My best painting ever!!

THIS IS MY FAVORITE..I STILL HAVE NOT SOLD THIS BUT IT IS A LIGHTHOUSE WITH A SMALLER LIGHTHOUSE IN THE BACKGROUND. I DID THIS IN OILS AND IT WAS PAINTED FROM A PHOTO TAKEN BY DR. CHARLES STANLEY..I WISH HE COULD SEE THIS, I KNOW HE WOULD LOVE IT. IT JUST TELL US THAT JESUS IS OUR LIGHTHOUSE AND HE IS STREAMING HIS LIGHT SO THAT WE CAN SEE HIM..NOT ONLY DOES HE GIVE US ONE CHANCE BUT BY THE PAINTING HE GIVES US ANOTHER BY THE SMALLER LIGHT HOUSE..PRAISE GOD!! WELL THERE ARE OTHERS BUT I LOVE THESE TWO..
GOD BLESS
DONNA

My paintings

This is a recreation of a painting done by Edward Hopper in the 1930's..I did sell this one :)

Love ya all

Donna

Its been a while!!

Hey everyone!! I don't know if you will all get to see this..I mean my dear friends from the summer..its been a while and all I can say is, God has been working on me so that I put all my attention on Him and not everything in the world. I have been working on my art work..I give art lessons and I've sold a few things also, so God has been showing His favor with me! I'm not saying its been financially easy because its probably gotten a little worse, but I know I'm being pruned and pruning can hurt.

I'm making this short because its from my cell phone..I want to hear from Tonya, Alice, Kat, Linda and whoever I treasure that I have missed. I plan on going home and sending you all a note to let you know I'm here!! I will also post a few pictures of my art. Until then read what God has for you:"Come to me when you're hurting, and I will soothe your pain. Come to me when you're joyful, and I will share your joy. I am All you need, just when you need it. Your deepest desires find fullfillment in Me alone"

God Bless..

God is so good!!!

Hi everyone
I am going to write a small post because I am at work and have a lot of things I want to say but can't right now...I haven't been really in tune with everything the last week or so because I really have been down. The Lord has been pulling a lot of things from my past in counseling and I can't tell you how completely bad and good I feel all at the same time. I suffered a lot of abuse and humiliation from my ex-husband and I have to deal with it..unfortunately when I have to deal with it I also have to talk about it. I know you wonderful ladies are always there for encouragement but I feel like I have also lost a lot of woman who always posted in the past. Right now I need everyone to hug me and tell me a good word or two :)

Listen I want to tell you a miracle before I go home. 10 years ago I was given a prophetic word over me, nearly exactly 10 years. We were at our church retreat and after worship the leader said, "Donna come to the front" I came to the front and he had a word. He said: The Lord is priming you for something good to come. He is taking your heart and peeling all the old layers like an onion so He can get to the core and show you His love. I also see a little girl who is lost in the woods and is crying out to her "daddy" because she is lost and can't find her way home. Donna that is you and the Lord is going to do something great in your life, you just have to trust and see it come to pass" WOW..RIGHT!!

Anyway, time after time went by, obviously 10 years. I went through the worst period in my life in 2001, I went through a period of medication addiction and am still struggeling with it now, my back also, I went through a horrible murder of my girlfriend, on and on. I felt like the Lord abandoned me and I have shared this with you before. So heres the news from that wonderful word from the Lord and the Lord does everything in His timing, right? I was at the counselor last Wednesday and we got to the part of my abortion and my ex-husbands abuse. Suddenly the Holy Spirit was in that room..I'm telling you if I could of seen Him I would of because I felt His presence. My counselor said, "Donna all the Lord wants to do is peel your heart like an onion and take all those layers off that have brought you down, He wants to get to the core and show you His love, He has never abandoned you. He wants to show you that He has found you and you're not lost"!!! Just writing this is making me cry all over again!! How great is Jesus! I started crying so hard and told him what happened 10 years ago and just now I had never felt so close to Jesus. For the first time in a long time I felt like His daughter and nothing was going to stop me from ministering and reaching out to others and finding out what He wants from me....It was so ordained that I should be where I am and go through this long trip to my past and grow from it...Praise God! I wish I had my Bible right now but the Lord just wanted me to share this with all of you and hopefully I can be of some encouragement for others like you are all to me :)

I will post again..but I better get back to work or I will be fired...I painted 3 more paintings and will post tomorrow. I love you all and please could someone tell LaToya and Lynn and PlantLady I miss them..til morrow

Donna

The Lords Prayer...

