I have been searching for quotes about doors closing and other doors opening. While I found loads of them, they all seem to suggest that the door that is opening is far better than the one closing.

I don't feel that way.

I see it as just a different direction or path.

It is already obvious to anyone who has been here before, that this little blog is neglected.

My life changed directions last April.

I was offered a job.

I haven't worked (outside the home) in 16 years.

It was a GREAT thing. I was already doing the job for a year or so, and the position was created officially in April.

Simultaneously, I began to rekindle my love for serious photography.

I spent many years during college studying and practicing photography.

I thought when the digital age came there was no place for my darkroom love.

So for the past 2 years, I have been re-learning and re-discovering all the things I love about photography.

So my focus has shifted.

I still have a few stamp sets but I won't sell them anymore.

The business of Artsy Faith has closed.

I will still participate in Bible Art Journaling because I love it and it feeds me. I just won't be offering anything for sale.

Be encouraged to keep doing what you love, and I am thankful for all of the wonderful opportunities and experiences I have been blessed with.

Psalm 23 Artsy Faith Stamp Set

Here it is! You have seen the pin on pinterest and now the original artwork has been turned into a stamp for you to use in your own Journaling Bible!

The stamp is one stamp of 7 stacked overflowing teacups.

The stamp is made from high-quality photopolymer and is specially designed to work in the margin of your Journaling Bible.

While it was designed to work specifically in the margin of a Journaling Bible, it works great to use when making bookmarks, cards, or scrapbook pages.

You can purchase yours HERE

Keep in mind that I produce stamps in small batches. 

I am a one woman operation and enjoy what I do. 

Once the sets are gone they are gone. 

As always, I appreciate your support and business.

His Timing Isn't Always Our Timing

When I started Bible Art Journaling...

more than a year ago, I jumped in 100%! I was all in and it filled all of my free time. It seemed to me that I had found my perfect marriage of my faith and my need to be creative. As I created more and more, I was asked to teach a class. I did and made it available online so that anyone could create keepsakes of their own cherished verses. 

The stamp line came about because one of the ladies in the class asked if there were stamps available instead of doing the hand lettering. At that time, there  weren't any in the market place. I began to research what it would take to make a stamp line designed specifically for the margin of a journaling Bible. Over several months I began to put together what is now Artsy Faith. I had a plan for 25 stamp sets. I had hoped to produce 5 in my first year. This is the first place where my initial plan did not work with God's plan. 

First it took many more months than I had planned to get that first stamp set out. I had to learn about how to produce artwork for stamp production. It was frustrating but it was part of the process. Doing this in my free time also delayed the process. Eventually, I produced my first set.

Next, I had to learn how to get my stamps seen. I don't have a marketing degree and I think this part is harder than the stamp production! I am still learning. Eventually, I started to see steady sales and was able to produce a second set.

This second set was not what I had planned to produce, but I listened to those who purchased, and set out to give them what they wanted.

The first set is nearly sold out and I am waiting on the manufacturer on my third set. So what happened in between? Why such a long time between sets? Well, during all of this time I was also doing volunteer work at my church.-creative work to help improve our branding, website, slides and that sort of thing. After returning from a trip abroad, I was offered a part-time position on staff at our church! I was humbled and elated to be able to continue doing what I was doing! So at this point my free time became nearly non-existent as I transitioned to working part-time. It has been a blessing and I think it will add to what I am doing with Artsy Faith. 

I have continued to create verses in my Journaling Bible, I just haven't had the time to keep up with the blog. I am hoping to change that during the summer months. What I have learned during this time is that I have to listen to the Lord and let Him guide me. So while I am not as far along in my Artsy Faith as I had planned, I have a job that I never dreamed of -or thought possible! I have been so blessed by both experiences. 

I wanted to share this to explain why everything slowed down. I am still here. A new set should be available in July, and another in late August. 

The next set will be a set that is made from this artwork:

The next release will be a set that is made from this artwork:

This set will have 4 stamps: the branch, the hive with the verse, a bee, and bee trail.

If there is something you would like to see in a stamp set, please let me know. 

If you are on my email list, you will get notification of the new stamp sets before they go on sale. 

I really do appreciate your support and hope that these sets will help you create meaningful verses in your own Journaling Bible.

I hope to be posting once a week. If there are topics or techniques you would like to see, please leave me a comment. 

