Tuesday, June 28, 2022

Bible Journaling, My May Pages: 1 Thessalonians through Hebrews 4

Once a month I like to share my Bible Journaling Pages and what God has been teaching me.  In the month of May I journaled from the book of 1 Thessalonians through Hebrews 4.     Sometimes I just color in the preprinted images of the "Inspire Bible" (available on Amazon) and I also create my own pages.
 
Unless otherwise stated, all the images are colored in with either gel pens or colored pencils.  I tend to color larger areas with pencils then get the more intricate spots with pens.  I high light my Bible with gel highlighters, and I usually use gelatos or  craft paint for my backgrounds.

Just like last month, I have so many Bible Journaling pages, and they are all pre-printed images except two pages.  The Inspire Bible seems to have a lot of pre-printed images in the New Testament and not so much in the Old Testament, which doesn't leave me enough space to create my own pages.  But that's ok right now, as it is spring and like most gardeners I'm extremely busy in the garden, which leaves me very little time to create my own pages.

So like last month, because I have so many pages, I'm going to keep my thoughts about them brief and let the scripture speak for itself.

I began the month of May with the book of 1 Thessalonians.  This is the title page. This verse is good advice, but hard to follow in reality.  I've been learning to practice "joyfulness" lately.  Every time I go grocery shopping and there is an item out-of-stock I thank the Lord that I still have plenty of food to eat, even if I can't always eat what I want nowadays with all the supply shortages.  Now, filling my tank with gas...that's another story.  Let's just say I'm still working on that one! 😀


Oh, another hard one.  Especially in this day and age where there is so much division about everything.  "Help me love Lord, help me to love."


Here is my one page I created myself.  The image is a free Digital image from "Faith Heirlooms" called "Prayer Girls".  I printed it onto sticker paper, then cut a strip the size of the margin in my Bible and adhered it to the page.  I hand wrote the verse above the image.  

I chose this verse because I just feel it's so important to the Christian life.  I think a lot of Christians think they can live as they please because they are forgiven.  I believe we are to live to please God.


This is a beautiful page that was a joy to color.  God is faithful.  He will help us to live lives that are pleasing to Him.


The title page of 2 Thessalonians.  The verse chosen by the Inspire Bible was the final greeting of Paul to the church in Thessalonica.  He also began his letter with this same greeting.  Having the Thessalonian people understand and grasp the meaning of grace and peace must have been very important to Paul.


This is such a beautiful verse.  Have you ever been in a terrifying situation and felt complete and utter peace?  I have.  I remember one night I was driving home in a winter storm and I lost control of my car.  I felt the car swerve and go off the road, then down a snowy embankment until it came to a crashing halt.  I was never afraid, and after the initial slide I just felt complete peace.  I honestly thought:   "This is it.  This is how it ends for me",  but I was never afraid.  I will never forget the peace I had at that moment for the rest of my life.  



The title page of 1 Timothy.  The one thing I like about the New Testament is that most of the books are a lot shorter than the Old Testament 😀.   It makes me feel like I'm making a lot more reading progress!

1 Timothy 1:17 is the perfect verse to read aloud in praise to Him.  He does deserve all honor and glory.  He is the King who lives forever.  He alone is God!


Did you know we are to be examples to all believers?  Nothing disappoints a believer more than when another believer behaves in a way not in line with the scriptures.  It's so discouraging to other believers.  I know I have been deeply discouraged by other Christians behavior throughout my life.  We are not perfect because we are Christians.  We are sinners.  But we must always remember we are being watched by other believers and we don't want to do anything that would cause another believer to stumble.  However, we are not to be fake or hide our sin.  We should confess our sins to each other and ask for prayer;  that is "being an example".    If we show humility and confess a sin and ask for prayer, it will encourage other's to do that as well.  

Do you ever feel the Christian life is a constant fight?  I certainly do.  It's hard.  It's hard to stand up for truth and righteousness when the world has the completely opposite ideas of what is truth and what is righteous.  Paul warned Timothy to "run from evil things" to "pursue righteousness and a Godly life, along with faith, love, perseverance and gentleness".  That is the "true faith".



This is the title page of 2 Timothy.  Every time I hear this verse it brings back memories for me.  Many years ago I was a drama director for children's productions.  The biggest challenge as a drama director for kids is getting them to overcome their fear of performing.  I chose this verse as our memory verse for the cast, and before every single rehearsal we would shout this verse!  Let me tell you, this verse worked for those kiddos!  They put on an amazing production.


