Bible Marginalia- Bringing It To Completion

Bible Marginalia Series- #68

OH, Lord,

thanks and praise to you this day.

 I do not have to be in charge of what you 

are already working out in my being.

Bring confidence to my heart and soul

of THIS VERY THING.

He who has begun

 a GOOD WORK in ME-

will bring it to completion

at the day of Jesus Christ.

I thank you, Lord, for the community of 

faithful people who give me encouragement 

to seek all the ways that we might be

connected to your WORD,

and your son Jesus Christ.

For this brings me joy.

Amen.

Supplies:

Verve stamp

Stampin' Up Ink Pads

Black Sharpie non-bleeding-

(for dotting around stamped image)

Colored pencils

Bible Marginalia- Fully Restored

Bible Marginalia Series- #67

This is the journaling that
 goes along with the previous post- 
(about Tabgha.)
 Stories on the shore of the Sea of Tiberius.
John 21.
These words stand out for me--
Jesus to Peter.
Feed my sheep.
Follow Me.

This was the end of the chapter. 
(on the other side of the page).

I may have read this verse before.

 But it was a stunning statement 

when I pulled it out this way to read. 

It seems overwhelming to remember

 all the stories in the New Testament 

about Jesus and his ministry.  

Yet here- in this statement,

 I realize that my small human mind capacity

 could not fathom the extent and parameters 

of the ministry of Jesus while He was on earth.

We only know a PART of what Jesus did.

This is the back side of the page. 

So needed to problem solve using the margin here. 

Opted for a tip-in page using painted deli paper.

Simple -but a meaningful visual-
 it STAYS with me.

Some great black and clear stick-on images 

found at Tuesday Morning.
Remarks- Accents by American Crafts



Supplies:
Flowers cut out of Pottery Barn catalogs.

Target $1 Bin flags and alphas.

Attached with washi tape.
 Cardstock circle cut outs

Black permanent maker
 with signo uni white pen.

Tabgha- Israel Pilgrimage 2

Tabgha-

 a shortened Arabic word

 for the Greek word Haptapagon.

translated as Seven Springs.

A place along the Sea of Galilee 

where springs feed the Sea 

with warmer water that creates algae 

and a fish feeding paradise.

Thus a hangout for fisherman.

On the shore of pebbles near the church

 in Tabgha are Heart stones. 

 Our tour leader said that even a few years ago

 they were not seen because water covered them.

Perhaps they were anchors for fishing poles.

This shoreline is significant

 because it is the general vicinity

 where many accounts take place in the Gospels.

This visit I was focused on the story of Jesus

 appearing after His Resurrection-

 as told in John 21.

Not knowing what else to do- 

the disciples go out fishing.

When your world turns upside down- 

sometimes we have to fall

 into the comfort of an old routine.

Unfortunately-for the disciples-

 the same old story- 

fishing all night and catching no fish.

Someone calls from the shore-

"Throw your next on the right side, 

and you will find some."

That sounds a bit Deja Vu`.

So many they can't haul it in.

Peter jumps into the water and swims ashore.

The rest slowly row and haul in 153 fish.

And join Jesus by the campfire-

 where He has breakfast all ready.

Later, a conversation that Peter

 has with Jesus changes his life course.

Jesus brings restoration to Peter.

His messed up life and choices

 will be fully redeemed

 by the death and new life of Jesus.

For each of the three times 

that Peter had denied Jesus-

 he is given a chance to declare
 his love for Jesus.

Do you love me?

Peter has a job to do-- Feed my Sheep.
It will not be easy.

But, above all else- FOLLOW ME.

                                                                                                          John at water's edge.

I give thanks to God in this Lenten season- 

that I too have the story of full restoration by Jesus.

My Baptism promise.

With the very same outstretched hand-

Follow ME.

The Tabgha site has the 

Church of the Primacy of St. Peter
church-of-primacy-of-st-peter

and also the Church of the Multiplication.
church-of-multiplication

These blog posts tell a bit more
 about what you might see at this site in Israel.

Bible Marginalia- Crate and Barrel Helps

                                                                                                     1 Peter 2:9              Jessica Meier

Bible Marginalia-#66

As I spend more time looking 

for ways to make Bible Journaling "doable",

and cost effective for people,

 I am always on the lookout 

for regular old household items

 to include as supplies.

From years as a scrapbooker-

 one of the jargon words

 has always been "archival".

This is concern over the acid level,

 and lasting qualities of ink, supplies, and paper.

