Leaving the Jar {Bible Art Journaling, In the Word}

In John 4, we are told that Jesus intentionally went through Samaria on his way to Galilee. Near a town of Samaria called Sychar, near the property that Jacob had given his son Joseph, Jesus sat down to rest at Jacob’s Well. [Side Note: this was one of the more memorable sites for me, that we visited during our trip to the Holy Land in 1977. The well is still there, and we went down inside the cave where the water flows.]

When a woman of Samaria came to draw water, he asked her to give him a drink. She was amazed that a Jewish man asked for a drink from a Samaritan woman, as, she said, Jews do not associate with *Samaritans. (In fact, they usually avoided traveling through Samaria.)

[Side Note: I wonder how it was obvious to her that he was a Jew—how was their appearance different? If so, her amazement must have been immediate when she saw him, even from a distance.]

Jesus broke through three cultural and social barriers of His time (obvious lesson here):

• He spoke to a woman.
• He spoke to a Samaritan.
• He spoke to a woman he knew was an adulteress (a woman who had more than one husband and was with a man she wasn’t married to).

Over the course of their conversation, he offered her living water, eternal life. “But whoever drinks from the water that I will give him will never get thirsty again.” (v 14)

After she more fully understood his offer and realized that he was the Messiah (how else could he have known all about her?), she “left her water jar” and went into town to tell all the people. Many believed. They asked Jesus to stay longer than he had planned, and he did. Many more believed. This woman became a missionary immediately after she received Jesus as the Messiah by faith.

Somehow, it seems significant to me that John records that she “left her water jar.” She forgot what she came for…she came for physical water, but the living water that she received was worth so much more than the water she came for… Do I need to leave my water jar at the well and walk away with the more valuable gift?

*More information about the rift between the Jews and the Samaritans can be found at GotQuestions.org, here.

  

#BibleArtJournaling #SamaritanWoman #WomanattheWell #WaterJar #FaithArt #LivingWater #WatercolorinmyBible

Contentment is Gain {Bible Art Journaling}

I came across this verse recently. It hit home, because I recognize that being content is usually a challenge for me. Seems like there is a fine line between being bored/boring and being content. Perhaps contentment is more a spiritual state, whereas boredom is a non-spiritual state relative to activity level.

Also, on a deeper level, I am convicted that contentment should naturally follow a recognition that God is in control and is directing my steps (and the steps of those I love). I say “convicted” because it is an area of my life that I know needs work.

At any rate, when I saw this verse, “Godliness with contentment is great gain,” (1 Timothy 6:6), I knew there was a divine direction, rather than coincidence, behind my “coming across” that verse.

We have beautiful birds visiting our feeders this winter. On Christmas Eve day it snowed here, and I took a few pictures of the cardinals, especially beautiful against the snow.

So when I decided to do a Bible art page on this verse, this beautiful cardinal came to my mind as a “picture” of contentment.

I want to be godly, and I want to be content.

#BibleArtJournaling #BibleArt #FaithArt #cardinalsinMO #cardinalsinthesnow #watercolor #1Timothy6-6 #contentment #GodisinControl

Bible Study Morning Setting {In the Word}

Colors have a huge effect on my mood. So, I’m big on the colors of my journals, coffee mugs, etc. I know. (You can be like this when you’re retired.)

I am still blitzing to catch up with the Journaling through the New Testament for 2018. The floral journal (Vera Bradley) is my Prayer Journal, which always accompanies my Bible study materials.

#BibleStudy #IlluminatedJournalingThroughtheNewTestament #PrayerJournal #BulletJournal #AlwaysCoffee

Project Focus {Bible Art, GraceNotes}

The New Year always motivates me to get more organized and focused with my plethora of projects. I have considered about five ways to go with my Bible study/art to start the new year, and I have finally narrowed my focus and decided on a project that fits my desires/needs/personality. I will be doing Journaling Through the New Testament (hosted by a friend in the Bible Journaling World, Jann Gray at Illuminated Journaling). I will be reading a chapter each weekday, writing in my bullet journal as I go, and doing some Bible art along the way, as inspired.

Since I didn’t discover this plan until a few days ago, I’m already behind. So, I’m blitzing with the Bible study right now and will soon be caught up.

Meanwhile, I completed a “page” in my Christian Standard Bible, that page being the Presentation Page. Instead of writing my name, I did a little mixed media with my picture…yeah, it’s a little scary to think about this picture being in this Bible forever; but then, again, it is me right now, so there you have it.

Below is a sample page from the bullet journal (in the journaling world, we call it a BUJO)….this is actually hilarious, because I call myself a journaler and had never heard of a BUJO until I started this New Testament Journaling project! Apparently bullet journaling is a big deal.

