Bible Journaling

Have you seen this yet? It's art and your bible mushed altogether!

I used to have a sunday school teacher who CRINGED at the thought of writing in a bible. When I got to college and the bible teacher told us to make all over the place I was so nervous. But that class really opened my eyes to what a fun story it can tell. Having help various ministry positions, and being active in church since I was a kid, I've inherited a lot of different bibles. Not one of them is the same translation another, which I especially cherish.

So, in deciding to try this illustrated faith idea I realized that buying another bible was not the first option. Perhaps, down the road, but for trying something new, let's see what I've got! As I flipped through each one i discovered treasured notes, some written into the bible and others on slips of paper, receipts, napkins etc. and tucked inside. Almost every single note sparked a memory. One of the bible still had the receipt from when I purchased it in 2003 at our local christian bookstore (sadly gone for year now). I remember going in there and choosing that exact bible for it's size and translation: New King James Version. Why that one? Not really sure except that I didn't have it yet and it maybe was recommended to me by the youth director I was interning under. I dragged this bible all of the place on many adventures. It traveled with me to France and through Germany to Switzerland. It has notes from the small group of 7th graders I led and from Sunday morning worship services I planned.

Each of my bibles has a special story as well but this one seemed perfect for this project. It was already laden with notes and underlines and I loved the idea of adding layer upon layer of notes and images. It made me think of a wall that's been painted and repainted many times. Each layer add character and texture and are a part of the story even when hidden beneath new layers.

The bible is about 4"x6" and I used colored pencils with a regular ball point pen to draw. I mostly used scripture sunday verses to draw or my scripture cards from naptimediaries.com for inspiration. Reading through the verses and context gives me the ideas and sometimes it's just a matter of highlighting the part of the verse that stands out to me. I'm enjoying the process and seeing where it takes me! Check out #illustratedfaith to see other people's art. There are amazing artists sharing their work!