Coloring Through the Book of Psalms, Part II

In last Tuesday's craft post, I introduced you to a new devotional coloring book I was working on called "Bless the Lord, O My Soul".  I have a few more pages to show you, and then I think I will take a break from this book.  I've spent the summer in the book of Psalms, and I feel the need to move into something else.  I will also have more time now that gardening season is over, so I can spend it on a more meatier book.  I will probably return to this devotional in spring, when gardening season starts again.

Each coloring page also has a corresponding reading page on the opposite side.  If you missed last week's post and would like to see that page and learn more in-depth information of this book, just click the link above.  For this post, I'm just showing you the coloring pages.

Some pages I enjoy coloring more than others and this was one of them.  I have always loved this verse and this is a beautiful illustration of that verse.

This next page is the type of coloring I generally don't like to do.  It's not that interesting to color and it really isn't a pleasant scene.  But the repetition of the coloring really helps me to focus on the verse.  

Here's another one I really enjoyed coloring.  The sheep is so cute and of course I love the verse.  This verse is always a popular one.

This is such a beautiful verse and page.  We need to constantly seek the Lord to guide us and to lead us to His truth.  There is so much deception in the world today, only God can help us discern what is true.

What a beautiful illustration and verse!  It is so inspiring and comforting.  No matter what our circumstance, believers can always take comfort that if they keep their focus on God, He will once again bring us to joy.

I definitely did not enjoy coloring this page 😆.  The design is really not my style. But once again, I just focused and mediated on the verse while coloring.  I will say the illustrations I least enjoy coloring are usually the easiest to mediate on.  Yes, we who put our faith in Jesus are BLESSED indeed!

This one I really enjoyed coloring.  What a gorgeous and creative illustration.  Oh, and the verse! So good! But I think I could say that about just any verse in the book of Psalms.  It is one of my favorite books in the Bible!

Another gorgeous verse and illustration that was a joy to color.  I love this verse set as a song too.  Do you sing this song in your church? 

When troubles strike believers, it drives us to God who is our strong helper.

I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED coloring this page.  Isn't this a beautiful illustration of probably the most famous psalm ever?  This is another old song that I used to love singing in church.  They don't sing it anymore, but I always remember this song giving me comfort.  I still sing it to myself at home sometimes.

What about you?  Do you remember this song? 

This next illustration and verse is so beautiful and meaningful.  "Be Still". When worry starts to fill my heart, I hear these soft words "Be Still, and know that I am God".  He has it all under control, just surrender it all to Him.

Now normally I would not enjoy coloring an abstract design such as this one, but I think because it is formed in a sun's rays, I kinda liked this one.  I think it's a great illustration for this verse too.

I hope my colorful Bible verse pages brought a smile to your face today.  

Have A Great Day!  Amy

Linking Up with these Fabulous Blogs HERE!

 

"When the Kingdom Comes: From Global Chaos to Eden" by Harry M. Phillips

As a blogger for many years my inbox in constantly filled with requests from various companies and people to review and advertise products.  I spend a good part of every morning, just deleting those inquiries.  At this point in my life, my blog is just a hobby.  It is a space to share my life,  to meet other people with common interests,  and to preserve my memories.  However, every once in a while an email request comes through that really intrigues me.  What was really surprising was that this email was about a book review.  Now, even though I graduated from college with an English Literature degree, I will have to admit that other than my Bible, I don't read books anymore.  I think I got burned out on reading books in college and I also read so much for blogging, that I have no desire to pick up a book.  So no one was more surprised than me that out of all the email requests I get for my blog, the one I actually would respond to would be for a book.  But I did!

