If you have a dream or desire in your heart that you have been hesitant to act on, then this Bible Journaling tutorial and devotional is for you.

 

For Jesus Christ, the Son of God, does not waver between “Yes” and “No.” He is the one whom Silas,^[f] Timothy, and I preached to you, and as God’s ultimate “Yes,” he always does what he says. ²⁰ For all of God’s promises have been fulfilled in Christ with a resounding “Yes!” And through Christ, our “Amen” (which means “Yes”) ascends to God for his glory. – 2 Corinthians 1:19-20 NLT

The light is GREEN, until God says STOP! Not RED, until God says GO.

This is a quote by Jan Greenwood that I wrote down in my journal, and then drew in my Bible, but which God has written on my heart. I knew I wanted to do a Bible journaling page for it.

Jan, author of Women at War,  imparted this truth as she spoke at the Declare Conference that I had the privilege of attending last July. (Read my recap of the event HERE.)

Declare Conference was so fabulous that I am planning to go again this year. Here are details on Declare Conference 2016 if you are interested in attending. It is the last weekend of July in Dallas, TX.

OK, back to my story…

Jan talked about how for a long time she was mad at God because she had these ideas and dreams in her heart and was waiting for God to tell her YES, go do them. Because she had been taught to wait on God and to not get ahead of God.

Then one day God finally revealed to her that…

The light is GREEN, until God says STOP! Not RED, until He says GO.

2 Corinthians says that Jesus is God’s ultimate YES, who always does what he says.
Through Jesus, God has already said YES to us…

• Yes, I love you!
  • Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us… – Ephesians 5:1-2 ESV
• Yes, you are my priest. Yes, I have called you.
  • You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light. – 1 Peter 2:9 NLT
• Yes, I am sending you.
  • Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations… – Matthew 28:19 NLT
• Yes, I created you to do good things.
  • For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. – Ephesians 2:10 NLT
• Yes, you will do great things.
  • “I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father.” – John 14:12 NLT
• Yes, I give you the desires of your heart.
  • Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you your heart’s desires. – Psalm 37:4 NLT
• Yes, I direct your steps.
  • The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives. – Psalm 37:23 NLT

So, friend, what are you waiting for?

Take action on that dream or desire of your heart today!

Because, most likely, God put that desire in your heart.

Don’t be afraid of missing God. If you have been delighting in Him, abiding in Him, and daily surrendering your will to His, and you still have that desire in your heart, then go for it! It’s the enemy who would love to keep you from starting.

If you start something that is not God’s will, He knows how to stop you because you know his voice.

Last summer I had a dream and desire to create and publish a Scripture coloring book, among other things. I was beginning to take action on my dreams when God clearly told me to lay my dream on the altar. I did not understand why, but I was obedient and surrendered my dream to him.

At the time, both of my adult children had just gotten engaged. They had not set dates yet, but were both wanting Spring weddings. Well, not long after I surrendered my dream, I found out my daughter set her wedding date for November, just a few short months away. I had no idea how much work planning a wedding would be, nor how much time and energy it would take. Then at Christmas my dad had a heart attack and was in the hospital several days. And then my son just got married in April. I believe God knew that I would have been very frustrated and stressed beyond what was necessary had I been trying to fulfill my dreams during that time. So, I am thankful that He loved me enough to ask me to do something, even though I didn’t understand why at the time.

Now that the weddings are behind us, I have felt the green light from God to move forward with my dream.

Consider Acts 16:6-7, which says: Next Paul and Silas traveled through the area of Phrygia and Galatia, because the Holy Spirit had prevented them from preaching the word in the province of Asia at that time. ⁷ Then coming to the borders of Mysia, they headed north for the province of Bithynia, but again the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them to go there.

You see, the apostles were not sitting around waiting on God. They started out, and then sometimes the LORD would stop them or redirect them.

So tell me in the comments below…

• What is your dream or a desire of your heart? (It could be as simple as to get started doing Bible journaling.)
• What is one action will commit to taking this week?
• What is one step of faith you can take toward your dreams and the desires of your heart?

OK. Enough preaching. Now on to the Bible Journaling tutorial…

I usually start out a Bible journaling page by sketching out a design in pencil on plain white copy paper. I decide which words I want to really stand out and draw those words either

• bigger or
• bolder or
• ALL CAPS
• or bigger AND bolder AND all caps.

>>> Notice the folds in the paper in the picture above. I fold my paper to make it the same dimensions of the margin in my Bible.
I also fold it down the middle to help me center my lettering and design. It is easier than drawing a line with a pencil and then having to erase it.

When I have my design like I like it, I will go over it again, either with pencil or with a black marker. Then I will place it under my Bible page and trace it onto the margin of my Bible page. Sometimes I will trace it using a pencil, but sometimes I will go ahead and trace it using a black pen.

If you are wondering why there is a Energizer battery in the picture, well it’s not for symbolism. Although, I suppose you could use it to make an analogy for this Bible journaling lesson. However, the real reason is simply this…

For the stop lights, I needed something to help me make a perfect circle, because I cannot draw a perfect circle. Who can??? So, I looked around my house to see what I could find. I found a AA battery and it was the perfect size. You see, it is not necessary to have lots of fancy tools in order to do Bible journaling. Just use what you already have in your house.

The next step in my Bible journaling process is to add color.

Here I added color using watercolor pencils. First I colored in the letters using the watercolor pencils just like you would use a regular colored pencil.

I created an ombre effect on some of the words by starting very light at the top of the letters and then pressing harder on my pencil towards the bottom of the letters.

Then I used my water brush to add a little bit of water. That’s it! Quite a simple page, really, but it sure helps burn this truth into my mind and heart.

Want more Bible journaling tutorials? Check out My First Bible Art Journaling Page.

Below are the Bible journaling supplies I used for this page.
 

Remember to tell me in the comments below…

• What is your dream or a desire of your heart? (It could be as simple as to get started doing Bible journaling.)
• What is one action will commit to taking this week?
• What is one step of faith you can take toward your dreams and the desires of your heart?

Joyfully,

 

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