Our Favorite Tools to Get Started Bible Journaling

Bible journaling is a creative expression of our love and understanding of God. It can be fun, messy, beautiful, eye-opening, and the perfect way to explore your faith on a deeper level. If you’re feeling called to spend time with God exploring the art of bible journaling, we’re here to walk alongside you and equip you with any and all of the tools you’ll need along the way! As a beginner, it may seem overwhelming with all of the tools, tutorials, and information at your disposal, so we want to make it easy for you! The one thing that you need to remember about bible journaling is that there are no rules, no guidelines, and no such thing as mistakes. So come as you are, and just get started!

Our Must-Have Tools to Get Started Bible Journaling

Journaling Bible or Notebook

To get started with bible journaling, you need a space to create. Whether it be in the margins of your journaling bible, in a devotional prompted notebook like 100 Days of Bible Promises, or in a regular lined journal, you decide! There’s many options available – you just have to find one that speaks to your creative instincts.

Pens

Don’t know where to start? Just start writing! If you’re timid about doodling or painting in your bible, start by just taking notes in the margins instead! You’ll be able to have all of your takeaways from the Word in one place, and it breaks the ice of actually putting pen to paper in the pages of your bible. You may decide that you like the note-taking approach OR you can slowly start adding more things like paints, stickers, and washi tape after this. You can use regular black ink, or even add in some color!

Washi Tape

Washi tape is probably our favorite tool for bible journaling and crafting in general! You can use it on anything. Create borders or tabs in the pages of your bible, add it in and write your notes on top of it, or even use it to cover any “mistakes” you feel like you’ve made. There are so many different colors and patterns to choose from, and it just adds the little flair that you were looking for.

Stickers & Stamps

One of our favorite things about bible journaling is that you do not have to be creative at all to start! It’s all about getting into the Word and listening to what God has to teach you, not about how it looks. That’s why we love to recommend stickers and stamps for a beginner’s bible journaling tool kit. You can find stamps with beautifully drawn doodles or stickers with hand-lettered words on them that add to your pages in ways that you may not be able to on your own! Place stickers next to passages of Scripture that you want to remember, or use alphabet stamps to write out a title on your page. The possibilities are endless!

Paint

If you’re ready to dive in and really start making art in God’s Word, grab some paint and get started! You can watercolor over the text, paint in the margins, or create a full-blown masterpiece on the page. We have several tutorials on painting in your bible in our Bible Journaling articles category that you can refer to for more inspiration, but just follow where God’s leading you and have fun with it!

Tabs

You’ve gotten started, and you’re lingering in the Word and spending more and more time with God in your bible. You’ll want to be able to refer back to previous pages and revisit the lessons that God taught you along the way. Tabs are perfect for marking the pages you’ve already spent time on so that you can always go back to them. Choose tabs with themes that go along with the lesson you were in or mark all of the books of the bible with tabs so you can easily turn to each one when you need it. They’re colorful, versatile, and make studying the bible so much easier!

If you still feel stuck, try finding inspiration from other people who have already started bible journaling. You can find books, such as A Workbook Guide to Bible Journaling by Shanna Noel, that will teach you new tips and tricks and give you inspiration on where to start. Just remember what we said before, there is no right or wrong way to bible journal, just ask God to speak to you and listen to what He has to say!

For more inspiration, head to our Bible Journaling category in our Devotional Library. You can also shop all bible journaling supplies here! Sign up for our e-newsletter to receive free articles, updates from our Ecard Studio as well as exclusive deals