Artistic Scripture Journaling: Koi Watercolors

I have been spending a lot of time studying and journaling about Lehi's vision in Chapter 8 of 1 Nephi. I have never before gone into it with so much depth. Although there is more about the vision I've journaled about, I wanted to dedicate one layout to the different symbols of the vision and what they represent. Here is how I did this page:

I got my inspiration from this digital scrapbook layout:

I love the concept of the boxes with doodles and journaling. Since my scripture journal has lots of text and little pictures, I thought this would be a great way to incorporate both. I had to make adjustments based on the size of my journal and the amount of information I wanted for each symbol. First I did everything lightly in pencil and then filled it in with black micron pens and colored pencils. Because my paper has ridges in it, there were darker lines showing and I wanted a smoother look. So I busted out my new Koi watercolor brushes that I have never used before. I was a little intimidated to use them and wasn't quite sure how they worked. I checked out some tutorial videos found here. They have a lot of different ones you can learn from. Here's an example one:

Finally feeling brave I gave it a shot. It was super easy and really fun! I felt like a kid in art class.

I also used other materials such as gelly roll metallic pens and perfect pearls. I took a picture with the light shining on the journal so you can sort of see the shimmery effect perfect pearls has on the tree when it is in the light:

and the glitter glue on the fruit:

This was a liberating experience for me because I am a true perfectionist and to freehand the boxes knowing they wouldn't be exactly straight was really hard. But I like it that way.

For the straight and narrow path, I made it straight, but I changed the texture along the way. Starting on the path to Heavenly Father can be rocky and difficult. Repenting isn't easy. As you make your way to baptism the path gets less rocky. And then the closer you get to the presence of the Lord the shinier, more beautiful and smoother the path gets. 

There are a lot of beautiful paintings that already exist of Lehi's vision. But this page is special to me because of the time I put into it. I will remember so much more from this experience. I hope it helps you to think outside of the box when journaling what you are reading about.

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Scripture Journal Tutorial: Part 3- Studying by Topics

There are 2 ways to do a Topics Scripture Journal. You can either pick topics beforehand and list them alphabetically and then fill the appropriate page out when you study, or you can gather topics as you do your chapter studies. To do the latter:

IN THE SCRIPTURES-

As you are studying the scriptures, look past the story and find the principle(s) being taught. Here I am using an example of Faith.

IN YOUR CHAPTERS JOURNAL-
In my chapter study, I write Faith down as a doctrine or principle I found and what I learned from it. You may have to zoom the picture to see but in the last column you can see a spot to list what page in your TOPICS journal you have expanded on the subject.

IN YOUR TOPICS JOURNAL-
Similar to the template I made for my chapters journal, I made one for my topics journal as well. You don't have to have these to make the journals, I just like how it keeps everything organized. I have many pages where I don't use this template and still love them. But I want to share with you the headings so that it can help you with your studying. However you decide to put it in your journal is up to you.

The first page I document the definition of the doctrine, list scriptures I have looked up on that topic, and list any quotes that I love about that topic. Here are some more upclose pictures of this page. Hopefully it will give you a better idea.

definition of the topic

Scriptures I looked up and what they taught

favorite quotes

On the second page is where I put my personal thoughts and insights. Sometimes this is a journal entry. In this case it is a diagram I made with scrapbook paper outlining the parable of faith as a seed as it is described in Alma 32.

The final step is to go back to your chapters journal and reference what page these are on your topics journal,

and then again in your scriptures. (The purple pen marks mine- journal volume: pages)

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Scripture Journals Tutorial: Part 1

This is a series of posts that I am sooo excited to share with you. I feel very passionate about it because it has CHANGED MY LIFE. I recently came across the idea of making scripture journals from Shannon at The Red Headed Hostess blog and I have spent the last few months creating my own through trial and error. I want to share with you what I've done in hopes of helping you feel enthusiastic and excited about studying scriptures. It's no longer a chore for me. It's my favorite part of my day and I want it to be yours too.
It doesn't matter what religion you are. If you study the Bible, Book of Mormon, or any scripture you can apply this idea to your studying. The best part about this is that you can be as simple, straightforward, and logical as you want, or you can get as artsy and creative as you want. Wherever you are in the crafty spectrum and have time and patience for YOU CAN DO THIS. The important thing to remember is to make this yours. Do what works for you.

