It is for Freedom He set us free…

Galatians 5:1 – It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.

This isn’t the exact place, but it sure looked something like this. A house – the men’s quarters – sits on a semi-secluded hill with a gravel road connecting it to the women’s quarters. With porches, unpainted indoor wood work, and enough room to fit a large family, this place is picture perfect for its purpose – recovery. From both genders and across the generations, clients come to be free. I had the pleasure of volunteering at this place and bringing something simple but important – dessert! Armed with homemade orange fudge brownies, lemon squares, and white chocolate almond cookies, I came expecting to serve at an institution-like establishment. Instead, I immediately perceived a sense of family and community.

I quietly entered the house where lunch was being prepared while a group session was being held in the adjoined room.  People sat casually in basic living room furniture. The kitchen had a large refrigerator and a dishwasher that was troublesome to close. It was a humble place where the love and kindness of believers open the door for God to heal those who were hurting, addicted, and abused.  There was nothing institutional or white-walled about this place.

Naturally, it was full of peace and tranquility. Spiritually, it was a battleground. Wounded soldiers were grasping for help to bind up their broken hearts.  The strong were out on a mission that others would label impossible. Some had been in the same place as the wounded once before – and they are now a brand successfully plucked from the fire. Other soldiers have not been affected by the same battle injuries, but they have seen the effects and are dedicating their lives to repairing them.  The arrows of self-doubt, fear, failure and embarrassment fly.  Explosions of void-filling with drugs, sex, and various forms of pride have brought the damaged to this ward. A ward for spiritual, emotional, mental, and physical healing.  You can hear the destruction as people confess their sins and tell their stories.  Truly there are broken bones and bruised souls sitting in this room waiting for it to stop hurting and to get better.

And before one dives into the Balm of healing, they have to understand what this Balm consists of.  For this Balm is given for us to be free.  There is not the need or purpose for us to return to the former things; no, these destructive operations are to be forgotten in practice, even if they can’t be forgotten in memory.  It is a pure concoction of the grace, mercy, love, and patience of Jesus Christ exemplified through people and revealed to the souls of the afflicted. Yet this Balm burns like a fire and runs like blood.  It burns away the walls we have constructed and runs over our sins(our ways to find the solution that only draws us further from The Solution) and cleanses them. Do you believe that? That this Balm will actually address your deeper need more than anything else you’ve tried? Even if it’s not instant? Even if it doesn’t look exactly like you thought it would – or want it to? Do you believe it? And are you willing to continue believing? After the program is over? For Freedom’s sake? For yours and others?

Media Suggestions I

My “retail therapy” is often played out in bookstores and Christian music/media shops.  For those who’s apparel shopping adventures tend to be more stressful than relaxing, here are some suggestions to put on your bookshelf & cd case. But don’t leave them there; they are worthy of your attention on a quiet evening, with a cup of tea or coffee, and your fully devoted attention.