I am also totally enjoying the fun of being a planner girl—that is, doing the fun, cutesy style of planning (I’ve kept a notebook since the late 70’s, so this is just a funn-er method of the same thing).

Then, there’s the scrapbooking (my ongoing “project” since 2004), which is caught up for now. (Insert hallelujah here!)

Oh, yes, and the little rock painting…and the sketch and paint journals.

Oh, and the music preparation and practice for the praise band at church.

One would not want to be bored. One is not.

#IlluminatedJournalingNewTestamentJournaling2018 #BUJO #mixedmedia #BiblePresentationPage #FaithArt #IlluminatedJournaling 

After-Christmas Glow (and breath-catching) {My Family, My Heart}

We have had the experience of a rare and precious gift during this holiday season. As a result of several factors coming together in a “perfectly [good] storm,” we had some of our family in our home with us from December 13 to January 7. This made for some crazy times (not even going to count the rolls of paper products and the loads of laundry and the pounds of butter—oh, wait, those things are not in any way related)…but all fantastic and wonderful, as we do not get to be with our family on a regular basis these days. I had lots of help in the kitchen, and we cooked and cooked and cooked (and ate……….).

Tory was here on vacation from her mission work in Mexico. We had not seen her in 17 months. Too long.

The fun times included our Sibling Christmas at our house this year, affording an opportunity for Mark to get to see his aunts and uncles whom he has been missing.

I can see the future enough to realize that we will not always have everyone home for Christmas at the same time. But this year we did, and that’s reason to celebrate.

Tory’s Home!!

Playing Marble Board

Sibling Christmas

My only brother Keith, and my sister Janene. We have been filling our stockings from OUR Mamo and Grandad’s Christmases for the last several years. These stockings (handmade corduroy) are at least 60 years old.

Our Family Christmas

Snack Buffet Christmas Eve

Reading the Christmas Story (with carols sung)

Brunch

Music

Sharida’s Family

Mark’s Family

All of us

Grandkids

Our 52nd Christmas as Husband and Wife

Bubble Bread, homemade, every year since 1977 (two of these for the last couple of years)!

And, so, now…they have all gone to their separate places of service, leaving us to tend the home-fires. We really miss everyone. I may never adapt to the separation. But we have sweet memories of our time together this holiday season.

#FamilyTime #FamilyChristmas #JoyofFamily #ThankfulforGodSendingHisSon

Christmas Story Bible Page {Bible Art Journaling}

Sometimes I sketch in my Bibles, from scratch, but another fun thing is to use rubber stamps, and then to paint with watercolor. This is my favorite Christmas stamp; I have already used it in one of my journaling Bibles, but I have a new “She Reads Truth” Bible (CSV), and I have just begun to do some art in that one, so it was fun to use this little stamp on the Luke 2 page in that Bible.

Love the Christmas story. Love what it means to me, that God sent his Son to earth as a baby, to be my Savior.

Merry Christmas!

#BibleArtJournaling #BibleArt #FaithArt #ChristmasStory #SheReadsTruthBible #CSVBible #InktensePencils

Come Christmas! {My Heart at Home}

After about 15 hours of “hard labor,” the house is ready for Christmas!

Upper level, great room.

(Tory, Mark and Kristy’s daughter; Caroline, Conner’s wife; Alyssa, Sharida and Greg’s daughter; Conner, Mark and Kristy’s son; Evan, Sharida and Greg’s son; Dawson, Sharida and Greg’s son.)

Flocked tree, upper level, Music Room.

Lower level, tree with my homemade decorations, Russell’s Polar Express train, and a few of my teddy bears and dolls.

#ReadyForChristmas #TagTree #AllMyTrees #BringontheFamily

Spiritual Gift: Teaching {You Matter Journaling}

Prompt #2: Spiritual Gifts

I have decided that the only way I could possibly keep up with the weekly prompts from the You Matter Journaling Challenge is to keep each response very simple. This is a stamp that I painted with watercolor.

While there are many discussions about spiritual gifts, I think the Bible is very clear that TEACHING is one of them. I’m not saying that I have always used that gift as I should, but I believe there is no doubt that is one of my spiritual gifts.

In fact, sometimes I need to back it down! I seem to have this inner need to constantly be in a state of “instructing.” That is not good.

Guess I’m still a work-in-progress.

#YouMatterJournaling #YouMatterJournalingPrompt2 #artjournal #watercolor #spiritualgifts #teaching

He is Near {Bible Art, HeartStrings}

This passage came to mind today, from years of having Bible passages tucked away in my memory. I knew I wanted to art journal on this passage. I got out my She Reads Truth Bible (CSB, a version that is gaining in popularity, I hear). I love this translation of this verse.