So the question is, why did I respond to this email to review this book?  I have to say, the title really intrigued me, especially the subtitle.  The past eighteen months has changed everyone's life all around the world.  No matter who you are, where you live, what your income is, the pandemic has affected your life.  We all have different feelings about the pandemic and the world's governments handling of the disease.  I have never looked at this pandemic as a virus that I was afraid to get.  But I have looked at this virus as something that governments were using for control.  The virus has never scared me, but government over reach and loss of civil liberties has terrified me.  It drove me to my Bible, to dig deeper into God's word, to study prophecy, and to pray for discernment.  I became more and more interested in what would happen in the "End Times".  I wanted to be educated and prayed up so that I would not be deceived.  So when this book came along, I desired to actually read it!

 "When the Kingdom Comes" is about that 1000 year period after the rapture and Armageddon, when Jesus  returns with His bride to rule and reign on earth.  It describes what the world will be like after seven years of tribulation and how Jesus and Christians will come and take the world from absolute chaos and restore it back to what it was always meant to be when God first created it.  

As a believer, watching world events the past eighteen months has been terrifying yet exciting at the same time.  I feel we are living in the "End of the Age" and the rapture is so close.  The thought that Jesus could come back for us at any moment is so exhilarating and comforting, yet, I wonder how much persecution we will have to go through before He returns.  Reading this book, and hearing about the amazing, wonderful life we will all have once Jesus comes back and rules and reigns, gives me the courage to embrace the days before He returns.

Here are five ideas presented in the book that really excited and comforted me:

1.  Our old bodies will be replaced with new bodies that will be supernatural in nature.  We will have supernatural abilities. We will be able "to pass through time and space to travel from heaven back to the earth."  We will have abilities that "will make it possible for us to carry out our duties and tasks during the millennial kingdom."  We will never know sickness, disease, or pain again.  We won't suffer from old age, but we will feel young and energetic again!  As a 50-something woman, that really excited me!  

2.  With these new bodies we will assist Jesus and begin doing work.  During the Tribulation, Mr. Phillips states that "sick and dying believers will have been waiting for the return of Jesus.  Now that He will have arrived, it will be our task to find and rescue these believers from further suffering".  Wow!  We're gonna be heroes!  We are going to be the rescue team for other believers in Christ.  I LOVE that!  

3.  At the end of the Tribulation, the ungodly is removed from the earth and the entire world mercantile system collapses.  The new millennial kingdom will not be an extension of our current world.  "Jesus is not coming back to fix our world, but USHER IN A WHOLE NEW ONE"!  All the problems of this world will be gone!  No more injustice, no more poverty, no more starvation, and most importantly, no more government corruption, because "Jesus will have full responsibility and authority for His Kingdom".  

4.  The millennial kingdom will be a place "where teaching will permeate all of society".  The Word of God will be taught everywhere!  " It will be marked as a time of great teaching and interest in Scripture, and it will be the topic of every conversation people will have.  It will be discussed in every town, village, and city, and it will become the VERY ESSENCE OF LIFE for the people of the Kingdom of God.".  I don't know about you, but I love to talk about God and His Word.  I can't even imagine a world where everyone else wants to talk about it too! 

5.  Nature itself will bring forth abundance for the kingdom people.  Wow! As a gardener who struggles daily with weeds, pestilence, disease, and the weather, I can't even imagine the joy of a garden without any of these problems.  But the earth will be once again as it was in the Garden of Eden.  There will be a "total change in the planet and its ability to grow vegetation".  People will NEVER lack for food again.  Hallelujah !

There is so much more in this book about the millennial kingdom, but I don't want to give it all away.  I just wanted to share five things about the kingdom that really excited me.  This book really helped me get past my fear of the uncertainty of the times we are living in and to LOOK FORWARD to what lies ahead for me.  I recently heard one of my favorite pastors, Jon Courson, say "For the believer, this is the worst it will ever get.  For the unbeliever, this is the best it will ever be.".  Wow.  Let that sink in.  

This book really encouraged me and gave me peace to help me navigate life during these uncertain times.  If you are like me and struggling as well, I hope that you will read it and let it encourage you too!    We have such a great future awaiting us!  The Best Is Yet To Come!

