It Is Our Bliss

I read this amazing quote by Spurgeon in Beside Still Waters, and I wanted to make a poster of it. The layered background is made from three photos I took in Maine, and the style of the poster is inspired by these really cool things by Jeff Martin.

The version you download is 8x10 inches and won't have my watermark at the top. Please enjoy!

download:

it is our bliss poster (JPG, 1.31MB)

fonts:

wisdom script
theano old style

Faith & Sight

I read this quote by Spurgeon and so loved the concept of our faith being made sight. Faith and hope are precious gifts here on earth, but one day we won't need them anymore because we'll see our Savior face to face. We'll be able to behold instead of hope. "My faith shall be sight"—simple words from a hymn that remind me of this wonderful truth.

download:

faith & sight poster (JPG, 1.97 MB)
Personal use only, please!

credits:

font: theano didot
photo: yours truly

Strength

So glad that God gives enough strength for today.

And that because of Him, tomorrow is a bright hope.

[download]

(From Tumblr)

Every now and then I like to share a few quotes from what I post on my Tumblr. Since I've been thinking about hope lately, I thought I'd post some hope-related quotes today. For more, check out my Tumblr.

When God calls us to wait, it doesn’t mean he isn’t actively at work in our lives. Sometimes God makes us wait to teach us to trust and depend on him. Waiting humbles us – it reminds us that we’re very limited creatures. Waiting reminds us God is in control and our times are in his hands. Waiting strengthens our prayer lives as we seek God again and again for an answer. Waiting makes us compassionate toward others in their trials. Waiting builds patience, faithfulness and long-suffering. And waiting makes us all the more grateful when the wait is over.
—Mark Altrogge

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Return, O my soul, to your rest; for the LORD has dealt bountifully with you.
—Psalm 116:7

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He who would glorify his God must set his account upon meeting with many trials. No man can be illustrious before the Lord unless his conflicts be many. If then, yours be a much-tried path, rejoice in it, because you will the better show forth the all-sufficient grace of God. As for his failing you, never dream of it—hate the thought. The God who has been sufficient until now should be trusted to the end.
—Charles Spurgeon

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    I love the LORD, because he has heard
        my voice and my pleas for mercy.
    Because he inclined his ear to me,
        therefore I will call on him as long as I live.
—Psalm 116:1–2

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The Lord may not give gold, but he will give grace; he may not give gain, but he will give grace. He will certainly send us trial, but he will give grace in proportion thereto. We may be called to labour, and to suffer, but with the call there will come all the grace required.
—Charles Spurgeon

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When I thought, “My foot slips,” your steadfast love, O LORD, held me up. When the cares of my heart are many, your consolations cheer my soul.
—Psalm 94:18–19

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O LORD God of hosts, who is mighty as you are, O LORD, with your faithfulness all around you?
—Psalm 89:8

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Always the same! It is this which makes the gospel so excellent and precious. We do not bid you depend on anything less than the tried corner-stone, the fountain whose water shall never fail—the city of refuge whose walls shall never be broken down—the sure Rock of Ages. Churches may decay and perish; riches may make themselves wings and fly away—but he who builds his happiness on Christ crucified and union with Him by faith, that man is standing on a foundation which shall never be moved, and will know something of true peace.
—J.C. Ryle

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www.tositathisfeet.tumblr.com

This Is Hope

(I'll be sharing a design project or two next week, but today I wanted to take the time to write. Lately this blog has been full of design inspiration, which is its main purpose. Yet I don't want to forget the importance of words, even on a design blog. So today I wanted to share some words.)

font: mensch bold inline

One thing that I've been mulling over during this time is hope, the truth that regardless of my circumstances, I can place my trust in God.

My hope is in you, Lord
All the day long
I won't be shaken by
Drought or storm
The peace that passes understanding
Is my song
My hope is in you, Lord
(aaron shust)

Those words have needed to be my theme song lately. I'm learning, slowly, gradually, that I can indeed hope in God because of who is he and because of what he has done and promises to do. This hope is unshakable. Not drought, storm, or anything else can move it.

But sometimes I don't feel so unshakable. Sometimes I feel so overwhelmed that any little thing could push my emotions over the edge. That's when I need to have a good cry, remember that God is with me, and choose to hope in him. It's not an easy journey and it's not a one time decision. If I'm going to hope in God, I have to keep reminding myself of it every day. Every hour. Probably every minute.