This verse I did as a reminder of the forces that work against us. There was a time when I did not believe in an enemy. After I accepted Christ, I still wasn't sure about how the devil worked in my life. I ended up reading CS Lewis' The Screwtape Letters and then it became clear how the enemy had been at work in my life. I wanted to do this verse to keep me grounded in truth and fully aware of the things that can't be seen.

I sketched it in pencil, used micron pen for the verse, and watercolor paint for the "force field" and darkness. I used a heat gun on a low setting to dry the paint and that allowed me to layer on a bit more paint to intensify it in some areas.

Thanks for stopping by! Have a blessed day!

Back to the Blog -found something so cute!

I saw the cutest custom Journaling Bible that had a hand painted monogram and hand lettered tabs. It was adorable and it was $95. 

While I think the price is right considering the cost of the Bible and the time to hand letter and hand paint...

I knew it was something I could do myself. 

The timing was perfect too. I have a friend that asked me to re-create some of my Bible pages so that she could mat & frame them and offer them in an auction. 

(When I have details on the auction, I will be sure to post)

So I ordered an extra Bible that I could cut pages out of and use for this purpose.

They were so inexpensive on Amazon, I ordered two!

And that is when I found this adorable custom monogram with tabs.

I decided I would try it out on my Bible that I am cutting the pages out of.

And so this post is the result.

I started with paper.

I had ordered 2 packs of this garden themed paper from Stampin' Up! I loved that it had black in it (works well for the cover), it is two-sided (24 prints), and there is matching washi tape!

I found a font that I could use to guide my drawing

I sketched my J using a white pencil

and then I painted it using white acrylic paint.

While that was drying I began punching out my tabs using Stampin' Up! decorative label punch

I cut them using a paper trimmer 

and then began hand lettering the tabs

This part I did in stages. I did some of these and then would take a break and paint. I went back and forth between the two until I finished.

I used Stampin' Up! re-inkers to tint white acrylic paint

I used paint brushes and toothpicks to paint and add detail.

I used the low-setting on my heat tool to dry in between layers.

I have been missing my blog and am happy to post again. I  was in India last month and went to see Beth Moore LIVE not long after I returned (this month) so I haven't been home much and now I am trying to catch up with life.

I have missed my Bible Art Journaling and was super excited to do this project.

Happy Easter to you all!

2 Corinthians 10:4

I started out doing 2 Cor 10:5-6 and ended up instead with verse 4

For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds.

I had a day of struggle... again. Friends, I am flawed and some days more flawed than others.

On the day I started this I was trying to get my emotions in check.

and this verse just really helped me put things in perspective.

I have a verse on the next page and I worried that the watercolor paint would soak through, but it didn't. I used watercolor and heat set it quickly. I added a layer of white watercolor paint and heat set. I used colored pencils to help define edges and add some golden colors. I had to go over my lettering again. 

Hope y'all are finding verses that are meaningful to you and are exploring your creative side with your faith! You don't have to be an "artist" to love your journaling Bible!

If you need a little help with your lettering or banners, Artsy Faith has two stamp sets available to help you Bible Art Journal CLICK HERE

Be encouraged my friends!

Psalm 51:10

This week I had a day where I was struggling with those around me.

I was super frustrated.

Some of it was my own condition and doing.

All I could do was reach for this Scripture.

I drew the verse and inked it and then wanted color like inviting water.

I inked it but didn't like the results. It looked like a muddy river and I wanted a sparkling pool.

I used some water color paints and it ended up closer to what I wanted.

I had to re ink the lettering.

Some days this is all I can pray.

And then I am thankful that I have these words to pray for strength and encouragement.

God knows each heart

and knows just how to reach and comfort each heart

Blows my mind

that He loves me like that!

I Belong to God | 1 Corinthians 6:19-20

I had a post written out for this one and it was lost.

I am having one of those days.

But at the end of the day, I belong to God!

I did this one to go with the 1st verse I did on our identity in Christ.

You can see the original post HERE

This one is on the left hand side of the page and the other verse is on the right hand side.

This was colored with colored pencils.

God With Us

In December we studied Jesus' birth in Sunday school. And at the same time I began reading a book on the names of God.

God With Us.

It reminded me of one of my favorite verses in Genesis 3 

v.8 And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool^c of the day

That is God with them for sure.

I find such comfort in the verse and the name. 

Happy 2016!

2 Corinthians 5:17

Another simple verse done without any planning....I just did it!