I have not seen much chatter about this 

in the Bible journaling community.

 But, I think there is the thought

 of faith art and heart

 to be handed to the next generation.

 That said- magazines are not archival.

Magazine cut outs are one of the easily found

 items that I have been using for  

tangle prayer cards and my journaling stash.

Art journalers have used this for years.

In this post daughter, Jessica, shares her experiments
 with magazines as a Bible journaling supply.

                                                                                                                     Jessica Meier

I keep cut out shapes in a ziplock

 Baggie ready to go for journaling.

Magazines are a great resource.

They are often in our home- FREE.

Thin paper does not add a lot of bulk to pages.

 The bright, vivid colors are hard

 to duplicate with other media.

Works well to integrate with other media.

 Adds a modern look to pages.

ADDS TEXTURE.

You simple look for color combos

 and TEXTURES that are pleasing

and cut out.

When taken out of context,

they are no longer- rugs, pillows, 

placemats, duvets and chairs.

 And isn't that a bit of what

 Bible Journaling is?

Reading the whole part of Scripture

 and focusing on a few words- 

giving them new dimensions-

 so that we see something-
 we did not see before.

Supplies:

Crate and Barrel, Restoration Hardware,

Pottery Barn, IKEA magazines

Tabs and Labels- Staples.

Cardstock circle cut outs 

 Black Sharpie NON-bleeding

Prismacolor pencils

Sizzex cut out- 

Tim Holtz Alterations- Tattered Florals

Bible Marginalia- You are the Christ

Bible Marginalia Series- #65

The previous post told about

 my visit to Caesarea Philippi.

It is certainly powerful to journal

 the verses after visiting the site of the story.

This section of Mark has the story when 

Peter confesses Jesus as the Christ.

It goes right into when Jesus again

 teaches His disciples

 about His death and resurrection.

And a strong rebuke to Peter-

when Peter questions Jesus.

"Get behind me, Satan. 

For you are not setting 

your mind on the things of God,

 but on the things of man."

Oh, Peter.

You do so well one minute, 

and then the next breath- you blow it.

Certainly, a picture of my daily life.

Then Jesus extends the teaching time
 to the crowd around-

followers must deny themselves, 

take up the cross,

 and follow.

"For what does it profit a man 

to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?

For what can a man give in return for his soul?"
The backdrop of the pagan worship center of Banias
 adds a whole new light to this question.

For this Bible journaling I wanted to include
 some of the notes from the previous post.
The history and setting of where
 these conversations takes places
 is an important part of the story.
(One I did not realize till visiting here.)

Supplies:
I used cardstock cut outs
to highlight some of the main conversation.
A cardstock piece added in with washi tape flips 
to include information on front and back.
An old book page margin 
painted with acrylic paint frames the 
add-in page.
Black Sharpie  non-bleeding marker for added tangles.

Caesarea Philippi- Israel Pilgrimage 2

Large cave- Grotto of Pan- 

The center of pagan worship.
Known as Banias- in the Golan Heights.

 This was Baal Hermon,

 Baal Gad of Old testament times.

Here is where 3rd century BC sacrifices

 were made to flute playing god Pan-

half-man, half-goat.

Numerous temples were built here

 in the Hellenistic and Roman periods.

The city was known as Panias 

or in Arabic- Banias.

2.5 miles north of the Sea of Galilee

at the base of Mt Herman

Location of one of the largest springs

 feeding the Jordan River.

Close up of the rock 

at the base of Mt. Herman.

 Sacred Niches - a rocky escarpment

with a series of hewn niches

Statues of the deities were placed here.

Here is the backdrop setting 

to where Jesus brought

 His disciples in Mark 8:27.

With the vivid pagan world around Him, 

He asked-

"Who do people say that I am?"

 The world says- 

John the Baptist or Elijah, or a prophet.

"But, who do YOU say that I am?"

You can almost imagine Peter's gaze 

around the stone niches as he says, 

"You are the Christ."

The popular, pagan culture

 visually blared denial.

Just as our visually blaring

 culture still denies today.

Caesarea Philippi was once a great city.

In 20 BC it was annexed

 to the Kingdom of Herod the Great.

In 3 BC Philip (the Tretarch)

 founded a city here at Paneas.

He named it Caesarea-
 in honor of Caesar Augustus

 and made many improvements to the city.

In later history this area moved from 
Arab caliphate control,
was pillaged by the crusaders in 1148, 
and later ruled by the 
 Ottoman Turks.