One Scripture that has encouraged me so much is Psalm 57:2. It's only 15 short words, but it encompasses the place I'm in right now so completely:

I cry out to God Most High, to God who fulfills his purpose for me.

Yes, there are times when I need to cry out for help. But I can cry to God Most High, to the God who knows all about me and promises to fulfill his purpose for me. I can hope because of that. Because of who God is—the all-wise, loving Father of my life. I don't know how, but he will fulfill his purpose for me.

This is the God who we cry out to. The God who hears every prayer. The God who keeps his promises. The God who sent his only Son, Jesus, to pay the penalty for all our sins with his blood on the cross. This is the God who we hope in.

Merry Christmas!

I wanted to wish you all a Merry Christmas this morning! I hope you are all aware of the amazing love of Jesus. Let's celebrate together the glory of the incarnation: that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, would become a baby in Bethlehem with the purpose of dying on a bloody, cruel cross to take away the sins of the world. This same Jesus who was born as an infant in a manger died a death he didn't deserve, rose again, and one day will return. Here's a quote from Augustine that is good for pondering the wonder of God become man.

If you'd like to download this as a poster, you can do that right here. Have a wonderful Christmas!

The Goal of Design

source

I read this quote in an interview with designer Jonathan Ogden and I thought it was quite good. This guy gets what it means to use design as a way to glorify God.

I believe God created us in His image, and created us with the ability to create things. I find it really motivating that when we design things, we’re doing a small version of what God was doing when He made everything, when he sat back and said “it is good”. God is the best designer and can provide the best inspiration. I like to see design as a way of honouring God and the creativity that he gave us.
- Jonathan Ogden

links:

ogvidius
typographic verses

Quote Poster Trio

I have a little present for you all today...well, actually three. I made three matching quote posters based on some brief quotes I came across lately on Tim Challies' blog. Each day, he posts links to various articles and other things, and at the end, he puts a short quote. I've found some of them very powerful, so I took three and made posters out of them.

To make each poster, I used a photo edited with Daniel Box's Instagram actions, some simple artwork made in Illustrator, and Photoshop to output the files. The font I used is Tex Gyre Heros (I like to call it "pretend Helvetica"). Beneath each poster is a link to the post where I found the quote. I hope you enjoy these posters and that you like the quotes as much as I do! Download links are at the bottom of the post.

quote found here

quote found here

quote found here

downloads:

Each poster: one, two, three
All posters: .zip file

From Mr. Spurgeon

An encouraging quote for Sunday from a favorite writer.

The believer does not look up to heaven because it is a natural instinct to hope for better days, and to cheer one’s self with a pious fiction about providence, but he looks up to heaven because God is actually there, truly observant, tenderly sympathetic, and ready with a mighty arm to come to the rescue of his people. [Charles Spurgeon]

Trusting God is not "a pious fiction" or a vague "hope for better days." If God weren't there, we'd only have fantasies and unfounded hopes. But he is there. And he loves me and he is ready to help me. It's not easy to trust him and I can't do it by myself. But by his grace, I can look up to heaven, rest, and trust.

Encouraging Words, Part 2

Today I'm continuing with quotes from my Tumblr. I have more encouraging words to share today that I hope you all will enjoy!

Once earthly joy I craved,
sought peace and rest;
Now Thee alone I seek, give what is best.
This all my prayer shall be:
More love, O Christ to Thee;
More love to Thee, more love to Thee!

     —  Elizabeth Prentiss

“God does not send out his church to conquer. He sends us out in the name of the One who has already conquered. We go only because he reigns.”

—	Kevin DeYoung and Greg Gilbert

“Do not let your happiness depend on something you may lose… only upon the Beloved who will never pass away.”

—	C.S. Lewis

“The right manner of growth is to grow less in one’s own eyes.”

—	Thomas Watson

“Ye are brought with a price.” To every man of whom this may be said, it is the best news he ever heard. An angel sent from heaven could not bring to any man or woman here a more delightful message than this, “Thou art bought with a price, even with the precious blood of Christ.”

—	Charles Spurgeon

Rejoice in the good of others, though it eclipses your light, though it makes your parts, your abilities, and your excellencies dimmer in the eyes of others. Were it not for the eminence of some above you, your parts perhaps would shine more brightly and be of high esteem. Yet to rejoice in this from the heart, to bless God from the soul for His gifts and graces in others, that His name may be glorified more by others than I can glorify it myself; to be able to truly say, ‘Though I can do little, yet blessed be God there are some who can do more for God than I, and in this I do and will rejoice’—this is indeed to be able to do much more than others. This shows a great eminence of spirit.
—Jeremiah Burroughs

That last quote really stuck out to me. The radical kind of humility and passion for God to be glorified that this quote describes is amazing.