You can purchase this book from these sources:

Westbow Press

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

I received the book for free in exchange for my review.  All my opinions are my own.

Have A Great Day!  Amy

Linking Up with these Fabulous Blogs HERE!

Thanksgiving Faith Index Cards

Bible Journaling has opened up the door to many other ways to grow closer to God and studying His Word.  Many Christians do not like to color in their Bibles so they have a separate book called "Bible Journals" that they create in artistic form what God is teaching them.  Other's do what is called "Faith Index Cards".  These are small index cards with art and Bible verses on them.  Last year I participated in a Thanksgiving Challenge.  Every day for the month of November, right up to Thanksgiving Day, we picked a verse out of the Bible that had to do with "Thanksgiving" and created a Faith Index Card out of it.  Then on Thanksgiving my family and I each picked a card, read the verse, and discussed what that verse meant to us.  It went over so well, everyone told me to save the cards so we could do it again next year.

To make an index card I used a template downloaded from the Internet then hand cut the tab and little openings out.  After that, I just decorated the card with fall images.

I'm not going to show you all 28 cards, but I will show some of my favs.  This first one I actually created an actual gate using a stamped image.  The gate swings open to see the rest of the verse.

For my Faith Index Cards, I used a mix of stamps, and digital images.

If the verse was too long to write on the front of the card, I would write the full verse on the back.

I mostly used my own handwriting to write the verses, but sometimes I used stamps to emphasize a word like the word "Thank" below.

 

I hope I've inspired you to find a way to bring a little "thankfulness" into your Thanksgiving.  Right now I'm praying I'll be able to see my family at all since Covid seems to really be rearing it's ugly head in our community.  

Have A Great Day!  Amy

Linking Up with these Fabulous Blogs HERE!

July Bible Journaling Pages

Last month I started reading the book of Psalms.  It's a very long book, so one month later, I am still reading the book of Psalms.  But I'm loving every minute of it and soaking it all in!  Being in the book of Psalms at this time in history has been extraordinary eye opening for me and comforting.  I can so relate to so many of the experiences of the psalmists.  

One theme I am constantly seeing in the book of Psalms is how David looked to God as a refuge, and as a place of safety from his enemies.  As I've watched our society break down the past few months, I too have had to learn to trust God to keep me and my family safe.  I live in the country so I don't have too much to worry about until I travel, but both of my children live in suburbs of large cities so I worry about their safety a lot.  God has been teaching me to trust in Him to protect me and my family from all the civil unrest I continually keep seeing on the news.

This is a pre-printed page that I colored in using Prismacolor Pencils for the large areas and gel pens for the smaller spots.

Here  is a page I created myself.  I colored the background with craft paint then used stamps for all the images.  I wrote the verse with my own handwriting.  I have tried so hard to duplicate the beautiful calligraphies I see in most Bible Journaling pages on the Internet, but I am just not very good at it.  My daughter even purchased a book for me, but unfortunately it didn't help me.  I finally determined not to worry about it and just write in my Bible with my very own handwriting, because that's what makes it me!  Everyone's handwriting is unique, so whey should copy some fancy calligraphy when I can use my own?

I used a yellow pencil to color in the letters of this pre-printed image then I colored everything else with gel pens.

One of my favorite verses, and favorite songs to sing!   This is all done with gel pens.

I decided to make this pre-printed image as joyful as the word "joy" itself by coloring it with bright, happy colors.