First Ladies..let me tell you how much I adore your comments that you make to me each time I post. It brings me peace and serenity...the encouragement is posted by you but made through by Christ! Debrah what you said absolutley meant a lot..basically I am the King of Kings daughter and no one can take that away. So if some of you didn't read what she posted please do..it doesn't just relate to me but to all of us! Praise God!

Remember when I said I would post other things besides my own posts? Well I found this online and maybe some of you have read it but it's also a little project concerning the greatest prayer our Father taught us to pray...I want all of you to read this, write it down in your spiritual journal and then write your own version of it. I want all of us to post something the next time we meet..
The following is a version of the Lord's Prayer and I also have put a couple of words in of my own:

Donna can't say "Our" if religion hasn't any room for others and their needs
I can't say "Father" if I don't demonstrate His and my relationship in my daily living
I can't say "Who art in Heaven" if all of my own interests & pursuits are of earthly things
I can't say "hallowed by thy name" if Donna, called by His name, is not Holy
I can't say "thy Kingdom done" if I'm unwilling to give up my own sovereignty & accept the righteous reign of God
I can't say "thy will be done" if I'm unwilling or resentful of having it in my life
I can't say "in earth as it is in heaven" unless I am truly ready to give myself to His service here and now
I can't say "give us this day our daily bread" without expending honest effort for it or by ignoring the genuine needs of my fellowmen
I can't say "forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trepass against us" if I continue to harbor a grudge against anyone
I can't say "deliver us from evil" if I'm not prepared to fight in the spiritual realm with the weapon of prayer
I can't say "thine is the kingdom" if I don't give the King the disciplined obedience of a loyal subject
I can't say "thine is the power" if I fear what my neighbors may say or do
I can't say "thine is the glory" if I'm seeking my own glory first
I can't say "forever" if I'm too anxious about each day's affairs
And I cannot say "Amen" unless I honestly say..."Cost what it may, this is my prayer"...

Ladies, I know that we all probably go on to the same web sites and you may have already seen this but this is so important..If we are Kings kids, as my Dad always told me, then we have to tell our Father and King that He is more important than life itself!! Cost what it may....that is why we are here..Now write it down, post me your thoughts and record your own version..the Father is waiting for us to be obedient. I feel He wants me and all of you who have read this before to pass it on and bring more servants to this blog or any one..we have the world waiting for us to bring them to their final "home". If we don't do it who will?

Donna, the Kings servant!

Psalm 62:12

Hey Gals

I seem to go onto Rachel's post and she seems to be at a conference so I am going to pull apart a Psalm that my counselor believes is perfect for me. Just a foot note. I knew I only left 1 note for all of your encouraging notes but I have been praying for all of you daily, especially "tommy" husband. I believe the Lord wants all of us in heaven with our loved ones and I know through you he will come to know the Lord in a greater way.

Well I am at work doing this because my computer is going crazy so if my boss comes in I will sign off and you'll know why :) Psalm 62:12 "Also to you, oh Lord, belongs mercy; For you render to each one according to his work" This was given to me at 4 am, (I hope I didn't already go over this with you guys). It is about how much we feel discontent in our work and home and every where that we are looking to the wrong source to receive reward for our labor.

As all of you know, I have always been looking in the wrong spot. I constantly look to my boss for him "liking" me. WRONG!! I need to look to the Lord for that..He gave me work now He will fulfill that desire for "good job"! According to the Scriptures, it is the Lord who recompenses "to each one according to his work". The promise is repeated almost word for word in both the Old and New Testaments. We are ONLY accountable to the Lord!

How would our lives change if we received this truth and began to look to God as our "employer"? We can't enjoy the quality of life He came to give us as long as we substitute human reward for divine recompense. Yes, our employer signs our paycheck, but we receive all we receive from the hand of God!

You know how long I have been praying for my work to fulfill my every need. Well the Lord didn't move me to a high position...but He moved me to a better store and gave me 40 hours!! Praise God!! We need to consider any work that we do whether in or out of the home as a spiritual activity! That is a liberating truth...thinking that every ounce of energy we expend can work toward divine recompense. We will fail to realize the high calling of God if we anxiously watch the clock at work or at home...even having our quiet time...which is so hard for me at times.

The Lord always taught a work ethic based on love under God. In our work, we are made in the image of God, who is Himself a worker, a manager, a creator, a developer, a steward, and a healer. To be a Christian is to be a colaborer with God in the community of humanity...Praise God!!

