ok.

Well. I'm painting.

I wish I could share in great detail what this year has been for me, personally, as well as for my family. God has us all on a journey & He has reminded me of that in great detail this year in particular.

He sat me down in 1 Corinthians for a good long time.....& it is changing me from the inside out. We had a couple of deaths in our family this year & at one of those funerals they read from 1 Corinthians 13.

The love verses.

Which you usually hear at weddings.

Not funerals.

And the words stung.

If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.

I grieve over those words.

Knowing that I had not loved her well.

So convicted. So guilty & rightly convicted of being nothing more than a clanging cymbal.

And so I painted.

Like a mad & crazy woman I painted & couldn't stop.

I cried & shoo-ed the husband & the children while I processed all of this hurt inside of me.

And all I could paint was 1 Corinthians 13.

Pieces of it here & there. Coming face to face with my guilt & pain & regret.

And then He showed me so clearly the words that come next.

Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Love never ends.

His love is so good. It's a wonder He doesn't strike us all down for the way we represent Him sometimes. Knowing God through the lenses of love changes everything. And I know I'll never be the same after having to deal with the pain of not loving her well....of not painting a better picture of a God who is so full of love & mercy & patience & kindness & hope.

So. It has been a journey. And it will continue to be a journey.

I hope.

If you check out the shop you'll see some hearts.

It's where I am.

Hearts & love & hope & faith & a lotta hearts. I don't think you can have too many hearts. And I'm certain you can't have too much love.

The Neema Shop still has some awesome changes coming her way & I can't wait to keep you posted, but in the meantime, I'll be posting things for sale in the shop as they happen.

orders

These are some sweet boards for some new people brought into the world! It's so much fun to feel like I am celebrating their births from afar! Like I'm in on all the fun & they just don't know it. I love praying for these littles as I paint......I hope these words are written on their little hearts as they learn how very big God's love is for them.

Christmas Break

Whew. I'm exhausted.

It was an amazing market season & now, as promised to the family, I am taking a breather to enjoy this season. And I may even get to paint something just for them!!!

There are some things brewing & I hope to have some new things up & going after the new year.

We, at our house, have been meditating on the names given to the anticipated Savior from the mouth of Isaiah the prophet.....Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

It's amazing that we could long for anything more.

Merry Christmas & thank you!

Davis

Garden Market!

It's been way too long......& there are updates to be given & stories to tell.
Come out Saturday to the Garden Market. You'll find great items & meet some amazing people including the Neema shop inspiration....Heath & Neema of TAWV!

www.gardenmarket.blogspot.com

Sat. November 12th

9-330

335 pine tree dr

Garden Hills Rec.Center

here we go.....

Lots of exciting things going on around here!
Busily busily preparing for a couple of shows coming up - see the events page for the 411 on that. And there will be a whole new product line coming out - something I have been dreaming about - that may be too dramatic - but it has been on my heart for some time now & I can't wait to introduce you all to it.
It will serve all types of purposes - a blessing for your family, your friends & as always, to help the cause of the orphan.
You have been so generous in your support of this ministry - you have helped families move down the road of adoption - which means you have helped children move steps closer to being a part of a family, you have touched children who remain in orphanages, you have been a part of 5 specific children's lives as they grow together in a group home setting with a loving caregiver. You have acted as the hands & the feet of Jesus in caring for one another.
I am eager to get this Neema shop back up & running.
And I will.
And in the meantime, make sure you come see me at the events coming up. And help spread the word!

holiday harvest market

Well, there's a show coming up this weekend & all the details are here.

Good to be back :).

rest.

Well, I took a little time off from painting to relax a little with the family over the summer.
And I will tell you that relaxing is just not what happens when there is an almost 2 year old in the house. But it was nice to have a little bit more of my attention to give to them. I am in the middle of finishing some orders & getting things ready for a few shows coming up AND I have a little something new to offer....I am eager to get a day to tie up all the loose strings of it all.

I hope you have all been well.....I'll be ready to be back in the swing of things real soon - so stay tuned!