I have done this verse twice before but I keep going back to it.

I love butterflies and I love that they transform so completely and beautifully!

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.[a] The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

Genesis 22:2

So this one didn't turn out like I had it in my head.

I am posting anyway.

I made the mistake of using a charcoal pencil to draw out my picture.

It got muddy and icky when I colored it.

So why post it?

Well, because it is real. Not all of my creations are pin-worthy. LOL

I had this image in my head and I really had it great in my head. 

Not long ago I heard someone talk about the principle of first mention. Our speaker asked us if we knew the first question in the Bible. I knew that one because I love the first part of the verses..

And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool3 of the day, and the man and his wife bhid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the Lord God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?”

I love the thought of God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, but missed the all important first question in the Bible!

Where are you?

God wants to know where you are. Not in the sense that He is unaware of your location but He wants to draw you to Him!

Where are you?

So that was the first thing she talked about and then she asked us if we knew when the first mention of the word Love was?

Genesis 22:2

He said, “Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.”

The first use of the word LOVE comes when God asks for the sacrifice of an only son -the same manner in which sacrifice is made for sin atonement.

My picture may not be very good but I don't care. The message is powerful enough to make up for my lack of skills :-)

1 John 5:18 I am Born of God and the Evil One Cannot Touch Me

 My identity in Christ says,

I am born of God, and the evil one cannot touch me.

I really like the way that one sounds!

This one is a bit messy. I don't remember what was going on but it was a bit chaotic in my house. I used Artsy Faith Banners & Pennants stamps (you can see HERE) and hand lettered the rest.

The messy coloring was with my crayola colored pencils.

It is a great message about who we are in Christ no matter how you color it!

Be blessed today and may you be a blessing to others! 

Artsy Faith Banners & Pennants (The Alison) Stamp Set

So this is what I have been up to these last couple of months. I know there are other suppliers of things for Bible Art Journaling, and they are doing amazing things, but I am a one woman outfit and I am a wife and mom first. 

I love doing this. I love creating things that will help others enjoy the process of Bible Art Journaling!

This set, like our other set, is $12+tax and shipping.

You can see BOTH sets HERE

Thank you all for your kind words and support!

Wishing you a very blessed and Merry Christmas!

What Have I Been Doing?

I have still been creating verses, but not in my journaling Bible. 

I have been creating digital slides.

Some of them have been for church...

Others were just for me...

The one below I created this morning after my quiet time

This is one of the first ones I did after one of our deacons shared a story about a sign in the locker room. He said something to the effect of: you have tried drinking, chasing women, drugs, you have tried everything else and still feel empty why not try God? 

I changed it to Jesus. 

and this one I did for my friend, Nan, I thought I would give her a print:

I think until the holidays are over my "artwork" will be digital.

I do have a pinterest board with digital Bible verse art:

https://www.pinterest.com/ArtsyFaith5/digital-artsy-faith/

I have a little blog that I use to keep them all in one place:

http://visualfaith.blogspot.com/

OH and I wanted to share with you something I found the other day. For those of you who like the idea of Bible art journaling but struggle with the art part of it:

http://www.amazon.com/Inspire-Bible-NLT-Creative-Journaling/dp/1496413741/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1449155684&sr=8-1&keywords=inspire+bible

It looks so cool and right now it is priced well below retail during the pre-order time. It won't be released until Feb 2016

1 Corinthians 6:19-20 I Belong to God

Hey there! Long time no posting. So yesterday was my birthday and it was wonderful. Today was a fabulous day at church and I am so thankful for both that I thought I would post on a Sunday even though I don't typically do so.

I love a good Bible Study. I am usually involved in a formal study with a ladies group. We usually have something going in our Life Group (aka Sunday School). Pastor has a series of lessons each week in church. AND I usually feel led to explore a theme or book on my own. So for the foreseeable future I will be sharing verses from one of those areas of study.

Today's verse comes from my personal study of our identity in Christ.

I had a conversation with a good friend and she was talking about what the Bible says about who we are in Christ. As I thought about this I remember thinking do I really know what the Bible says about my identity in Christ? hmmmm

Then my friend said, "And if we know what the Bible says about our identity in Christ, do we believe it?"

WOW - knowing vs. believing. There is a difference. I heard a sermon by Matt Chandler and he said you can know something without it being followed by action but if you believe something it shows in your actions.