David Nasser writes an absolutely awe-inducing memoir of his conversion to Christianity in Jumping Through Fires.  He and his family survived the beginnings of the Iranian revolution and, after being shuffled around Europe a bit, restarted their lives here in the states.  The grace, mercy, and adventure of God’s plan for this man’s life kept me from wanting to put the book down. From the passion that fueled him to dive head first into a destructive American culture to the refocusing of that drive to surrender himself to the total will of God, Nasser simply tells his story and what he has learned.  You’ll find the truth of cultural awkwardness of being an exile and an adolescent in America (a combination that proves to be difficult). You’ll find truth and transparency. You may even find your fire being reignited through this man’s grace-laced story.

~~~~~~~

I heard a song being played on a personal boom box in a Christian book & media store I frequent. The lyrical/musical combination of this song gripped my attention, and I investigated a bit. I was happy to find they had the album for sale. As I listened, I like it so much I returned later that day to buy another copy for a friend.  Jimmy Needham’s sophomore release Not Without Love actually pairs well with Nasser’s Jumping Through Fires. During my first listening session, when I landed on the song Before and After, I almost involuntarily recapped portions of Nasser’s book.  The power of that linkage was not the only thing that had me listening with a smile on my face, and calling out to a non-present Jimmy Needham “You betta sang boy!”.  Jimmy Needham truly can hold a note, and he does it quite soulfully. He is lyrically gifted when presenting the Gospel of Christ.  He is versed in Scripture and it comes through in how he conveys experience in connection with what has been written in The Bible. He offers up two odes to his wife, beautiful word pictures of what passionate, Christian love can look like.  I’m truly appreciative for the graphic integrity of his album art (kudos to the photographer(s) and the graphic artist(s)) and the lyrics with the Scripture references are on the inside cover – so the listener truly can understand the fundamental heartbeat of each track.

The Philosophy

Always Wonderfully Made…

What does that mean to a creative company? How will it translate? And what does it mean to us for this to be our operational view? Let’s go to the inspiration , Ps 139:14:

I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works,and that my soul knows very well. (KJV)

I will give thanks to you because I have been so amazingly and miraculously made. Your works are miraculous, and my soul is fully aware of this.(GW)

I will confess and praise You for You are fearful and wonderful and for the awful wonder of my birth! Wonderful are Your works, and that my inner self knows right well.(AMP)

and I praise you
because of
the wonderful way
you created me.
Everything you do is marvelous!
Of this I have no doubt.
(CEV)

I think you get the point. God makes great and wonderful creations-like you and I. When we understand as a company the value of our employee, we see also the value in our client. And we strive to produce results of wonderful and praise worthy quality. When you are made wonderful-and you KNOW it, you can’t help but produce wonderful.

Greed is not Sustainable

When exchanging with a fellow entrepreneur, this came to me.  This is a huge part of our philosophy-basically the sister statement to the declaration above.  We are not looking to get rich and leave all the “little people” running around looking for crumbs.  We want to provide jobs, we want to pour from what we gain needed resources back into our community.  You will see evidence of that as we continue. After all, everyone is Created Swell!, and we plan to support that concept in effective and sustainable ways.

I don’t have a MAC….Yet…

Well, this is only semi-true.  I got an iPhone.  When speaking with a good friend (whose name will be Pablo to conceal his true identity) who is privy to Apple usage and benefits, it seemed the iPhone was a great fit to my business needs.  Since print design is a primary operation of my “freelance” services, I even began entertaining the idea of purchasing an Apple computer.

I grew up IBM. Not gonna lie.  And I heart the PC…if all I’m ever going to do is spreadsheets and word documents.  It’s great for the administrative side of a business – absolutely.  And they were created when designers did EVERYTHING by hand – including print/graphic design.  So true to it’s name, it is what it is – a BUSINESS machine (IBM = International Business Machine).  However, I’ve had enough computer freezes, shut downs, and processing at the rate molasses moves in the dead of a Northeastern winter. I’m done. I’m over it. And at first I was going to financially plan for a notebook, then, I saw it…

For the first time in my life, I was drooling over a MAC.  We had them in my the design house at my university, but I was beyond uninterested. But this 27″ puppy – it’s like doing your design work on a flatscreen television screen. And because it just seems to fit well, a waycom tablet is a coveted accompaniment. I am so excited to do my work on this thing. The processor (probably won’t go with a quad, just a dual), the screen resolution, the workspace & desktop toggle options…I literally jumped up and down in the store and embarrassed my god-sister. If all goes as according to my plan, we will see how the transition is.  Hopefully my friend “Pablo” will be able to give me some much-needed tips on diving in and doing wonderful things with this machine.

Now, what should I do with my refurbished IBM Thinkpad? Suggestions anyone?

Welcome to Created Swell!

Welcome to the WordPress Site for Created Swell! I hope you enjoy as you browse, and please know that I covet your comments where ever there is an opportunity to leave them!