Faith Sight!

Good Wednesday all my crafty friends! It's mid-week and here in the south, we have a gloomy day to go along with it!! We need some rain to be sure. My grass is screaming for nourishment! With all the rain Houston has had, I dearly wish I could take from them and spare them the discomfort! To everything there is a season, so I know that even in both situations, God has His timing and His plan.

Today, I want to share a journal spread with you. I am usually more on the "serious side" of journaling, for a lack of better terminology. I use most of my journaling for ministry tools, so my pages befit the scripture theme. I have seen some really "fun/whimsical" journaling that is just too cute and I wanted incorporate some of that into my journal spread this time! Just exploring different mechanisms to deliver His message is fun in itself, but I really had fun exploring ideas while doing this spread.

I incorporated ideas that I had gleaned from art buddies over on Google+ who usually do whimsical kinds of journaling. You guys know who you are!! I love, love that type of journaling. I also love steampunk and vintage so I tried to pull them all together somehow. I enjoyed doing this! Thanks to all of you who inspire me daily on Google+.

I pulled out my all time favorite Silks Acrylic Glaze in Sky Blue, Pink Azalea, Pretty Peridot and Sunburst and just randomly laid it down here and there. I then sprayed over top with Heidi Swapp Color Shine in Gold Lame and then distressed the edges with Vintage Photo. I finished with spraying a fixative over the top so I didn't have to worry about what other media I would be using.

The fun then began! LOL I pulled out all manner of background stamps and just "went to town" as they say down here in the south! I find all kinds of stuff in my drawers when I do that! LOL I wanted to go into this project just pulling from here and there. I had a general idea of what I wanted to do, but that was it. It always seems more fun when you just let your hair down! LOL I had acquired a few pieces of digital art on a "free digital art" site that I loved that I used as kind of my springboard for the rest of the project. I also had downloaded some art bits from Roben-Marie, whose art style I really love! She is the epitome of "let your hair down" when it comes to journaling!

I colored my bits and bobbles with Faber-Castell Gelatos and Big Brush Pens, my lovely Derwent Inktense Pencils and outlined with my fabulous gifted Stabilo Pencil and also Big Brush Pens. I finished the pages by adding my sentiment and edging with black Archival Ink and voila!! What do you think?

The scripture that came to mind while doing this page was out of John 20:29 "Then Jesus told him, You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who believe without seeing me." In this scripture Jesus is speaking to Thomas (doubting Thomas), who needed "proof" that the disciples had seen Jesus. He noted that unless he actually saw  the wounds in Jesus's hands and side, he would not believe! What sort of faith is that, especially since Jesus had already told them ALL about His death and that He would be resurrected. Even at the words of his fellow believers, he still didn't believe because he needed proof! Yet, that is how many are today, even fellow believers.

Jesus chided Thomas and told him, after Thomas saw and touched His wounds and professed his belief, that he only believed because he "saw!" Christianity is "faith based!" Not on ANY works so that no man could boast! That's what faith is all about! Faith is an engaging word! It means to have confidence or trust in a person or thing, or belief that is not based on proof!! When you engage your faith that something is or will be, you are saying I believe it will happen or is! For believers, we base that faith on Jesus Christ! His death on the cross and His shed blood sealed for believers that IN JESUS, we are provided for, healed, delivered, redeemed, made holy and righteous, can go before the Father with petitions and praise, loose angels, bind the enemy, have increase, can move mountains, etc.....I could go on and on because IN CHRIST we can do ALL things! I don't have to see ANY of that come to fruition to know, I just am confident in Christ that it will!!

I'm so thankful that as a believer, I have that promise from my Father in Heaven!! How is your faith today? Do you have to see it to believe it? I encourage you today to carry that before the Father and allow Him to do a new work in you that you may enjoy the FULLNESS of what Jesus did on the cross! He has already taken care of anything you could think of on the cross! It may not happen the way you think it should or when you think it should, but I would rather operate on God's timing. How about you?

Be blessed today! :)