About a month or so ago, I purchased a bible journaling kit from Jacqueline Reape who I follow on Instagram. One of my goals this year has been to increase my time studying the Bible. After seeing art Bible photos online, I knew this would be a good creative and educational outlet for me.

But, here is my problem. While I am quite used to taking notes in my Bible and even adding a few doodles here and there, the thought of putting inks and paints down is a bit intimidating. After all, I am not an artist ... at least not in the classical sense.

However, I'm determined to become more consistent with my Bible study. Putting color to the page will encourage me to reflect a bit more, not close the book after reading a passage quickly. My focus, now, is prayer and fasting as my local church and ministry groups are leading the charge in these areas.

I used stamps, pens and stamp pad ink applied directly to the page. I will be experimenting with layering as I get more comfortable, knowledgeable and creative.

The biggest lesson I learned this first time out was DON'T USE WATER. The Tim Holtz inks are actually water reactive, so I wet the ink a bit before applying it to the page. Unfortunately, the ink pen I had used to takes notes is also water reactive.

I'm lucky the ink didn't bleed much and that my notes are still legible. We'll consider that lesson learned.

If the idea of Bible journaling sparks your interest, follow me here on the blog and check out the #biblejournaling and #illustratedfaith tags on Instagram.