I don't know what to say....

...I messed up.  I have always known that you need to fess up and ask for forgiveness when you make a mess of things.  It is written repeatedly throughout the Bible.  We are imperfect people, and we are going to mess up.  We are going to hurt others, whether intentional or not.  We are going to make wrong decisions.  But what makes us Christlike is when we recognize what we've done wrong, ask for forgiveness (not only from the Father, but from who we might have hurt in the process) and turn from what we've done.  It isn't a hard process, but it isn't an easy one either.

I think that is probably what hurts us the most when we feel we have been wronged by another...when they don't feel like they need to ask your forgiveness.  The truth is...they might never ask for it.  But we have to freely give it, which trust me...I know is so hard.  I keep reminding myself that forgiveness is NOT for the person you are forgiving, it is for yourself.  My mom has this written on her Facebook page, "Forgiving someone else does not make what they did to you okay.  It helps to make you okay!"  Through the heartache that I have suffered these past months I am learning to be quick to genuinely apologize when I hurt someone.  And I am trying to be quick to forgive....although this will always be a struggle for me.  I have found that forgiveness in my heart is a daily thing for me....I have to consciously choose it every single day.

Alright...I guess I should move on.  Now, I did create a card that triggered all that I just wrote, I promise!!  This is my card for CPS Sketch 232, where we are being sponsored this week by The {Stamps} of Life.  I got this stamp set that had this sentiment included in it...and I was just drawn to it.  I also used Embellish's Embossed Flowers Color Trends challenge (red, cream, green, kraft) for my card.  Here is what I created!

"I Messed Up" supplies:
Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (kraft, vintage cream) 

Stamps: The {Stamps} of Life (Type4Background & Daisies2Garden sets)

Ink: Clearsnap (Pigment: moss green), Close To My Heart (Pigment: vanilla cream) & Tsukineko (Versamark)

Embossing Powder: Ranger Industries (Red Pepper)

Ribbon: Papertrey Ink (red) & Renaissance by Design (green, cream)

Jewels: Doodlebug Designs (red) & Glitz Design (clear)

Corner Rounder: Creative Memories

Instructions:  Make card from kraft cardstock and round the bottom right corner.  Stamp the texted background to the front of the card.  Round the top left and bottom right corners of a vintage cream cardstock block.  Stamp the flowers in Versamark, cover in embossing powder and heat set.  Stamp the stems in olive green pigment ink.  Add three ribbon tabs to the left side of the stamped block, and then adhere the entire block to the lower right corner of the card.  Stamp the sentiment to a red cardstock strip, cut a banner end to the left side, and adhere to the front.  Accent the flowers with red jewels, and underneath the sentiment with clear jewels to finish.

This card is pretty simple, and it wouldn't be hard to recreate quickly or to just make a bunch of them to have on hand.  Sometimes it is easier to break the ice with a card when you have hurt someone's feelings.  Sometimes it is hard to verbalize what you want to say when asking for forgiveness.  Using a card like this is definitely a great starting place....I need to make sure that I have some on hand for when I screw up!

So, do you guys want to see a pretty crazy photos?  We went to a community group meeting at 6:00pm, and left at 8:30pm to see this.  Totally hadn't started before we headed into our meeting....

  Please note...I didn't take these photos.  I changed the white balance to daylight before handing the camera over to Josh, and he went to town.  Landscapes are his thing, and he is better at them than I am...and I can totally admit that!  Tee hee!  They have my logo on them for protective purposes...and hey, he is the other owner of the company.  Here are a couple more:

This is the view of the fire from our house.

This is the view from the curve that takes you into East Missoula.

This one, and the first one I showed you were taken from the post office in Bonner, MT.  We also trekked closer to the fire in Bonner, back behind the post office.  The fire is extremely close to many homes, and I am just praying that none are lost to this.

Well, I better get going for now.  I hope that you have a wonderful day!  If you are looking for any of my Lawn Fawn inspiration week posts...just scroll down a bit!! ♥♥♥ 

Until later,

~Lea L.