A Place for Jesus

Hello friends and fellow Bible Journalers...

As we begin a new year, I want to be sure that I make even more room for Jesus in my life.  It is so easy to allow the demands of every day life rob us of spending sweet time with our Lord!  

This page was inspired by a sermon our pastor preached at our church at the beginning of the new year.  I was convicted and challenged to "Make a Place for Jesus!"

Now when Jesus saw a crowd around him, he gave orders to go over to the other side.  And a scribe came up and said to him, "Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go."  And Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the son of man has no where to lay his head."

Matthew 8:18-20 (ESV)

I wanted to include my sermon notes, but didn't want to cover up any of the details on the page, so I created a Tip-In tag which was attached to the opposite page by a washi tape hinge.

The page was prepped with two layers of clear gesso and the scene lightly sketched with a pencil.  Intense Color Blocks were used to watercolor the background.   Archival Inks, Versafine Onyx Black Ink, and a White Paint Pen were used to add the details.  The new scene silhouettes stamp sets and several alphabet sets made it fun and easy to complete the scene.  The bushes were created using the top of the tree from the Scene Silhouettes: Trees stamp set and masking was used to get just the tops of the tall grass from the Scene Silhouettes: Tall Grass stamp set.  I was able to use the fox and the bird from the Scene Silhouettes: Woodland stamp set to perfectly illustrate the scripture verse!  I couldn't resist adding a few more animals to the scene.

Here are the stamp sets from the Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps Store used to create my page:

I hope you will be inspired and challenged to "Make a Place for Jesus" this year!  He wants to take up residence in our hearts.

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Hugs,

Cathy

Songs in the Night

Hello Bible Journaling friends!   I think we can all agree that Job knew what it was like to walk through times of darkness;  however, at one time or another, we all walk through difficult times...depression, sickness, bills due, loss of a loved one, or even a crisis of faith, but I am reminded as we enter into the Christmas season of the shepherds who were out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.  Angels showed up in the darkness of night to announce the most amazing good news..."For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord," and then...the song came as the angels started to praise God!
"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!"

"Because of the multitude of oppressions people cry out;
they call for help because of the arm of the mighty.
But none says, 'Where is God my Maker,
who gives songs in the night,
who teaches us more than the beasts of the earth
and makes us wiser than the birds of the heavens?"
(Job 36:9-11) ESV

My page was prepped with Dina Wakley Clear Gesso.   Distress inks were sponged on the upper corner to make the night sky.  A spritz of Perfect Pearls, splatters of white acrylic paint, and Texture Paste spread through a stencil were used to create the stars.  The message, created using several stamp sets from the Creative Worship line of Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps, was white embossed so it would pop off the night sky.  Copic Markers were used to color the bird which was fussy cut and glued to the page.  (I Googled "song bird" images and found one with this coloring which worked perfectly for my page.). My notes were hand written.

You may be walking through a dark time right now.  Do not fear!  Do not lose hope!
Paul and Silas had their chains broken in the darkness of night.
God shows up in the night with a song.
He does mighty works in the darkness of the night!

These stamp sets from the Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps Store were used to create this page in Job:

Thank you so much for stopping by today.
Let us not forget the reason for the season as we begin to prepare for Christmas!
Have a wonderful week!
Hugs,
Cathy

Grateful for Grace

Hello Friends...

November is the month that we in America think a lot about thanksgiving, but as followers of Christ we of all people should continually have an attitude of gratitude.

Bless the Lord, O my soul,

and forget not all his benefits,

who forgives all your iniquity,

who heals all your diseases,

who redeems your life from the pit,

who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,

(Psalm 103:2-4)

It is so easy to fall into feelings of discontent and take the many blessings that we have for granted.  We truly do have much for which to be thankful.   

By his grace we are forgiven, healed, saved and loved...

Thank you, Jesus!