Today only ruins hold this place 

in history in a National Park.

And a quietness surrounds

 with the simple question 

we must all still answer today-

"Who do you say that I am?"

Bible Marginalia-In Community

Bible Marginalia Series- #64

This past weekend was a special

 birthday celebration-

for me.

One of the highlights was getting

 a bit of time to do some 

Bible Journaling together.

Three daughters and their momma.

(Above photo does not show

 the same verse page in our Bibles.)

The card they gave me

 had this verse in it.

1 Peter 3:4

The margin in my Bible already had a verse 

on the page so I decided to add an insert,

with washi tape.

Used magazine cut outs for this page-

 made with a Sizzix.
 (I keep some ready to go in a ziplock Baggie)

The margin work of middle daughter.

Target and Staples tabs.

Prismacolor pencils.

Washi tape and White signo pen.

Daughter #3
Love the arrows.
Floating banners.

Work of oldest daughter.

Prismacolor pencils

Added some watercolor highlights.

It is amazing how God's Word works.
We read the same verse.
Hear different emphasis.
See different visual images that make it-
a part of our heart prayer.
We prayed this verse into our lives.

So, we talked about the verse as we worked.

What words stood out.

Some had the words PRECIOUS in their version.

 I had of GREAT WORTH IN GOD'S SIGHT.

We liked them both.

I later went back 

and wrote the word PRECIOUS

all around the flower on my page.

There is something that happens 

when sharing Bible Journaling in a group-

in COMMUNITY.

There's ACCOUTABILITY-

actually taking the time.

There's ENCOURAGEMENT-

for a design choice,
and to make time 
for the spiritual discipline

There's SHARED INSIGHTS-

when reading and talking

TOGETHER.

 There's gathered

 EXPERIENCE

and SUPPLIES.

Most of the time-

 I love my quiet, seclusive Bible 

Journaling moments.

But, if you haven't tried it....

find a group, gather a group,

start a group....

at your church-

or 

in your home,

with your neighbors

and friends.

Wadi Qelt- Into the Desert- Israel Pilgrimage-2

Wadi Qelt is desert land
in Israel.

 It runs west to east across

 the Judaean Desert in the West Bank, 

originating near Jerusalem

 and terminating near Jericho,

 close to the Dead Sea.

On this hazy day there were 

golden glinting hills in the distance.

There were distinct pockets of 

tiny oasis with dots of green on the hillsides.

Our tour guide told us in all the years of 

leading groups here, 

he had never seen it so green.

 We could see sheep lined up
 on the slopes in the distance. 

Wadi Qelt is home to a 

unique variety of flora and fauna.

 This area has been identified with the 

biblical "Perath" mentioned in 

Jeremiah 13:5.

It was actually almost a surreal setting.

When I  closed my eyes and opened them--

 it felt like I had moved off the planet earth.

This is the reality of where

 Jesus went off into the desert.

By himself.

If I am having a challenging day-

feeling "DESERTED",

I can remember these hills.

 I know that Jesus has walked
 these miles of ups and downs.
In these hills Jesus experienced set back,
heartache, and times of misery.
He walked this landscape of desolation-
to meet me in my "desert times".

Doors into Lent- Ash Wednesday

It is Ash Wednesday.

Time to share what the Lenten journey

 will look like this year.

Door into Lent-
(Lutheran Church of the Redeemer- Jerusalem)

 It will include telling the story of Israel Pilgrimage #2

 to the Holy Land in Dec. 2014 into Jan. 2015.

 Included will be some of the

new places we were able to visit.

Door into Lent-

Bible Journaling- 

what I am Seeing with time in God's Word.

Door into Lent-

What I am Reading.

Books and Devotionals.

On the stack-

In the Dust of the Rabbi-

 videos and study guide by 

Ray Vander Laan.

Will be reading this--

Lent devotionals by Michelle DeRusha.

Michelle DeRusha--lent-devotional

and combining this with Sybil MacBeth's 
 Lenten calendar.
Praying in Color Lenten-calendar-templates-for-2015

LENT for me is not about what I am giving up.

It is usually about what I am adding in-

to help my focus on the cross-

and my Jesus- who died for ME.

Celebration- Be Thou My Vision

         

Celebration Week- 

  Turning 60.

Left Sunny Florida coast-

Setting my Eyes on the Next Decade.

A 3 Sister- 3 Sister Weekend.

The surprise of my two YOUNGER sisters

 joining the party.

