Stampin' Sisters in Christ ~Challenge #109

It's another Sunday and another scripture verse challenge on Stampin' Sisters in Christ!! This week's challenge is brought to us by the fun and talented Kris Breach of "Ink Something." You can visit the Stampin' Sisters in Christ blog and see the devotional as well as the design team's samples for your inspiration.
This week's Scripture:
Galatians 5:22
"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control."
The challenge:
Include FRUIT in your creation. (could be designer paper, digi paper, stamped image, charm, etc...)
*By definition, a pumpkin is a fruit, and so are other "harvest" produce such as gourds.*

I received a crate of peaches from a friend a couple of weeks ago; just before we were to leave on a trip. Not wanting to waste any, I went to work peeling, slicing , and freezing. So when I viewed this week's challenge, I was excited to bring out this Magnolia stamp featuring Tilda holding a peach! Isn't she sweet? I have long admired these stamps that have been water colored with distress inks, so this week, I challenged myself to try this technique. It is a different look than coloring with copics, and I like the softness the water coloring medium lends to this sweet image!

This verse is one I have not visited in awhile...and it was such a good reminder that when we have Christ in us; he enables us to live by the fruits of the Spirit.  I did a little inventory of the fruits...not peaches, strawberries, and kiwis...but those fruits that Christ alone can accomplish in us. I know when I am short a fruit (or two or three)...it means I am not walking by the Spirit, but I am relying on my own strength.
This week I am concentrating on one of the fruits of the spirit listed in this verse, "peace." What I learned is that "our peace is an inner calm that is promised to those who believe who have a thankful attitude based on an unwavering confidence that God is able and willing to do what is best for his children." That perspective has really helped me this week...knowing that I can be thankful even in light of difficult circumstances...because I can know that God is doing what is best for me.
This past week I was given the "peace that passes all understanding..." that is promised in Philippians 4:6-8. " The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." There was a situation that would send any mother into a tailspin of worry and anxiety...and yet I experienced so much peace. I prayed a lot during the day, and slept really well at night.  I was talking it over with my husband today and asked...so what was different? The situation remained, nothing changed on the outside...but I felt different on the inside. Could it have been the prayers of others, my own prayers...and then I realized...the difference was I could see a tiny window of God at work. It was as if  the heavens were parted just enough to see something minuscule on a universal scale, yet so large in my life from a heavenly perspective. So then, the question I asked myself, So did that mean that God wasn't at work before? No...it just meant that God was really gracious in allowing me to see a speck of what he was doing in the grand scheme of things. And so I can only thank Him.
I hope you are encouraged by this week's verse and I look forward to see what you do for today's challenge.
Have a blessed Sunday!