Hmmmmm do I believe what the Bible says about who I am in Christ?

And then my friend said, "Do your behaviors line up with that belief in who the Bible says we are in Christ?"

Wowser!

Or do we allow habits and emotional baggage to conceal who we are in Christ?

So, I looked up what the Bible had to say about my identity. I used my friend's three questions as a guide starting with What does the Bible say about our identity in Christ.

I prayed about and read a lot of verses and statements. I ended up with 21 related to this first question with this first verse being the bedrock.

I Belong to God

You are not your own for you were bought with a price. 

I started thinking about slavery and how people were purchased in exchange for money and without a say in where they were going or what they were going to do. Only their master knew.

I made a choice to accept the price Jesus paid for me that allows me to belong to God. 

Now am I willing to live like I belong to Him? Am I willing to go where He wants me to go? Am I willing to do what He wants me to do?

He paid the price.

Okay, y'all, I had big plans to post this month and it just hasn't happened. Truth is, I am a wife, mother, and daughter before anything else and this month those roles have demanded more time than normal. There have been oral surgeries, visits to the doctors to see if fingers are broken, husband traveling, and helping parents get to doctor appointments and whatever else was needed. I have also been finishing up a new stamp set that should be ready within a week or two.

I am thankful that I have a sweet husband, wonderful children, and supporting loving parents.

My birthday is coming up in a few days, and I really want to have a verse done for my birthday!

Here's hoping
While I haven't been able to do what I had hoped this month, I have still spent each day thinking about what I am thankful for.

I think Gratitude falls into three areas: Spiritual, Big Life Things, and all the little things.

God

God's love for us

God's Word

Family

The Church

My church family

Our Home

Our health

All the things we have that make life comfortable

Friends

smell of a clean house

gentle rain on a spring day

coffee in the morning

children laughing

a good night sleep

lazy morning

a good movie

a great book

books

hugs

a good meal with good friends

Life isn't easy, but it is sweet.

Thanks for understanding.

1 John 1:4

“We delight to praise what we enjoy because the praise not merely expresses but completes the enjoyment; it is its appointed consummation. It is not out of compliment that lovers keep on telling one another how beautiful they are; the delight is incomplete till it is expressed.”   -C.S. Lewis

"...the delight is incomplete till it is expressed."

I read this quote months ago and was struck at how impactful that last bit is.

When I came upon this verse (1 John 1:4) I felt certain that it must have been the source of inspiration for the C.S. Lewis quote. Now, I don't know that to be true but it certainly is in the same vein. It also hit me how very true this is for me! I simply cannot be contented to hold good news close. The things that bring me great joy, I have to share. This verse is why I started this blog. Bible Art Journaling has brought me such joy, but it felt incomplete without sharing it with EVERYONE I come in contact with! So, I am writing these things so that my JOY may be complete!

I am thankful for expressed Joy.

I created this page using painters tape run through my big shot with an alphabet die. I adhered the letters to the page and used watercolor pencils around the letters. I added water and it got a bit muddy where the colors met. Once it dried, I went over the whole thing with regular colored pencils. By adding the colored pencils I was able to brighten the colors and help the blending. I added some shading to the painter's tape letters. 

I didn't do anything fancy with the rest of the lettering -just my own handwriting. I love doing interesting lettering in the margin, but there is a time and place for a more relaxed way of creating my favorite verses.

Wishing you a blessed and joy-filled day!

1 Peter 3:15

but gin your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, halways being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and irespect,

I love this verse. It came as a bit of a shock the first time it registered with me. It is loaded and heavy. I don't mean that in a bad way but I think of it like a lawyer preparing for a trail. A good lawyer has to prepare an argument. They have to think of the arguments the other lawyer may make and prepare to answer them. That is a responsibility we each have-that is the heavy part. But smack dab in the middle of that responsibility is HOPE. Be prepared to explain why you have such HOPE in you. 

Share with others why and how you carry such HOPE within you.

Isn't it beautiful?

I LOVE this verse and the duty it charges us with. 

I am grateful for the HOPE I have because of Jesus. 

I created this page very simply because I was trying out something and I wasn't sure how it would turn out. I used painters tape and cut out the letters for HOPE using my big shot and an alphabet die. I adhered them to the page and colored my sunset. I removed the painters tape and added some shadows to the letters. 

What are you thankful for today? 

What are some of your favorite verses that express your thankfulness?