A Project Years in the Making
A couple of years ago the word dwell kept coming up in the passages of scripture that I was reading. It struck me as a great word and one that I would mull over and come back to time and time again. The dictionary defines dwell as, to live in or at a specific place. In the Old Testament the word “dwell” is a translation of 9 words with the most frequently used translation being “to sit down” and sometimes is translated as “abide”, “inhabit” and “remain”. These words suggest pictures of peace. They show us sitting in and abiding in Christ, His Word, His church.
Where God Dwells
God dwells in light, Christ dwells on earth and the Holy Spirit dwells in believers. We are encouraged to let the word of God dwell in us richly. As this word dwell kept coming back to mind I thought about the connotation that it means in this busy and self-centered world we live in. We are inundated with self-help books, social media telling us to look out for ourselves and “you do you” along with climbing the ladder of success and doing it all. When I take time to dwell on Scripture it is obvious that these things are going against what the Word of God tells us.
Taking Time to Dwell
When I take time to dwell, abide, and remain in the Word, the world passes away from view and my eyes are fixed on Jesus. I can think of nothing better to do with my time than to dwell in Jesus. To sit in His midst, by reading the Scriptures and attending church where His gifts are given, I am brought to the place that matters. It is so helpful to me to dwell in Christ and to let His Words fill my mind instead of letting the words of my sinful self, run in circles in my brain and allow me to fret, get anxious and lose sight of what really matters.
The Places We Dwell
Do you ever find that there is a certain object that catches your eye regularly? Maybe it’s your favorite animal or a certain style of artwork. Maybe your attention is captured by the way your garden grows or a collection of rocks or crosses on a wall. I have this thing for houses. I love to look at them while driving and will go out of my way sometimes to look at fancy and unique houses. I love to see illustrations of houses, houses made of clay or carved from wood. I love the originality of designers and artists when it comes to making houses. I even got an adorable house tea pot for Christmas that I love.
I love to look at all of these houses. I imagine the stories of the people living in them. Every person, every house, has a story. It came to me in October of last year…the love of small houses and the love of the word dwell, were a perfect match. I had already started to paint my own little houses and made a set of three representing the month of October with pumpkins and mums outside, trees with very few leaves and a feeling of fall in the color of the houses and the details therein. When I made the connection of “dwell” and my love of small houses it became obvious to me what I wanted to make happen. I wanted to make a calendar of small houses that went with the seasons and holidays of each month and find Scripture passages that helped us dwell on His word even more. So, I set to work and the whole project came together quickly, as things tend to do once the inspiration has come to light.
Dwell in Scripture
As I was researching Scripture passages for this project, I knew there were a few that would be used for sure. I was also wondering if there would be enough to have one for every month. Sure enough there were more passages than I even needed, which was great because it allowed me to choose the right one. Each month has a specific verse for a reason, and I will spend some time dwelling on those verses and what they mean to me a little bit each month.
I am so excited to be able to offer this calendar and now you will also be able to get a sticker of each month’s illustration as well. My favorite part of this calendar is that once the year is over you can cut the coil off the pages and frame the illustrations in your home and change the picture each month. What a great way to get more scripture on more walls. What a great way to dwell richly in the word of Christ.
Free Coloring Page!
I am excited to share this freebie with you! Sign up for my newsletter below to grab your watermark-free copy of the PDF and make sure you don’t miss out on future freebies! After subscribing, check your email for a link to your DWELL Coloring Page.
Do you have a word or particular scripture you are focusing on this year? I would love for you to share it with me in the comments below!
I will be sharing short meditations on each month’s verse here on the blog this year. Be sure to check back each month for those, and I pray that God blesses you as you DWELL on Him this year!
+Jamie
In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, LORD, make me dwell in safety. Psalm 4:8
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