You often hear Bible skeptics say the Bible was written by men.  Christians believe that the Bible is inspired by God, and that He merely used godly men to write His words.  I've read the Bible from cover to cover multiple times in my life, and I can honestly tell you no man could have ever penned such a perfect, beautiful, book full of wisdom.  I've read thousands of books in my lifetime, and not one even comes close to the wisdom in the Bible that has stood the test of time for generations.


This is a pretty image that is at the end of the book of 2 Timothy.  I added a sticker sentiment  to it, to give it more meaning.


The title page of the book of Titus.  God saves us if we confess our sins and ask Him to be Lord over our lives.  There is nothing we can do to earn our salvation.  He saves us from our sins because He is merciful.



I thought this was a fun page to color.  These are my favorite style of images for coloring.  I chose pretty, fun colors to illustrate it.  

"Be obedient".  Oh, that's so hard, obedience doesn't come easy for me.  I've always been more of a leader, not a follower.  I'm not inclined to do anything just because someone tells me too.  In some ways, that's a good thing as I'm not easily fooled and I never blindly follow the crowd like most people do.  But I will hold everything up to God's Word, and if I find it aligns with the scripture, I will obey.



Isn't this a pretty image?  I find it interesting that Timothy ended his letter like his  mentor Paul did.


What a tiny little book Philemon is!  It's only one chapter.  How sweet it must have been for Philemon to hear that Paul always thanked God when he prayed for him.


The title page of Hebrews.  Since this is the most famous verse in the book of Hebrews it is only fitting that it was chosen for the title page.  Hebrews 11:1 is the very definition of faith and every believer should have this verse memorized.  It helps when unbelievers ask what faith is and how they could possibly have faith in an unseen God.


This is probably the simplest page I have ever done myself.  The verse just really struck a chord with me, so I wanted to do a page on it.  However, it is such a long verse, it didn't leave me much room for illustrations, so I just put a sticker cross on the bottom and inked the edges.

But I love this verse.  Jesus is relatable.  God came down to earth in human form and has had many of the same trials and hardships most humans have had and many more!  He can relate to us and we can relate to Him because He experienced what it was like to be fully human (yet fully God at the same time).  Because He went through so much when He walked the earth,  He can help us through our trials.  He has the experience!


Oh,  I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this verse!  Have you ever read a verse and just felt convicted by it?  That's because the Word of God is Alive!  Have you ever been in a debate with someone and used scripture to make your point and you left the other person speechless?  That's because the Word of God is Sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword.  It convicts people.  It is the truth that no one can argue against.  



I hope you enjoyed reading my Bible Journaling pages this month, and I hope I've encouraged you to read your Bible too!

Have A Great Day!  Amy

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18 comments:

  1. This is so beautiful. I like your Bible journalig pages.

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  2. I love that your Bible is so alive, so colorful so special. Have a wonderful day dear

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  3. It is wonderful that you keep up with your Bible journaling pages. I am sure not only is it therapeutic but it also a good reminder with God's word. The Thessalonians verse is one of my favorite! I hope you are having a great week so far and happy Thursday!

    Maureen | www.littlemisscasual.com

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    1. Bible Journaling is very therapeutic. Have a Happy 4th of July!

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  4. Great pages Amy, such inspirational quotes to live by! And what a great quote for the kids to recite before a performance!

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  5. Very inspirational, Amy! I agree, it make a difference to live to please God. That's a blessing that there are so many lettered pages in the NT, and it frees you up for being in your garden.

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    1. Thank you! Yes, in the summer I don't have as much time to Bible Journal so the pre-printed pages help.

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  6. Amy, your Bible journaling is so beautiful. And I love your insights and encouragement within this message. Blessings.
    Visiting today from FF#7&22

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    1. Thank you so much! I'm glad this post could be an encouragement to someone.

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  7. My friend, your Bible journaling is such an inspiration. Your post featured some verses I am not familiar with. Will look them up in my Bible tomorrow for quiet time. What tremendous faith you exhibited after that terrifying wreck. Having peace when there was a possibility of no tomorrow. On my darkest days, I sometimes feel a sense of peace knowing that all the craziness will be over when we leave this world for heaven.

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    1. Thank you. With all the craziness in this world today, all I think about and long for these days is going to heaven and being with Jesus.

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