When I was a young Christian, I owned a bible that I loved very much. And as I spent time with it, sometimes certain noteworthy things would occur to my mind, or I would learn something that I was afraid I might forget. Normally, I would write in the margins of any book, but this was the bible. How can I mar the pages of God’s holy word? And so for a long time, I went out of my way to avoid marking in my bible. Guess how I felt the day I accidentally made a mark in it? I found myself feeling shut out from His presence, excluded from Heaven.
Over a decade later, I reached a point where I became more mature in the faith. I came across this quote that stayed with me:
A bible that is falling apart is the mark of a Christian who is not.
I realised that it wasn’t the book itself that was holy, but rather, the words within that held life. If I was writing in the margins of the bible to help myself learn God’s Word better, then God is actually pleased with that.
However, some months down the line, I discovered bible journaling content on YouTube, Instagram and Tiktok, and felt inspired to create similar content too. I went down the rabbit hole of positioning my bible and stationery, and buying highlighters that would make my bible pages look the best. I posted the pictures and videos online, and loved the compliments I received. Suddenly my bible study became performative. And I cared about my bible journaling supplies more than bible study itself. But whenever I came back from a toilet break and caught the first glance of my bible, and saw how pretty it was, it would make my heart glad. I went the next few weeks confused, and prayed about it.
After more days, I decided to cut down this idol. I deleted social media, and stopped sharing my bible pages on those sites. But having aesthetic pages still made me happy, so I continued using those highlighters in beautiful shades. And I used to judge the Christians who only did art in their bibles, but now I find myself colouring the line art illustrations in the margins of my bible to express the creativity God gave me. My bible pages make me happy, because I invest time and effort into both study notes and creative art. Giving time to study notes while also paying attention to my need for an aesthetic has actually drawn me to open my bible more.
So I come back to the question – is there a right way to bible journal?
Some choose to read only, because they feel that it is dishonouring to God if they write in the margins. I think that is okay. Some write study notes in the margins, because they think it is honouring to God. That is also okay. Some create visual art as a way to honour the talents God gave them. That too is okay.
I personally don’t think that marking up your bible is in any way dishonouring to God, but scripture is very clear that it is a sin to act against your conscience. If a Christian keeps her bible pages clean to respect God, then for her it is dishonouring Him if she writes in her bible. This will be the rule she keeps towards God, something that is between her and God alone.
And while I believe that visual art is a great way to use our God given talents, I think so long as that expression of creativity is not the main focus of your time spent with the Word, it’s completely fine. Making your bible pages beautiful is therapeutic, but what is actually food for your soul is studying what it teaches, and applying it to your life.
To sum it all up, whether you only read the bible, or mark it up too, or create visual art in it, what matters is that you spend time with Scripture. All of this is worship, and I do wish that the Christian community would recognise this, and stop judging one another for a way to enjoy Scripture that does not look like theirs. What matters in the end is not that you have the prettiest bible notes, or the most pristine looking bible, or the best bible facts in your pages – what matters is that you worship God.
So whether you read and take notes in a separate journal, mark up your bible, or draw – all of it is fine. Because it is all worship.
There is no wrong way to bible journal so long as you treat what you read as the Word of God.
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