Thank you all for believing in me..thank you for praying for me..and I know I met those girls needs and the Lord had me at the beach for a reason...it was to use His tools that He is showing me and not to rely on other people to make me happy!!

God Bless
Donna

I'm Back....

Hi Everyone!

Yes I'm back from Panama City..I came back on Sunday night and just now have had a chance to breath. I read all of your comments about my last posting and I am so glad all of you encouraged me. I AM FORGIVEN...PRAISE GOD!!!!

Well what can I say about Panama City..I was not welcomed by one girl, one girl in 9th grade that made me feel as if I was trying out for her and her only..I went into the trip with all the staff and leaders from my church (First Baptist of Atlanta) saying, "You have the drama girls..they all need attention" Well I am what you might call down to earth, firm yet loving and "get over it and grow up"! She was a handful and it all came to a head on Friday. I mean we left Wednesday and our full day was Thursday..we had our wonderful worship and great ministering from a guest preacher who told it like it was. He basically hit a nerve and I tried to help her express it. She didn't want to and went to the leaders or rather the staff and told them "Miss Donna is making me open up and WE don't like it"...Well the enemy certainly was stopping me from ministering to her wasn't he...NOT!!!

What he tried to make bad the Lord is always victorious..PRAISE HIM! Now she did get her way, I was told to sit down with the head of the youth and the "house Mom" who was in their eyes experienced because she was a teacher for 23 years. She told me that I should not of been transparent with them because I don't know them. Well how do you think I was transparent? I told them the same story I told all of you...I did something at the age of 19 and I wanted all of them to know that they could reach out to the Father and ask for forgiveness, but if we don't forgive ourselves we can't grow into the young women Jesus wants us to be.

Well what do you think our little 9th grader did..she told the staff she wasn't ready to talk and I was making her!! I asked all of the girls if I was making them talk and they said no and told her that I wasn't doing that but because the "house teacher" said we have to "walk on egg shells around her" I should of known that if I knew how to take care of young women!! How hurtful could one woman be!! She probably didn't know how she and the young girl hurt me but they did and it hung over my heart for a couple of days. Because of her hurtful words a couple of boys called me the "demon leader". They got in trouble with the men. In a nutshell I was asked for forgiveness from the leaders except for the 9th grader and the teacher.

What hurt the most was my girls were hearing all of this drama and had to be talked to by the leader of the youth, Jordan. He also talked to me and said, "---------- has too much drama in her life, it perceives her where she goes and she has a problem, if we had moved her it would of gotten worse. I know how you raise children, just look at the glory of God in your girls. When my children are older I would come to you for advice. You did nothing wrong. We just need to pray for ----------"

So Ladies I was placed with another leader and her senior girls. They went to the other girls and said, "Miss Donna is so cool why did you allow this gossip to happen" No one said anything except, "we didn't do it --------- did, blame her". So I was accepted by everyone except her and it still hurts....

I mean I'm sitting here crying as I write because I just don't know where my ministry is going?! The Lord is using me but after this week I feel like it didn't matter. I then went to my bible and devotions and read this, the Lord always bring thing to light after the fact. "You hands shaped me and made me, Lord" Job 10:8
"You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mothers womb. Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous, Lord." Psalm 139:13-14

"Everyday of my life was recorded in your book Lord. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed" Psalm 139:16

"We are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works." Ephesians 2:10

Each of us are uniquely designed or shaped to do certain things. I am the way I am because I was made fo a specific ministry and I can't give up on it because the enemy is bringing me down due to this young girl. In "The purpose driven Life" Rick Warren describes SHAPE as:
Spiritual gifts
Heart
Abilities
Personality
Experience

Maybe my SHAPE is not with certain girls but I do believe I have a gift with all of you and women who have gone through what I did in my past...abuse, single parenting, loneliness, and the healing I experienced through it all. I just ask all of you to pray for me to get past that week. I can honestly tell you this is probably the first time I was so hurt by one person so much younger than me. I want the "tape" to go away in my head and stop listening to those words also. The Lord is right here with me and He never made junk..I AM NOT JUNK!! It's funny I knew the Lord was trying to talk to her because the night she made a fuss the speaker said, "I am sensing that there has been a lot of reputations hurt and those that hurt people need to ask their forgiveness" She didn't but I know that she also felt guilty because she couldnt' face me and the leaders all asked her "was Miss Donna really that bad" she said "no".....I need to pray for her and ask the Lord to show her His glory to her...she needs to stop drama with people and start growing up...not letting her act like that because she always has!

I love you all
Donna