The Be-Attitudes Blog Hop Sept. 30th - Oct. 1st

Hello Friends!

Welcome to the Be-Attitudes Faith Blog Hop! Every month we choose a theme with which to honor Christ aWe are so glad you decided to join us for this month's hop that was scheduled for September 23-25. A nd become closer to Him. We then create a project to reflect that theme and boldly post it on our blogs so that the whole world sees that even our talents belong to Him! This month we have chosen the Beatitudes found on Mathew 5:3:12 and we invite you to hop through our blogs to see the Lord’s Glory manifested through the work of our hands and the stories He has written in our lives. If you arrived from Nana's blog ...hehe...you are in the right place but if you happen to come upon my blog please start at PaperTree House. Know that we have been praying for you and hope that the Lord would bring you just a bit closer to Himself…

In Matthew 5:3-12 we find the well known Beatitudes. This portion of Scripture is very peculiar because every statement begins with “Blessed are those…” and yet the attribute that is mentioned right after is NOT something desirable before the eyes of the world.

Look at the list of attributes along with the blessed reward:

Poor in spirit: Kingdom of Heaven

Mourn: comfort

Meek: inherit the earth

Hunger and thirst for righteousness: will be filled

Merciful: will be shown mercy to

Pure in heart: will see God

Peacemakers: called children of God

Persecuted because of righteousness: kingdom of heaven

“Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you

If we were to be honest, we would all say that none of us would like to be considered poor in spirit, or be caught in the midst of mourning. Meekness is considered a sign of weakness and in America Hunger and Thirst for righteousness is replaced by hunger and thirst for worldly acceptance. It is very difficult to be merciful and pure in heart for our hearts are always seeking to satisfy our own needs; and we are not willing to make peace if that peace requires that we would submit to someone else’s authority. We do not want to be made fun of, or persecuted, or bad mouthed… Yet all of these things the LORD calls blessed!

The reason why they are Blessed is because only when we have these attitudes can we truly see ourselves for who we are and God for who He is. Only when we see the depravity of our being and the sin that enslaves us, can we be set free by the only ONE that is Pure and Holy! May He grant us the privilege of being called BLESSED by Him because in us are found the Be-Attitudes.

With this in mind I can say that the Beatitudes are one of my favorite passages and I realized recently that I have not read it in a while and this is something I usually do when I need to check my self against God's principals that Jesus laid out for us believers to use as guidelines to give us hope and joy. It is not easy to go against the World...it is a very difficult thing to do in fact when most people and um...gasp...even Christians say that the Bible is too hard or rigid but it still pertains to us today and God knows what He is doing and how the world was gonna be long before we were born. Lately, I have found this out for myself...my pride gets in the way and I have to remember how to treat people the way HE wants us too regardless how they treat you or the problems you have or being sick like I been and my son being sick too that lately I have not been talking to anyone lately to share my thoughts or ask for help...He doesn't want us to be miserable or unhappy, he wants us to live with joy and thankfulness in all circumstances including sickness and needs and even happy times or the sad times but in ALL times! He wants to have that understanding that surpasses what we know and only he can give. I tend to forget and he understands when we complain or groan, but he is teaching us how to deal with it...that is why the Beatitudes or as I always called them the "Attitude Adjusters". We have to change our reaction to things that happened to us or the circumstances we are in...we have to look at the positive side...which is really hard sometimes especially when you are sad or lost or grieving or in need...but there is a silver lining...sometimes it takes a while to see it. Lately verse 5:6 been speaking to me which states: Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. How I love that! and realize that I hunger for God and his word and his holy living...we tend to get caught up in the world that we forget who we follow and have to get back on track of things and not be sidetracked by the world. I been so busy doing things that I forget I am a child of a King...problems will exist, we can get sickness, lost of friends or family. I have been keeping myself busy to avoid the hurt and dealing with some things that are beyond my control and my frustrations at things that should be resolved and not an ongoing problem! I get so mad at myself when I get in the way of myself and trying to be the one in control!! God needs to be in control and God is trying to get my attention by making me sick to slow down again and look at his face...he wants me and not me to be of the world, but to live in it for him....and he knows the frustrations, the problems, the hurts and unresolved business and he has it in his hands...I have to have a better attitude towards it or it controls me...it is like the quote I found earlier today on a devotional e-mail I get everyday...I forget this person's name and didn't write it down but I have the quote: "How you begin the day controls the day!" How fitting is that when I needed this reminder today of what I have to do and change for the better of who God wants me to be, the best of Me! :) and you can do the same...be "blessed".

Here is my project and I made this card for a friend who has blessed me recently and she has helped me a lot...bless her heart I hope she loves it like I do...hehe...

The recipe is as followed: I used a rose cardstock and taped the printed paper I had in my collection and then I embellished with two diff ribbons and then some buttons with copper wire twisted on them and then several butterflies which I stickled the little ones with pink and the big one with white glitters and then topped it with a crochet butterfly and then I stamped a sentiment and the cut the square with one of my special scissors to make it look like it was torn and shabby and then inked it with the rose ink pad I used for the sentiment...pretty! :)

There is no greater gift than that of finding Christ, but we would like to bless a group of you with some Grand Prizes from the following sponsor:

Shabby Vanity will give the winner a new Blog banner and button design for a blog! :)

To qualify; "like" Paper Tree House Studio in Facebook, become a follower of their blog, and leave a comment. Those that choose to participate by creating a project that follows the theme will have a greater chance of winning, so make sure that you create something or share your own story in your blog to then come back and share with us your creation and thoughts.

Hop on over to Diana's blog to continue in this journey… May you be filled with the “Be-Attitudes” this week.

In His Love,

Be Inspired,

Kari