1 Samuel 17:45-47 - Facing our giants

David said to the Philistine, ‘You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hands, and I’ll strike you down and cut off your head. This very day I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds and the wild animals, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel. All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give all of you into our hands.’ 

- 1 Samuel 17:45-47

A simple image of five small stones and some lettering to remind me that God is bigger than anything I'm going to face today.

I used watercolour pencils and a black Micron pen.

Romans 12:2 - Do not conform... but be transformed

"And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect."

 - Romans 12:2

I journalled this verse over two pages, because there was so much meaning in it. For the first half of the verse, "do not conform", I drew a school of black fish to represent the world, then a golden fish swimming in the opposite direction to represent God's people. The picture had been in my mind for a while after chatting with friends who work at a conference centre who were thinking about a mural for the wall. They were talking about swimming against the flow, and it seemed to resonate somehow.

For the second half of the verse I drew a transformation, the simplest and most dramatic I could think of - the change from a caterpillar to a butterfly. Over the years I've heard amazing stories of people transformed after coming to know God - alcoholics suddenly not wanting to drink any more, drug addicts recovered, people finding a purpose in life, etc. My own transformation wasn't anything like as dramatic, but I hope I am a better, more Christ-like person because of my relationship with God.

This passage also reminds me of a study I once did on John 14:13 - "And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son." The question was asked how can this be true when God doesn't answer some prayers. The answer is Romans 12:2 - if we transform our minds to think like God, then we will be asking for what God wants as well. If we don't, then we're only asking for what we want - in our name as it were - and that doesn't always fit in with God's plans.

The pages were inspired by week 13 of Rebekah R Jones' Bible art journalling challenge.

Hebrews 11:1 - Faith

Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.
  - Hebrews 11:1

About 15 years ago I bought a t-shirt with this verse printed one it. The verse really said something to me, although at the time I didn't really know what - I just thought it was a really good verse. At the end of the year my church printed a verse for the following year - and it was the same verse. It cropped up again a few times following that until it was firmly stuck in my brain and has become one of my foundation verses - something I go to if I need to read the Bible but have no idea where to start.

The translation above is what is printed on my t-shirt, which I had thought was the NIV translation, but it isn't what's in my Bible. That says:

Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.

I found the verse particularly reassuring after speaking with a Muslim in London during a mission outreach. He talked at me rather than to me and kept asking questions which seemed designed to flummox me. He asked me about the trinity and asked me how I could explain it. I was so overwhelmed by the barrage of questions and trying to get my thoughts together that I couldn't answer, and afterwards felt like a failure and even started having doubts.

Then I remembered the verse. I didn't have to have all the answers, I just needed to have "assurance" or "be certain of" the things I couldn't understand. It's like when you're a child, you don't know all about the water cycle, but you know that you'll have water to drink, sometimes it will rain, and water flows in streams and rivers.

The verse has remained a firm favourite and a reassurance whenever I've felt frustrated or worried or doubting about anything.

While the passage was used as part of week 18 of the Bible Art Journalling Challenge by Rebekah R Jones, the art was inspired by week 19, which used washi tape as a background for the text. This is a different passage, but as it's one of my favourite passages I wanted to do something to highlight it and make the verse stand out and speak for itself.

I added the tape in strips across the margin, letting the ends hang over the edge, then trimmed them once I'd got everything down. I wanted to just have the verse and not much else, so googled lettering to get some inspiration. Lettering is not something I'm particularly good at, and I have to have something to follow as a general rule for it to turn out especially well. I discovered that the gold tape resisted the Micron pen, so I had to go over anything that was on that tape. It didn't affect the end result though, and once it dried it was still permanent and hasn't shown any sign of smudging.

After doing the lettering I added a short thought at the bottom of the page: "You don't have to have proof if you know. My belief in Jesus isn't my religion, it's my faith."

John 19:28-30 - It is finished

The death of Jesus
Later, knowing that everything had now been finished, and so that Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, ‘I am thirsty.’ A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus’ lips. When he had received the drink, Jesus said, ‘It is finished.’ With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

- John 19:28-30

The death of Jesus is one of the defining moments of our faith. If He hadn't died, he couldn't have risen again, and so this passage is full of the weight of history. Jesus had finished His work on Earth (which then leads me to think about how we now have all that work to do...).

I wanted something striking to emphasise the importance of this passage, but I didn't want to go down the blood or cross route, as I see those images so often it sort of desensitises me to their impact. Instead I Googled images of Golgotha - the place of the skull - and used that as the image on the page. I used the big block letters to write 'it is finished' and did use reds to signify blood and to make them stand out.

