Here's my Common Place Book

 for April...

As with every month, I started out with an intentions page - focusing on Scripture and a quote, as well as things I'm grateful for...

Some happenings from week one -

Finished up IF Forever Redeemd and opposite page --> a photo of 7 year old me with a quote that kinda made me think of her... 

I know I'm quirky and I'm so happy my family accepted me for who I am.

Week two: busy, good, fun.

Again, some quotes I've seen played out IRL by some peripheral people around me, who may or may not have kids... just sayin'...

Memories of my mama 

around Easter time. 

Lots of tip-ins on week 3...

[Fold-out partial pages taped in...]

Sisterhood of the Traveling Journal 

pages from zooming with my Kansas friends...

[None of us are from Kansas - ha.]

An ode to Earth Day -

painted over art from the internets...

Week Four - a good week.

Wish we could've been with Matt on his birthday...

Scripture Writing 

Still in Romans...

And last week -

Another good week - 

Happy May everyone!

Looking back, I realized

 that I missed the way I've art journaled in the past...

So I'm getting back to that a bit this year - 

Some I've already shared with you....

Some I'll probably never share 

HA - but it's the TRUTH because I think an art journal can be a place to work through all the feels - ups and downs - that this old world throws at us. 

 

When I'm playing in my art journal I almost always 

end up talking with God as I process things...

So here's some from this month - 

Maybe it'll inspire you to use art to connect with your own feelings a bit...

Maybe you'll see that art can be a way to connect with God... 

My work is nothing special - just a little paint and bits and bobs from the art desk...

 but it's relaxing to me...

and helps me slow down and feel God's peace...

So my devotional plan

for 'Seek Life' is kinda a combo of art / Bible journaling.

I'm using a journal from Kelly Rae Roberts that I've been saving for a bit...

I'm writing prayers under the pain that I add to the page

or under the 'library card'...

 And  you may have noticed I'm doing a few things the same

 each week to bring the pages together...

The library card for the scripture - 

Doodling around the title of the weekly devotional - 

Stamping the main thought [to me] on different page colors then cutting them out before I put on the page - and 

adding a some washi [houses and colors.]

as I read the devotional about hope - and the scripture -

"I pray that our God of hope will fill you completely with joy and peace becasue you trust him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the Holy Spirit." 

-- Romans 15:13 --

Jesus told us life on earth would not be easy...

but He also promised The Spirit -- HIS SPIRIT -- would never leave us.

The song 

My life is in You Lord

My strength is in You Lord

My hope is in You Lord

just kept playing in my head  as I was reading... 

becasue I've had some troubled times in my life [we all have -] 

and I KNOW that God has walked me through them.

He is my hope

that there is peace in the midst of the storms life brings us -

 

Winter describes her devotional this way:"I want us leaning full tilt into the life God desires for us. Lives filled with joy and satisfaction where He has placed us. Full of hope and ready to shower that hope on those around us, with hearts full of Jesus and the knowing that He is enough."

I'm enjoying experimenting

 with different ways to complete some of the many 

devotionals available over at Illustrated Faith...

Y'all know I am an art journaler, faith journaler, Bible journaler...

And there are lots of ways I do this...

And lots of reasons too...

Art Journaling calms me.

[Ask anyone who lives with me daily and they'll agree, life is better 

if I have a bit of time alone with Art each day.]

 

Faith Art / Bible Journaling centers me -

Creating as I study the Bible, or listen to praise songs, or read devotionals helps me focus on God's goodness in this crazy world we live in...

This month I'm really enjoying the devotional 'Speak Life' by Winter Lawson.

The first week is about speaking life into our fears - 

Speaking God's Word over the fears and anxieties we face each day - 

And trusting that God will walk with us through every joy and trial and valley and mountaintop and tragedy that life sets before us.

The devotional is available at Illustrated Faith -

Winter describes her devotional this way: "I want us leaning full tilt into the life God desires for us. Lives filled with joy and satisfaction where He has placed us. Full of hope and ready to shower that hope on those around us, with hearts full of Jesus and the knowing that He is enough."

Come join us!

