Life in the Word Archives • Page 2 of 12 • The Littlest Way

February 12, 2015 by Jenny

Bible Journaling: Favorites Tabs

How many of your conversations begin with, “I saw this thing on Pinterest the other day…” Well, quite a few of mine do, for example…I saw this thing on Pinterest the other when I searched “Bible Journaling.” A woman had made tabs from scrapbook card stock to mark some of her favorite scriptures. Immediately, I knew I wanted to do this! I know quite a few stories, lessons or verses in the Bible, but when I need to recall them quickly, well, I can’t. I can sometimes give a general, “It’s in one of the Gospels.” Or, “It’s on a page with some green and yellow highlighting.” Umm, that doesn’t always get me where I want to go and especially not very quickly. So let’s talk about Bible Journaling: Favorites Tabs.

Bible Journaling: Favorites Tabs

This year, I’ve taken on the art, the practice of, Bible Journaling. I found a “Read the Bible in Year” plan I’m loosely following…meaning I’m behind or right where I’m supposed to be. If I were to say “I’m behind” it would be because I have taken some time soaking in the scripture I’m reading rather than moving on too quickly. Not only am I considering the scripture from an “artistic” (and I use that word lightly concerning my abilities) point of view, but I’m also going deeper into the scripture using A Practical Commentary On Holy Scripture. But the point of this post, because as you can see, I can very easily get off topic when it comes to talking about Bible journaling, is to tell you how I am using tabs to mark my some of my favorite verses or stories.

I cannot remember where I saw this idea so I can give proper credit, other than to say on Pinterest. The idea is so simple yet simply fantastic! Other than the knowing where to find Philippians 4:8, because, um, it’s in Philippians…and other than knowing where to find the words of our Lord about worrying not adding a single cubit to our life–Matthew 6–I’m not too good at remembering where to find some of my favorites in the Bible.

I hate that I cannot remember where to find the story about Jesus telling Peter He will build His Church on him–Matthew 16– or the lovely parable about the sower throwing out the seed which falls on the path, rocky ground, thorns and good soil–Matthew 13. Age and keeping up with a husband and seven children are not helping the matter.

So what have I done to be able to access these stories and verses quickly? I’ve marked them with homemade tabs. I purchased some scrapbooking cardstock, a fancy square paper punch–although in hindsight, I would purchase an actual tab paper punch because the tabs wouldn’t stick up so far and have such fancy edges, but no biggie. I pre-punched some tabs to keep near me when I’m reading. When I come across a verse or story that I want to be able to find again quickly, I write a reminder on the tab and then use a little glue stick to glue it directly on the page in my Bible.

So far I’ve tabbed:
Don’t Worry–Matthew 6
Jesus Calms the Storm–Matthew 8
Come to Me–Matthew 11
Sower–Matthew 13
Pear of Great Price–Matthew 13
Feeding 5,000–Matthew 14
Keys–Matthew 16
Child of God–1 John 3
Greater–1 John 4
God is ♥–1 John 4

I can see where this will be a huge blessing to me to quickly and easily find favorite passages. I don’t know that this is exactly something I would do with a Bible I carry with me all the time–although for the time being, I do carry the NRSV Notetaker’s Bible with me everywhere, so we’ll see as the year progresses if it makes the Bible burdensome or somehow compromises the structural integrity of the Bible. (How fancy did that all sound?)

Have you been Bible journaling? Bible journaling or not, how do you mark favorite verses or stories in the scriptures?

Resources:
The NRSV Notetaker’s Bible
Bible Marking Kit
Sakura 8-Piece Pigma Micron Assorted Colors 01 Ink Pen Set

More posts on how I’m using my journaling Bible:

Bible Journaling in the New Year

Bible Journaling with The Littlest Way

Bible Journaling as Lectio Divina

Bible Journaling and Bible Study

February 10, 2015 by Jenny

Devotions for Lent: Seven Penitential Psalms Part 3

Did you wonder if I was going to get back to finish posting about the Seven Penitential Psalms? Well, a little late, but still before Lent begins. One of the common devotions for Lent is the reciting of the Seven Penitential Psalms. We’ve considered Psalms 6, 31 (32), 37 (38), 50 (51), 101 (102) {Why are the Psalms numbered differently?}. Today let’s consider the last two, Psalms 129 (130), and 142 (143).

