The Note-taker's Bible

If you've been following along here for a while, you know that I have several Bibles that I use for illustrated Bible journaling. Each one has unique characteristics. The Note-Taker's Bible that I used for demonstrating during classes at Personal Scrapbook the past few years was unique in that it had a wide bottom margin. The side margin and bottom margin were both 1 1/2 inches.

After using this Bible to demonstrate various journaling techniques during classes, I would bring the Bible home and complete those pages. I really enjoyed this process because I spent time reading the scriptures in order to add or complete the illustrations. Here's a look at some of those pages.

I was obviously demonstrating adding color using a sponge dauber and Gelatos as well as layering torn washi tape on this page.

Using watercolors to add color/background is a simple technique that I share often. Here I painted the side margin and later completed the page with hand-lettering and some Illustrated Faith Hexies. 

In fact, many of my pages begin with either Gelatos or watercolors.

In the pages below, you can see the various backgrounds as well as how a variety of letters stickers can be used in that wide bottom margin.

Acrylic paints are another medium that I use for backgrounds. I especially like the Dylusions paints and apply them with a Ranger round blending tool.

I also demonstrate stamping in the margins. Here I used the Creating in Faith Esther stamp as well as a border stamp for the top of the curtain.

I used a different border stamp along the side margin on this next page. I obviously could have done a little better job lining it up!

While I like having the large bottom margin in the Note-taker's Bible, I have to admit that the pages tend to curl and tear more than the ones in the other Bibles I've worked in. This version is an older hardcover edition, so I'm not sure if the paper is different in other versions of this Bible.

Sunday Musings - He Is With Me!

Then Moses called Joshua and said to him in the sight of all Israel, "Be strong and of good courage, for you must go with this people to the land which the Lord has sworn to their fathers to give them, and you shall cause them to inherit it. And the Lord, He is the One who goes before you. He will be with you He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed."

~Deuteronomy 31:7-8

Can you imagine being the one God chose to take the place of Moses and lead the Israelites into the Promised Land? After all, Moses had led the people out of Egypt, he had struck a rock and water spewed forth in the desert, he had to cover his face because it shown with the glory of God! Yet, God promised to be with Joshua just as He was with Moses.

After the death of Moses the servant of the Lord, it came to pass that the Lord spoke to Joshua the son of Nun ... "I will not leave you nor forsake you. ... Only be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go. ... Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go." 

~Joshua 1:1, 5, 7, 9

We know that the Lord is the same yesterday and today and forever (Hebrews 11:8). As He was with Joshua, He will be with us. We see this reminder in the letter to the Hebrews - for He has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you." (15:5)

We can claim this promise for ourselves and know that the Lord is with us wherever we go.

As we know from the rest of the story in the book of Joshua, God was with him as he lead the Israelites across the Jordan into the Promised Land. And, He will be with us wherever we go!

Five on Friday

A weekly feature here on my blog sharing five FRESH random photos (or thoughts or interesting tidbits) from the week.

1. Despite the fact that the Super Bowl is still a week away, it always seems like the season ends for me when the Dallas Cowboys play their last game. They did not have a great year: 9 wins, 7 losses. Of course, it was much better than our other team Robbie's team, the Cleveland Browns, who did not win a single game. Robbie ordered us these FUN t-shirts to commemorate the team's accomplishment.

2. I ordered some FRESH new bath towels, hand towels and wash cloths for our bathroom - all on one order with free shipping. I had to laugh when the order showed up in five boxes! Seriously! One of the boxes contained one single wash cloth; another box had two wash cloths. And the bubble envelope that came the next day completed the order with two hand towels.

3. Earlier this week, I drove out to visit Mama & Daddy & enjoyed working on a puzzle with them. I only snapped this one photo, but it's one of my favorite from the week.

4. I spent a good bit of this week giving our bedroom a deep cleaning, moving things around for a FRESH look, and decluttering our nightstands and dresser drawers. I ended up with a small bag of trash and a larger bag of items to donate, including 35 pairs of socks . . . although it seems I still have plenty to choose from. :)

5. He's almost home!! After 11 days away, Robbie will arrive home this afternoon. We had planned for me to travel with him to Paris and Monaco this month. However, after multiple changes to his itinerary and the discovery that the new company does not allow spouses to travel to the conference in Monaco, we reluctantly cancelled my flights. Robbie had a very full schedule every day, but he was able to capture a few photos of the harbor in Monaco after dinner one evening.