Since Covid19 has affected mine and everyone else's life so much this year, I wanted to do one page in my Bible to document it.  Now, I've never really had any fear of getting the disease (Frankly, I'm one of "those people" who questions if this really is a dangerous disease or if were all being played.  But that's a topic for another day!). If I had any fear at all, it is for my husband who tends to be very susceptible to respiratory illnesses and also I fear all the repercussions the lockdowns have done to our economy and our civil liberties,  but when I read Psalm 91 it hit me like a ton of bricks:  it sounded like exactly the times we are living in.  So I claimed Psalm 91 for my home and family and committed the first verse to memory "Those who live in the shelter of the most high will find rest in the shadow of the almighty".  The important parts to pay notice in this chapter are the words "IF" which is used twice, and "Those Who LIVE in the shelter".  If we live a life in communion with God, we can have security of mind at all times.  We can live without the fear that torments our sleep,  because God is our shelter, our refuge, our protector.

Many of the psalms have the similar theme of God as a fortress, a shelter, a protector.  When I did this page, I once again thought of all the 2020 riots and rioters.  As I write this post, I am thinking of the most recent rioting done in my own home state last night in Kenosha. Every day seems to bring a new tragedy.   The world just seems out-of-control right now.   I highlighted verses 6 and 7 and wrote "2020 rioters" right next to it, because it so perfectly describes everything I'm witnessing in today's culture.  It's all just so sad.  

I created the page by coloring the background with gelatos then using stamps for the butterfly and castle images.   The words were created with a mix of washi tape, stamps, and my own hand writing.

This page, which once again deals with fear and putting our trust in God, was created by first painting the background yellow with craft paint.  I then stamped the butterfly images and used a collection of stickers and my own hand writing for the verses.   Finally, I wrote a few notes of my thoughts as I reflected on these verses.  The most important thing I have gleaned from this passage is from the verse "What can mere mortals do to me?"  Matthew 10:28 says " Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell."  If I trust in God, why should I be afraid of man for my eternal soul is secure?

As a lover of birds, I love how many times the Bible speaks of birds, and specifically how often the wings of birds are used as imagery as an example of how God shelters his children.  For this page I painted the background then used bird stamps for the top and bottom.  The verse is a mix of stamps and my own handwriting.  I added a bit of washi tape at the top to theme the page.

One of the things that has saddened me deeply the past six months, or even the past decade, has been seeing believers fall prey to many movements and beliefs in popular culture.  I think that happens when believers are not reading their Bible or spending more time on social media than they are in the word of God.  Their mind and thinking become influenced by the world instead of shaped by Biblical principles.  Christians can go to protests and rallies with the best intentions, but did you know God is a God of Peace?  The Bible says He wants us to "Search for Peace and Work to maintain it".  So when one screams "No Justice No Peace" it's actually antithetical to the word of God.  Does that mean we are not to fight against injustice?  Of course not.  But gathering in large angry mobs in the street is not the answer.  What does it accomplish?  More often than not it results in innocent people being hurt.  There are many non violent, peaceful options.  We are called to live a "peaceful and quiet life trusting in God to defend us".  

We will never see true justice on this earth until Jesus comes back.  Only then will the suffering stop and the wicked will be punished.  Did you know that all of creation will celebrate the Lord's Return?  

Using craft paint I "tried" to create a natural background simulating the sky, mountains, and river".  Then I hand wrote the verse, stamped a globe on the page, and added some hand-written thoughts.

This cute page was created with paint, stamps, and stickers.  I first painted the background using blue for the sky and green for the ground.  The verse is a mix of my own hand-writing with stickers and stamps.  I added some washi tape for emphasis on the key theme of the verse.  The sheep are stamps that I cut on a separate piece of card stock and then glued to my page.

Here are a couple of pre-printed pages I simply colored in with pencils and gel pens.

I love this cheerful, colorful, happy page.

And the last page I have to show I created because when I read the verses I was reminded of the Third Day song based on these verses.  So I created a sky with craft paint, then wrote the lyrics to the song on top.  I used some stickers to highlight certain words, and I stretched out letters to emphasize the words "reaches" and "stretches".  Musical note stamps were then added to further connect the psalm to the song.

 

If you never heard of the the Third Day song "Your Love, Oh Lord" I found it for you on YouTube.

