Getting to know our Design Team

With the addition of a few new faces to the team, we thought it would be a good idea to get to know them better! With that in mind, they will each have a chance to introduce themselves to you during the week in-between each challenge.

First up, we would like to introduce you to Melita Chow.

Hi everyone! I am just thrilled to be a part of the Salt Design Team.

I am a SAHM to my two wonderful kids and have been married for almost 12 years! I began scrapbooking about 4 years ago and rediscovered myself. Kind of lost myself being a mom and wife and not taking time to nurture myself. I never knew that God had created me with the capacity to be creative!

My mom took my siblings and I to church on and off when we were growing up. Mostly when she felt that we needed to learn how to behave better. ;) Church was not that fun as a result. It wasn't until I got to high school that I really started understanding what church was all about. I remember asking Jesus into my heart when I was a sophomore in high school, but it wasn't until four years later, as a sophomore in college, that I really understood what I had done. Through the help of several wonderful women, I began a truly personal relationship with Jesus Christ that continues to this day. There have been highs and lows and I am not always as consistent in making time to develop that relationship as I should be, but I am thankful that despite me and my intentions or lack thereof, God is faithful.

SERENITY

What exciting times for the SALT team, we're pleased to have announced the new team and we're slowly getting to know each other. What a blessing to have Unity in Christ, and the common bond of being able to be creative. Thank you to all of our readers and participants, we trust you will be blessed through our endeavours to be SALT!

It was my turn (Ruth) to set the challenge. I have to confess it crept up on me all of a sudden, so I quickly got inspiration for theme from a bookmark that I have stuck near my computer -

God Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.
Reinhold Niebuhr.

I've had a busy week, going to London, visiting an aunt and friends, then making our way on Eurostar to Disney Land Paris all with 3 young boys. From time to time I would contemplate the theme, and again I have to confess I deffinately was not feeling serene at times. The mixture of hormones and the overwhelming nature of Disney, and dealing with the children left me frustrated and moody. However on the Sunday we ventured into Paris to find an English speaking church and was greatly blessed by the ministry. One of the things that the speaker said was being calm was a choice. We had a time of prayer in small groups where we asked to share a worry or concern, I asked for prayer in dealing with the children. God is so good, he helped and the last few days have been marked with a sense of more calmness and serenity! So, after my busy week of not feeling serene, I've come to realise serenity doesn't just come to those who think about it, it has to accompany an action. A deliberate putting of one's faith in God, acknowledging the gift of his Son Jesus, being deeply sorry for the sins we've committed, the acceptance of forgiveness and then living a life that glorifies God and what he has done. It is in this truth that we find true serenity and the ability to call on God to keep changing us and help us to take control of our minds so we can be SERENE.

Please enjoy the contributions from the team, if you are inspired please create and tell us, we'd love to see what you make.



Ruth

Pauline

Tanis
Gina
Stacy
Lythan

Hazel

Melita
Kim
NikkiMona Julie

Esther

A Faith Perspective Sponsored Challenge - Friendship

Wow!! Has everyone had a chance to explore the blogs of our new design team members? Aren't they simply amazing! Are you excited about seeing work from our new team? I know I am and today we're offering a special challenge and a special gift to our readers, along with a sneak peek at work from some of our newest designers!

Today we have an extra special treat as our challenge is being sponsored by A Faith Perspective. I got to know Anne at AFP after she sweetly choose my blog as a featured blog of the week a few months ago. Since that time Anne has frequented the SALT blog and highlighted the work of most of the members from our original team on AFP. Anne's commitment to sharing her faith and promoting other faith-based designers, blogs, and galleries through AFP and Scrapbook News & Reviews, an online, subscription-based publication, has been a real blessing to me and the SALT team.

With those thoughts in mind, the SALT team wanted to throw out a friendship challenge for this weekend! The scripture verse that came to mind when I was thinking about this challenge was Proverbs 18:24, "A man who has friends must himself be friendly, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother." My study Bible has these comments on this passage, "...the contrast seems to be between two kids of companions; those whose friendship is superficial and who cause trouble, and the rare friend who is as loyal as a brother."

It has been my experience, and share with me if you've had the same, that the bond developed between like-minded Christian companions is at times closer than actual family ties. There is a depth of emotion and feelings that unfortunately doesn't always exist with family members or friends who do not share our faith, an earnest desire to be in each other's company, and a comfortableness sharing thoughts and life's circumstances. As Christian friends we're able to pray for and encourage each other. We rejoice together in happy times and weep together in sad. We are united through Christ and His work on the cross. I am grateful that God has brought together a small group of crafty women through the SALT blog and faith-based blogs like AFP, who have shown themselves to be a blessing and encouragement to other Christians out there in blog land!

Enjoy the work we've posted below and please feel free to leave a comment with a link back to something you've created based on today's theme of friendship! Also, please visit AFP's brand spanking new social network site and check out the online magazine. Leave a comment on our site and we'll pick a winner to receive a three month free subscription to the SNR magazine!!

Hazel Pauline
Nikki Tanis


Melita


Mona Stacy

Esther

Julie

Kim

Lythan

New Design Team Announcement

This is the moment we've been waiting for - we are thrilled to announce our new Design Team.

In addition to those already involved in Salt (Esther, Hazel, Kim, Lythan, Ruth) we welcome:

Gina

Julie

Melita

Mona

Nikki

Pauline

Stacy

Tanis

We praise God that, following our call for design team members, we have been blessed with these talented Christian friends joining us.

We are looking forward to getting to know one another and sharing our faith and friendship through our crafting.

Please click on their names and visit their individual blogs to see what they are up to.

And there's more news: From now on we will be posting every Thursday. Our challenges will continue to be fortnightly, but in between we will be telling you something about ourselves, so please check back every Thursday.

And in addition to our regular posts, there will be a special challenge on Saturday 14 March - so please make sure you return then to check it out.

New Life In Christ

My daughter was baptised at the end of February. This was a very special time. Baptism is a symbol of new life in Christ as Paul writes in Romans

‘Do you not know that all of us who have been baptised into Christ Jesus were baptised into his death? Therefore we have been buried with Christ by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. Romans 6:3-4
New life can come at other times too and I would love to see your creative reflections on this theme

We have had technical problems which have delayed our Design Team announcement but watch this space as it is coming very soon!

Hazel Kim
Ruth
Lythan


Esther