Why keep a scripture journal? 
Here are a few reasons:

"We often leave the most precious personal direction of the spirit unheard because we do not record and respond to the first promptings that come to us when the Lord chooses to direct us." -Elder Richard G. Scott

"I've found, as I'm sure you have, that when you are trying to learn from the spirit, it's important to make a note so it will not be forgotten. The more you not only hear but abide by what you've been told, the more the Lord will give to you. It will come more and more rapidly and you will begin to hear and feel those impressions of the Spirit more quickly than you have previously done." -Elder Gene R. Cook

"The prompting that goes unresponded to may not be repeated. Writing down what we have been prompted with is vital. A special thought can lost later in the day through the rough and tumble of life. God should not, and may not, choose to repeat the prompting if we assign what is given such a low priority as to put it aside." -Elder Neal A. Maxwell

In the few short months that I have started my scripture journals, the knowledge that I have learned and retained is more than I have learned about in years of just reading a chapter a day (which is how I used to "study").

My main reason for doing scripture journals is to give them to my children as a family heirloom after I am gone or when they are old enough to appreciate them. As Shannon said (I'm paraphrasing)- it's a way to keep teaching my children after I am gone. 

I give full credit to Shannon at her blog for this idea and I thank her for all the work she put into sharing her journals. I want to help spread the word to more readers because its worth sharing if it helps people grow spiritually.

Materials Needed:

1. First you have to pick some journals. This is important. You want to find some that is the right size, enough to hold lots of information, will function the way you want it to, and look the way you want it to. If you plan to keep it simple, pick a lined journal that you can do lots of writing in that has thick pages so your ink won't bleed through. I planned to be more artsy and wanted to decorate my covers using scrapbooking supplies so I bought a coptic journal kit from Etsy. When it is all done I will bind it so that it will open and lay flat.This may be a little more extreme but for me this is my creative outlet so I needed a blank canvas. Any journal will work. The way I have mine set up is I have TWO journals. One that is for chapter by chapter study and another is for Topic based study. They can be referenced to each other.
2. Also get a good ballpoint pen that won't bleed through pages, or leave puddles of ink that will smudge and make a mess.
3. OPTIONAL: Colored pencils, glue stick, scissors, scrapbooking supplies (paper, stickers) art supplies

What do you put inside?

This depends on you and your style. This is not a daily record of your personal thoughts like a diary. This is a record of what you have been learning during your scripture study. This means a record of quotes you want to remember, promptings, stories, talks, word definitions, scriptures you looked up, etc. I have created templates that you can download in the store that are an easy way to get started quickly.

Some of my pages are purely artistic in nature. Others hold pictures that I love. Others are journal entries with my personal insights from a story, others are character analysis on the people I have been reading about.

But getting it all organized is the tough part. Here is a post from Shannon that talks about how to set one up. 

I Have Been Born of Goodly Parents

I will post some additional tutorials and ideas on creating these journals. I highly recommend checking out the following sites for additional inspiration and tutorials:

• Here is my pinboard that I keep for my scripture journals if you want to follow that. It lists sites, talks, quotes, etc. that I plan to put in my journal somehow or art supplies I plan to use.
• The Red Headed Hostess- she even has some journals you can purchase that are already set up and ready to go (I bought a set and they are really great for outlining how to study). She is the main source for all my inspiration so you should really check her site out. I want to be her when I grow up.
• Here is a sheet you can download with some ideas from Dana Cockrum that was also taken from The Red Headed Hostess. 

I hope you find this as fun and uplifting as I do. Enjoy!

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