What a Powerful Name It Is!

It’s a brand new year, and if most of us would admit it, there is something we are all envisioning….perfection. Of course, that is a ridiculous notion, but the beginning of a new year certainly sets the stage for our mind to wander to all the potential of what the year might hold. Could it be the perfect year? Will this be the year my children start obeying everything I say? Will I get a promotion or finally land my dream job? Will this be the year we buy new carpet for the upstairs and not a single stain lands on it? (Haha, maybe that last one is just my wishful thinking…)

We are all aware that perfection just does not exist here on this earth. God gives us glimpses of the perfection that we will experience in heaven – in passing moments, in warm rays of sunshine, and in the twinkle in a child’s eye. Those wonderful glimpses help to grow our hope in what is to come.

I began my Bible journaling this year by journaling Day 1 of the By the Well 4 God devotional called “I Am”. This devotional promises to “explore the seven “I Am” statements, and the seven signs, so that we may know with the same assurance of John, that Jesus is the Christ and the unique Son of God. And in so knowing, that we may have life in His name!”. Day 1 jumped right in to the beginning of John and his use of the “perfect” number 7 as disciples and followers began to recognize Jesus as the Messiah. Throughout John 1:29-51, John identifies seven different names that others call Jesus: Lamb of God, Rabbi, Messiah, Jesus of Nazareth, Son of God, King of Israel, and Son of Man. I love beginning the year with the reminder that no matter what name we use, Jesus is the Messiah, the only perfect human to walk this earth, who sacrificed it all for us. He knows that we will never experience the perfection we dream of here on earth, but He stands in our place so that we can experience it in heaven.

As I began journaling, my mind drifted toward Jesus and the facets of his character that are embodied in each of those names. And, what truly powerful names they are! I started with the stamp set “Cup of Life” from BTW4G, knowing that I just had to use that coffee cup! I mean if I need caffeine to start off every day, how much more do I need Jesus?

I was nervous to stamp directly into my Bible with the new stamp, so I decided to stamp on white cardstock and embellish from there. I stuck with blue tones in the embellishments in order to match the color scheme of the kit. I used metallic watercolor on the top of the coffee cup to give it a beautiful sheen and to add a touch more of light blue. The finishing touch for the coffee cup was using Tim Holtz’s Distress Oxide “Vintage Photo” around the edges, to create a more worn look.

Its always important to anchor die-cuts, so they are not just “floating” aimlessly on the page. I chose to add some coffee rings using another stamp from the same set and also in the same “Vintage Photo” color. I threw in some of the watercolor floral die-cuts included with the kit, because they are so beautiful, and really helped anchor my coffee cup. A little fabric washi tape from my collection, placed in three places around the page, added just enough texture to an otherwise flat page.

One of my favorite add-ons to order from By the Well 4 God are their alpha stickers. I always order clear alphas and tile alphas that match every kit and they come in so handy! I used those alphas to add the title to my page, using a mixture of clear and tile to add some additional interest. I then boxed in all the names of Jesus that were identified in the passage and highlighted them using the same metallic water color that I used on the coffee cup. A quick listing of the names beneath my title and then the addition of the date, and my first journaling page of 2019 was in the books!