Overall I'm pleased with this page. It's stark and cold and has no sign of life, which was the whole point of these verses - Jesus was very dead at this point. He had to be to pay for the sins of the world.

I used watercolour pencils and a black Micron pen on this page.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 - A season for everything

For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:
 a time to be born, and a time to die;
 a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;
 a time to kill, and a time to heal;
 a time to break down, and a time to build up;
 a time to weep, and a time to laugh;
 a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
 a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together;
 a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
 a time to seek, and a time to lose;
 a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
 a time to tear, and a time to sew;
 a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
 a time to love, and a time to hate;
 a time for war, and a time for peace.
What gain has the worker from his toil? I have seen the business that God has given to the children of man to be busy with. He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into man’s heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end. I perceived that there is nothing better for them than to be joyful and to do good as long as they live; also that everyone should eat and drink and take pleasure in all his toil - this is God’s gift to man.

 - Ecclesiastes 3:1-13

This scripture has always been a reassurance to me when things aren't going so well, or a reminder to control myself and not speak or act at times - something which I've had to learn over a long hard period. I used to have a tendency to speak whatever came into my head, especially if it seemed funny to me. Often it wouldn't come out funny though, it would be sarcastic or rude or hurtful or just inappropriate. As an example I once asked someone if they'd just taken their pants off (they had taken off a money belt) - it sounded like a funny conversation starter to me but it was wildly inappropriate. I hope that I don't make stupid remarks like that any more.

For the art journal I wanted to do something to represent time and seasons, but rather than just concentrate on autumn, like the Bible Art Journalling Challenge from Rebekah R Jones (week 43), I wanted to do something to cover more seasons. I decided to draw four clocks, one representing each season, all set at different times, and add the part of the verse "a season for everything" (verse 8). I used watercolours, washi tape and a Micron pen to colour and add the text.

Psalm 119:1 - Walk by faith

Blessed are those whose ways are blameless, who walk according to the law of the Lord. - Psalm 119:1

I don't usually stick things into my Bible (aside from washi tape) but I was inspired to use thus gorgeous shoe die cut when I started to think about a sermon I was due to give on the sabbath.

The way I was thinking was like this.

We’re commanded to take a day of rest each week and keep it holy – that is, recognise its importance. So why do we need a Sabbath?

If you ask Kevin (my husband) about our shoe rack, he will tell you that it’s got far too many pairs of shoes on it – and most of them mine. I can’t help it. I’ve had a big shoe cull over the last few years. But some of my shoes are just wonderful. Like one of my favourite pairs - gold shoes with four inch high heels. When I wear them I’m taller and I feel elegant and sophisticated and like a different person, more confident. Not that a lack of confidence is something I usually suffer from. But they took a bit of practice to walk in. They’re not always comfortable, and if I wear them for too long then my feet and legs can start to ache and I need to take them off for a bit or sit down.

Walking with God can be just like that. There's no point taking off just one shoe, or trying to partially walk with God - it just won't work. And if I take off the shoes completely - stop walking with God - then that defeats the point. But I can sit down, keeping the shoes firmly on my feet, and take a rest for a while before setting off again.

I coloured the die cut with copics, used a pencil crayon to colour a background for the shoe and then stuck it in using white glue. I added washi tape with the message 'walk by faith' and then journalled a shorter version of the above into the page.

Deuteronomy 33:27a - You can't fall further than His arms

I was in church a few weeks ago and one lady in the congregation was praying during the service. During the prayer she threw in the comment "help us to remember we can't drop further than Your arms". This comment really stuck with me and I was inspired to journal something about it to help me remember her prayer.

While the quote isn't scriptural as far as I'm aware there are several references to God's arms or hands, particularly in the Psalms. I chose this passage from Deuteronomy though.

The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms.

 - Deuteronomy 33:27a

I liked the idea that we can use God as a refuge, and even if we feel that that's not enough, or we don't feel comforted or safe, we can be reassured that His arms are underneath ready to catch us. I was quite pleased to find when I looked up the passage in my Bible that the verse was next to an almost empty page, so I had plenty of space for the image I wanted to create.

As soon as I heard the prayer I had an image in my head of someone falling and God's arms there waiting to catch them. I did a search for pictures of men's arms and falling and combined the two pictures to create this. I used watercolour pencils to colour the image, then wrote the comment I wanted to remember at the bottom.

I feel as if the verse is going to be important to me for a long time and something to remember if I'm feeling low or down. I suffer with depression, so low periods do come along, and it's wonderful to know that someone is there to catch me even when I don't feel like talking to people.