I just love the leaves changing and the beautiful colors of fall and used these colors on my page as I contemplated the wonderful grace of God and his many benefits.  Both pages were prepped with clear gesso.  Distress inks were watered down on a craft mat, picked up with a piece of acetate, and smooshed onto the page.  Texture was added by dabbing white gesso through a dot stencil and the whole page was spritzed with Perfect Pearls for a little shimmer.  Two alphabet stamp sets from the Creative Worship Line and two Sweet 'n Sassy stamp sets were used along with some washi tape and alphabet stickers to finish the page.  The leaves were watercolored using the same inks as on the background.

One of the things that Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps is grateful for is...YOU!

We want to pass along some blessings to you as we celebrate our 10th birthday.

We have lots of giveaways and prizes that we are awarding during the month of November.

Click the graphic below to find out all the details and to receive a FREE Printable perfect for Bible Journaling...no purchase necessary!

So ~ think about and count your many blessings...have an attitude of gratitude for all the Lord has given you!

Thanks so much for stopping by...have a blessed day!

Cathy

Higher Help

Hello friends!  Sometimes your friends, the world, the government, your spouse, and even your church do not have the answers or the help you need when your heart is overwhelmed.  Sometimes helping others can get your mind off your own troubles for just a while.  Sometimes listening to worship music can lift your spirits.  Often I can find solace in the Psalms...time and time again I read about how much God loves us, how he hears us when we cry out to him, how God alone is our salvation, and our hope is in him alone!

The hills and sky were watercolored with Neocolor 2 Crayons.  The elephant (**so cute**) from the Fly High stamp set designed by Rebecca Rios was colored with Prismacolor Pencils and the balloons were pieced with washi tape.  A white paint pen was used for the highlights.  Skinny Caps Alpha, Skinny Lowercase Alpha, Words of Life: Common Words 1, Awesome Thoughts, and Seek Him stamp sets along with some hand lettering were used to complete this page.

"Hear my cry, O God,

listen to my prayer;

from the end of the earth I call to you

when my heart is faint.

Lead me to the rock

that is higher than I,

for you have been my refuge,

a strong tower against the enemy."

(Psalm 61:1-3) ESV

These stamp sets used for the page above are available at the 

Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps Store:

If you are feeling overwhelmed and your heart is faint, higher help is available for you!

Cry out to Jesus!

Thank you so much for stopping by today! 

I hope you've been lifted up!

Hugs,

Cathy

Sing Praises

Good morning, dear friends!  Cathy here with a Bible Journal page to share with you.  Outside is dark and all is quiet as I sit and write this post, but in my heart I am praising my God and thinking back on all of his goodness!

The page in my Interleaved Bible (**love working on these full pages**) was prepped twice with clear gesso before watercoloring the background with what I call the "Acetate Smash Technique."  Scribble a little water based marker on some acetate, spritz with water, and dab, smash and smear it on the page.  Dry with a heat tool and continue layering on the colors.  The images and words were stamped using the Sing Loud, Words of Life: Common Words 1, and Rebecca Script Alpha (to add the "s" on the word praise) stamp sets from the Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps Store.  The images were then watercolored using the same markers used for the background.

Many times in the psalms we read how King David was being pursued by enemies, was in despair, was considering the prosperity of the wicked, and was feeling the weight of his circumstances.  His response was to begin thanking and praising God for His goodness.  As a result, even though his circumstances did not change,  he was able to find rest for his soul.

So, my friend, if you are struggling with circumstances right now, God is still good.  He loves you with an everlasting love.  Begin to praise Him and get ready for a heart change.

Thank you so much for taking the time to stop by!  Have a wonderful day praising the Lord!

Hugs,

Cathy

**Smile**……..CLICK!

Hello, Creative Worshipers!  Hope you are enjoying the beautiful fall weather we have been having…and the beautiful colors of autumn.  What a masterful creator our God is!

I hope you have also had a chance to check out two of Rebecca's adorable new stamp sets, Capture This Moment and Living Water.  I just love her whimsical style and the fact that these sets can be used for card making as well as for Bible Journaling.