And all my daughters here together.

Plus the life of the party- Grandson Griffin.

Can you tell he loves shopping at Anthropologie?

Time spent dancing and hugging,

  laughing with and chasing- 

This GUY.

Checking out an Ann Arbor, MI
favorite.

Lunch at Zingerman's-
an Ann Arbor classic.

Worship together at University Lutheran-
at the University of Michigan campus.

L to R-Daughters- Laura (Griffin's mom)
Jessica and Sara
(Griffin is always blurry-
 because he is always moving)

A  card game of Presidents
and laughter all around.

Some wonderful time spent 
Bible Journaling with my three girls.
What a blessing.

Birthdays are such a gift.
Each one defines the GIVER.
Thank you Lord, 
for such a fine treasure of 60 years.

And a poem brought up-
 out of the depths by sister Lee Ann.
Tells the story of the celebration weekend.

Sister Sensitivities

In a closeness of bond
because of blood,
we feel in tune, like harmony guitars
with the flow and rhythm of life
 ebbing in each other's days.
We feel the sharps and the flats,
the crescendos and the chords
that strike the wrong notes with a 
sensitivity only we can give.
Who looks at time with the
same background so close 
to my bearing?
With memories in space,
with the ideals and hopes so close?
So tied in feelings-
it could be either
you;
or
I,
sister.

April 27, 1981
Constance Denninger

Bible Marginalia- Adding Song Lyrics

Bible Marginalia Series- #63

Sometimes the study of a series

 of Bible passages

causes a song to erupt in our hearts.

Here daughter, Jessica, 

was looking at the story of Samuel

 and the defeat of the Philistines.

He sets aside a space 

to be called "Ebenezer"-

remembering-

 "Till now the Lord has helped us."

Yes, Lord, 
"Come thou

 fount of every blessing.

Tune my heart to sing Thy grace.

Streams of mercy never ceasing,

call for songs of loudest praise.

Here's my heart, Lord, take and seal it.

Seal it for thy courts above."

This song was written by pastor
 and hymnist Robert Robinson
at the age of 22 in 1757.

Chris Rice sings with Lyrics

Here is a look at Psalm 18.

   The rocking earth beneath 

and rolling waves rescue.
The story here is brought together by

the song Oceans- by Hillsong.

Listen here---Oceans by Hillsong

So I will call upon your name-

and keep my eyes above the waves.

When oceans rise,

 my soul will rest in your embrace.

 For I am yours and you are mine.

Spirit lead me where 

my trust is without borders.

Let me walk upon the waters

 wherever you would call me-

in the presence of my Savior.

Music adds so much to 
worship for many of us.
It is often the glue 
that holds it all together.
Two songs-
 written hundreds of years apart.
Still speaks to our hearts-
 in the margins of our Bible.
As we worship Him- 
with heart, mind, and soul.

Thank you Jessica, 
for sharing your heart.

Supplies:
Prismacolor pencils
Sharpie finepoint marker- 
non bleeding

Bible Marginalia- Love One Another

Bible Marginalia Series- #62

When I first started Bible Journaling-
 it was a great help to print off,
 cut out and just keep "Small additions"
 ready-to-go for Margin helps.

I am not sure if this is the exact same one-
 but Shanna Noel has introduced
 bloggers on her site
 that often give great help.

Here is the post with a similar margin help-
http://shannanoel.blogspot.com/2014/10/illustrated-faith-jaime-dougherty.html

This is a section of John 
where Jesus is working to help
 His disciples see what this really means.
So that the world will know
 you are my disciples.
It will be tangible, noticeable,
that you walk here on earth in a 
"different way."
In a simple,
 but challenging command-
LOVE ONE ANOTHER.

Sometimes a Bible margin
 is just to highlight -
 His wonderful words.

Supplies:
Margin Printable
Colored pencil
Sharpie fine-point- non-bleeding
Tim Holtz - tiny attacher

Bible Marginalia-With Confidence

Bible Marginalia Series- #61

A section at the end of Hebrews-

a place to highlight just one verse.

A time to see this Lord-

 who will never leave me or forsake me.

So that with confidence I can say:

The Lord is my helper.

I will not fear.

What can man do to me?

The two page layout in Hebrews

For my 60th birthday 

I was blessed to spend it

 with my three daughters.

We had fun spending time sharing

 what we are learning

 in our journey of writing in the margins-

in our Bibles.

What a splendid gift-

 the treasure of this time together.