As I was turning to the passage, one of the She Reads Truth Devotionals happened to be on the back side of that passage (you can see the shadowing of my little girl on this picture of the page). The devotional thought was meaningful and inspirational to me. Perhaps it will be to you.

Even when God seems far away, and I may not be able to see Him clearly, I do know, and trust, that I am never out of His sight. That is comforting.

(click image to enlarge)

#BibleArtJournaling #ScriptureArt #FaithArt #brokenhearted #crushedinspirit #Ps34_18

You Matter Journaling {Art Journal}

My friend Jenny Frith is hosting a year-long project called “You Matter.” There are prompts each week. I am not sure I will be able to keep up the pace all year, but at least I have begun!

This is my title page:

For week 1, the prompt is “Giftedness.” Terrible art work, but I did want to journal something for this one.

#YouMatterJournaling #YouMatterJournalingPrompt1 #artjournal #sketchandpaint

Rock Painting–Music and Christmas Themes{Art on the Rocks}

The rock painting hobby has given me new ideas for making a few Christmas decorations for around our house. No, I don’t hide all the rocks I paint. I will mainly “drop” rocks as we travel across the country. For Christmas, these will stay at my house, along with all the tags, block art, etc., I have created in recent years.

Last week, I freehanded a few music symbols on rocks I had painted metallic gold. Those will fit just fine with my Christmas theme!

These rocks were just primed, painted with acrylic, and freehand painted.

For these, I printed off some Christmas sheet music, cut it in strips, decoupaged it onto the rocks, and freehand sketched/painted on top.

#paintedrocks #rockpainting #artontherocks #Christmasrocks

New Hobby (Old Hobby Expanded) {Art on the Rocks}

On October 21, hubby and I were walking at Indian Camp Creek Park, a short distance from our home. In the landscaping along our way, I spotted this rock.

Front and back:

I was curious. I left it where I found it, and looked up the Facebook group referenced on the back. Who knew? It was a group out of St. Charles, MO, with over 10,000 members. Really? Looking through the posts, and in my subsequent research, I discovered this has been a “thing” for quite a while. I am surprised that I didn’t know about it, through some of my other art/craft groups…but I learned that the “craze” is an extension of the Kindess Rocks Project.

Hooked. Decided this would be something I could do with my art that would be more fulfilling than just painting in an art journal that I will eventually toss. My intent will be to inspire, comfort, or be a positive blessing. Many of my rocks will contain a Bible reference.

This will not replace Bible Art Journaling, as THAT hobby is also something that is not just for me (but in the case of Bible Art Journaling, for legacy).

I learned that my area has sort of gone off the deep end with painting and hiding and finding multitudes of rocks, rather like an Easter egg hunt. For me, I want the rocks to have meaning and to offer inspiration. I will not “drop,” as we say in the rock painting world, my rocks just anywhere, but maybe in locations where someone might be contemplatively walking or whatever (walking trails, parks, etc.). I would also like to leave them as we travel, which will be especially fun with our RV travels. It will be a challenge to see how many states I can “rock.” There are rules against placing them in state or national parks, but there are plenty of other places of nature. That’ll be my goal. I will also be fine with keeping as many of them as I would like, for now.

So, right away, after finding the rock (which I would have re-hidden had I understood “the game” at that point), I was ready to go rock hunting, to find some good ones to paint. That very day, as Russell was buying chat at our local Outdoor Emporium, he noticed a big “bin” where there were rocks for sale for rock painting (cheap). Seriously? I bought my first 10, came home and applied primer (my old favorite gesso, from my more active mixed media days).

I researched Facebook groups, joined several, and started to learn about the techniques, discovering it is basically the same art as I have done before, only on rocks instead of on paper.

I learned that most people’s rocks are never reported found. The emphasis is on the giving, not the receiving. “They” also say that if it is nice art work, the person who finds it may well keep it, and that’s just fine. If I want to offer the possibility of someone reporting their find, I need to label the back.

My first rock:

I placed it in the same park where I found my first rock.

So far, no one has used the contact info to let me know it has been found. That’s okay. I hope someone was inspired.

I decided to do several of my first ones on the fruits of the Spirit (Galations 5:22-23).

Here are numbers 2, 3, and 4. I may keep these, at least until we travel where I can drop them in new places.

I noticed on the Facebook groups that people usually take the photos of their rocks with a quarter, obviously because just from seeing a photo with no perspective, the rock could be 2 inches, or 20. Most of mine will be about the size of my hand.

Anyway, fun new project/hobby that hopefully will allow me to be an inspiration to someone, somewhere.

