Latest Crafting

Latest Crafting

Recently I've found a rolling organizer drawer thing that helps me keep my supplies in order! What a blessing!! 

I cleaned it up and put it in my craft room. 

The drawer colors are bright and cherry!

Picture Frame

 I made this for a friend. 

It's just a simple frame that I hot glued sea shells and glass stones onto. 

My friend loves to surf, so I added some beads on it that  say "surfer girl". 

It's a fun gift for a beach lover and you can always change the decor to fit you or anther's tastes/styles! 

 

Summer Time Fun!

Summer Time Is Here!

There are so many fun things to do during the summer time! 

Spending time with family and friends is one of my absolute favorites!! 

 Here are pictures of some fun things that I do with my family and friends! 

I hope they give you some inspiration to make special memories this summer!!  

In our family BBQing is as natural as breathing, so we do it a lot during the summer and even more so on those hot days, so we don't heat up the house. 

My Dad ALWAYS does a great job cooking on the grill!

BBQ! Yes!! Here my Dad is BBQing chicken breasts, a trip tip, and in the foil are potatoes!! YUMMY!! 

Everyone loves to have a squirt gun fight! (Or a water balloon fight!) It's fun and great for a family as well as the kids at the gathering!
The purple one is mine!

You can stay cool and have lots of fun at the same time!

The ocean, lake, pool, creek, river, etc.; water is key to adding a little something extra fun to the summer plans!
I like all of the above!

WATER! Everyone likes it on those hot days!!!

 Enjoy the fresh veggies and fruits that are available!
Green beans are one of my favorite veggies!

We love to grow our own! Enjoy the bounty God provides this time of year!!

 Fresh berries are one of my favorites!

 Glow bracelets are perfect for the evening/night gathering! People of all ages LOVE them and they are a reasonable way to add a little something extra to your party!
I love to have them at our evening gatherings, as seen below!

Glow bracelets!!

 Flowers are blooming in abundance this time of year!!
 I love to put them in the house to add some color! 
They're also great to take over to your friend's when you get together!

 I hope you all have a WONDERFUL summer and make some very special memories with you family and friends! 

God bless!!

Streams In The Desert-July 22nd

July 22

"Therefore will the Lord wait, that He may be gracious unto you...

blessed are all they that wait in Him."

Isaiah 30:18

We should not only understand the importance of our waiting on God but also realize something even more wonderful-the Lord waits on us. And the very thought of His waiting on us will give us renewed motivation and inspiration to "wait for him". It will also provide inexpressible confidence that our waiting will never be in vain. Therefore, in the spirit of waiting on God, let us seek to discover exactly what it means right now. 

The Lord has an inconceivably glorious purpose for each of His children. "If this is true," you ask, "why is it that He continues to wait longer and longer to offer His grace and to provide the help I seek, even after I have come and waited on Him?" He does so because He is a wise gardener who "waits for the land to yield its valuable crop" and is "patient...for the autumn and spring rains" (James 5:7). God knows He cannot gather the fruit until it is ripe, and He knows precisely when we are spiritually ready to receive blessings for our gain and His glory. And waiting in the sunshine of His love is what will ripen our soul for His blessings. Also waiting under the clouds of trails is as important, for they will ultimately produce showers of blessings. 

Rest assured that if God waits longer than we desire, it is simply to make the blessings doubly precious. Remember, He waited four thousand years, "but when the time had fully come, God sent His Son" (Gal. 4:4). Our time is in his hands, and He will quickly avenge those He has chosen, swiftly coming to our support without ever delaying even one hour too long. Andrew Murray

Streams In The Desert by L. B. Cowman edited by Jim Reimann 

Custom Orders

Custom Orders

Just today I completed a custom order for one of my clients.

She purchased the material herself. 

I like buying material and making things out if it.

I also like being able to customize the orders the best I can so that it blesses the customer(s)! 

If that means that the customer purchases the materials, or I photograph materials and email them, or we go shopping together, etc than I'm willing to do it.

Making the best quality product that pleases and blesses the customer is my hope and prayer!

All cut out and ready to sew

Completed!

 

Inside

Mini Wallets (made from other materials) are for sale on my Etsy Shop; Kierstyn's Kreations.

Making Tortillas

Tortillas

4 cups flour

2 1/2 tsp. salt

1 1'4 cup luke warm water

Need together and form into balls.

Let set in warm place, no draft for an hour or so.

Roll out with a rolling pin and cook on a hot griddle until little brown spots on each side appear.

Turn once.

