Faith Journal

Here comes another mushy one. Can't help it! Mike and I are just so happy to have each other- I had to go for the obvious "L" word in my ABC Faith journal!

Faith Journal moving along

Wow- I am amazed at how this project is moving along! Ideas just seem to pop into my head all day long! A welcome relief from feeling blocked I can tell you!!!

Faith Journal

Today's installment. Funny how the things I'm worrying about seem to be working themselves out as I work on these pages....funny that~

Faith Journal

Here are the next two installments in the ABC Faith Journal.

ABC Faith Journal

I've been short on time to work on the wet, messy kind of art, but I have been trying to sneak in a few minutes everyday to work on my Faith Journal digitally. I've been going thru the alphabet one letter at a time, and here are a few of the pages I've added so far. (In the end, I will be binding them and adding all sorts of bling and ephemera to the pages to fatten them up.) I really Love the group Casting Crowns. It seems as if every song they sing speaks to me, so I have been using their songs as inspiration as well. It seems as if they have a song to go with every verse or phrase I picked to try and use in my journal.

An apple a day...

It seems as if lately all around me is in disorder because of disease, illness or injury. Family, friends, online art friends, co-workers and even myself! I know Satan would be eager for me to slip into depression, so I am battling it for all I'm worth right now. One of my main combatants of depression is art time. So I've started working in a new art journal- all about Health. It is so gratifying to see the pages get nice and thick and colorful. I've enjoyed trying out new techniques and new styles. I've also taken it apart to be able to work flat, and when I put it back together I will also add danglies, and tabs and charms, but for now- I'll post a few as they are.





This last page I did as I was awake with insomnia. I could hear Mike snoring away in the other room, and so that's what all the scribbled journaling was about. Sort of my way of counting sheep!

Faithbooking

Last night, a lovely gal named Pati facilitated the first night of "Faithbooking" at our local church. She had done so much prep work, and gave us wonderful journal prompts to start our Faithbooks. (It's like a combo of scrapbooking and devotional journaling.) It was such a blessing to be among other talented people who "get" the same type of things that I like to do! Many had their wonderfully beautifully done scrapbooks to show. they were all neat and clean and crisp with just the right colors and layouts. I enjoyed looking and talking with these talented ladies.

Part of Pati's devotional message to us spoke to the fact that these "Faithbooks" were something we could leave to future generations. She shared Psalm 78:4 "We will tell the next generation the praise worthy deeds of the Lord, His power and the wonders He has done." and Joel 1:3 "Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation." I thought it was lovely. I feel that our Creator is to be highly praised, and is worthy to be praised with all of our gifts. If he has given me the gift of creativity, then I need to worship and praise him creatively too!

Though I will be beginning another Faith Art Journal instead of a Faith Scrapbook, I still feel as if it is a blessing to be in this group, and this morning, as I was going thru a devotion- This verse popped right out as a means of confirmation to me: Jeremiah 30:2 (RSV) "Write in a book all the words that I have spoken to you." (where 2 or 3 are gathered together-eh?)

Happy New Year!

(A day late!) But I'm not going to worry about it, because one of my goals for this year is to strive to "go with the flow" a little more, enjoy what is a little more and worry about everything a little less.

I set several goals for myself this year, and am going to post a few challenges along the way to encourage myself along with my readers.

All of them are aimed at helping to feel more happy, and enjoy life in the moment. I don't want to someday look back and think, 'wow, I really had it good back then- why didn't I appreciate it at the time?'

The First Challenge this year: To keep a "Gratitude Journal" for the month of January.
While flipping thru 2 different magazines recently (Good Housekeeping and LHJ) I stumbled onto similar stories done about some tests conducted in 2007. Basically the tests said that people who wrote down something they were grateful for each day, felt happier with their lives
than those who didn't keep any sort of written record. They all came from similar backgrounds and were in similar social and economic circumstances, yet the ones who were tangibly reminded daily of something they were grateful for felt more fulfilled and satisfied with their life.

I found this profoundly interesting and thought it was a great way to improve my happiness quotient without a major life change! I've also read from many different sources that you must do something regularly for 21 days to become a habit. So I'm willing to give it a grand try. I've been working on an Art Journal of prepared backgrounds, so I can just grab it and journal away. With the backgrounds already prepared, it takes away that "blank-page" block, and puts the emphasis on the thought behind the words. I don't intend to spend long hours writing, as I'm more of a visual kind of gal, but even if I write a sentence or two, I intend to be faithful to keeping up with this challenge. (And if some interesting art happens along the way-more the better!!)

So I challenge you to play along with me, and see if we truly can be the navigators of our attitudes!

Feeling Sistery.....

Lately, I've been blessed to "meet" some of the most fabulous, talented people through various online art groups. Two groups particularly close to my heart are The Altered Art Divas and The Sisters of the Secret Fatbook Society. Both groups have given me the opportunity to "get to know" some of the most wonderful, artistic, giving, open and sharing women I've ever had the priviledge to run across. It blows me away, the way they open their hearts and share their art in such a supportive manner. As a product of an "official art education" the support and positive attitude is something I can't quite wrap my noodle around yet. I pour thru their blogs every free moment I get, amazed at their daily creations. Amazed at the sheer quantity of wonderful work they are producing, just for fun. They challenge me daily to create just for the sake of creating, rather than "producing" for an end product, as I must do daily for my job. It is taking me in a whole new direction within myself, a place that I sort of always "felt" was there but didn't quite know the address for. For these artists I am so thankful, in this of all months to express thanks.

This is a piece I did in my art journal, inspired by 2 other tremendous artists, Anne Bagby and Lynne Perrella, and what they were generous enough to share with me. It sings what my words cannot about these artistic sisters.