Matte who?

Art journaling was my passion just before diving into Bible journaling (or journaling in my Bible).  While learning about art journaling and all the sorts of mediums, I began using lots of matte decoupage and matte gel medium to glue and seal my projects and pages.  They are, both, wonderful products.  The gel is just more thick than the decoupage.

Well, I got to wondering....could I actually use decoupage as a sealer for my Bible pages.  So I took the risk and tried it on the very first page of scripture in the Bible, Genesis 1!  I applied a thin layer of my favorite matte decoupage, Aleen's, to the entire page and dried it with my heat gun.  When I do this, I always put a piece of parchment paper under the page to prevent the next page from gluing to the page I am sealing.  Then, I colored around the edges with some up & up watercolor gel crayons and Crayola Twistable Slick Sticks.  These work much like gelatos and are much more affordable.  They just aren't as high of a quality and don't come in the variety of colors.  This part of the process takes more experimentation and is just a matter of artist interpretation.  I really like the gold Slick Stick color because you can add just a couple scribbles of it and it will add a slight shimmer to the area where you "paint" it. 
After drying with the heat gun I added some number stickers from Mambi to label each of the days of the Creation.  The pages is still a little crumpled looking, but it will smooth out a little while the pages are closed and under the weight of the Bible itself.  It's a simple page, but I like it.   Trust your instincts and try something new!

A popular word

Matthew 28:19 Go make disciples, baptizing &
 teaching them to obey

I guess I picked a trending "Word of The Year" to guide my Christian walk throughout 2015.  GO.  However, inspiration hadn't really hit me until this week.  Dozens of pins with globes in Bibles have come across my Pinterest feed.  But, I am secretly a non-conformist.  I didn't want a globe being the only idea that conveyed one of the most important instructions in the Bible. 

When I came across the "Logos 365 Challenge" from His Kingdom Come I was already in the midst of reading "Follow Me" by David Platt.  My husband and I have studied it as part of an eclectic mix of 20 to 50 somethings study group.  It's awesome.   This book and study make it abundantly obvious that I am not keeping up my part of the bargain with Jesus.  He saved me.  The least I could do is tell people how exciting and wonderful my life has been since. 

I was also at a crossroads in my life.  Feeling stuck doesn't even begin to describe it.  There had to be change, but first it involved me getting out of my physical and mental rut to get my groove back.  So, the word "go" seemed fitting for the personal, physical, and spiritual focus for my year.
 


Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the plans
I have for you

The approach of April and the end of my Sunday School study caused me to feel like I needed to cement this idea on to paper.  Well, Modge Podge it onto paper anyway. 

I had used an atlas on another spread a few months ago so I didn't want to just repeat the look for Matthew 28:19.  Thinking about the sphere of influence that I have in "making disciples" gave me the idea to look in my car for a map of our city.  Score!  There was a downtown visitors guide in the side pocket of my rockin' mini van! 

The map served as my color palette and off I went.  You can see the process in one of my first youtube videos.  I am learning as I go, so please bear with the glare from the white pages.

Do you have a "Word of The Year?"  Share what and why in the comments below.  I would love to hear what you are doing to explore that theme so far this year and if you have journaled it in your Bible.