in every sorrow,

in every wound,

in every pain,

in every smile.

There is not much I recall, Abba,

about my days growing up,

except for the fact that I refused to give in to death

just to prove that I was strong.

I emptied out my soul through ink or through lead,

in order to make space for the brokenness that waited just ahead.

I see now that even the hardest lessons lived,

traced the path that finally led me to be free.

You made me stubborn, and a fighter;

persistent and a writer

sensitive to brokenness

and willing to stand up from it.

You made me capable of seeing beyond one’s masks and inabilities

into the true silhouette of Your creation:

the whisper of Your intentions.

So here I am Lord, just as You found me;

maybe with some cuts and bruises,

but with no remnant of the excuses.

Create in me Lord, a heart like Yours,

a heart that beats to love the broken and the lost.

Transform and mold me into what you will me to be

for even if you break me, only you can set me free.

I want to serve you

to live for you

to be used by you!

Create in me a pure heart,

and allow me to be an instrument of who you are.

Like you, I am filled with questions, with doubts, with ideas that shape and form my thinking and my beliefs.  If indeed my actions are directly linked to what I believe in- then it would be wise to stop and really consider the things I have come to believe as true.

What would you do if you were offered a monetary gift?  Would you go back and cash it, or would you throw it away?  Take a look at this video and learn what hundreds of people did when faced with this choice.

The Bible talks about the narrow road being a difficult one to walk on, yet the only way to actually get to Heaven.  Lots of people are offended by the exclusiveness of that statement, but very few take the time to actually explore and see whether these claims are indeed true or not.

I want to invite you to join me in this conversation – I want you to join me as I explore Christianity.  Whether you are a believer or an atheist – you are invited to join me in this 7 week journey of exploring the truths that Christianity lays out.

I would like to begin with a very small and intimate group of 5 of us that would meet once a week for seven weeks via the internet. If you think that you are ready to REALLY look at what you believe with an open mind to allow truth to prevail- then leave me a comment or send me a message.  I would love to have you join our online journey of Exploring Christianity.

What tough questions have you not been able to answer yet?  If you are ready for this journey, leave me a comment and tell me why you want to go through this journey..  )

Looking forward to journeying with you…

Love in Christ,

Nana

I would love to hear about your experiences of being locked out, so please leave me a comment telling me:

1. Have you ever (or are you now) locked out of “Home”?

2. Did you find your way back in?  If so, what did you do?

3. Is there anything I can do to pray for you?

Looking forward to seeing your answers..  🙂

Love in Christ,

Nana

We have chosen Journey as the theme for this blog hop.  It’s a word that can be interpreted spiritually, physically, literally and creatively and we hope you will enjoy your journey as you hop around our blogs.

Here’s your itinerary:

Bernice

Carolyn

Marjolaine

Paula

Anita

Susan

Nana  <—-You are Here!

My Journey from Insanity to Sanity

It is said that when a person does the same thing over and over expecting different results – they are considered to be INSANE!  and before you decide to click off the page because I am declaring myself officially insane, I ask that you please stay for just a bit..

This is the story of how I walked from insanity to sanity…  from hopelessness to being joy-filled… from a nobody to being fully accepted and loved by the ONLY ONE that matters.

I don’t know about you, but I had deceived myself to believe that if only I was a bit skinnier, a bit prettier, a bit more prepared, or simply did a bit more – then somehow I would be OK.  For years I have carried the burden of having to BE the “perfect” picture of everything I admired:

• a great mom
• the perfect wife
• the best business woman
• the holiest of Christians
• the best artist…
• (you get the idea!)

All along my walk through life, I found myself picking up more and more titles I needed to excel in – only to end up feeling overwhelmed, disappointed, and ashamed.  I would spend time looking at others who seemed to have it all together and I would try to conform myself to their standards by doing what they do.

Have you ever done that?  Have you ever looked at someone you admire and decided:  “I want to be just like her!”?  Well, I did that often.  In the process I found myself more lost than found.  It wasn’t until recently that I truly began to understand who I am not – which in turn allowed to me see who “I AM” is.

The Bible says that those who lose their life will find it- that those who die will live.  Although I cannot say that I have it all figured out, I am finally free to be me.  I realized that in my search to be the “best” in this world, the one with all the attention and the glory – I lost my capability of being just that.

I was created to be ME…

• not another artist
• not another entrepreneur
• not another mommy or wife…

God formed me in my mother’s womb for one purpose: to glorify Him – not myself.

God is most glorified, when I am most satisfied in Him, and when I live my life trying to find satisfaction in anything other than Him – I lose my ability to see and understand Him.  

So my journey has been long.  Like the Israelites, I have wandered in the desert hoping to reach my promised land… until now!

For the first time in years I am not afraid!  

I am clear now in who I am and what matters.  I am willing to boldly find my satisfaction in Christ without having to straddle the line because of my huge fear of being rejected.  Whether or not you like me is of no importance to me – not because somehow I am better than you, but because I am clear that there is nothing about me to like.  Everything good in me has been a gift, and so all I have to boast in is Christ!  

Do you want to know the crazy part? (yes it gets crazier)

The moment I finally came to terms with the truth about who I am not (because I am NOT the best mommy, artist, wife, entrepreneur, or anything for that matter), I found the freedom to finally see the One who thinks the world of me! I am dearly loved in spite of me.  I am accepted as if I have ALWAYS obeyed…  I am called his daughter and He sees me as if I never have sinned!

For a person with a record like mine, THAT is freedom!

So, this is the journey I have begun –

I am committed to live out loud as I seek my satisfaction in Christ – and I want to take you for the ride.  I have told the Lord that I will forever serve Him, love Him, and obey Him.   Will you dare to join me as I embark on this journey?