OMGOODNESS. Y'all.

 I had the most wonderful opportunity 

to attend the Illustrated Faith Gratitude Retreat 

at the Whatever House out in Kansas!

 

And I had a blast!

And look! There's the rainbow stairs! 

Every little space in this house is designed to spark creativity  -

and point people to Jesus.

We enjoyed working on a few different projects together...

Had excelent meals prepared by Tiffany...

and enjoyed some shopping at the cute little shops downtown...

I went in not knowing anyone there

[well, I'd met Shanna a couple of times before]

and came out with some pretty sweet new friends!

[Matching PJs - so fun!]

 

There's just something wonderful about getting together with creative women 

who love the Lord and seek Him daily. 

In fact, my table buddies are still zooming together monthly 

as I write this months later...

Thank you - THANK YOU to Shanna and Tiffany 

for being such excellent hostesses!

 

Seriously - it was the sweetest weekend 

and just what my soul needed.

[Plus, I have to say... I used points, so my airfare was only $11. YAY!!]

Here's the little book

I'm using for my art journal this year...

I think it's a wellness planner of some sort

that I got at a discount at the end of the year...

I like this size best for art journaling [about 6x8 ish-]

 

I looked back at the art journal tag above and could see that I had grand plans to do a little re-cap at the end of each month for 2022... 

And well, looks like that ended in February...

I think partly because my pages aren't completed in any sort of chronological order...

and they're not always dated... so it's hard for me to know what was completed in any given month...

And I leave these blank pages throughout 

that I go back and fill in at all different times... 

The base of each page is either two pages glued together... or another type paper [or collage] glued onto a page for added stability...

 

I also have fold-out pages all through my journal as seen here...

This gives me a little more space when needed...

 

And I try to use both sides of the fold-out too..

This is a handout from VBS, back in June... with a bit of art added to the side sometime in July...

So - there are times when my art journaling reflects things going on in my life... And other pages may be a 'lesson' from the year long art journaling class I'm enrolled in... 

[This will be painted in eventually...lol...]

Or it might just be my take on something I've seen on the internet...

And sometimes it's a quick little something-something 

I've done somewhere else and glued it - ha...

You can see I'm all over the place in my art journal...

But that's what an art journal is all about [to me -]

A place to play and have a little fun with art...

 I kinda love my cats that don't take up a whole page... 

but I'm waiting for just the right quote for them...

 And it's okay if they stay just like they are... 

Time will tell....

Here's a quick re-cap

 of my art journal this month - 

Remember it's a mixture of Life Book 2022, Faith Journaling, 

and just WHATEVER...

Let's go -->

Inspired from a devotion / study I did... 

Created both in my Bible and in my art journal...

This is from the Compassion devotional @IllustratedFaith.

I just cut it out and put it in my journal - I love the graphic look of it.

 [I added the heart...]

A lot of my art journal pages are just collecting my thoughts...

And lessons from Life Book  - 

I really haven't mastered the side turned face yet... 

[She's not supposed to be looking at you...]

Inspired by a short study on Jonah with #MeetingHimintheMargins

On top of a half page fold out...

 And again... just some thoughts...

- Art inspired by the internets...

Where do you 'go' when you're 

in a stressful situation and need to relax you mind?

[Life Book Lesson]

 And here's a combination of the Life Book Lesson and

a quote from CS Lewis that was shared in

 When Strivings Cease [Ruth Chou Simons]

 This year I've decided to include lots of tip-ins and fold-outs in my art journal... 

and of course my crazy wonky art...lol...

 

And quotes I see that 'speak' to me...

 

This is from our study on prayer in #MeetingHimintheMargins 

 

...Life Book lesson

Little things that make me happy -

[This is a two and a half page fold out...]

 Inspired by a Sunday School Lesson this month...

In my Bible...

And yes, I do pages to ENCOURAGE me with

my ever present struggle with my weight...

[It's on my phone so I see this reminder 

ALL - DAY - EVERY - DAY

ha.

Hope you enjoyed seeing a bit into my crazy mind...

And maybe it inspired you to dive into art a bit too!