Devotions for Lent: Seven Penitential Psalms

Psalm 129…”Whether speaking for himself or for his nation, the Psalmist here is deeply conscious of sin and of the wretchedness of soul that sin entails. He feels that he does not deserve pardon, bt he knows it will be granted, for His Lord is the God of mercy and forgiveness.”
–The Psalms Explained: For Priests and Students

I like how the Psalmist explains the situation to God in verse three…”LORD, if you kept a record of our sins, who, O Lord, could ever survive?” Maybe he’s asking a question, but to me, in that situation, I would be hinting to God…”You know God if You keep track of my sins, the way I do now…you know, late at night when my soul is quiet. It starts with a quick review of my day. I see areas where I could have done better…could have done differently. And then, well, it’s like someone slid the light dimmer switch straight up! I not only see what I could have done better today…I start seeing yesterday–last week—last month—twenty years ago when I was living so far away from You. Those sins of mine, man, they can accumulate quickly. And if You were to keep track of them, number them day by day, how could I stand before You?”

Yep, that’s the way my conversation with God would go. But I don’t think the Psalmist is hinting the way I would–I know he’s not because the very next two verses, he is so bold!

“But there is forgiveness with you, so that you may be revered. I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I hope;”

By bold, I mean so fearless, his trust is so great he confidently proclaims in prayer. He tells God, “I know there is forgiveness with You, so I’m going to wait…and hope in Your Word.” Doesn’t this bring us back to the post last week–Bible Quotes: Wait on the Lord. It does! Look in the comments and the ladies even mention waiting as being interchangeable with hoping. And that’s Lent isn’t it, this hopeful waiting.

Psalm 143 contains a familiar sentiment found in many other Psalms, “Make haste to answer me…I trust in Thee.” The urgency of help quickly followed by the knowledge of trust. I’ve said these before, have you? Not necessarily as eloquent as “Make hast,” More like, “I can’t do this any.more God! You’ve got to help me now…You will, it will be ok, Jesus I trust in You…”

Typing that reminded me of delivering my third baby. She was my first unmedicated birth. As the contractions intensified and I couldn’t catch a breath, I would look to our Lord on the crucifix. He could’t get His breath…death by asphyxiation on the cross. I’d think about Him not being able to breathe and when I had an ebb in contractions, I would say to myself audibly, “It’s ok. You can do this.” At the peak of contractions I was pleading with God, my husband and nurse to help me; and then there would be that slight break where I remembered I could trust in my body to do this. That’s how I image this Psalm being pleaded out…in an ebb and flow of bated breath and glimpses of trust.

If you want to begin praying the Psalms this Lent, let me suggest a great little book–My Daily Psalms Book: The Perfect Prayer Book. This little prayer book has all the Psalms organized like they are when prayed in the Divine Office–they are organized by day as well as time (Matins, Lauds, Prime, Terce, Sext, None, Vespers, and Compline). This would be a good introduction to someone wishing to pray the Office, but maybe not having the time yet. You could at least get into the habit of praying the Psalms of the Office.

February 5, 2015 by Jenny

Bible Quotes: Wait for the Lord

Let me get this out there right off…I do not want to wait for the Lord. I know, you probably thought this would be an inspiring Bible quotes post about waiting for the Lord…hopefully we’ll get to the inspiring part right? It’s not that I mind waiting, I am a mother of seven…waiting is just something I do. From the moment I wait for the little pink lines to confirm a pregnancy, I begin the process of waiting. I wait in the car during soccer practice and piano lessons. I wait in the chair as letters arrange themselves in a young mind during a spelling test. I wait for the spaghetti water to boil, the dishwasher to finish and the hot water heater to refill so I can shower…I wait.

Bible Quotes: Wait for the Lord

The thing with waiting on the Lord–we’re on different time schedules…if He is even on a time schedule. Although sometimes annoying to have to wait for the hot water heater to refill–I know if I give it a good half hour, I’ll be able to enjoy a nice hot shower. Same with the dishwasher and spaghetti water; I know if I just wait, I’ll be rewarded with clean dishes and boiling water. Piano and soccer practice has a fairly clear end time so I can “see” the end result of my waiting. I actually enjoy those quiet moments of waiting in the car by myself.