How was your week? Please share any interesting tidbits in the comments!

Hide His Word In My Heart

I don't have the books of the Old Testament memorized - there I've said it! I can easily list off the books of the New Testament (mostly because of a little song I was taught years ago), but somehow I never learned the books of (or a song for) the Old Testament.

Actually, I know them all in order until I get to the minor prophets. Those guys are always getting mixed up in my head!

A few years ago, when I began doing some journaling and illustrating in my Worship Journal, I used one of the pages to "test" myself. I wrote out the books of the Old Testament several times, marking the ones I had wrong and trying again. For almost two years, I had that page in my journal when I would flip through and show examples of other illustrations during my classes and workshops. When I came to that page, I would often comment, "someday I'm going to paint over this & do an illustration on this page."

Finally, I did just that. I took some acrylic paint and covered the page, then added letter stickers, punched hearts, and an arrow die-cut, plus some flowers from a napkin to complete the page.

You can still see my lists of the Old Testament books through the paint...and I think that goes perfectly with the scripture I've included from Psalm 119.

Do you have all the books of the Bible memorized?

Sunday Musings - The Lineage of Christ

I am always struck by the women mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus in Matthew chapter 1. Verses 1 through 17 list the generations from Abraham to Jesus, 42 generations in all, and only 5 women are mentioned.

Knowing that Jesus is the Messiah, we might expect these to be the most righteous and pure women. However, a closer look reminds us that God can use everyone to fulfill His purposes, regardless of their past.

Tamar was the daughter-in-law of Judah. She disguised herself as a prostitute in order to lure Judah to sleep with her so that she could bear a child in Judah's line.

Rahab was the prostitute who helped the Israelite spies escape from Jericho by lowering them out the window.

Ruth was a Moabitess who married an Israelite. After she was widowed, she followed her bitter mother-in-law back to Bethlehem. She gleaned barley in the field (gleanings were leftovers after a crop was harvested and were reserved for the poor and the foreigner).

Bathsheba was the wife of another man when King David summoned her to him. After King David had her husband, Uriah, killed in battle, she become one of his wives.

Each of these women had things in their past that we might tend to judge harshly. Even in the church today, we might feel that these women are not "good" enough to serve or lead. Yet, God, who looks at the heart, not only used these women to fulfill His promise of a Messiah, He also ensured they were remembered by having Matthew include them in the lineage of Jesus!

The fifth woman mentioned is Mary, the mother of Jesus. She stands in stark contrast to the others as she is a young girl, a virgin betrothed to Joseph. When the angel first appears to her, she is afraid, yet she submits to the will of the Lord and says, "I am a servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word."

Have you made poor choices in the past? Have you had bad things happen to you that make you feel unworthy? These things don't have to preclude you from serving the Lord or being used for His purposes! Go to Him with an open heart and be willing to submit to His will.

Five on Friday - How Traveling Makes It Real

A weekly feature here on my blog sharing five FRESH random photos (or thoughts or interesting tidbits) from the week.

This week I've been preparing for an interview with my new friend Zanny, owner of Zanur Travel and the Fearless Female Traveller Facebook Group. I'll be sharing about How Traveling Makes It Real based on the five points below.

1. Visiting a place makes it real!

No matter how many photos or documentaries I'd seen, nothing prepared me for the vastness and beauty of the Grand Canyon. I was completely awed at the sheer magnitude of this natural wonder. After spending a day hiking along the South Rim Trail, this place is much more real to me than it was when I'd only read about it or seen photos taken by someone else.

While we can learn a lot by reading and studying history, actually visiting historical sites helps us remember and understand even more about the past. Before we visited Gettysburg a few years ago, I read The Killer Angels, a well-researched fictionalized account of the Battle of Gettysburg, and we watched the Gettysburg movie. However, when I stood on the actual battlefield, it seemed so much more real and it was easier to comprehend how that battle became one of the bloodiest engagements of the Civil War.

2. Traveling increases the real enjoyment we get from reading or watching movies or TV shows. 

For example, after we visited New York in 2007, there were a slew of end-of-the-world movies set in New York City. It was so FUN to see the camera pan by places we'd just visited. And when Tony Stark sat down by the box of pizza Obadiah brought him from New York (in the Iron Man movie), we both recognized the box and our mouths watered wishing for a slice of Famous Ray's pizza.

