Journaling the Bible

Bible Art Journaling...a lovely past-time that combines spending time in The Word with pleasurable art activities! 

Here are some pages I have journaled during the past few months.

In my original Crossway Bible with two-inch lined margins on each page (ESV Single Column Journaling Bible (Black).
:

Matthew 25:14-30-The Parable of Talents

John 21:18  My reaction to being immobile due to ankle surgery

Habakkuk 3:19 God, the Lord, is my strength; he makes my feet  like the deer's; he makes me tread on my high places.

The page with the deer was inspired by the visitors outside my window during a recent snow event. The verse just happened to be referenced in my daily devotional Jesus Calling on January 18.

Since I have filled so many pages in my first Crossway journal, I purchased another one.  This time I bought the hard-cover interleaved version.( ESV Journaling Bible, Interleaved Edition, Cloth over Board, Tan)  There is a blank page next to every page of Scripture.  This allows for a full-page illustration without covering up any of the Scripture.  It is much heavier, but I enjoy the space provided for artwork.

Psalm 8-How Majestic is Your Name

My artwork on this page was inspired by a video lesson by Gina Lee Kim on Interweave.com (The Versatility of Blue).  It is done in watercolor with the addition of white acrylic paint.

Exodus 38:18

I also illustrated this page while the ground was covered with snow, and I was desperate to work with some bright colors!

Ezekiel 36:9  You shall be tilled and sown.

These pages were colored with Derwent Inktense pencils and softened with a water brush.  I find this is the easiest method to use outside of my studio, especially while confined to the couch.  The image is my version of VanGogh's Landscape with House and Ploughman.  I enjoy trying my hand and learning from paintings by the masters of art.  Coincidentally, Charlie brought home the handout from church that Sunday, and the theme of the sermon was "The Sower."

 I started Bible Art Journaling in February, 2016, when my husband was finishing up seven months of radiation treatment in Sarasota, Florida.  It was a stressful time.  I had been art journaling for about six years when I discovered by browsing Pinterest that people were journaling directly in their Bibles .  This immediately caught my attention, because I was using Scripture in some of my journaling already. 

I googled "Bible Art Journaling" and discovered the website of Rebekah R. Jones from Great Britain.  She has offered several free online workshops for Bible Journaling, with suggested verses, devotionals, and YouTube videos with art lessons to complete each page.  I began with the Original Bible Art Journaling Challenge, which was a weekly challenge in 2015.  All the archives are online on her page.  I tried to do these in order, and it was amazing how frequently the lessons featured scripture that was exactly what I needed to get me through that day.

A perfect example is this page, which followed the prompt for the day we met with Charlie's doctor at the end of his radiation treatment.  He was pronounced in remission that day.  I had done this page with colored pencils in the car on our 90-mile daily commute to the cancer center.

Jeremiah 29:11  For I know the plans I have for you, to give you a future and a hope.

Following the OBAJC, the next year Rebekah offered the series Heaven is Calling, a monthly challenge, and in 2017 Deeper Still.  That one is still ongoing since life interfered with her offering the monthly videos.  You can view the tutorials directly from You Tube (Rebekah R. Jones).

If you are interested in Bible Art Journaling, Rebekah's online challenges are a great place to begin. I really did not know that much about the Old Testament, but have learned so much from completing the lessons and doing further reading.  I have almost never followed her lessons on artwork, preferring to choose my own illustrations, but she has helped many new artists confidently produce beautiful Bible pages.

There is a wide array of journaling Bibles available from Amazon, Lifeway, or other book sellers.  Rebekkah offers advice on which one to choose on her website.  You can also journal on any Bible if you don't mind covering some of the text with your artwork.  Some people prefer to do Bible journaling in a conventional journal.

Now I often journal in response to the readings from Sunday church service or the Jesus Calling devotional.  Sometimes I search for a verse that might support my need for that day or just something that I feel like painting or drawing.

Good luck if you decide to try Bible Art Journaling.  Feel free to ask any questions via the comments.

Bible Art Journaling

Recently I have gone in a new direction with my art journaling.  I discovered that many people are journaling directly into their Bibles, either illustrating certain passages or writing journaling notes in the margins.  This project really helped me when we were in Florida for my husband's cancer treatment.  I could get a page done on the way to Sarasota while hubby drove.  (I always drove him home.)

I bought the ESV Double Column Journaling Bible at the Lifeway Christian book store.  There is whole section of these Bibles with wide margins that have light lines for writing.  Now that I have more experience, I wish I had purchased the ESV-Interleaved Bible which has an entire blank page on the right side of each Bible page.  Then I would not be covering up the text so much with my art.

In 2015 Rebekah R. Jones began a weekly Bible Art Journaling Challenge with a You Tube video lesson for each week.  She offers insight and ministry into the selected passage, as well as journaling advice on techniques and materials.  The challenges are still available in the archives of the website.  If you choose, you can publish your journaled pages on Facebook.

I decided to do the pages in order of the challenge.  It was amazing how each one seemed to be just what I needed for that day in my life.

Here are some of the pages I have done.

                                   

 I used watercolors on the more vibrant colored ones.  Prepping the thin Bible page with clear gesso is key to prevent wrinkles and bleed-through.  I did a few pages before we left home, but the ones I did in Florida were not prepped before-hand.  I used watercolor pencils, watercolor markers, and ink pens, mostly while riding in the car.

This is the one that I illustrated on the way to Sarasota on the day we found out that Charlie was in remission.  Our hope was well founded.

I hope that you like these and perhaps might try something similar if you are so inclined.  I will share the ones that I have done since coming back home in a future post.