But waiting on God; I don’t know when and even if I will see the reward of my patience (semi-patience?) in this life. I mean I send up these prayers and I know He hears me because I believe His Word to be true, but sometimes–ok, LOTS of times, I want a tangible confirmation that my prayer was indeed received and I don’t know, maybe sitting in the que waiting for approval?

See, I’ve got these children, these souls I’m supposed to be taking good care of for Him and I’d like to know it all turns out ok in the end–it would make the hard days less hard, or maybe I should say less intense. I would know those hard days are just a blip on the radar of life, a speed bump, a momentary speck in the economy of eternity. You know how Flylady says you can do anything for 15 minutes? Well, I could manage my impatience, endure a childhood tantrum and not second guess myself if I just knew…knew those prayers for the salvation of their souls had already been answered.

If I knew the prayers this momma heart prays for her children to grow up and enjoy, I mean really enjoy each other’s company had gone straight from my heart to God’s ears and He’d already answered them, they were just waiting to reveal their glorious selves in the future…I wouldn’t mind the whole “wait for the Lord.”

But guess what, the answer to my waiting problem is actually, in a way, more waiting–inspiring Bible quotes yet? I don’t need to pray for more patience, that won’t solve these heart wrestlings of wanting to know how it all works out. I need to pray for strength and courage. Last I knew, strength and courage don’t just happen..kapow! They are a process…and a process is time…waiting…So I begin the process of praying for strength to endure the present trials and courage to trust that God loves them more than me…more than me…and wants even better for them than my feeble, imperfect heart can even conjure up in my whispered prayers.

…suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.
-Romans 5:3-5

Bible and Bling Resources:

The NRSV Notetaker’s Bible

My favorite Bible highlighters

Bright Gem Self Adhesive Arrows

February 3, 2015 by Jenny

Bible Journaling and Bible Study

This year, I’m trying my hand at the devotional practice of Bible journaling. There are many forms Bible journaling can take, from lovely works of art and scrapbooking to simple or ornate hand lettering. For those of us who haven’t developed those artistic skills yet, there is also more traditional journaling–writing. The last week or so, I’ve been using a commentary as I read my Bible as well so now I’m combining Bible journaling and Bible study.

Bible Journaling and Bible Study

When I first came across the idea of Bible journaling, it was through some lovely pins found on Pinterest. Some of these were simple drawings, decorated quotes or even actual works of art. I’m not quite an artist yet, even though I have quickly progressed from nothing, to stick figures and now tracing…moving through the artistic ranks fairly quickly wouldn’t you say?

Then Elizabeth wrote a post about how she is Bible journaling with the intention of giving the Bible to her oldest daughter. Elizabeth’s form of journaling is making use of the margins to share her words of wisdom. And both are equally beautiful forms of Bible journaling. But there was still a missing piece for me in my attempts at Bible journaling–Bible study.

Not only do I enjoy looking at beautiful pictures or doodles, I also enjoy looking into good words. That’s why I have a Thesaurus installed on my computer toolbar–I click over to it that much. I also have an Etymology Dictionary saved in my favorite. Words fascinate me. And The Word especially fascinates and intrigues me. So I’ve begun using some Bible study aids as I read through and then journal while reading my Bible.

The first commentary I keep beside me is A Practical Commentary on Holy Scripture. From an Amazon reviewer

This is an invaluable book. As mentioned in other reviews, it is not a book by book commentary. It provides a narrative of an (abridged) section of scripture followed by a fascinating commentary that weaves together orthodox theology, history, and scripture study. This book is presented in a way that takes you through the bible so that you grasp the overall cohesiveness of the entire bible.

