ESV)

think about that for a second. read it three or four times.
Jesus laid down His life for us, and we dare to tell Him there is no way He could love us through our sin? that what we did was far too terrible, too sinful, for Him to extend love and grace to?

"But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."--Romans 5:8 (NIV). 


wow. He looked into our filth, grime, dirt, and sin; and spoke words of Love. so much that He was willing to die for it. I don't know about you, but I am humbled. after reading all of this I was of course, moved into a craft. I played some Kari Jobe and did quite a simple craft for today. today, I will show you how to make decorative clothes pins to hang photos, invitations, or anything you want!

start with plain wooden clothespins. you find a pack of them at hobby lobby for about 3 dollars. get some acrylic paint, and don't be afraid to mix! i mixed yellow with dark green and it created this lovely shade of light green.

paint away! paint them all tons of colors and don't be afraid to experiment. the worst that can happen is you make one you don't like. :)

for the design part of the clothes pins, i used a rather small brush so i could paint flowers or little designs.


voila! lovely little clothespins all painted and dressed up. I think I will hang them on some twine in my room for photos. what will you do with them?

stepping further into His heart,
meredith.