Wednesday Wanderings with Dr. Sherri is a time we set aside to wander in the Presence of Jesus and ponder His truths. When you are ready, prepare your mind, body, and soul to have a transformational encounter with Jesus.

Watch the Wednesday Wanderings Welcome for this week.

Now that we have cleared our minds of the clutter, we can wander on the journey and examine one word: seek.

PREPARATION: In our last Wandering, we considered one word: SEEK. This week we will consider the language of friendship with Jesus: PRAYER. When you are ready, you may begin the dialogue with Jesus and state: “Jesus, I invite you to help me to leisurely wander into your Presence. Prepare my heart to receive, and illuminate my spiritual senses to encounter you.”

PROMISE: Matthew 11:28-30

^28-30 “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”

Jesus is a friend who walks with us on our journey through trials, temptations, troubles, weakness, and share our sorrows. He does not “Should” on us. Instead, He lovingly teaches us through His unforced rhythms of grace.

PSALM: What a Friend We Have In Jesus originally was written as a poem by Joseph M. Scriven in 1855.

We see the acronym B.F.F. as captions under pictures with our friends. Scrivens informs us of our true best friend forever. He describes Jesus as our faithful best friend (John 15:15) forever. A friendship with Jesus is a friendship with eternal benefits that were demonstrated and sealed on the cross (John 15:13). Jesus does not condemn (Romans 8:1) us for what we should do but offers us forgiveness of our sins. His faithful friendship promises us that we shouldn’t dwell in our discouragements. Instead, when we experience trials, temptations, and troubles (and we will), we can talk to Him and He will share our sorrows.

PARABLE: The word “should” is often used to entangle us in a web of shame. It confines us to expectations of who we should be, how we should be, and what we should be. When we experience trials, temptations, troubles, and the weaknesses of our hurts, habits, and hangups our inner critic and our external critics will curse us with “SHOULDS.” I am so glad that Jesus does not “Should on Us.” He is a gracious friend who joins us in our most discouraging times and loves us like no other friend can love us.

PONDER and WANDER:

If you choose, Ponder the questions: Who has “shoulded” on me? Am I trapped in a shame web of “shoulds?”

If you identified who has shoulded on you and that you have been trapped in a shame web of who you should be, how you should be, and what you should be by yourself or by others, you may choose to complete the below soul training exercise and take it to The Lord in P.R.A.Y.E.R.

Soul care training exercise: Follow the P.R.A.Y.E.R. steps below to untangle yourself from the web of should and shame.

Pray that the Holy Spirit will reveal to you if you are entangled in a shame web.
Repent for the hold the shoulds have made in your life
Ask God to show you who He says you are
Yield to His identity
Expect Him to walk with you on your journey
Rejoice that Jesus is your friend who will help you through your trials, temptations, and troubles and will share your sorrow

PRAYER: Jesus, thank you that you are my faithful best friend forever. What a privilege it is that I can carry everything to you in prayer. Your name is a strong tower where I can run and be safe (Proverbs 18:10) from shame when others “should” on me. Shield me from the shame triggers of appearance and body image, sexuality, family, marriage, motherhood, fatherhood, parenting, careers and professional identity, vocations and religious identities, mental and physical health, aging, religion, speaking out, and surviving trauma that attempt to draw me away from our friendship. Give me the wisdom to be able to recognize that shame needs to be acknowledged and understood before it can be overcome. Give me the desire to take it to you in P.R.A.Y.E.R. In the healing name of Jesus I pray, Amen.

PRAISE: Now that you have emptied your mind of the clutter and wandered with Jesus, take a closing moment to thank God for the friend you have in Jesus. Let the work of your wandering fill you with the love of Christ.

Then take the mindfulness of God’s presence cultivated in these last few minutes of wandering into the next ones and beyond.

Until next time, be Resonant.

The post Jesus Wont ” Should on Us” appeared first on Resonant 7.

Image attributions:

You can come to me in prayer: Pixaby image with added notations
BFF – Belovedwomen.org image with added notations
Shame Web – Brene Brown
P.R.A.Y.E.R. – Pixaby image with added notations

Wednesday Wanderings with Dr. Sherri is a time we set aside to wander in the Presence of Jesus and ponder His truths. When you are ready, prepare your mind, body, and soul to have a transformational encounter with Jesus.

