Shop Spotlight of the Week: Maggie of Distlefunk

This weeks Shop Spotlight of the Week is  Maggie of Distlefunk.  Distlefunk offers a unique line of jewelry and clay pendants, lovingly handcrafted by artist, Maggie Montgomery.

 Her work is amazing!  Take a look at a few of her awesome creations below! Please stop by and see all the stunning items in Distlefunk Shop!          

                

        

 

About Our Team Team Jabez is a fun place to help promote one another and learn to grow our businesses. We are a small, Faith Based team with outstanding shops and great photography. Our teams goal is to grow together in Excellence!

Team Jabez Members: If you have a chance, please show some shop love by taking a moment to favorite and promote on your favorite Social Media.  Thanks!

by Kelly of KellyBermudez

Awesome Takes Practice

     The first time I ever stepped foot in my mom's red and white Ford 150 pickup truck to learn to drive, I thought I was going to be awesome. Seriously! I thought that I would just turn it on and go. Hahaha ;) I still remember that day like it was yesterday. It was a Sunday afternoon, and she let me drive the family home from church. Excitement soon turned to tears when I was passed by a glaring elderly couple annoyed at my 20 mile per hour speed on the 45 mile per hour country road. My teenage ego was crushed! I was being passed by "old" people!

     Oh goodness! I share that story because of the underlying thought process that was going on. I truly thought that operating a motor vehicle was either a given ability or it wasn't. I was crushed when I wasn't as good at it as I thought I would be. And when I was passed by the elderly couple, a sense of permanence overwhelmed me. I thought I would never learn to drive. What I failed to realize was that driving takes practice!

     Fast forward almost thirty years... In May, I opened my Etsy shop. That same teenage girl driving that big F150 pickup truck somehow decided to take the wheel of my Etsy shop because I, once again, thought that I would open up shop and Boom! the sales would just take off! (I hope you are giggling to yourself just a little bit). If you have found yourself in this same boat, it is important to remember that like anything, Etsy takes practice.

     In the two months I have had my shop open, I have made so many changes. I learned so much from others around me. My shop today looks nothing like the shop I opened in May. I would say that for a select few, Etsy is an ability. Just like in life, there are some people who just have this natural ability to succeed in any situation with very little effort. It is important to remember that these individuals are the exception to the rule. For the rest of us, running an Etsy shop takes research and perseverance.

Remember that your current situation right now is not permanent. With a little practice and perseverance you will obtain success! Just give yourself a little time!

Awesome

Written by: Jacklynn Graham of Raising Mavericks

It's Treasury Tuesday!

Wow!  So many beautiful treasuries were made for the month of June by the ladies of Team Jabez!

Yes, I realize it is now July but I just couldn't let all that beautiful work from last month slip by without posting a couple for you.  These two collections jumped out at me.  The first by Caroline of JanieJumps reminds me of the morning I'd like to have every day...peaceful and beautiful and time with The Creator in His Creation.



You can find Caroline's shop here: www.etsy.com/shop/JanieJumps


The second...well, it is July and Thursday is Independence Day!  I'm looking forward to celebrating and watching some fireworks too!   I hope you each get to relax and enjoy the day as well and take time to thank the Lord for the Freedoms He has given us in our county and those who have fought to ensure them for us! 


Thanks Kelly for this great reminder of our Freedoms! 
You can visit Kelly's shop here: www.etsy.com/shop/kellybermudez


Have a Blessed week everyone! 
~ Jean xoxo
www.PhotoLadz.etsy.com

D.I.Y. Inspiration: Cardboard Box House

It is miserable weather where I live at the moment - cool and wet winter weather (I live in Australia). My children are going a little stir-crazy indoors, but one game that keeps us all entertained is "hide and seek". Both my young kids love to hide in the cardboard barn-style house that their Daddy (who happens to be an architect) made for them. Here's some inspiration to Do It Yourself, courtesy of Paper & Ink blog. 

Gorgeous cardboard box house from Paper & Ink

Please visit the original blog post by Paper & Ink for all the instructions. And hey, have fun!

