God made him who knew no sin to be sin for us so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

2 Corinthians 5:21

We are sinners. Each of us, when given the choice, would always choose our ways over God’s. We naturally choose to love and serve ourselves rather than our Creator. In doing so, we set ourselves in direct opposition to God’s standard of righteousness. How, then, can can we become the righteousness of God?

Only through Jesus. Jesus was fully God and fully man, he was tempted in every way just like we are yet without sin (Hebrews 4:15). In the Garden of Gethsemane, leading to the cross, Jesus showed his perfect and selfless obedience, praying “Not my will, but Yours be done.” In Hebrews 7:26, the Bible says that Jesus was “holy, innocent, unstained…” “He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth.” (1 Peter 2:22) Jesus’ righteousness is the only righteousness that can stand before a holy God. Only his perfect life satisfies the law of God.

Jesus, the only sinless man, humbly bore the consequence of our sin (death). He stood in our place, so that we could be counted righteous. When we turn from our sin and put our trust in Jesus alone, our sinful debt is paid. Now, in Christ, when God looks at us, He sees Christ’s righteousness instead of our own self serving ways.

This is grace.

Studio Update:

Well, things are moving quickly toward summer. The last of the peonies are falling apart and the garden is in full swing. Not everything is quite in the garden yet, but we’ve got most of the veggies in and the zinnias and cosmos are up. The garden is quite busy these days and there are yet more plants to get in!

But, I did manage to work on some art along the way. I wrapped up my colored pencil picture with some watercolor/brush lettering, and I am quite pleased with how it turned out. There are so many projects I want to work on, but not enough hours in the day. So…I guess I just have to enjoy the projects I do have time for, and keep the other projects ready for when I do have more time.

Anyway, that’s all for now. Thanks for stopping by!

Blair

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved…

Ephesians 2:1-2

At the beginning of Ephesians 2, we are reminded of our sin problem. “And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked…carrying out the desires of the body and mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.” (v 1-3). We were dead in our sins. We had no hope for judgment day. Eternal death was our sentence before we were even born.

“But God.” This is the biggest, most glorious contrast in the Bible! Everything pivots from looking at our sin and hopeless state, to gazing upon the mercy of our God. We now have hope! Because God is merciful, because He loves us so much, He made us alive with Christ! He forgave us our sin, and Jesus took the punishment we deserved.

Not only are we spared the punishment we deserve for our trespasses and sins, we are seated with Christ! We are given an inheritance with Jesus, blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ (Ephesians 1)! We are given above and beyond what we deserve.

This is grace.

Studio Update:

So much happens in a month! The daffodils have come and gone, and so have the tulips, too. We had some really amazing tulips this year, and I wish now that I’d taken some pictures. The peonies are budding up, we’ve planted lots of veggies and flowers in the garden, and every week something new is blooming!

As for the art, I got out my colored pencils for some more butterflies. (Butterflies and colored pencils were just meant to be together). Between this project and the garden (among other things), I’ve been pretty busy, so I haven’t worked on a lot of other projects besides a handful of doodles.

Anyway, hope this encourages you, and thanks for stopping by!

Blair

For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.

Romans 5:10

How do we know God’s character is truly what God says it is? How do we know He is faithful, forgiving, and delights in steadfast love? Obviously, He tells us in the Bible. But God doesn’t just say words. He shows his steadfast love in His actions.

Even when we were dead in our sins, enemies of God, even when we were unworthy of God’s love, God gave it anyway. God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8). Don’t take ‘God shows His love’ lightly! It was a tremendous cost. God sacrificed His one and only perfect Son, Jesus, so that we could be reconciled. Jesus was willing to lay down his life to pay the debt of sin we owed. Jesus bore God’s wrath in our place!

But it doesn’t end with Jesus’ death. This month we’ll celebrate Resurrection Sunday because God raised Jesus from the dead, defeating our sin and death! Jesus’ death is proof of God’s steadfast love for us, and His resurrection is confirmation that we have a perfect mediator to stand on our behalf before a holy God (Hebrews 7:25). If our mediator was willing to lay down his life to reconcile us, his enemies, how much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by His life!

