A word for the year...and a few scraps of wood!

I have always been creative.  

And I have always loved to make things.  

Whether it's starting with a blank page and having written a beautiful song a few hours later, or taking a few scrap pieces of wood and other materials and seeing what I can come up with....I love the challenge of making "something" out of "nothing".

I never thought my obsession with making things was all that exciting.  But over the last few months, everyone that has come over to my house has "scolded" me for not blogging about the things I make.  

So.  Here I go.  :-) 

At the beginning of each year, I loooooooove to reflect on the previous year and dream about what is to come in the new year.  I pray about a "word" the Lord wants me to focus on for that new year and I get SO excited when I finally feel like I land on something.  The only problem is, by about January 15th of each year, I've already forgotten my word.  

I'm not kidding.  

I usually have to write it down and refer back to it like a hundred times.

As 2014 was winding down, I began praying about my 2015 word fully expecting the same cycle to continue.  But this year was different.  In no time at all, and as clear as day, the word "Faithful" came to me.  I felt like the Lord said, "Karyn, be faithful in everything -- the big things, the small things, the things you don't think matter and the things that the entire world will see.  Just be faithful in everything you do, and trust Me."  

For the 9 weeks of 2015 so far, I have not been able to get this word off my mind.  When it's cold outside and I don't feel like getting dressed to go to Yoga, I hear "Be faithful in your exercise."  When I think about calling or texting friends to see how they are, but start to get distracted, I hear "Be faithful in your friendships."  When I face career frustrations (and don't we all!), I hear "Be faithful with what I've called you to do."  When I sit down to pay bills now, I stop and say, "Lord thank You for being faithful."

FAITHFUL

It sounds like such a simple word, yet it can be applied to every area of our lives.

Anyway....back to making things out of scrap wood.  :-)

I made a wooden headboard for my guest room last year (I may blog about that next!) and I had some pieces of wood left over.  I also had these white letters from Hobby Lobby that I just use for random things here and there.  

So, I got it all out and decided to make myself a sign that says, "Faithful."

This is everything I used:  

A piece of scrap wood

Wood stain (whatever color you want)

Hammer

Letters from Hobby Lobby (or if you have really good handwriting, you could paint your word!)

A picture hanger for the back of the wood

And my trusty glue gun

(All in all, it's hard to nail down a price because most of this was stuff I already had.  But the letters from Hobby Lobby are around $5 bucks)

This was as easy as it gets -- all I did was stain the piece of wood.  Wait for that to dry, and then glue my letters on and add a picture hanger on the back!  I thought about adding something to the sides, but I liked the simplicity of just having the word on there.  

Then with a little help from my tall husband figuring out where it should go.....  :-) 

I was done!!!

I chose to hang this right above the door in my home office.  When I'm off the road, I have days when work in there ALL day getting caught up....so I love having this there right in front of me as a reminder every day to BE faithful in everything I'm doing, and that God IS faithful no matter what.

So there ya go!  My first blog about my crazy crafty side.

Go ahead, make you one!  Pick a word you want to focus on for the rest of this year and make one of these!  And then post it and tag me so I can see it!!!!

SIDE NOTE:

I've been busy in the studio working on a new record, and one of my favorite songs on this record is a song I co-wrote called "Nothing Less (Great Is Thy Faithfulness)"   

Here's the chorus:

We will say of You oh Lord when it seems there's nothing left

Great is Thy faithfulness

Great is Thy faithfulness

You've been our strong and steady Rock and nothing less

Great is Thy faithfulness

Great is Thy faithfulness

Coincidence?  I think not.  :-)