Join me for this mixed media Bible journaling tutorial on John 15:4! Grab your paints, brushes, stamps, and gel pens, or whatever supplies you have on hand, and let’s explore what it means to “abide” in Jesus.
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Sometimes, you think you’re familiar with a particular Bible passage. You may even say, “yeah, yeah, I know that one already”… but then you decide to study it more deeply, and you realize OH! I was not fully living out this teaching, and/or I didn’t understand it as much as I previously thought.
Happens to all of us! The Bible is, after all, an extensive book, with so much meaning to unpack even in the smallest verse.
Well, in John 15:1-5, Jesus tells us that He is the True Vine, and we must stay connected to Him in order to bear fruit. And I’d heard this passage dozens, maybe hundreds of times. But, I’d never stopped to ponder what it truly means to STAY connected to Jesus.
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.
John 15:1-5 (ESV)
The original Greek word used to describe this relationship is “menō”, which can be translated as “stay”, “remain”, or “abide”. All of these are words that indicate not just BEING connected to Jesus, but CONTINUING TO BE connected to Him.
Which is actually quite profound when you think about it!
I don’t about you, but I am definitely guilty of drifting… letting my Bible study habit become less frequent, or my prayer life wither, or just losing faith. But Jesus said to STAY close to Him… to REMAIN connected… to continually ABIDE in Him. May we keep a close watch on ourselves, so we won’t drift, but stay connected to Jesus always!
Bible Journaling on John 15:4 ~ Abide in Jesus
For my John 15:4 Bible journaling page, I chose to use the word “ABIDE”, just because it reminds me of sitting at Jesus’ feet and learning from Him. Kind of like Mary in Luke 10:38-42, when she chose to sit and listen to Jesus (rather than stressing about getting things done, like her sister Martha). It’s just reminiscent of lingering, in the most important place of all (nearest to Jesus!).
Watch the video tutorial below to see the whole process, and then spend some time exploring these words and meanings on your own. For your journaling, you could choose to emphasize the word “ABIDE” like I did, or use “STAY”, “REMAIN” or another synonym that resonates with you. But whatever you do, I pray that the journaling process helps you remember to stay near to Jesus!
Supplies:
As always, you’re encouraged to use whatever supplies you desire or have on hand! These are just the creative tools I used, to create my page.
- Illustrating Bible (mine is the CSB version (green cover); they also have an NIV version (pink or gray cover))
- Acrylic paints (light green, and white)
- One Stroke brush set (contains flat brushes, and the scruffy brush, plus a few others)
- Creative Worship Stamps “His Book” stamp set (for the Jesus stamp)
- Creative Worship Stamps “Hope in Him Alpha” stamp set (to stamp “Abide in”)
- Creative Worship Stamps “Doodle Florals” stamp set (for the vine)
- Art Impressions “Grape Border” stamp
- Pigment ink pads (purple and green)
- Pigma Micron pen (03 – 0.35mm tip, black)
- Pentel Slicci metallic gel pens (green)
- Gelly Roll stardust gel pens (purple)
Step-by-Step Instructions:
Feel free to follow your own process, when creating your Bible journaling page on John 15:1-5! You can mix up the supplies, take different steps, choose other colors, etc. There is no wrong way to Bible journal, after all! But if you’d like to follow along exactly with what I did, here are the steps:
- If you’re using a regular journaling Bible, consider applying clear gesso to prep your page before journaling. (I used my Illustrating Bible which has thicker paper, so I did not need any gesso.)
- Start by applying light green paint in the side, top, and bottom margins with a dry, flat brush. You can freestyle it, or use a piece of paper as a guide, to get a cleaner edge and prevent paint from getting on the Bible text.
- Once that first layer is dry, use a scruffy brush to apply white paint. Use an up-and-down tapping motion to get the texture. Don’t load too much paint on the brush, or it will cover up too much of the green layer. If desired, you can also add more white paint to the spot where you’ll stamp the words.
- Now that the base layers are done, you can start stamping! I used the Jesus stamp from the His Book stamp set, and letters from the Hope in Him Alpha set, both stamped in deep purple ink. I also added a little heart stamp to the left of the word “Abide”, to make it look more centered. Below Jesus’ name, I added the vine stamp from the Floral Doodles set (in green ink).
- The next step, is to add notes. I used a Pigma Micron pen (specifically the 03 / 0.35mm tip) to write down exactly what I need to do more of to stay close to Jesus.
- Now, it’s time to add some grapes! I took the Grape Border stamp and held it with just my hands (no stamp block), to apply just small parts of the stamp. I used the same purple and green inks to scatter some grapes, and then grape leaves, around the page.
- If desired, color in the letters in Jesus’ name with a gel pen, such as the Pentel Slicci green pen that I used.
- Finally, draw a border around the John 15:1-8 passage (I used a purple Gelly Roll stardust pen for this). Additionally, you can outline verse four and/or any other verses you want to emphasize (I used the Pentel Slicci green pen for that step).
I hope you’ve enjoyed this John 15 Bible journaling session! As always, journaling is such a fun way to dive deeper into God’s Word, to record the insights He gives, and apply His teachings to our lives. There is no right or wrong way to journal; as long as they all lead back to Jesus, that’s the most important thing.
Hi! Thank you so much for visiting Divine Creative Love. I’m a Jesus-lovin’ girl, artist, designer, and general creative-at-heart. And, I have narcolepsy. I blog about faith in God, overcoming challenges, and creative topics such as Bible journaling. If you’re new here, be sure and subscribe to my list so you won’t miss anything!