This is grace.

Studio Update:

It’s spring! The daffodils are starting to pop, and the hellebores are blooming, too. For the first week since November of last year, I had flowers on my desk at work! It’s been too long.

I’ve still been painting and drawing as usual. Here’s some snapshots from my latest projects (do I ever just have one?). The white peonies were definitely a challenge, but I’m pretty happy with them now. I’m painting on some soon-to-become fabric for summer, and dreaming about planting things in the garden.

Thanks for stopping by!

Blair

He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities.

Psalm 103:10

This verse is not isolated from the rest of the chapter. Let’s consider a few snippets to give some context. “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy…” (v2-4)

God’s steadfast love is why he does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. “The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love…He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us. As a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him.” (v 8,10-14)

This faithful and forgiving character is not just who we think God is or who we’d like him to be. No! God wrote this about himself. God is compassionate, forgiving, and merciful. He is like a Father, abounding in steadfast love. This is who God truly is. We know this because he fulfilled his promise of a Savior in Jesus.

This is grace.

Studio Update:

Here’s some samples of what I’ve been working on lately. Some watercolor-y doodles, pen and ink, calligraphy, the works. I’m excited about these pen and ink nasturtiums, this pink calligraphy ink, and watercolor polka-dots. I got out my old friends (my colored pencils) to work on some tulips, and I am so excited for spring!

In the garden, there are a handful of daffodils that are sending up shoots! There are hellebore buds shooting up from the base of the plants, just waiting to bloom! (Spring is my favorite season, if you couldn’t tell.)

Anyway, that’s all for now! Thanks for stopping by!

Blair

Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity and passing over transgression for the remnant of his inheritance? He does not retain his anger forever, because he delights in steadfast love.

Micah 7:18

Last month, we were reminded of the weight of our sin. Then, we saw a glimpse of grace in Isaiah 53, that God made a way to redeem us from our sin. This grace has nothing to do with us and everything to do with who God is. God delights in showing steadfast love. It’s who he is.

From generation to generation, we see God’s steadfast love and faithfulness throughout the Bible. From the beginning with the very first man, Adam, who sinned in the garden, God gave the promise of a Savior from sin and death (Genesis 3:15). Even through the sinful days of Noah, God patiently preserved that promise. Through Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, God continued to bring about His promise, though they did not always see or understand it. God faithfully worked through Moses to bring His people up out of Egypt, giving a tangible expression of that promise. Woven throughout the threads of Israel’s history, God repeatedly condescended to sinful people and worked in them to bring about the promise of a Savior. God never ceases to care for His people. God is always faithful and delights in showing steadfast love, fulfilling the promise of a Savior in Jesus.

This is grace.

Studio Update:

Here’s some succulents I’ve been working on. The black paper is really fun to work with, and makes the succulents really stand out! I’m planning on turning this into fabric some day.

Below are some how-to-draw worksheets I’ve designed, if you’re interested. Click on the images below to access a printable download for these worksheets. Sit down with a cup of tea (or coffee), and try them out!

Hope you enjoyed this month’s update, and thanks for stopping by!

Blair

All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

Isaiah 53:6

All we like sheep have gone astray. Every one has turned away from God’s good commandments. Each one has turned from loving and serving their Creator to loving and serving themselves. No one is righteous, there is no one who does good – not even one. Even our attempts to do good are tainted by our hidden motives, pride, and self-righteousness.

God is perfect, holy, and righteous. He has shown us what is good and right, but we have exchanged God’s truth for a lie (Romans 1). When we come face to face with God, we will be judged for everything we have done. We are accountable to God for our actions, words, and thoughts. God cannot tolerate our disobedience and sin, we stand guilty before him.

The consequence of sin is death – eternal death and separation from God.

Every human that walks the face of this earth deserves to die because we have all sinned – except for one. The ‘Him’ in this verse refers to Jesus, the only sinless man. God put our sin on Him, Jesus died in our place, He bore our sin and its consequence – death and separation from God (Matthew 27:46). Jesus bore that for us! Because of my sin Jesus died.

This is grace.

Studio Update:

Thanks for stopping by!

Blair