Christmas Came Early This Year

Christmas came early this year. Two full months early. Well, at least that's what I thought as I returned from the mailbox last week with a bright cyan blue envelope containing the printed culmination of a several months of work. Complete with postcards, magnets, flyers, and a booklet, this was a treasured mailing fit for the portfolio.

This project, unlike most, was a true team effort from a design perspective. This particular church is blessed to have a gifted designer in their communications director. So we took a tag-team approach, as she developed the logo and I created the look around it. A few revisions later, we wound up with this beauty. We were both thrilled with the end result.

I just love this middle spread. The pop of color, the subtle gray imagery, the logo that appears larger than life to help introduce their project theme. And I love the quote on the right... "Let's trust in God like never before." That's definitely what I did when I started this freelance work (that I'd never change in a New York minute now). It makes me wonder what it would look like if we all trusted God's leading in our lives like never before.

And I loved this spread below as well. It's just this simple image of giving in a series of steps. Earlier this fall, my husband and I were asked to lead our church during the worship service in communion and offering. I mentioned before praying for the offering that when I started giving, I didn't start tithing. In fact, I started giving five percent - technically a "half tithe" if you will. Now, I didn't do it out of willful disobedience to God. Rather, I did it because I knew I needed to give, and I wanted to ensure it was a positive experience so I would want to continue making my way to a full ten percent tithe and beyond. And it worked. God doesn't always call us from start to finish in one giant leap. So often he calls us to take step after step in obedience to Him toward the goal. And that's exactly what this image reminds me of. What a beautiful thought - taking the actual steps of obedience.

This one was a treat, folks. To communicate stories and encourage people at churches across the country to follow God's leading is a complete and total blessing. And every time Christmas comes early, I'm reminded of that very thing.