Put on dish cloth (tea towel) and keep covered.

Best served hot!! 

Enjoy!

I made these for my family a few weeks ago. 

The recipe had been hidden in my mom's recipe box for some time and upon it's discovery, I decided to make them! 

I hope you make them yourself! 

They are VERY simple, quick to make, and delicious!! 

After you've mixed the ingredients and formed them into balls. Remember, the roll them out flat, so keep size and thickness in mind...

 A HOT griddle is key to the frying process! I used coconut oil but just about any oil should work. Just get that griddle HOT! Mine is cast iron 'cause that's what my family loves and uses!!

Roll out the dough with a rolling pin, on a smooth surface, cutting board,etc. then place on the HOT griddle and let form little air "pockets/bubbles", flip it when little brown spots appear.

Here is a shot of side two. Has a few brown spots and is cooking evenly on Hot griddle!

Enjoy! 

They're hot and ready!! 

Great with any dish or just butter when they're fresh off the griddle!  

 

Seven Years

Seven Years Ago

Today marks seven years.

Seven years of fun.

Seven years of learning.

Seven years of joy.

Seven years of work.

Seven years worth of money, and lots of money!

Seven years of a fulfilled dream...

Seven years of having my own horse!

God brought this little Quarter horse into my life seven years ago during an Easter play production.

A family in our church was looking for a new home for their horse and thought of me! 

I was SO excited!

I didn't have a place to put the horse or the money for the horse but that didn't stop me! 

I'd wanted a horse for as long as I could remember and this was my chance!

It's amazing how God opens doors when something is His plan!

He provided the place for my horse, the tack, the money, the training, the time, patience, and people to support and encourage me.

Through these seven years I've learned a lot from my little horse. 

She's been loved by many people and has taught everyone who's known her a lesson or two. 

Whether it was to trust and love 

or to not take liberties, 

she was always there and ready to give some sort of a lesson!

All these words can be summed up this way:

Thank You Lord for my horse! 

She's Your gift to me and I appreciate her!

Help me to please be a good, loving, kind, and understanding owner!

Anyone who has an pet and or loves animals knows the joy that that kind of love and understanding brings!

Every thing

EVERY THING

Everything-it's the word that seems to hold so much weight and yet can be so empty!  

Everything....

"I got everything done." 

"Ever thing's put away." 

"Did you get everything on the list?"

 "Everything still needs to be done." etc.

 Everything, what does it exactly mean?

I like to define words from a dictionary to help my mind grasp the big picture, so to Webster's 1828 dictionary I went...

Every: (a) 

Each individual of a whole collection or aggregate number. The word includes the whole number, but each separately stated or considered.

Thing :(n)

An event or action; that which happens or falls out, or that which is done, told or proposed.

Any substance; that which is created; any particular article or commodity.

An animal; as every living thing; every creeping thing.

A portion or part; something.

Every is an adjective, so it's describing something. Every little thing, every nook and cranny, every thing put together into a group, not counted individually.

Thing is a noun, the subject of the every; what the every is describing; said thing.

"Things" are actions, events, created items, living beings, a portion or part. 

It is not very descriptive-this word-thing-leaving the mind open for vast wanderings all it's own. 

Thing...

Next I look at Scripture to see how it's used. 

Genesis 1:31a

"And God saw every thing that He had made, and , behold, it was very good."

God saw ALL He'd created. The earth, sun, moon, stars, sky, mountains, oceans, and the vast and wide variety of plant life and animal life, and man created in His very image, everything; and He calls it VERY GOOD- EVERY THING He created. The vast, mind blowing creation that was all spoken into being, is "very good"-everything is very good-every thing!

Psalm 145:6

"Thou openest Thine hand, and satisfied the desire of every living thing."

God opens His hand and satisfies the desire of EVERY LIVING THING!!

Every plant, every animal, every microscopic organism, every atom, every human being. He satisfies their desires-and only the awesome God that created the universe could satisfy every living things desire(s) so perfectly!

Psalm 150:6 

"Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord."

David here declares that every thing that has breath should praise the Lord. Again, everything encompasses the animals and mankind. We praise Him with our voices, being made in the image of God are given the blessing and ability to praise our creator with the bodies He's fashioned.

Animals praise God with tier voices too.

Plant life praises Him in it;s own way by making the food for every thing that has breath and by making the air through photosynthesis for the thing to have the breath to praise!

God's creation truly is amazing!

Ecclesiastes 3:1

"To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven."