Encouraging Words, Part 1

Every now and then, I like to post a few quotes from my Tumblr, words that I've enjoyed and been encouraged by lately. I haven't done a post like this in awhile, so I'm going to divide it into two parts, one today and one tomorrow. I usually don't post over the weekend, but I wanted to this time since there are so many fun things I want to post about! I hope you enjoy these quotes:

“Take my heart and hold it in thy hand;
Write upon it reverence to thyself
with an inscription that time and eternity cannot erase.”

—	The Valley of Vision, page 139

“…let us not reckon upon the continuance of present ease, nor fix our happiness upon the fickle weather of this world, but let us be ready for changes, so that, come when they may, we shall not be afraid of evil tidings, our heart being fixed, trusting in the Lord.”

—	C.H. Spurgeon

“Waiting is an act of faith. Because in waiting for the Lord, we are saying, Lord I trust in you. I hope in you. I have confidence that as I wait, you are being good to me and you are acting on my behalf. I’m trusting you for grace to come. Faith waits confidently for the Lord to fulfill his promises.”

—	Mark Altrogge

“Being with Jesus is the essence of heaven; it is what the life everlasting is all about.”

—	J.I. Packer, Growing in Christ

“The key to continual and deeper spiritual renewal and revival is the continual re-discovery of the gospel.”

—

Timothy Keller

“Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand.”
     —  Proverbs 19:21

“O LORD, you are my God; I will exalt you; I will praise your name, for you have done wonderful things, plans formed of old, faithful and sure.”

—	Isaiah 25:1

I hope you all are encouraged by these words! If you'd like to read more, I post pretty regularly at To Sit at His Feet, my Tumblr page.

Look Up

Just wanted to share a quick poster I made recently. I came across these lyrics from the hymn "Draw Me Nearer" by Fanny Crosby, and they are perfect for where I am right now. A lot has been on my mind lately and it's hard to remember that I have a steadfast hope. But I do! God is good and faithful and His will is best.

This is a good truth to ponder. I hope you're encouraged by these words too.

Funny Analogies

This post has nothing to do with graphic design, but it does have to do with another thing I like a whole lot: words. I saw a link to the 25 Funniest Analogies on Tim Challies' blog and I was chuckling to myself as I read. A few are rather crude, so you can decide if you want to read them all. But I thought I'd post a few favorites here.

Funny Analogies

• Her vocabulary was as bad as, like, whatever.
• He was as tall as a six-foot, three-inch tree.
• The little boat gently drifted across the pond exactly the way a bowling ball wouldn’t.
• From the attic came an unearthly howl. The whole scene had an eerie, surreal quality, like when you’re on vacation in another city and Jeopardy comes on at 7:00 p.m. instead of 7:30.
• The hailstones leaped from the pavement, just like maggots when you fry them in hot grease.
• Long separated by cruel fate, the star-crossed lovers raced across the grassy field toward each other like two freight trains, one having left Cleveland at 6:36 p.m. traveling at 55 mph, the other from Topeka at 4:19 p.m. at a speed of 35 mph.
• John and Mary had never met. They were like two hummingbirds who had also never met.
• Shots rang out, as shots are wont to do. 
• The young fighter had a hungry look, the kind you get from not eating for a while.
• He was as lame as a duck. Not the metaphorical lame duck, either, but a real duck that was actually lame, maybe from stepping on a land mine or something.
• He was deeply in love. When she spoke, he thought he heard bells, as if she were a garbage truck backing up.

If you took the time to read some or all of these, I hope you were amused. I certainly was! I'd love to hear if you have a favorite funny analogy. Or try your hand at making up one of your own in the comments section!

Inspiration: Words, Part 3

Today I have another words-related inspiration post for you all. And I like to share another quote from Augustine, like I did last time. I hadn't planned to share two quotes from the same person, but this one came to mind and I really like it. So I wanted to share it. This quote doesn't so much inspire me per se, but it encourages me and reminds me of truth. It's quite short.

Contentment can be really hard some times, because there are things that I want that I don't currently have. There are ways I want life to be that it's not right now. But this quote reminds me that I can be content with what I have now, because I have all. As I understand it "Haver of all" in this quote means God. And it says that the one who has God has all. Because of the cross, I am God's and He is mine. So I really have all I need.