Watch the Wednesday Wanderings Welcome for this week.

Now that we have cleared our minds of the clutter, we can wander on the journey of waiting.

PREPARATION: In our last Wandering, we examined the arrival of Jesus who is Emmanuel, God with Us. This week we will look forward to waiting for the second coming of Christ our Savior and Hope. When you are ready, you may begin the dialogue with Jesus and state: “Jesus, I invite you to help me to leisurely wander into your Presence. Prepare my heart to receive, and illuminate my spiritual senses to encounter you with hope and joy.”

PROMISE: Matthew 1:21
²¹ She will give birth to a Son, and you shall name Him Jesus (The Lord is salvation), for He will save His people from their sins.

The birth of Jesus is the eternal gift that keeps on giving. The birth of Christ, Emmanuel, was a gift to remind us that God is with us, Jesus will save us, and He will return for us. We can never exhaust unwrapping the blessings of Jesus’ birth, burial, and resurrection.

PSALM: Angels from the Realms of Glory by James Montgomery.

Saints before the altar bending,
Watching long in hope and fear,
Suddenly the Lord, descending,
In his temple shall appear.
Come and worship, come and worship
Worship Christ, the newborn King.

The Advent is about waiting. From Thanksgiving to Christmas day, we pause and prepare to celebrate the birth of Jesus. But Advent also reminds us to prayerfully await and prepare for the second coming of Christ. Waiting for Christmas is easier because we know the date and can count down the days. Waiting for Christ’s second coming is more challenging because we do not know the day or the hour that He will return. So, what are we to do while we wait? According to Montgomery, as we hopefully await the return of Jesus–just as shepherds, wise men, and sages before us–we are invited to come offer Jesus our gift of worship.

PARABLE: Waiting is not often associated with hope. Waiting can produce frustration. What do you think about when you think of the word WAIT? Whenever I think about waiting, I think about pregnancy. Maybe it is because my first pregnancy was premature and during my second pregnancy, I was on bed rest for seven and a half months. These experiences taught me the lessons of waiting.

Even in the best of circumstances, pregnancy produces a natural period of waiting. It could not have been easy waiting to give birth to the Son of the Most High. I wonder what the wait was like for Mary as she awaited the birth of a son who would be the light of the world? Did she think about what He would look like? Did she imagine cuddling God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit? Did she read the prophecy of His birth to Him while He was in her womb? Did she worry about how she would nurture His gifts and His purpose?

I believe Mary understood the value of waiting and gives us a template of what to do while we wait for Jesus to return. After being visited by the Angel Gabriel, she paused to seek clarification of God’s promise (Luke 1:28, Luke 1:34); she responded with a prayer of acceptance of God’s will and purpose (Luke 1:38); she prepared to trust and believe the promise given to her (Luke 1:45); and then she worshiped with hope and joy while she waited (Luke 1:46-47). We learn from Mary’s experience of the miraculous birth of Jesus that waiting teaches us to pause, pray, prepare and worship.

PONDER and WANDER:

CHRISTmas is an opportunity to ponder God’s promises, remember God’s presence, and to anticipate Christ’s return. As Saints of God, our wait has not ended with the unwrapping of the presents. The celebration continues as we wait with hope and expectancy that we still have the greatest gift coming (Titus 2:13) when Jesus will complete His saving work. When we apply the lessons of waiting, we can endure the wait of the return of our King with hope and joy. When our hearts are filled with hope and joy, we will worship.

Ponder the Questions: Do I wait for Christ to return as expectantly as I wait for Christmas Day? What am I doing while I wait?

Soul care training exercise: We don’t know when Jesus will return. For now, we can focus on preparing during the new year.

Take a few minutes to breath in and out. As you invite the Holy Spirit to illuminate your spiritual senses:

Pause and seek God’s promise of hope to fill you with joy and peace (Romans 15:13) as you wait expectantly for Him to return (Lamentations 3:24).

Pray and seek God’s Purpose (Proverbs 3:6) for your life in 2020.

Next, Prepare (Jeremiah 29:11) and seek God’s plan of how you will serve Him and others in 2020 as you wait for Jesus to return.

