Karla's Korner

Out of the Abundance...

This week's Bible Journaling verse was such a blessing to my heart! I love how the design of the heart turned out for sure.  The mouth... not so sure but it was still a very fun verse to play with. But... of course... it was about so much more than the art!

At first, it caused me to examine my heart and think about my words and to be honest... I was convicted in a couple of areas. One was gossip... and the other... as always... was about how I talk to myself. Both are ugly. Both are hurtful. But conviction is good... because now I am being more attentive to both. 

Oh does the mouth ever speak! But even though this verse very much applies to my life today... and the constant challenge it is to keep an ear to the words I speak both to myself and to others... the truth is that as I pondered this verse... my heart was filled with gratitude. It reminded me from whence I've come and how much God has changed my heart and my words.

When I tell people about the kind of words that came out of my mouth before I came to know the Lord... I usually get this wide-eyed look of surprise... maybe a little gasp... and a whole lot of disbelief. Oh yes. And I wasn't just a potty mouth... it was so much worse. I was a young woman who was so filled with pain, anger, bitterness and even hatred... that all that emotion kept spewing out my mouth... out of control... outbursts of anger and jealousy and rage... hurting the people I loved the most. My heart still cringes and cries when I think about the person I was.

And then I met Jesus...

Did the words I spoke change overnight? No. But my heart did... from the very first moment He came to live within me it began to change... to heal... to find peace... to discover joy. His light broke into my darkness. His abundance began to permeate my heart! His unconditional love filled the immense emptiness. His truth began to replace the lies I grew up with. His forgiveness filled and overflowed my heart... forgiveness for my sins and for those who had so terribly wounded the fragile child who lived within me.

And I've never been the same since.

So even though I know this verse can be convicting... and it should be... for today... for me... with tears of joy and gratitude... it reminds me of how much God has done in my life... and how blessed I am. It also stirs within me a longing for so much more of His abundance to fill my heart... overflowing love... so that the words I speak will be words of life and not death. Love and not hate. Truth and not lies. Building up not tearing down. I want always to speak words of hope and encouragement... and not just to others but to me too... to that fragile child that still lives within me... because I need to hear those words too.

And so do you.

Thank you all so much for loving me and allowing me the opportunity to share my heart here. Sorry this was so long... but I do hope you are encouraged to want more of God's abundance in your life too. Believing Him for it together!

BIBLE JOURNALING FOOTNOTE...

 

For those of you who might be interested in Bible Journaling... I always start with a pencil sketch... sometimes in my molesking journal or graph paper sketchbook and sometime in directly in my ESV Single Column Journaling Bible published by Crossway.  I then ink my design with Micron Pens starting with the 005 fine line marker. I then gently erase the pencil lines and begin to add fun details and thicks lines with the larger point microns. This verse was colored with Prismacolors colored pencils and a white Gel Pen for highlights.  

Thanks again for the visit... sending Love and God-hugs your way...

NEW Bible Journaling Bookmarks

Some of you who follow me on FB have requested I illustrate a Bible you can buy. Oh my... I love you my friends... but that request just makes me chuckle!  Do you know how many pages there are in just the New Testament? It would sure be a fun and creative project but I'm not sure I will live that long. LOL! 

But... you've also requested Bookmarks... and that one I can do... and did!! So here ya go... my first set of four Bible Journal Bookmarks and all from the book of Luke... available here!  You can print as many as you like for personal or ministry use. You can also adhere them to your own ESV Journal Bible for a perfect fit... or for scrapbooking or in your Documented Faith journal.

I've also redrawn them as "Color Your Own" Bookmarks for those of you who would like to add your own personal touch of color! Also great for the kiddos to color and reflect on God's Word as well... and maybe even give as gifts to their friends, family or teachers. You can find these here.

Hope you enjoy them... and God bless!

Illustrated Faith... Bible Journaling Inspiration

Good morning!

The response to my FB posts about my #BibleJournaling and my newly found #IllustratedFaith community has been so encouraging! Lots of love and also a few repeated questions... so I promised that this morning I would share a little of my Bible Journaling journey with you and the supplies I use... so here we are.