Here we go over the seasons in life-to every thing there is a season. Every plant is given a growing/producing season, every animal has their season of life, and every human being has "seasons" in life of various kinds; along with the season of a life time. 

Ecclesiastes 3:11a

"He hath made every thing beautiful in His time:..."

Here beauty is brought into the every thing conversation. 

Everything, beautiful, in His time, every thing, even though we don't see it, even though it's dark and hard, everything is made beautiful in His perfect time! 

Ephesians 5:24

"Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let wives be to their own husbands in every thing."

Here's the hard one! 

I'm not married so, needless to say, I don't have a husband but I do have a father that I love and respect and calls me obey him. Though the every thing in this verse is hard, trying, difficult, and sometimes almost unbearable, God calls us to it, to the best of our ability through Christ. His grace is sufficient!

Philippians 4:6

"Be careful in nothing, but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God."

Presenting every thing to God in prayer and supplication with thanksgiving-our requests are to be set before His throne in this way, our worries and concerns, our deepest longings and desires, our cherished hopes, our secret dreams,  and daily needs; every thing presented to God, the creator of every thing, who opens His hand and satisfies the desires of every living thing.

1 Thessalonians 5:18

"In ever thine give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you." 

The big things, the little things, the joyful and mundane, the difficult and easy, the rising and setting; every thing, give thanks, in every thing; so hard but so necessary!

Every thing; that overwheling, over powering, crushing phrase; here seems to have fallen into little pieces. 

Every Thing

Every thing that needs to be done is in God's hands.

He sees every thing because He created every thing!

He satisfies ALL those needs, by opening His hand.

Which in turn brings ALL creation to praise Him for how He satisfies, even the smallest or trivial of our needs-those "every things" that over whelm and suffocate; He cares for them.

The seasons around us and in our lives, He sees and directs.

Every thing is in His loving Creator hands-this should be the greatest comfort to His children!

Remember He's promised to make it all beautiful in His time!!

The rose will bloom on the appointed day, the harvest will be gathered in it's season, the moon will wax and wane, the sun will rise and set and trails and joys come and go. Everything is made beautiful in His time; every thing!

Marriage; the picture of our oneness, unity, and obedience with our groom, Savior Christ, is made beautiful in His time.

We are blessed to be able to present all these every things to Christ through our tools of prayer, supplication, and thanksgiving. For once in His hands, He satisfies every living thing and makes all things beautiful in His time.

Most importantly , in EVERYTHING give thanks!

Every

Each individual of a whole collection or aggregate number. The word includes the whole number, but each separately stated or considered.

Thing

An event or action; that which happens or falls out, or that which is done, told or proposed.

Any substance; that which is created; any particular article or commodity.

An animal; as every living thing; every creeping thing.

A portion or part; something.

Give Thanks!

I pray that the "every things" surrounding you are brought to their proper perspective through the eyes of Scripture. 

May the Lord Jesus bless you in everything! 

Streams In The Desert-June 27th

June 27

"Summon your power, O God; show your strength." Psalm 68:28

The Lord imparts to me the underlying strength of character that gives me the necessary energy and decision-making ability to live life. He strengthens me "with power through His spirit in [my] inner being" (Eph. 3:16). And the strength He gives is continuous, for He is a source of power, I cannot exhaust.

"Your strength will equal your days" (Deut. 33:52)-my strength of will , affection, judgment, ideals, and achievement will last a life time.

"The Lord is my strength" (Ex. 15:2) to go on. He gives me the power to walk the long , straight, and level path, even when the monotonous way has no turns or curves offering pleasant surprises and when my spirit is depressed with the terrible drudgery.

"The Lord is my strength" to go up. He is my power to climb the straight and narrow path up the Hill of Difficulty, as Christian did in Pilgrim's Progress, and not be afraid.

"The Lord is my strength" to go down. It is often once I leave the invigorating heights, where the wind and sunlight have surrounded me, and begin to descend to the more confining, humid, and stifling heat of the valley below that my heart grows faint. In fact, I recently heard someone say, referring to his own increasing physical frailty, "It is the coming down that tires me most!"

"The Lord is my strength" to sit still. And what difficult accomplishment this is! I often say to others during those times when I am compelled to be still, "If only I could do something!" I feel like the mother who stands by her sick child but is powerless to heal. What a severe test! Yet to do nothing except to sit still and wait requires tremendous strength.

"The Lord is my strength!" "Our competence comes from God" (2 Cor. 3:5).  from the Silver Lining

Streams In The Desert by L. B. Cowman Edited by Jim Reiman