#KindnessRocksProject #paintedrocks #rockpainting #FaithArtontheRocks #ArtontheRocks #fruitsofthespiritpaintedrocks #handsketch

Russell’s Birthday {My Family, My Heart}

I always want to try to make this man feel special on his birthday. He is all about taking care of everyone else, but he certainly deserves extra attention on his special day. He got cards from family and enjoyed calls and FaceTime with several.

We went out for a nice lunch at Outback.

#hubbybirthday #bestmanintheworld #myfamilymyheart

MO Road Trip {Out & About}

Prior to purchasing the RV, we had made reservations at a new state park in Missouri that was getting rave reviews. So, we took the Explorer and headed out for a 2-night stay, October 16-18, at Echo Bluff Park, close to Eminence. We planned visits to several of the MO springs (most of them fondly remembered from our camping days when the children were small).

First stop, a great lunch along historic Route 66, Missouri Hick Bar-B-Q in Cuba, MO.

Next, we visited Maramec Spring, close to St James, MO. The water was beautiful, and it was fun to see the trout swimming in the clear stream. Russell wants to return for some fishin’!

Arriving at Echo Bluff Park, our cabin and the lodge exceeded expectations. Very new, very well-appointed.

We walked over to the lodge and down a short trail behind it, taking a picture of the bluff that towers behind the lodge, and of the lodge from the base of the bluff.

We ate dinner that evening at Creekside Grill in the lodge. Beautiful decor in the lobby.

(Our second night we opted to stay in the cabin, with a wood fire and our own chili that we brought from home.)

Our side trips included several springs that are a part of the Ozark National Scenic Riverways now (at one time, I remember most or all of these being state parks).

Round Spring (on the Current River) was very close to Echo Bluff. Here, and at most of the other places we visited, we were the ONLY people there. Russell got a bit emotional at Round Spring, as he remembered visiting there with his parents. It may have been the most beautiful spring we saw.

Getting to Blue Spring (Current River) was quite an adventure. We almost didn’t find it. We traveled down about 2.5 miles of gravel road (pretty drive).

We hiked about .3 mile from the parking area to the spring.

The water started just below the stone steps—it looks like a sand bar, but that’s just how clear the water is.

Alley Spring, my favorite because of the picturesque mill and the history surrounding it. In my memory, there was a water wheel, but the knowledgeable young man inside told me that Alley Spring Mill was a turbine mill (no wheel), because they made white flour (requiring more power than a wheel). Other mills that have wheels make wheat flour. (At least that’s the way I remember what he said!)

We hiked along the stream.

There was one other spring/campground that I wanted to visit, as I had a memory that I was fairly certain originated at Pulltite Campground, also on the Current River. We drove to the campground, and my memory was correct. I expected it to be unrecognizable, because the memory was from 1975. But, actually it looked very much the same. I took a picture of the Current River (really down at the present time) accessible within the campground, and then of a campsite that was our exact site or very close (I know, because I remember seeing the Current River flowing outside the camper “windows,” and there was only one or two sites that could have been it). I took these two pictures:

The rock bed of the Current River at Pulltite Campground, October 2017.

The campsite that I believe was ours, taken October 2017.

When I got home, I looked it up in my Life Story. Here is what I found: "May 23, 1975 - My 28th birthday. We four went camping at Pulltight on Current River, with our used pop-up camper. Mark and Sharida had matching bathing suits. They loved wading in Current River, and we found "the bread rock," which we kept for several years."

Then I looked at my 1975 photo album and found these pictures:

Picked wildflowers for our campsite, on the way (it was my birthday). My handsome 30-year-old husband. (Mark, looking at this picture today: “STUD, even with the black socks!”)

Our very first camper, a used pop-up. We loved it. Here it is on the same campsite I photographed this week (I’m just sure). We hooked a hose from the water faucet there, and I was thrilled to be able to use the little sink to give the kids a “bird bath” (we called it). Our previous “camper” had been a 3-man tent. This was awesome.

My two beautiful children. Mark was almost 5. Sharida was 3 1/2. They were such fun, and they had such fun!

Their awesome dad was helping them build a “dam across Current River.” They found a rock that was shaped like a loaf of bread. We kept “the bread rock” for several years.

About an hour from home on this trip, we stopped at Dutzow and hiked for a while on the Katy Trail.

It was a great trip, full of fun and relaxation, time spent enjoying each other’s company, and time spent down memory lane!

(And about when can I expect to STOP thinking about how much I wish our children were with us, on our trips and adventures?)

#OutandAbout #EchoBluffPark #OzarkNationalScenicRiverway #RoundSpring #AlleySpring #MaramecSpring #BlueSpring #PulltiteCampground #CurrentRiver #lovemyfamily