As I close this page, I pray that you will spend less time this week on social media, less time watching the news, and more time in prayer and the Word of God.  Let God's word fill you, not the words of the world.

Have A Great Day!  Amy

Linking Up with these Fabulous Blogs HERE!

May Bible Journaling Pages

The past month I finished the book of Job and started the book of Psalms.  Landing in Job and Psalms during the pandemic and subsequent civil unrest could not have been more timely.  The book of Job helped see me through some difficult times.  Like Job, I questioned where God was as people all over the world suffered because of the lockdowns.  Job was considered a godly man, yet he questioned God and wondered why he was suffering when he knew he had done nothing to deserve it.  

Job never did find out why he was put through so much suffering, although he questioned where God was in all of it, his faith never wavered.  Although I in no way suffered any of Job's losses during the lockdown, I too questioned where God was in all of it.  I had faith in Him.  I knew He had it all under His control. Yet, like Job, I was still sad and many verses in this book comforted me.

The verse on this page reminds me to put my faith in God and not in scientists or politicians.  

I love this whimsical pre-printed page.  After listening to Job lament for days, and Job's friends pathetic earthly advice to Job, God comes in like a storm and says "Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?"  If God can create this amazing planet that we live on, we can trust Him to take care of our problems.

If God wants to do something, no one can stop Him.  His will, will always be done.  I got so frustrated with the tyrannical behavior of so many governors and officials during the lockdown.  There seemed to be no rhyme or reason to why one thing was closed but another was not.  The hypocrisy was never ending (and still is!).  The injustice of it all drives me crazy.  YET, I put my faith in God that these governors and officials can not stop God.  He can do anything!

Here is a page I created myself.  I thought this verse was so beautiful, I wanted to mediate on it by creating a page.  I colored the background with navy blue craft paint, then I hand wrote the verse in using a white gel pen.  I stamped the stars with white craft ink.

Isn't this a beautiful, happy page?  I love the graphics and found it a joy to color.  It renewed my spirits.

I love this verse.  It gave me hope.  The past few months have been so sad, and honestly, I don't see it getting much better.  I know some things are opening up, but so many things are still cancelled, gone for good, or will never be the same.  But this verse gives me hope that better days lie ahead, if not on this earth, then in heaven.

This verse reminded me of how merciful and just God is in an unjust world.

I must admit that although I drew a lot of comfort from reading the book of Job, I was so excited to start the book of Psalms.  Psalms has always been one of my favorite books in the Bible.  I colored the title page with colors that represent the sun and also the light that the book of Psalms brings to people's souls.  Many Christians love to read a psalm a day to bring them comfort and encouragement.

I colored the background of this pre-printed image with pencils then filled in the words with gel pens.

Anyone as old as me may remember the Sandi Patti song based on this verse.  I think the song rang continuously through my head as I colored this verse.  It was a joy to color.

When I reached chapters 10 and 11 of Psalms, I could not help but see a similarity of the time period of David to today's modern society.  I wanted to create a page to document this period of US history in my Bible.  Three verses in these chapters really stuck out at me, so I wrote/stamped them on the page and surrounded the verses with a fiery image I created with pencils.

No matter what happens in this world, like David we can have complete assurance in ever lasting life.

Bible reading and family have kept me sane during these past few crazy months, but I also found so much peace and contentment being in my garden every day.  I have never been more grateful for my country home and the large "Garden of Eden" I get to enjoy everyday.  I don't know how I would have made it through without my yard.  I felt so sorry for people who lived in tiny apartments during the lockdown and could not get out and enjoy nature.  I love this verse because it is so TRUE!  Nature always brings me so much closer to God.  I just spend time in nature and all the worries of the world suddenly seem so small because I can see what He created and how truly powerful He is.    

How about you?  What sources have comfort have gotten you through the past few months?  I'd love to hear from you!

Have A Great Day!  Amy

Linking Up with these Fabulous Blogs HERE!