Keeping God's Word Fresh: a Guest Branch
/First posted June 2016:
It is an honor to introduce you to my next guest branch, LeighAnn Phillips.
LeighAnn is a young friend of our daughter and a military wife as well. About seven years ago, we met LeighAnn in a "random" (God-wink) visit to Sam's Club.
It was then that LeighAnn and her mom "Miss Margaret" gifted us with their friendship and fellowship. Our daughter and three-year-old grandson were with us while our son-in-law was deployed to Iraq for six months. "Miss Margaret" became Kaden's preschool teacher, and LeighAnn and her Bible study group of military wives were a support for our Beth.
So it is a great pleasure for me to invite LeighAnn to share her creative approach to meditation on the Scriptures. Thank you, LeighAnn, for allowing us to glimpse the Lord and His Word in a new way.
For the Word of God is living and active,
sharper than any two-edged sword,
piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow,
and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
Hebrews 4:12
Hi! My name is Leigh Ann Phillips. Janet asked me to guest post on her blog today about something I’ve been doing over the past year.
I am a Bible reader. I was raised a Christian. I love the Lord and Christians read the Bible and pray. I feel a little guilty if I am not reading the Bible.
If I want to keep my relationship with Jesus strong I need to keep the lines of communication open. We speak to God through prayer and He speaks to us through His Word and through the Holy Spirit.
Sometimes it can seem like a chore, however, so I’m always looking for ways to keep the Bible “living and active”.
I discovered a fun Bible last year. It’s called The ESV Journaling Bible. It has room on the sides to write notes or to draw or paint. I’ve always enjoyed drawing and painting as a hobby so what better way to elevate God’s Word!
Starting in Genesis I drew a picture for every page until I got to the begats. Then I skipped ahead to Psalms and have been drawing and painting almost every day since December. What a journey I’ve been on! Tothink of God’s word in a visual way has been so exciting for me. When I think of the verse “Be strong and courageous.” Joshua 1:9 I can visualize the lion I painted and I can feel God protecting me.
My artistic abilities have grown in this process and so have my art supplies. I’m hoping to fill every page and someday pass this Bible on to my children.
If this is something you may be interested in but you are not sure about your own artistic talent, I encourage you to buy a sketch book and give it a try. If you search Bible Journaling on Pinterest or Google Images, you’ll find plenty of inspiration. I’ll bet you’ll be surprised what you’re capable of!