Lots of times, my view of God is too small. I can act like He isn't enough. But He truly is. He has given me forgiveness, redemption, freedom from sin, and new life in Him. He's provided everything I need and He is indeed the source of true satisfaction. Quotes like this help me remember these things and start to realize that I do, in fact, have all I need in God.

Inspiration: Words, Part 2

Today I have another words-related inspiration post for you all. I have a longer quote to share, but it's one that I found really helpful and encouraging. I'm pretty sure I'd heard it before, but I read it recently in Mark Dever's book The Gospel and Personal Evangelism and it immediately became a favorite. It's worded a little confusingly, so you may want to read a tad slower than usual. It has such a wonderful truth behind it.

I think this is such a wonderful way to explain the command to "love your neighbor as yourself." The greatest thing we can be pursuing ourselves, or want for ourselves, is to love God. And so loving our neighbor means causing them to love God. This has implications for evangelism (we love people when we tell them about the life-changing message of Jesus), but it has implications for everyday life, too.

Loving my neighbor doesn't just mean talking with them or asking them questions or being kind. Those things are all good things that we should do and that honor God. But it's possible to be nice to someone without making them love God any more as a result, and if we do that, we've been nice, but we haven't loved someone else as much as we could've. On the one hand, this inspires me to want to care for people and seek to help them pursue and love God. But on the other hand, this quote overwhelms me a little. Encouraging people to love God more seems really hard to do, doesn't it? It does to me. I mean sometimes, it's hard enough for me to just get my eyes off myself and consider others, not to mention actually going beyond saying something nice and seeking to encourage them to love God. And this is a hard thing to do, but the good news is that we don't have to do it alone! We have God's power to help us do this, and we can seek to truly love others, by making them love God more, in His strength.

Inspiration: Words, Part 1

Today I thought I'd share a quote about Christians and the arts. As a Christian who does art, and is planning to study art seriously in the future, truth-saturated writing about what it means to be a "Christian artist" is so helpful to me. This quote is one that is particularly encouraging and inspires me to think rightly about art. It's from an article by Andy Farmer called "Values for Christian Artists" that is such a wonderful, concise resource. I'd recommend reading it (you can access it here), but for now, here's my favorite quote.

That's what art is. It's pouring perfume on Jesus' feet. Worshiping Him. Adoring Him.

But it's easy to think of art as so many things. And it is other things. But nothing that art is could possibly be more essential or central than this. First and foremost, art is for worshiping and honoring our Savior - just like all the rest of life!

This is important for me to remember. Of course I know it in my head, but I forget it so often in practice. When I'm doing something creative, I usually am thinking about how it looks or how much I like it or how much other people will like it. When I think about the part art might play in my future, I can focus more on getting a job or reaching out to other people or being in a certain environment. But while those things are relevant and have some degree of importance sometimes, I can make them primary when really, what matters is whether I'm being creative for the glory of God, and wanting to please Him with the art that I'm doing.

I like the image of pouring perfume on Jesus feet, like the woman whose story is told in the New Testament. She was so amazed and in awe of Jesus that she bought expensive ointment and poured it on His feet. Is that kind of amazement and worship characteristic of me? Often it's not. That's why I need to write about this - to talk to myself and remind myself of what's true! But this quote inspires me to become more like what this quote describes. To seek to worship with my art and not just "do" it. To use it as one more avenue to bring praise to my glorious Savior because He is so worthy of my whole life. He gave His very life on the cross for me, so I could be counted righteous and adopted into God's family. So shouldn't all I do be worship to Him?

My All

  

Grant that I may distrust myself,

to see my all in thee.

-The Valley of Vision, pg. 26

Perfect Preparation

 

Every experience God gives us is the perfect preparation for the future only he can see.

-Corrie ten Boom

He Rules

 The soul that has learned the blessed secret of seeing God's hand in all that concerns it, 

cannot be prey to fear; it looks beyond all that concerns it, 

straight in the heart and will of God, and rests content, because he rules.

-Susannah Spurgeon

Not By Chance

 Providence is the almighty and ever present power of God by which He upholds,

as with His hand, heaven and earth and all creatures,

and so rules them that leaf and blade, rain and drought, fruitful and lean years, 

food and drink, health and sickness, prosperity and poverty - 

all things, in fact come to us not by chance but from His fatherly hand.

-Answer 28 from the Heidelberg Catechism