3. Real experiences give us better understanding.

After visiting large cities like New York and London, I have a greater appreciation of the challenges and conveniences of public transportation. Before those trips, it was difficult for me to imagine not owning and driving my own vehicle wherever I lived. However, having mastered the intricacies of subway and bus and train schedules in several cities and countries, I now have a real understanding of how others live and get around in those areas. (Well, maybe saying that I "mastered" public transportation is taking it a bit far . . . since there was that time that I got on the right subway train in New York . . . but it was going in the wrong direction!)

4. Visiting other countries (and even other states!) gives us a FRESH perspective on different cultures.  

When I accompanied Robbie on a business trip several years ago, we visited a small  town in Italy and discovered that all the restaurants close after lunch and don't reopen until dinner time! This was quite an unfortunate predicament when we arrived at our hotel tired and hungry at 2:30 in the the afternoon. (Fortunately, the hotel chef whipped up a few sandwiches to tide us over and the manager had a complimentary fruit tray sent up to our room.) Earlier on that same trip, we spent a week in Moscow, Russia, where I entered a whole new world for me - one where English was not the predominant language. Luckily, our pastor here in Texas knew a pastor in Moscow and they arranged for one of the English-speaking Moscow church members to be our tour guide the day Robbie was not working.

5. Traveling develops real friendships!

In the digital always-connected world we live in, we often develop friendships with people we've never met in person. Over my eight years of blogging, I have come to know other bloggers from around the world. We read about each other's lives and leave comments and send emails and even exchange (often handmade) Christmas cards. But it's even more FUN when we finally get to meet in person. Over the years I've met up with Cheri (in Texas and Pennsylvania) and Karen (in New York) and Ginger (in Edmonton). And on our Europe trip a few months ago, I finally met four of my overseas blog friends (Ruth, Becky, Jacky & Missus Wookie) in person for lunch in London! We had a fabulous time - it was just like sitting down with old friends for a long overdue get-together.

I also got to meet-up with a group of ladies from The Sheerah Network Facebook group! A huge thank you goes out to Naomi Aidoo, coach & teacher for purpose-driven female Christian leaders & entrepreneurs, who specially coordinated this event with our travel schedule! (In fact, Zanny met up with Robbie and I earlier that day and we enjoyed lunch and several hours of sightseeing, which I'll share about in a future post.)

Yes, you see, traveling really does make it FRESH and real!

Three Wall Groupings

Do you have things hanging on your walls that you never really notice anymore? These may be things that you truly like or that have special meaning, but over time have simply begun to gather dust and go unnoticed.

As I began to clean out, organize, and give our office a FRESH look this week, I realized that it had been a while since I'd enjoyed or paid much attention to the items hanging in there. So, I took a long look at the things hanging on the walls . . . and the piles of thing that had been taken down from that room and others . . . and ended up creating three wall groupings that already give the room a FRESH feel.

Over the desk, I grouped items that have significance for the two of us.This group began with the clock (a gift from my sister years ago) and the shelf below holding items that are meaningful to us. I included our first (and only) professional portrait, a framed Marriage Blessing given to us by my parents as a wedding gift, a framed scripture given to us by my friend Rita when we moved into this home, a banner we received at the Marriage Encounter weekend we attended our first year of marriage, and a beautiful framed photo we received from friends who stayed with us for a week while they were in between homes many years ago.

The second grouping hangs over the file cabinets. Most of these items have been hanging here for years, but I tightened up the grouping (after giving everything a good dusting). My high school diploma and cum laude certificate and my two diplomas reside here with photos from each graduation, my tassels, Beta Gamma Sigma stole, and a handmade (by my sister Brenda) sign that reads, "The tassel is worth the hassle."

There's a short angled wall right inside the door that now holds a few items that are special to me. The gorgeous painting, the framed sky photo/scripture, and the plaque all represent my time volunteering, coordinating the annual fundraising banquet, and serving on the Board of Directors for the Christ For India missionary organization. The "No Greater Love" framed print was a gift from the ladies who allowed me to teach/lead my very first women's Bible study back in 2004. And the small cross piece was a gift from a student my last day of teaching at Stephen F. Austin State University. This grouping will probably be adjusted and/or added to as I'm sure there are a few more similar items in the boxes and piles that have accumulated in this room!