Finally, offer Christ the gift of your Worship.

Merry CHRISTmas, follower friends! May the hope of our God fill you with joy and peace throughout the year!

PRAYER: Thank you Jesus for being the greatest present ever given to the world! I am filled with hope and joy because you chose to be my Savior. Next week, I may forget the gifts under the tree, but I will remember you. I am so glad that every day you fulfill your promises within my life. Help me to be mindful, this year, of your eternal blessings. In the name of Jesus, Emmanuel, I pray. Amen.

PRAISE: Now that you have emptied your mind of the clutter and wandered with Jesus, take a closing moment to thank God for His Presence! Let the work of your wandering fill you with hope and anticipation that Jesus will return for us!

Then take the mindfulness of God’s presence cultivated in these last few minutes of wandering into the next ones and beyond.

Until next time, be Resonant.

The post While you wait, Worship appeared first on Resonant 7.

Image attributions:
Jesus the eternal gift: https://pixabay.com/photos/cross-symbol-gift-thrown-away-2168317/ with text
My gift to Jesus is Worship: Belovedwomen.org with text added
Instructions for waiting: https://pixabay.com/photos/background-banner-celebration-4654716/with text

Wednesday Wanderings with Dr. Sherri is a time we set aside to wander in the Presence of Jesus and ponder His truths. When you are ready, prepare your mind, body, and soul to have a transformational encounter with Jesus.

Watch the Wednesday Wanderings Welcome for this week.

Now that we have cleared our minds of the clutter, we can wander on the journey of exploring the Gift of Emmanuel.

PREPARATION: In our last Wandering we examined chosen and desperate needs. This week we will explore the meaning of Emmanuel. When you are ready, you may begin the dialogue with Jesus and state: “Jesus, I invite you to help me to leisurely wander into your Presence. Prepare my heart to receive and illuminate my spiritual senses to encounter you and feel you with me.”

PROMISE: Matthew 1:23 Amplified

²³ “Behold, the virgin shall be with child and give birth to a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel”—which, when translated, means, “God with us.”

From the extraordinary immaculate conception of Jesus to His resurrection, Jesus’ life fulfills God’s promises. In fact, His very name is a promise of God. The name of Emmanuel was given to Jesus as a reminder that God is always with us in happiness, heart aches, and hopelessness.

PSALM: Angels from the Realms of Glory by James Montgomery.

Shepherds, in the fields abiding,
Watching o’er your flocks by night
God with man is now residing
Yonder shines the infant Light

For James Montgomery writing was his God-given gift and poetry was a tool he used to remind himself and others of God’s presence. At the age of twelve when he lost both his parents, he used the tool of poetry to express and heal his grief. Though an orphan to the world, he knew he was a child of God and that God was with him. He was empowered through God to publish eleven volumes of controversial poetry and progressively publish over four hundred hymns. On Christmas Eve in 1816 Montgomery used his writing platform as editor of the paper to publicly proclaim the gift of the birth of Jesus through printing the Christmas carol Angels from the Realms of Glory in the Sheffield Iris Newspaper.

Even hundreds of years after this Advent hymn was first written, Montgomery’s poetry reminds us that from His birth, Jesus was and is the Light of the World that shines of the truth that He is our mediator, He is God and He is man, and He is our access to God. Montgomery’s lyrics still reminds us that Jesus is God’s sign to us that God is with us, God is in us, and God is for us!

PARABLE: Christmas carols are still a holiday tradition. Another tradition is gift giving. One of our family Christmas traditions when our children were young is that all but one gift had to fit in a Christmas Stocking. The stocking was to be filled with practical gifts that did not cost over $25. This was not popular as most of our children’s friends were getting the electronics on the “children’s most wanted list.” Not to mention that over time $25 did not buy as many small gifts. However, the ONE gift that did not fit in the stocking usually made up for the disappointment they may have experienced by not having an abundance of gifts under the tree.