The longest journey a man must take is the eighteen inches from his head to his heart”

My project is not complete because my journey has just recently begun… 

Will you dare to share your journey with me? 

Leave me a comment with the story of your journey. I want to know how the Lord has been working in your life… 🙂

Thank you for walking through this journey with us…  It has been a true blessing to have you visit! 😉

Love in Christ,

Nana 

“Hi there and welcome to the My Little Shoebox and The Twinery blog hop!!! We’ve teamed up this week to bring you lots of inspiration and prizes!”

When I received the box of Twine, I almost had a heart attack.  Lately I have felt in my soul a switch of passion.  There is just something I absolutely love about crafting things from scratch, and  making things my own.  So Twine became a perfect tool to invent new ways of adding beauty to my projects.  I wanted to use it in a very unique way, and so I had the beautiful idea to use it the way I would a pen, or a marker. Take a look:

Ain’t that the coolest thing!!  I think I have found a new hobby: drawing with twine! 🙂  

To make these shapes, I made an outline using a pencil and just filled in the outline with the twine.  It was very time consuming, but extremely therapeutic.  And at the end, it added the special touch I so longed to have in my finished product: a canvas for my daughter… 🙂

This project has tons of meaning for me.  It is so important for me that my daughter knows that she is perfectly made and loved – even when she breaks the rules, even when she does not obey, even when she simply blows it.  We all make mistakes- but God takes them and gives us beauty instead.  

I tore the My Little Shoebox “My Way” paper from the Up in the Trees Collection and glued it unto Stretched Burlap from Canvas Corp that had been covered in ink and gesso (representing our brokenness and sin). I then smeared it with blue ink and added the embellishments to it.  I love the way that some of the burlap shows throughout the canvas: a very clear reminder that while here on earth we are forever in need of a Savior.

Finally I added the title: You – perfect.  And with that I think I have said it all!   

Don’t miss a chance to comment on each blog to be entered to win our fantastic prizes! Here’s the hop order and links you need to follow:

Details on the prizes are on the My Little Shoebox blog and The Twinery blog…and they are GREAT prizes, so be sure to take a look!

• Comment on each particpating blog on the hop throughout the week
• Follow the My Little Shoebox & The Twinery blogs
• Follow the My Little Shoebox & The Twinery Facebook pages

“Now head on over to Stacy Rodriguez’s blog to see what they have to share today.

Love in Christ,

Nana

More than watchmen wait for morning…” Psalm 130

I came across this verse in a blog, and immediately was filled with an emotion of hope and a perfect image in my mind of what the Scripture describes.  I was taken to the times that I have

• sat by a phone waiting for “THAT” phone call 
• or the times I had to sit by the door of my husband’s sick uncle waiting for the doctor to FINALLY come and give us an update 
• or even the time that I went to my doctor’s appointment, while pregnant with Noelani, waiting to hear from the nurse whether that time would be the last time I would see her for an ultrasound (even when she was only 20 weeks old in my womb).

I’m not sure why all of the things that came to mind were serious in their own special kind of way.  Maybe it is that those were very crucial times of waiting for something good to come out of the darkness, so I’m able to remember it more than the times I have had to stand in line waiting for ice cream. 🙂  Maybe it is the fact that in all of those scenarios the result was one that I am pleased with.  Or, maybe it is the fact that through each of those, I can remember so very clearly how REAL God had become for me- how close and dear to my heart He was.  

It is in the difficult things that we learn to appreciate the simple… and the simplest thing you can do in life- the simplest form of expressing joy is with a 

 What has stolen your smile?  What are you having a really hard time letting go of, or moving away from?

Whatever it is, may your heart wait for the Lord, because He has a way of never LEAVE US waiting!

I know that you will probably not answer the questions above on a comment, but I would love it if you at least share with me the things you do to get out of, (or to at least cope with) the darkness…

Love you tons in Christ,

Nana

Instead of using my free time posting and sharing with you, I have spent it creating YUMMY things to share with you ladies.  With that said, please forgive me!

I’m Quitting My Day Job! (in case you missed that in the paragraph above)

I know it sounds crazy, but I decided that I need to follow and do what I love: what fills me with passion- which is teaching women how to become who they were created to be through their gift of creativity. 

As you can imagine, this decision  has caused all sorts of new feelings, fears, and tribulations- but am very excited to start this journey…  I simply cannot wait to being able to spend the hours of my days serving you ladies and seeing how you go from surviving into thriving. 

So, after my whole list of craziness- I pray you can forgive me for being MIA, and I pray that you would walk with me through this transition.  I want to know how to better serve you, I want to learn about the things you want to learn, and share the things you want me to share.  You are all fantastic and an inspiration to me!!

I do not want to take much more of your time, but if you have 30 seconds, please leave me a cooment below  and tell me what you would want to see more of in my blog, what classes would you want me to create, or whatever else you want to share with me. 

Tons of Love in Christ,

Nana

I love it when people tell me, “See you later Alligator!” and I get to respond, “In a While Crocodile”.  I know that this sounds silly, but I really just think it is a cute saying.  Maybe it is the fact that I spend the majority of my days with 5th graders or that my children are 2 and 3 years old.  🙂  Either way, I sat and created a digital stamp to honor this saying and I wanted to share it with you…

Feel free to right click and save the image to your computer.  Then create a project and come on over here to post your creation… 🙂  (Also, leave me a comment with your honest opinion about my alligator design)

Enjoy!

Love in Christ,

Nana

I just wanted to give you a quick reminder about the live class we are having tonight at 9:30 pm EST.  I will be showing you how I created the stringed heart in this layout as well as the background:

You can join me over at my UStream Channel: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/nana-campana.  

See you there!

Love in Christ,

Nana