To be honest... I've been doodling and note-taking in my Bible for as long as I can remember... it just didn't have a name. When I saw a few months ago where Shanna Noel was calling it #IllustratedFaith... I seriously think my heart leapt! A perfect name for it!  Of course, my early Bible Journaling was much more random... sometimes the highlights from Sundays sermon... other times specific thoughts that the Lord gave me as I was reflecting on His Word... sometimes just a doodle.

Today... with my new Journaling Bible in hand... I read two pages at a time while praying and asking the Lord to speak to my heart. That verse that stands out above all others is the one I choose to design and hand-letter. The joy of doing it this way for me is being able to meditate and reflect on this one verse... even memorizing it... as I move through the process from sketch to finished color.

I've been reading and studying from the same NIV Bible for over 30 years... WOW... so you can just imagine what it looks like... well-worn to the point of literally falling apart! So when I discovered this new Bible designed with wide side margins for journaling I knew it was time to lay aside the old for something new.

After doing my homework, I chose the ESV Single Column Journaling Bible published by Crossway. I already own lots of study Bibles in different translations and versions... but my go-to Bible has always been my NIV with no study aids at all. Sadly I couldn't find a journaling Bible I liked in my version of choice but I'm getting used to and loving the ESV now... so all is well!

There are as many different styles of art journaling as there are women and personalities... and so it should be! If you are Bible journaling or thinking about it... just stay true to yourself! Be inspired by others but always do what makes your own heart sing! I hope mine will inspire you but don't feel like you have to look like me. If you love scrapbooking... go for it! If you want to simply highlight verses or write down Sunday's sermon notes or what God is speaking to your heart... just do it!

Mine... at least for now... is all about hand-lettering and design. That's who I am. That's what I love to do... and it makes my heart happy.

Bottom line... it's not about the style you choose... but it's about using your journaling as an instrument of worship... time spent reflecting on and responding to God's love for you and your love for Him... allowing His Word to soak into your soul during your Bible journaling moments. First and foremost it's between you and your Lord. Amen.

So regarding tools... I'm pretty simple really. I start with a normal #2 pencil, Kneaded Eraser, and of course... those cute little handy dandy close up glasses I can't live without these days. If you're not familiar with a kneaded eraser... it's soft and pliable and can be formed into shapes that allow you to erase fine lines and small space. It's also fun to play with... you just keep kneading it like bread and it envelops your graphite into itself... keeping it clean as you go along. I like it for Bible Journaling because the pages are fragile and this eraser is gentle but effective.

I generally do a light sketch first... either directly on the page or in my gridded sketchbook and then on the page.  I look for key words and divisions in the verse that allow me to break it up into pieces... which is also beneficial when you're meditating on a verse as well. I then play with ways to highlight them with banners or borders, etc.

Once I like the layout... I use my Micron Pens to ink over my sketch... starting with the 005... and then erase the pencil lines and begin to add the fun details with the larger point microns. I also use a white Gel Pen to add highlights and whiten up certain words to make them pop.

Then it's all about the color. Even though I'm excited about trying watercolors and markers in the future... I'm just having way to much fun with colored pencils right now. So my favorite colored pencils are Prismacolors because they are soft, the colors are clear and rich, and they layer and blend beautifully.

This is my favorite color palette at the moment. Aren't they gorgeous? And perfect for layering colors until I get the effect I'm loving.

TIP: One thing I have discovered is that I can tend to press a little too hard with the colored pencils thus leaving indentations on the page below so I've started slipping a piece of cardstock in between the pages at this stage.

I might add a little more white gel pen as a finishing touch... and ta-da... I have my finished design and more importantly... I have had some wonderful time delighting in the Lord and in His Word. 

And since my word for this year is "CHANGE" and we are transformed by the renewing of our minds... I'm trusting the Lord to do a good work in my heart and life throughout this year as I spend this extra time with Him.