Christmas is usually a time of joy and gift giving. However, when you are unable to give gifts, it can be disappointing and parents can feel helpless. One year when our youngest son was about seven years old and our daughter was almost a teenager, we had major car trouble which exhausted our funds and we were unable to buy the one big gift. Within our children’s Christmas stocking we placed a card with an “I Owe You” note that said they could redeem the coupon for money to purchase their own one big gift after Christmas. I felt disappointed, shamed, and helpless that we were unable to provide the one big gift to our children. The holiday passed, another pay date came, and as promised they redeemed their coupons for cash after Christmas. They were able to purchase more than what they would have received from us because of the after Christmas sales. The next year when we asked our son and daughter what they wanted for Christmas as their big gift, our son asked, “May we have an I owe you like you gave us last year?” My heart melted. The shame I felt from not providing them with a Christmas gift was unnecessary. It had not impacted our children. In fact, they saw the promise of the gift as a greater value than the gift. This life lesson was so important to us that it became our new tradition.Our children understood the present of a promise and eagerly claimed the unsettled debt.

The birth of Jesus has a great value to us! Because of His birth, we are entitled to God’s promises. In the hymn lyrics, Montgomery reminds us that Jesus, who settled our debt, IS THE PROMISE. Montgomery is illuminating to us that the birth of Jesus- whose name means God with us- presents us with the greatest gift we will EVER receive-GOD WITH US. As the shepherds, we are invited to celebrate that His Presence is a Present that does not stop giving nor does it expire.

In all of the holiday traditions and gift giving, how often do we GIVE a gift that tells of the greatest gift? Let’s start a new tradition.

PONDER and WANDER: During this season of giving, how can we give a gift that tells of the greatest gift? I wonder what would happen if we chose to give one gift this year that provides an opportunity to reflect on the gift of the birth of Jesus. What if we gave a gift that tells of the promise that Jesus-our Wonderful, Counselor, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace-is our reminder that God is with us.

Ponder the question: How can I shine attention on the promises of Jesus, the LIGHT of the World, this Christmas?

The Bible contains many promises that help us to recall that God is with us.

• There is no where we can go that He is not present (Psalm 139:7-12)
• He is always with us (Matthew 28:20)
• We cannot be separated from His love (Romans 8:38-39)

CHRISTmas is an opportunity to ponder God’s promises, remember God’s presence, and to emphasize that Emmanuel is the greatest gift given.

Soul care training exercise: Take a few minutes to breath in and out. As you invite the Holy Spirit to illuminate your spiritual senses:

Chose one of the above scriptures as your focus to become aware of God’s presence with us at all times.

Recall that you are in God’s presence.

Next, draw a Christmas stocking.

Then Ask the Holy Spirit to show you an image or give you the name of the object that represents the promise that God is with us.

Next Think about what you will give as a gift that will relay the sign that God is with us.

Now, decide who you will give it to.

Finally, consider making this a new tradition.

We can be instruments in helping others remember the CHRIST of CHRISTmas and that Jesus, the light of the world is the greatest gift we have ever been given.

PRAYER: Jesus, thank you for being the light of truth and making it accessible to all. Even in the midst of shopping, gift wrapping, opening and returning I can choose to adore you by sharing your promises. This year, help me to select gifts that intentionally guide others to the Present of your Presence. Brighten my light to shine on the CHRIST of Christmas. Light of the world, unwrap the presents of your promises of your presence, peace, and truth to shine in and through me. In the name of the Prince of Peace, who is the Christ of CHRISTmas I pray, amen.

PRAISE: Now that you have emptied your mind of the clutter and wandered with Jesus, take a closing moment to thank God for His Presence! Let the work of your wandering fill you with the assurance that God is with us, God is in us, and God is for us!

Then take the mindfulness of God’s presence cultivated in these last few minutes of wandering into the next ones and beyond.

Until next time, be Resonant.

PERSONAL BONUS: If you choose, take another five minutes to read about my experience with seeing a shepherd while in Rwanda.

Montgomery’s writes of Shepherds in the field abiding. While traveling in Rwanda our route was disrupted by a shepherd herding cattle. Cattle are of high importance in Rwanda. In Rwanda a cow is one of the greatest gifts you can receive because it represents wealth, nutrition, and sustainability. Before the genocide, when Rwanda was first settled, people who lived there raised cattle. Those who owned the most cattle were called “Tutsi” and everyone else was called “Hutu.” You could change your category by gaining more cattle. The genocide changed things and the labels of Tutsi and Hutu were used as a racial divide. Yet cattle remain a symbol of wealth and are valued and considered the best wealth a person can possess. A shepherd who is responsible for the safety and welfare of the cattle is assigned an important task because of the importance of a cow in Rwanda. Each cattle is unique yet each one represents the same promise of wealth, nutrition, and sustainability.

