Sometimes, I get so caught up in doing Bible journaling devotionals that I forget to use other supplies in my stash. I am caught up in a theme or color scheme and get hyper-focused on using those supplies. That is one of the reasons I love journaling sermon notes in my Bible. Not only does it allow me to reflect on the sermon and the lessons I learned, but it allows me to use supplies that I love and haven’t reached for in a while.
We recently started a new sermon series on “Tiny Books of the Bible”. The focus is on the 10 shortest books of the Bible and how God often packs big messages in small packages. Such a great study! We often overlook these shorter books and opt for longer ones like Romans or Isaiah. But, the shorter books of the Bible have a lot of great wisdom in them too! This week, we focused on the book of Philemon.
The book of Philemon is written by Paul during one of his many imprisonments. It is a letter to his friend and fellow minister, Philemon, who lives in Colossae. In all likely hood, it came near or around the same time as the letter that makes up Colossians. Paul’s main charge to Philemon involves a runaway slave, Onesimus, who has now become a brother in Christ. Paul offers a significant “test” for the early church. Did Christ really change everything? Would Philemon, a fellow minister, be able to overlook and forgive the betrayal of his slave? Would he not only forgive him but regard him as a brother in Christ when the culture would advise him to offer only severe punishment?
For this page, I had several facts and questions that I wanted to include, and decided to incorporate them in a different way. Using a hexagon cut-out that I created using my Silhouette Cameo, I created a honeycomb pattern on the page. It had a very organic look and allowed me to create several small journaling areas, instead of including all of my journaling in one list.
I opted for a favorite paper collection of mine, Auburn Lane, to create the color scheme and mood of the page. It definitely has a fall, vintage feel, which I absolutely love. I cut out several hexagons from the paper pad and used them to fill in a few of the shapes on my page. For the other hexagons, I blended Distress Oxide inks with colored pencils to get some color down on the page. The soft, fuzzy effect complimented the Auburn Lane papers really nicely.
To complete the art on the page, I chose several ephemera pieces from the Auburn Lane collection. Some of them I trimmed to fit in the hexagons as if they were “trapped” in the shape. Others flowed from the cluster of hexagons with a very organic feel. So fun to get to use some of my favorite pieces in my Bible journaling! Do they relate specifically to the lesson from the sermon? No. But, I did enjoy using them as I reflected on the take-aways. Bible journaling is not always literal. What is does for me is calm my mind, soothe my spirit, and allow me to connect to the Word in a whole new way. And, anything that gives me a new, different way to approach Bible study is worth it!
I wrapped up the page by filling in the empty hexagons with journaling notes. I summarized the main points, listed out cross references, and took note of some of the deeper questions posed during the sermon. Since Philemon is such a short book, it really helps to have all of these reflections on one page, directly in my Bible!
What sermon series are going on at your church? I’d love to hear about them…let me know in the comments below!
Keep it creative,
-The Scrappy Wife
Sermon Series – https://www.columbiabaptist.org/media-and-resources/sermons?series=tiny-books-of-the-bible-big-things-in-small-packages
Supplies: (Some of these are affiliate links…thanks in advance for supporting my channel!)
- Illustrating Bible
- Auburn Lane Paper Collection
- Auburn Lane Ephemera – Can’t find these anywhere!!!
- Distress Oxide Ink (Victorian Velvet)
- Distress Oxide Ink (Iced Spruce)
- Distress Oxide Ink (Tea Dye)
- Prismacolor Colored Pencils