Joining in this week with Mary-Lou's Take Three Thursday - an effort to notice more of the ordinary in our lives. The idea is to take photos that are linked some how; by theme, by color, by date, by moment, by points of view. What have you noticed this week?

Bible Journaling Word Challenge

I've shared several times (most notably here and here) about the various places I find INSPIRATION for Bible journaling. Last year I joined in a few times with Marissa's Word A Day Challenge. (I shared my page based on the word image in a post here.)

I think this is a FUN way to test my Biblical knowledge and to study the scriptures. I enjoy finding scriptures that relate to the word for the day, then reading and illustrating those verses. Here's a look at three of my pages.

bloom - This word just begged for a flower (or lots of flowers), which perfectly illustrated Psalm 72:7.

revelation - I flipped through the book of Revelation and decided to trace the scroll from the Favorites One & Dones to illustrate Revelation 5:1-10.

Abraham - There are so many lessons we can learn from Abraham. I chose to create a reminder about his righteousness from Genesis 15:6.

What word would you use to challenge yourself (or someone else) to research and illustrate in the Word?

Slavery With a Twist

In my quest to read all the Fiction Pulitzer Prize winners, there have been several books about slavery. However, the two I recently completed each include a little twist that made it different from previous reads.

   

The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead is last year's winner of the Pulitzer Prize. The twist in this novel is that there's an actual railroad underground that takes runaway slaves to depots run by station masters that are individuals helping and hiding slaves on their way north to freedom. The story follows Cora, who runs away from a plantation in Georgia with her friend Caesar.  At one point, they stop in South Carolina, where they are given jobs and apartments. However, Cora learns that the hospital wants to sterilize all blacks, so she retreats underground and takes a train to the next station. The story captures some of the other atrocities  (beatings, killings, etc) of the slave trade at that time as well.There's also a slave catcher named Ridgeway who shows up several times in pursuit of escaped slaves. Fortunately, Cora eventually ends up on a farm in Indiana with other runaways. When the farm is overrun by those wanting to capture and return the slaves, she escapes and joins a group of wagons going west. This is a well-written, engaging, and fairly quick read.

The Known World by Edward P. Jones is the 2004 Pulitzer Prize winner. This story is set in the mid-1850s in a fictional county in the state of Virginia. The twist in this novel is that it is about a free black man, Henry Townsend, who owns slaves. The story begins on Henry's plantation, but there are many story lines that meander around throughout the book. There are references to events in the past and things that happen in the future. It was sometimes difficult to keep up with the numerous characters: August & Mildred Townsend (Henry's parents who worked to earn their own and Henry's freedom), Moses (the overseer on Henry's plantation), Fern (a free black lady who could pass herself off as white, but instead owns slaves and has a school for free black children), John Skiffington (the white sheriff who oversees the slave patrollers), William Robbins (the largest slave owner in the country), and many more! This book is very well-written, although as always it was tough to read about the treatment of slaves from their masters, in this case white and black masters.

Have you read either of these books? Please share your thoughts in the comments.

Sunday Musings - Bright Morning Star

In Revelation 22:16, Jesus says, "I have sent My angel to testify to you these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendent of David, the bright morning star."

I like to think about Jesus as the bright morning star, guiding me day by day, giving me FRESH insight as I dive into the Word in my quest to continually draw closer to Him and encourage others to serve Him in their everyday lives.

(I recently shared a step-by-step tutorial showing how I created this page with my newsletter subscribers. You can check out that tutorial HERE and/or sign up for my newsletter HERE.)

Five on Friday

A new weekly feature here on my blog sharing five FRESH random photos (or thoughts or interesting tidbits) from the week.

1. I'm excited to report that I have enjoyed a piece of FRESH fruit every day this year! Yes, I know that's only 12 days so far, but, honestly, it's probably more FRESH fruit than I had in all of last year. So, a great start to my goal of eating lots more FRESH food this year!

2. Today and tomorrow I'm teaching a FRESH Start Bible Journaling Class here at my home. Everything is all set, and I'm looking forward to diving into the Word and sharing about a FRESH start, new beginnings, setting goals, and walking in God's calling.