Well... I know this has been a long post but I hope you've enjoyed it.  For more inspiration and information about Bible Journaling just google Bible Journaling and maybe even join the Journaling Bible Community on FB... I'm already there. 

Love you and bless you... in the Name of Jesus!

A Fresh Start...

 A CLEAN SLATE... A NEW JOURNEY...

For as long as I can remember I have loved celebrating the new year. Maybe it's because the whole idea of new beginnings and fresh starts has been so important in my life. I've recently had reason to look back prior to this last year and reflect on some huge turning point moments in my past... where God has turned the page of my life story and begun a new chapter.. and I've been greatly inspired and encouraged by these memories. Our God truly is a God of second chances and clean slates and I've been reminded, once again, that God's mercies are new every morning... and every moment of every day... we just need to be willing to embrace them.

As we walk into this new year, we have no idea what awaits us... and personally, I'm believing God has something wonderful in store... for me... and for you! I'm looking forward to it... and I hope you are too. So let the journey begin 2015... a new adventure is about to unfold!

FREE "LET THE JOURNEY BEGIN" DOWNLOAD... 

One of my prayers for this year is to be a greater blessing and encouragement to you as we journey through this new year with the Lord together. Seeing and embracing the year ahead as a journey... a faith walk with God through the good and not so good... intentionally seeking to be all He has designed us to be in the midst of the ordinary and extraordinary... this is my desire for 2015 and I hope it's yours as well. 

So I want you to have this little "Let the Journey Begin" art as a FREE DOWNLOAD. Use it however you like... color it and put it in your art journal or scrapbook... or just tuck in your Bible... use it on the cover of your this year's journal or make it into a magnet for your fridge or file cabinet. I pray it is a blessing!

I printed mine on watercolor paper and colored it with Prismacolor watercolor pencils... but you could color yours with paint, colored pencils or crayons... or not color it at all! Just have fun with it and make it yours and let it encourage you to look forward to whatever God has in store!

Bible Journaling and loving it...

Bible Journaling is a new adventure for me. I kept seeing these journaling Bibles popping up on FB and finally ordered one for myself... which was perfect timiing since the Bible I use the most is over 20 years old and falling apart... literally! I am hoping to be able to create one page layout a week and share them with you here. And next week I'll share all the info about what kind of Bible and supplies I'm using... so stay tuned!

You can see the ones I've done so far on my FaceBook page here.

A FEW OF MY 2015 GOALS...

I've always been a list maker and goal setter... it simply helps me to be more intentional about what I do with my days and my life. Over the years... some goals have been reached... some God has replaced with better things... and some are still waiting to be marked off the list!!

As I began to work on my 2015 goals list a couple of weeks ago... God made it very clear to me that a few of my goals were outward only and His desire was for me to understand that these changes I so long for needed to happen from the inside out... starting with my heart, thoughts and attitudes. So SURRENDER has made it's way to the top of my goal list and with that I seem to be more confident than ever that this could be an overcoming year!

Like many of you... I want to be stronger and healthier and just more fit... thus this great spinach quiche breakfast this morning. Love that we could eat a couple for breakfast and save the leftovers for lunch tomorrow. It's a winner recipe I'm adding to this year's healthy meals repertoire! Yum! 

Some of my other goals for this year include:
1. more consistent blogging... hopefully at least once a week :-)
2. creating one new coloring book... maybe two
3. finding an exercise I truly enjoy
4. creating enough new art for a 2016 calendar... 
5. traveling to more art shows across the country
          (maybe one in your neck of the woods!)
6. taking some online workshops... I love learning
7. and going kayaking... it's still on my bucket list
          (so glad I got to mark ziplining off the list last year... yay!)

SO HOW ABOUT YOU...
Are you a goal setter?  What are you looking forward to most this year?
Did you download the "Let the Journey Begin" art?
      If so... what will you do with it?
Do you keep a journal? Art journal? Writing journal? Bible Journal?

BLESSINGS TO YOU...
And I look forward to walking this journey with you through 2015... to see what God wants to do in us and through us... for His glory and the blessing of those around us!  Love and God-hugs...