Akiane

Akiane: Her Life, Her Art, Her Poetry.
By Akiane Kramarik. 2006.

WOW! I was checking some poetry books out of the library and I don't remember ordering this one, however, I'm absolutely delighted that it was among the 33 other books that did come! I sat down the other night to read it and absolutely fell in love with several of her paintings, esp. her "Prince of Peace: The Resurrection" and "Father Forgive Them." I'm so awestruck that she painted them at age 8 & 9. God has gifted her mightily and I'm so glad she listened to his voice. I want to find this book, so I can keep it in my personal library at home. I sorta feel a kinship to this young lady as her family also lived in Missouri at one time, her father suffered from asthma and the children were homeschooled.

I was looking at her drawings at age 4 of faces. My preschool/kindergarden children in Sunday School are drawing stick figures, let alone faces with details and shadows. Absolutely amazing!

Update: Here's her YouTube channel!

"A great artist is not better than others, Akiane. A great artist makes others FEEL better. . . A true artist is the one who finishes to the END." ~ Mrs. Forelli Kramarik, Akiane's mother. 

Art is prayer. Inspiration waits for Akiane Kramarik. 

Bulletin Boards

I made these bulletin boards for my Home Church's Sunday School hallway several years ago.

The first one is a bulletin board for our church's Resource Room where the Sunday School supplies, children, youth, and adult ministries equipment are kept.

I compiled a list of many good virtues/character traits from the Bible such as the fruits of the spirit to make these flap cards on the Honey bee board. I stamped bees on the top of the cards and hive, and stapled them to the bulletin board so that a child or teen could lift them as they passed by.

This was a very popular one. It's my own version of the "I Spy" Books by Jean Marzollo and Walter Wick. I cut out many pictures from old magazines and stapled them to the bulletin board, then wrote out the verses with a magic marker on a long sheet of shelf paper and sticky-gummed it to the concrete wall next to the bulletin board. We hosted some district teen event the following week after I put it up and they all enjoyed solving the puzzles.

I Spy With My Little Eye
By Mrs. Dolores J. Rush, 2006.

I spy an apple, a leaf, 5 rings,
An orange, a chain, & lips to sing.

I spy a circle, the color green,
A worm, some bugs, & a pair of blue jeans.

I spy a sandwich, a shopping list,
Some juice to drink, & a bracelet on a wrist.

I spy 10 bowls, a stack of blocks,
A teddy bear, and a lock.

I spy the alphabet, the number two,
A bus, a nurse, & a big, fat shoe.

I spy Tony, a bear, a frog
Some sunglasses on a dog.

I spy a rectangle, a cookie, a fish,
A cracker, a vacumn, & a dish.

I spy a girl, I spy a boy
I spy a little, bitty toy.

I spy some peanut butter & a mouse
A glass of milk & a treehouse.

I spy a compass, a hat, a bear,
Two big hearts & a chair.

I spy an egg, a pig with wings
We’ve spied a lot of little things.

I spy Miss Liberty & the time,
I spy the end of this big long rhyme!

I love gingerbread houses and had to make my own version from a cardboard box and construction paper for this bulletin board. To hang it, I screwed a large cup hook into the bulletin board. When I trimmed the flaps off the top of the cardboard along the long sides of the rectanglar box, I cut small U-shaped flaps near one end that was going to be the top of my gingerbread house, bent them into the center back and strung a length of wire between each flap. Kinda like stringing a picture frame. Then I hung my decorated house on the cup hook.

Devotion: Sentiments

"Grace be with you." ~ 1 Tim. 6:21

We invited a storyteller to our church to perform the story of a boy and the lunch he shared with Jesus (John 6:1-13). During the course of his presentation, he said as we greet each person, we should bless that person with words of life such as "Shalom" (peace) or "Joy" to build them up in Christ. Almost immediately the thought crossed my mind that I could sweeten the greetings on the front of my cards by carefully choosing a sentiment to do the same.
Apostle Paul wrote two letters to Timothy, a young man he had befriended. He opened his first letter with these sentiments: "Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord." (1 Tim. 1:2) and closed his second letter to Timothy with "The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you." (2 Tim. 4:22) Both letters contained encouragement to continue living like Christ, using the Word of God in his ministry.

Prayer: Thank you for providing us with your word, Lord God, so we know how to live. Continue teaching us to be holy and to spur others on to holy living too. In Jesus' name, Amen!

Today's Tip:

“Make every card you send a standout! Personalize each one to convey the message in a very special way.” ~ Sandi Genovese.