O Motivation Where Art Thou?

aka
"it's that most sluggish time of the year"

Yes I did have study week last week but no, it didn't really work because I wrote "DO NOT ADD ANYTHING ELSE THIS WEEK" far too late. Plus ended up on the Road Trip to Middlesborough which took some of the time. Seeing the most wonderful Elspeth and family, visiting the awesome Teesside Uni Computer Faculty (motion capture suits! 72 track recording studio! Film set! 3D scanner! a Wii and computer games STUDY room! more up to date computers than you can shake a stick at!) was great but the driving less so. Especially on the way home playing the will-my-windscreen-shatter-at-any-time-thanks-to-the-spiral-crack-in-it-due-to-a-stone-hitting-it-earlier-on game. (We won!)Followed by the Cambridgeshire-has-no-roads-so-any-detours-take-40-minutes game. (We lost) But there you are.
H definitely wants to go to Teesside and we have now heard he has an offer. But not what it is!

But it is by now that the fact we don't really stop over Christmas begins to hit home so I can't wait for half term. When I still have part of my MA course but it is stimulating enough to count as fun! Basically I am just bone weary and need to stop. While at the same time having loads and loads to do. Maybe I should read the book on Getting Things Done I bought. I hoped just having it would do the trick!

Hmmm maybe I should change the blog title to Lythan Moans a Lot.
Or just count my blessings as I have been reflecting on for Salt this week
Hazel chose the theme of

the Beatitudes.

Jesus began the Sermon on the Mount with the Beatitudes. Sadly, sometimes they are mistakenly seen as a blueprint for how we are to be saved, something for us to strive to attain – but rather, as Spurgeon said, they are ‘the marks and evidences of a work of grace in the soul.’ It is only possible to truly possess the qualities Jesus commends if we experience the salvation He offers. They are the characteristics that should be evident in every Christian.

As Dr Martyn Lloyd-Jones said: ‘Happiness is the great question confronting mankind. The whole world is longing for happiness and it is tragic to observe the ways in which people are seeking it.’ In the opening verses of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus is saying that if you really want to be happy, to be blessed, then here is the way.

The characteristics identified in the Beatitudes are not ones that come naturally to us, but are produced by grace and the work of the Holy Spirit.

I hope that you enjoy seeing the crafting response of the team - please visit their individual blogs to read what they have to say.

Our challenge: It would be lovely if you could join with us in creating something that is your response to these sayings of Jesus - or perhaps concentrate on just one of them. We would love to see any crafting that is prompted by these words of Jesus - please leave us a comment with a link to where we can come and see your creation.

Here is what I did...
You will see this photo again in a different size on the next layout! I have something called Poladroid on my computer - got the link somewhere and it is such fun. You can drag your photo in and it makes the noise of an old polaroid camera and develops before your eyes! Each picutre has a slight tint and they vary so you can have lots of the same photo looking slightly different. I had printed some up which turned out to be too big for the Docrafts page but I thought would fit here. As it happens the K and Co Urban Rhapsody paper is the exact shade of green as the photo. Result!
I cut bits out from one of the papers and made some faux chipboard layered letters to which I added some opal liquid pearl dots. Couple of chatterbox embellishments, a string of flat backed pearls, some prima pearls and the Message version of the Beatitudes and that was me done.

This week I was asked to play with one of the new Docrafts capsule collections for the Scrapbooking Project of the Week (which has to be sung a la Harry Hill) I got the pink and red one so as it was near to Valentines day guess what theme I chose?
Lots of paper tearing and those photos again! You can find all the details here

And one final layout as I am behind on showing themWhat a lovely title eh? When we went on our day trip I suddenly came over all peculiar and for a while thought I would have to ask to go home again. Eventually I perked up a bit - but didn't really eat anything all day!
Basic Grey Origins paper and chipboard, more chatterbox embellishements and a Scrappy Fairy journalling spot.

I started this blog post in the morning and since then have met a friend for a mutually supportive lunch and held a service in a local residential home. One of the residents is very, very ill and we were asked to pray for her. To my amazement many of the staff and some of the residents were there in the room too (it was quite funny really as I thought there were 5 of us in the room. There were about 15 when I turned around!) The love and the care shown in the tears and hugs of the staff was so moving and humbling. That is the kind of special moment that gives me the motivation I need. that is when I knowthat I am blessed.