Black and White Comfort and Assurance

This week the challenge at Our Daily Bread Designs Shining the Light Challenge  #144 is to make a card that is black and white. Black and white can be very classy or even formal. I chose a verse of comfort from Psalms for this card. When the pressures of life seem overwhelming, we can hide under His sheltering feathers, so to speak. We should seek His comfort first when we lose a loved one.

The day the doctor told me and other family members that we had to turn off life support and let my mother die or remove her from the hospital, the sorrow seemed unbearable. I stayed at the hospital alone, feeling crushed, crying out to God for that refuge that a chick seeks from the mother hen's wings in distress. He replaced that feeling of aloneness and despair with His presence and gave me the strength to minister to my mom's needs as they moved her from ICU to the room where she would pass on to be with the Lord. I was the last one to share Scripture and words of love with her. She responded to the things I told her, so God let me know that she heard me and understood. This experience will forever be a precious memory.

I'm hoping that this verse will be an encouragement for someone else to turn toward God's protection and comfort in a difficult time. "He will cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you will find refuge." Psalm 91:4

The bird image and sentiment are from Our Daily Bread Design's "You Will Find Refuge." The papers are from the "For Always" collection from Close To My Heart. The black cardstock was embossed with the Cuttlebug "Kassie's Brocade" embossing folder, but our dark cloudy weather doesn't help it to photograph well. I used a Spellbinder's label die cut behind the sentiment. Since I used translucent white organdy ribbon (with satin edges) I thought some white vellum flowers would be appropriate.

May God bless, comfort, and care for you when you take shelter under His wings.

I'm sharing this card with the following challenges:
Our Daily Bread Designs Shining the Light Challenge #144 - black and white/cream
C.R.A.F.T. #196 - embossing
Crafty Ribbons #40 - anything goes with ribbon
D.L.Art Thankful Thursday #104 - birds, anything to do with birds
Word Art Wednesday #69 - anything goes with scripture or encouraging sentiment