Hello

We all have a past...we all have things we've done that we regret, things we count as failure, things we are not proud of.  We've experienced how it feels to hurt others and we've experienced how it feels to be hurt by others.  We find ourselves in a place of pain trying to grasp for any piece of comfort or understanding that we can reach....and yet there are still times when we never find that peace we are looking for.
All of these things add up to create what we feel and think about ourselves.  This brings us to the present.  What we believe about past situations and ourselves creates how we respond to situations and people in our lives today.  Often times, we live in the failures and negatives that others inflicted on us.  We choose to live and believe in the lies that we don't understand because it's awfully hard to believe that we are really worth something or good at something when others have told us different.  It's even harder to move forward when we can't understand the reasoning behind why they did or said what they said.  At least if we knew they were jealous, or bitter toward us we could have factual information to understand why they did what they did and not take it to heart.  Perhaps we could stop believing the lie and begin believing the truth.
We face things in our lives everyday that are lies...either lies that the enemy has created or lies that we believe from things we have faced in life.  We look in the mirror and see what we have been told by others instead of seeing the true beauty we are.  We doubt our abilities to be capable of doing things we've been told we're not good at.  We believe that someone is better than us.  We believe we can't make a difference in our world because we just don't have what it takes or because we are just one person.  We believe we aren't good Parents and Grandparents.  We find ourselves questioning if we are good enough, if we can be successful.  We spend way too much time dodging bullets and trying to explain away why we are doing what we are doing.  Trying to prove that we are good enough with an I'll show you attitude at times.  We spend way too much time living like we believe the lies instead of believing the truth.
So what is the truth?  The truth is we are all broken vessels...some of us trying to live for God but all of us saying things and doing things that hurt others, that place false beliefs in others.  We can't place our worth and belief in others.  We are God's and we need to stop living in the past and start believing and living like we are His.  It starts with us; nobody else can do it for us.  It's funny how often we are complimented and it makes us feel good for a moment but then go right back to focusing on the negative.  Do you know who you are?  There's a song I want to share with you today that speaks loudly and clearly of who you are and whose you are!  I hope you will take the time to listen to and watch the video.  I hope it will minister to your heart and soul and that you will start making steps to start believing the truth in your life.  You have no idea how much power there is in believing and living the truth.  When you live in His kingdom...you are unstoppable!  There is nothing you can't do with His supernatural power and so many lives you can reach and lead to the light!  We are so much more than what we think we are...stop thinking and start believing.

Be Blessed!
Missy

Heavy Heart

Stitched heart found at DistleFunk2

     Is your heart heavy? Are you feeling weighed down with worry, stress, fear? Lately, it seems like everyone I know seems to be going through some type of tough situation. Perhaps you can relate. News of cancer returning, looming medical bills, lack of income, and physical injuries cover just a few of the situations I have been praying about. Sometimes it seems like I can never do or say enough to help. Often I want to swoop in and "fix" everything. And the truth is, I can't. The word helpless comes to mind. I feel helpless, in that my heart is burdened and weighed down with my inability to make things better.

     As I thought about these feelings, this verse came to mind. Matthew 11:28 says this, "Come to me, all who are weary and burdened (Another version uses heavy laden instead of burdened)..." Wow, heavy-- what a word. Are you like me, in that, you tend to worry yourself to the ground? I will lie awake at night trying to go over in my mind how I can make a situation better. The funny thing is, I know that worrying will not change the situation. Yet, I still do it every time. All that I accomplish is that I wear myself down even further. My battery becomes even less charged until I wake up running on empty.

     The best part is, there is more to that verse. "Come to me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." Aren't you tired of being tired? Be encouraged! Though you can't "fix" everything, know that there is one who can. It may not be how you think it should be "fixed" but know that there is purpose and wisdom in that far greater than you could ever think or imagine. When you are looking to your mind for the answers, don't forget to look even further. Jeremiah 31:25 says, "I [God] will refresh the weary and satisfy the faint." Can you even imagine that? How nice would it feel to be refreshed? To be rejuvenated?

     May you be encouraged that you need not run on empty any longer. Seek Him and His word and He will give you rest.

Written by: Jacklynn Graham from Raising Mavericks
Artwork by: Maggie Montgomery from DistleFunk2

D.I.Y Inspiration: Vintage Book Sewing Kit

Today's D.I.Y. Inspiration comes from A Beautiful Mess blog. A sewing kit is always a handy thing to have, and what a sweet way to store one - inside the covers of a vintage book! You can slip it into your handbag or purse, to pull out when needed. Or it would look equally delightful on a bookshelf, provided you can remember which book to pull out in a stitching emergency!

Vintage book sewing kit via A Beautiful Mess blog

Head over to A Beautiful Mess to find all the step-by step instructions and more photos.