3. Early this week, I opened registration for my February Bible Journaling Class. Check out all the details HERE.

4. I have pulled a notebook and papers for my 2018 One Little Word album and am working through the January prompt in the One Little Word class. I'll be sharing more as I get the album setup.

5. Last weekend, we watched The Mountain Between Us on demand because we missed it when it was in theaters last year. The movie was OK - the storyline was great, but Kate Winslet and Idris Elba were not able to pull off the chemistry that was needed to make this a fantastic movie. However, Robbie discovered the movie is based on a book that is supposed to be really good. He ordered us a copy, so I'll let you know my thoughts on that in a future post.

Do you enjoy FRESH fruit daily? Are you taking (or teaching) any in-person classes of any type this year? Did you sign up for Ali Edward's One Little Word workshop? Have you see The Mountain Between Us? Or read the book?

Just What The Signs Say

Bible Journaling - Inserts & Tip-Ins

While I enjoying illustrating and coloring and painting and journaling FRESH insights and prayers in the Word, not everyone feels comfortable writing or drawing in their Bible. Yet, the idea of using their creativity while diving into the Word and drawing closer to the Lord appeals to them. One solution to this dilemma is to use inserts and tip-ins as a space to be creative within the Word.

I'm not sure if there are special or separate definitions for these items, but I classify them by where/how they are added in to the Bible. For me, an insert is the addition of a page (or partial page or tag or card) that is adhered in between two pages. My favorite insert is an old hymnal page. I illustrated the page below using stencils, colored pencils, gelatos and Micron pens, then inserted it with a strip of washi tape.

I recently added another hymnal page insert to my journaling Bible. Beside the story of Christ's birth, I added a hymn about Jesus and included some of the words to the song Mary Did You Know with letter stickers.

Vellum works well for creating insert pages as well. (I shared a vellum page insert previously in this post.) At the Illustrated Faith Retreat I attended earlier this year, one of the very talented ladies (Emily) in attendance was inspired by the cows and painted a wonderful canvas for Shanna Noel. She gave Shanna permission to share a digital copy of the painting with those of us at the retreat, so I printed it out on a sheet of vellum and added the retreat scripture and a short prayer using Micron pens.

I consider a tip-in something that is added to the edge of a Bible page. During that same retreat, several of the ladies gifted each participant with a handmade tag. I've added some of these to my Bible. This lovely washi tape tag created by my new friend Karen is adhered to the top of the Bible page above the Psalm 27 scripture that was the focus of the retreat.

My new friend Tiffani created this next tag - isn't it just so FUN!

After coloring in the stamped image, I adhered this tag near the edge of a Bible page using washi tape.

Here's a look at the back of the tag, when it's tipped-out. I painted over the back to match the gold paperclip and provide a place for my prayer and the words to one of the hymns we sang that weekend. (Tiffani was the worship leader!)

I used 3x4 Project Life cards to create simple tip-ins for each of the ladies. I adhered mine to the edge of the page.

I didn't add anything to the back of this colorful card.

I've had several participants in my Bible journaling classes who are much more comfortable using inserts and tip-ins than writing or drawing in the Word. And I'm thrilled that there are so many options for using our creativity in the Word, because it's not about the art - it's about spending time with the Lord in the Word, learning and studying and drawing closer to Him! There's not a right or a wrong way in this meaningful hobby, so we can each find a way that we are comfortable illustrating and journaling in our Bibles.

#AdventSelfieADay

Last month, Becky and her daughter, Penny, put out an #AdventSelfieADay challenge for December 1 through the 24. I joined in and shared my selfies on Facebook each day for the first 20 days.

I really enjoyed the challenge of taking a photo each day and the FUN of adapting the prompt when necessary. For example, the December 10 prompt was "Christmas Baking." Since Robbie and I were traveling that day, there wasn't any baking going on around here. So, I snapped a photo of my hand holding a cookie that I was fixin' to enjoy as we drove down the road!

I edited all of my photos in Photoshop so I could crop them square and use a FUN double frame. This week I created my first layout of the year - a simple digital layout that perfectly showcases those photos.

Journaling reads: I didn't quite make it all 24 days, but I thoroughly enjoyed participating in Becky & Penny's AdventSelfieADay challenge. These photos definitely provide a FUN snapshot of our ACTIVE December.

Did you join in with the #AdventSelfieADay challenge?