This card was made with some happy fall colors of distress ink, some washi tape by Illustrated Faith, and Capture This Moment, Mini Critters, and the Hearts & Stars Scallop Border Die Set.   Doesn't it just make you want to SMILE! 

The Living Water stamp set is perfect for illustrating so many verses of scripture and know that I will be reaching for this set over and over again, but the verse I chose to illustrate for today is in Exodus 14 where God parted the Red Sea to allow the Israelites to pass over on dry land in order to protect them from Pharaoh.

Sometimes, out of fear, we stay camped out in the same familiar place…afraid to move ahead.  It is very easy for me to want to remain comfortable.  As we take a step of faith and move forward, God goes with us!  

My pastor preached from this verse of scripture not long ago so a tip in was created and added to this page to remember some of his main points.

We must not allow the enemy of our soul keep us in 

~the camp of bitterness

~the camp of unforgiveness

~the camp of depression

~the camp of lethargy

~the camp of easy street!

What has God been asking you to do?

Move forward in order to reach the Promised Land, and remember…you will not be alone!

The stamp sets used to create this page include Living Water, Classy Script Alpha, All of Me Alpha, and What's Up?

Be sure to check out these stamp sets and others at the 

Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps Store.

Until next time…get into the word, and let the word get into you!

Have a wonderful, leaf crunching fall day!

Hugs,

Cathy

My Creator Knows Me

Hello sweet friends!  Sometimes is is hard for me to grasp the fact that God, the creator of the universe, knows me intimately…knows my thoughts, knows my heart, knows my hurts and struggles, knows my accomplishments and my weaknesses…and loves me any way!  If He can carry the world, He can certainly carry us…and will.  Whatever places and circumstances we find ourselves in, God has brought us there...whether to bless us or test us...His purpose is to prepare us for eternity, and He will bring us safely home!  How awesome is that!

After downloading a clip art globe and printing it out, I scribbled pencil on the back of the paper, placed the paper pencil side down on my Bible page, and traced the globe.  This left enough of an outline that I could see to trace.  The rest of the page was stamped using My Creator and Outline Alpha.  Because I wanted Jesus to face the opposite direction, I stamped Him on a piece of acetate, turned the acetate ink side down, and pressed the image onto the page.  I was then able to trace Him as well.  The page was then water colored with Peerless water colors and a few sequins added.

"O Lord, you have searched me and known me

You know my sitting down and my rising up;

You understand my thought afar off.

You comprehend my path and my lying down,

And are acquainted with all my ways.

…Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;

It is high, I cannot attain it."

(Psalm 139:1-3; 6)

My Creator is now back in stock at the Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps Store!

Trust Jesus to carry you through the day and be blessed!

Hugs,

Cathymac

Praise Him

Hello friends!  How many ways can you think of to praise the Lord?  Psalm 150 lists several ways to praise the Lord, but you can probably think of more.  Praising the Lord invites His presence into our circumstances AND in His presence is fullness of joy…doubt, worries, and fear flee!  Chains and bonds are broken just as they were for Paul and Silas.  No matter what you are going through, the Lord is worthy of praise…
                               "His grace saves us,
                                        His mercy spares us,
                                               and His love pardons us!"

(from a morning and evening devotional)

I've been wanting to try using Color Burst pigment powders on a Bible Journaling page and finally decided to just do it!  I did prep the page three times with Dina Wakley Clear Gesso since the page was going to get pretty wet.  First a section of the page was masked off so the music background from the new Music to My Ears stamp set could be clear embossed in the middle.  Then the magic…sprinkle on the powders (I used yellow, tangerine, fuchsia, and crimson) and squirt with water.  A roll of paper towels helped to soak up the extra water and each color was dried before applying the next color.  There was NO bleed through!  A little sponging helped the embossing show up a little better.  Elements from the I Am Loved, Seek Him, and Note This stamp sets were added to the page along with some hand lettering and a few more notes from the Music to My Ears stamp set.

Here are the stamp sets from the Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps Store used for this page:

"Guard your heart from fear at night by singing praises to your King!"

Thanks so much for stopping by…

Blessings to you,

Cathy