As Believers of Christ we may not be shepherds in the physical sense. However, we are responsible for the safety and welfare of sharing God’s promises with others. Jesus, His promise of salvation, and so many other promises are the best wealth a person can possess. Each promise is unique yet each one represents the same promise of spiritual abundance, spiritual nutrition, and spiritual well-being. How are you caring for His promises? Are you gathering them in your heart and sharing their wealth with others or are you herding and hording them for yourself?

The post God With Us appeared first on Resonant 7.

Image attributions:
Emmanuel: Google images
God with us: https://pixabay.com/photos/christmas-stocking-tree-xmas-1479700 with added text
Shepherd and cattle: Photograph by Mary Shortreed

Wednesday Wanderings with Dr. Sherri is a time we set aside to wander in the Presence of Jesus and ponder His truths. When you are ready, prepare your mind, body, and soul to have a transformational encounter with Jesus.

Watch the Wednesday Wanderings Welcome for this week.

Now that we have cleared our minds of the clutter, we can wander on the journey of exploring our need of God.

PREPARATION: In our last Wandering we asked the Holy Spirit to teach us the will of God and to fulfill His promises. This week we will explore a chosen and a desperate need. When you are ready, you may begin the dialogue with Jesus and state: “Jesus, I invite you to help me to leisurely wander into your Presence. Prepare my heart to receive and illuminate my spiritual senses to encounter you.”

PROMISE: Phillipians 4:19 Amplified

¹⁹ And my God will liberally supply (fill until full) your every need according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.

At times I tend to prioritize and compartmentalize my needs into chosen needs and desperate needs. I prioritize my longings and choose to trust myself to take care of my physical, social, emotional, financial, and mental needs. Until a crisis arises and I need extra money or I gain extra weight and cannot fit my clothing or stress takes over, THEN I admit that I need God to step in and fix what I thought I could do. When I’ve depleted my might, I examine which void I was attempting to meet, pray, and desperately trust God to meet my needs. No matter the initial focus, I always come back to the same result, I am spiritually deficient. This approach is redundant, reactive, and unnecessary. The truth is that God WILL supply- to capacity-ALL my (spiritual, mental, emotional, physical, social, and financial) needs if I seek and chose to rely upon Him FIRST.

PSALM: I Need Thee Every Hour written by Annie Sherwood Hawks.

I need Thee, O I need Thee;
Every hour I need Thee!
O bless me now, my Savior,
I come to Thee.

Annie Sherwood Hawks was a mother of three when she wrote the hymn I Need Thee Every Hour. Her heart song developed when in the midst of completing ordinary chores she felt overwhelmed by the Presence of God. The hymn includes the psalmist’s confession of her constant need for God in every day - in every way - in everything. The thought of an every day and every way need includes inviting God to direct us in ALL areas of our lives. Not prioritizing my spiritual needs keeps me spiritually depleted and from acknowledging that I need God everyday in every way. When was the last time you acknowledged that you need God everyday in every way?

PARABLE: The reality is that whether or not we choose to acknowledge that we need God does not negate the fact that we need God. A desperate need is when we find ourselves feeling as though we have no options and we turn to God to intervene immediately. A chosen need is when we do not wait for a desperate situation to trigger our acknowledgement of our need for God. I want to choose to come to God to fulfill the spiritual potholes within my soul BEFORE a life obstruction.

How do we develop the pro-active practice of choosing to need God in all areas of our lives?

• We come to understand that our needs can only be met through a relationship with Jesus Christ that will lead us to trust and depend on God (Proverbs 3:5).
• We prioritize and actively attend to our spiritual need for God by coming to God FIRST and trusting Him to meet everything else (Matthew 6:33).
• We surrender the illusion that anyone but God is meeting our needs (Phillipians 4:19).