For example, in the story of the Prodigal Son, below the reading, it has a notes section. This section describes more of the story: listing geographical information, customs, word meaning, etc. Then there is a Commentary section. This section still includes notes, but in a less cut and dry factual way and more of a conversational teaching. For example

God’s reception of the penitent sinner. The prodigal son carried out his good resolutions at once. Thus must it be with the sinner: he must not put off his conversion, but must be reconciled to God as soon as possible. And then, even as the father in the parable went to meet his son and received him lovingly, so will God meet the sinner by His merciful grace, forgive him his sins, and give him the kiss of peace. Them by the hands of His servants (i.e. his priests), He re-clothes him with the robe of innocence, i.e. sanctifying grace, and adorns him again with the supernatural virtues befitting the state of a divine sonship (ring), and enabling him to walk justly before God (shoes). Finally God prepares a feast for the converted sinner, giving to him the Lamb of God, for the nourishment of his soul, in Holy Communion. The Lord God rejoices and calls His Angels and Saints to rejoice with Him, because a man who was dead, who had lost the supernatural life of grace, and who was under the sentence of eternal death, is alove again, and is once more a child of God and an heir of heaven.

Wow! And that was just a small paragraph.

And then there is a short application. “You too have offended God, though perhaps not so grievously as did the sinner in the parable; and God has forgiven you your sins in the holy Sacrament of Penance. Have you thanked Him for this? You ought to make a devout thanksgiving each time you have been to confession. Do not repay the love of God with fresh ingratitude.”

A recent page from my Bible journaling.

Resources:
The NRSV Notetaker’s Bible
Bible Marking Kit
Sakura 8-Piece Pigma Micron Assorted Colors 01 Ink Pen Set

More posts on how I’m using my journaling Bible:

Bible Journaling in the New Year

Bible Journaling with The Littlest Way

Bible Journaling as Lectio Divina

Bible Journaling: Favorites Tabs

January 21, 2015 by Jenny

A Mantle of Love

There’s a story in the Bible about Noah I think we should consider. No, not the one about the flood. This one involves Noah getting drunk and passing out naked. Scandalous I know, especially considering in Genesis chapter 8 the Bible states Noah was a man who found favor in the eyes of the Lord. It’s not really so much Noah I want to consider, it’s his sons. You see Noah had three and in the particular story of Noah and his nakedness, two of the three extended a mantle of love over their father and the third…well, he ended up cursed slave.

A Mantle of Love

So the story goes, after Noah and his family get off the ark, and offer praise and sacrifice to God, Noah plants a vineyard. He drinks some of his wine and becomes drunk, so drunk he passes out in his tent–naked as a jaybird as my grandma would say. Guess what? Noah was not a man who habitually got drunk and passed out naked. He was not known for his indecency or even poor decisions. He was known as a man who loved and obeyed God. He made a mistake. He didn’t even commit an intentional sin according to the Church Father’s…a venial at the very most.

So Noah is lying there, exposed and totally vulnerable and a family member–one of his sons, Ham–happens upon him in his mistake. Instead of protecting his father, instead of covering his father–literally and figuratively–Ham tells his father’s mistake to the next person he sees. Remember this is right after the flood so there’s not a lot of people around. The next person or people he sees are his two brothers, Shem and Japheth. And can you just imagine how that story got told? Doesn’t matter really how much joking around or back slapping there was on the part of the Ham. The fact is, he found his father in an awkward position and then dishonored his father by exploiting his mistake. He didn’t extend charity or compassion for or over his father…and he ended up being cursed for it.

Shem and Japheth on the other hand…they don’t really care what happened. As far as the scriptures tell, they don’t discuss the problem, ask around to see what the story is or wonder what happened or try to figure out what this all means. They do what any good children would and should do, they extend grace in the form of a cloak to cover their father. Again, we’re not talking about a man known for drunkenness or living a wild and free life. We’re talking about a good man who made a public mistake.

Noah’s two boys extended a mantle of love over their father to protect him and others. They protected their father out of love and reverence and were blessed because of it. You know the scriptures say they even walked backwards to cover their father. Wow. That act of walking backwards to cover Noah shows the utmost love and respect for their father, placed over them by God. They also protected themselves. Nobody of moral integrity wants to see or share the mistakes of others.

There is no room in a virtuous life for the ponderings of another’s faults.

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Seems we need some of that double coverage these days huh? Let’s not believe everything we read. Let’s not share the misinterpreted words of another. Let’s extend grace and mercy–a mantle of love–over those who may say the wrong the thing or say the right thing in the wrong circumstance or context. As our family says in our Nightly Examen, “Did we assume the best and forgive the worst?”