Archive for January, 2009


Faith Matters: Explorations

Mini #065

Scholars throughout the centuries agree that the Bible is one of the most fascinating books to exist. Yet for many of us the Bible can seem complex and it can be hard to relate its contents to our lives today. Often people avoid more difficult books,  focusing instead on the areas that are easily understandable.

God created the Bible in its entirety–selective reading is like reading just one chapter of a book or seeing one scene of a movie–you will likely gain some knowledge, but lose the context. When we take the time to truly delve into the Bible and begin looking at the context, the times, the people and the places we can find captivating events and people, many facing experiences we can relate to.

In this Faith Matters Study we work through how to deepen our knowledge of Scripture by applying  techniques, tools, prayer and resources to work through a book in the Bible.

 Note: This Faith Matters Study teaches a series of steps that can be applied to help you explore the book of your choosing. This study will be available January 10, 2009.

Creative Play: Color Collage

Mini #62

How often have you caught your breath at the sight of a flowerbed in full bloom?
Most likely the gardener has arranged the flowers according to their color for
extra vibrancy. Have you ever seen a movie in which a coordinated color
scheme helps the film create a world unto itself? Color is light, and light is energy.
Colors can stimulate, excite, depress, tranquilize, increase appetite and create a feeling
of warmth or coolness.

This Mini will enhance your knowledge of color, how you are influenced by colors,
how to use colors effectively for design, and to convey emotion in your visual
journaling pages, collage, treasure book or artwork.

colorcollage.gif

We will explore how combinations of color create different visual impact through a combination of creative exercises.

Creating a Goal Poster

Mini #64

Many people think “day dreaming” is a useless exercise – they may be right – but I can guarantee that visualization is not a useless exercise. Visualization is the practice of vividly and clearly envisioning something you wish to manifest in your life. The clearer this image in your mind, the more likely you are to see it in reality.

Visualization in terms of our goals is very important. We must have a crystal clear vision of how it will feel to live this goal to get us through the obstacles that will undoubtedly surface. In this Mini we work through the process of creating a Vision Statement for your goal and then illustrating your goal with a goal poster.

S.M.A.R.T. Goals

Mini #63

Most of us are great at setting goals; in fact, we are goal-setting experts. We have set goals a thousand times or more. What we are not so great at is reaching them. In order to help ourselves reach our goals, we need to concisely state our goal and make sure it is a  S.M.A.R.T.Goal.

This Mini takes you through the five components of creating a S.M.A.R.T. goal– Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timely; and helps you create a goal that gets the year off to a smart start.