What are our spiritual needs? Spiritual needs are God-given deep desires rooted in core longings that only God can meet. Core longings of the soul are love, safety, understanding, purpose, significance, and belonging. All of our needs: spiritual (love), mental (purpose), emotional (understanding), physical (safety), social (belonging), and financial (significance) are all established in our core longings.Our longings trigger us to go to God. Out of His love for us, God designed us to long for Him to meet our needs that only He can fulfill.God has given His promise and His oath of provision. This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls.

PONDER and WANDER: When we come to God to meet our spiritual need first, we are able to enjoy His blessings and provisions of love, safety, understanding, purpose, significance, and belonging. Providing for our needs is not something that God does, it is WHO HE IS: Jehovah Jireh, the trusted God who provides. We have to take time to discover the impact of core longings and our responses to them so that we can train our hearts and souls to ask God to meet them.

If you choose, Ponder these questions with Jesus and ask the Holy Spirit to help you notice the responses. Then, you can surrender these areas to Jesus and CHOOSE to need God!

• Soul care training exercise: We will spend our energy trying to meet the need of what we most desire. Ask the Holy Spirit to show you the longing you spend most of your time trying to meet. Is it safety, understanding, purpose, significance, belonging, or love?
• Once you figure out what you desire, think about what you do to meet that need. As it comes to your mind notice is the need ever truly met?
• Now, decide where you need to acknowledge and choose to need God.

Please know that soul training is not a one time experiential. If we want to choose to need God in every area of our life, we will have to continue to notice when the priority of our needs have shifted away from FIRST addressing our spiritual need for God. Making our spiritual needs a priority sets the direction of our heart to recognize what we need most is the love of God, it develops the habit of seeking God first, and trusting Him to meet every need and core longing.

PRAYER: God I choose to desperately need you every day in every way! I repent for acting as though it is me who meets my needs.When the core longings within me are activated, help me to come to you first and to resist the temptation to depend on what I think I can do or what I think I know. A songwriter once said, “like the desert needs the rain, I need you. Like the morning needs the sun, I need you. Like the ocean needs the rain, I need you. Every day in every way, LORD I need you.” I agree with these words. I am desperate for you because I choose to be. In the strong name of Jesus I pray, Amen.

PRAISE: Now that you have emptied your mind of the clutter and wandered with Jesus, take a closing moment to thank God for providing your every need! Let the work of your wandering fill you with the assurance that our God will supply your every need according to His riches in glory.

Then take the mindfulness of God’s presence cultivated in these last few minutes of wandering into the next ones and beyond.

Until next time, be Resonant.

PERSONAL BONUS: If you choose, take another five minutes to read about the teachable moment where God showed me what it looks like to choose to come to God to meet every need.

While serving at the Northwest Haiti Christian Mission (NWHCM) I participated in Meals on Heals ( similar to our Meals on Wheels Program). Several times a week families most at risk for starvation receive a few bowls of rice and beans to decrease their hunger. As the team serving walked within the community and distributed bowls of rice and beans out of an empty paint bucket, my perspective of prioritizing my needs changed. While the cement homes were filled with 10-15 people and they needed the donated rice and beans to meet their physical need to escape starvation, it was not their priority. Several of the families had joy. They greeted us with smiles of thanksgiving, shared their testimonies of answered prayer, and invited us to pray with them. In an impoverished country where several natural disasters destroyed the little they had, villagers longed for God’s presence and love. They chose to need God not out of desperation but out of living Proverbs 3:5 and relying totally on God to meet ALL their needs. Notice the ten children sitting outside of this one room cement house. Notice the bare feet in the picture. These same feet walk to worship service to praise God for sufficiently and abundantly meeting all of their needs. During my time in Haiti, I received much more than I gave. I found hope. I experienced true teachable lessons of what it looks like to make seeking God first a priority and trusting Him to meet ALL needs. I am hopeful that I too can practice this type of dependence. In the United States, God abundantly meets even our basic needs. I appreciate the provisions of food assistance and food banks, homeless shelters, public housing, and so many resources that God has provided for the United States. Even in desperation, He is meeting all our needs. I experienced true teachable lessons of what a chosen need looks like.

The post Chosen Need appeared first on Resonant 7.

Image attributions:
All my needs: Belovedwomen.org with added text
Choose to trust God to meet your needs: Pixabay with added text
Every day in every way: Belovedwomen.org with added text
I need you like the sun: Pixabay with added text