CHRISTIAN CREATIVE ART
I believe God goes before us. This image made me think of how holy/mysterious and majestic our God is. It caught my breath and reminded me of how much beauty He still creates today, it also reminded me of light in darkness… can we be clouds of grace to others? More on that…
Inspired music is a must when I paint.
“For the Lord your God is living among you.
He is a mighty savior.
He will take delight in you with gladness.
With his love, he will calm all your fears.
He will rejoice over you with joyful songs.”
48 hours before I was to start over, all over. It had been six years since I’d been in the classroom as a student teacher. Six years since I had had my first mental breakdown, three short years since my diagnosis and these lyrics woke me from my sleep. The line “I’ve tried before and failed…” echoed in my head. Even though this may seem like a discouraging line, I knew this Casting Crowns song was good. I didn’t know the name of the song or the rest of the lyrics. So, I crawled out of bed and sunk into the pooh-bah chair with my smart phone and googled the few lines that had been sung over me in my sleep. This is what I read (emphasis mine):
“Oh, what I would do to have
The kind of faith it takes
To climb out of this boat I'm in
Onto the crashing waves
To step out of my comfort zone
Into the realm of the unknown where Jesus is
And He's holding out His hand
But the waves are calling out my name
And they laugh at me
Reminding me of all the times
I've tried before and failed
The waves they keep on telling me
Time and time again. "Boy, you'll never win!"
"You'll never win!"
But the voice of truth tells me a different story
The voice of truth says, "Do not be afraid!"
The voice of truth says, "This is for My glory"
Out of all the voices calling out to me
I will choose to listen and believe the voice of truth
Oh what I would do to have
The kind of strength it takes to stand before a giant
With just a sling and a stone
Surrounded by the sound of a thousand warriors
Shaking in their armor
Wishing they'd have had the strength to stand
But the giant's calling out my name
And he laughs at me
Reminding me of all the times
I've tried before and failed
The giant keeps on telling me
Time and time again. "Boy you'll never win!"
"You'll never win!"
But the stone was just the right size
To put the giant on the ground
And the waves they don't seem so high
From on top of them lookin' down
I will soar with the wings of eagles
When I stop and listen to the sound of Jesus
Singing over me
I will choose to listen and believe the voice of truth'“
Jesus woke me up that morning to an inspired song. A giant assurance to hush the giant fears. In 2013, I graduated with my second degree in Elementary Education. Jesus proved to me that His song is always the song to listen to and believe – because HE is the Voice of Truth.
He speaks and I encourage you to listen.
““For the Lord your God is living among you.
He is a mighty savior.
He will take delight in you with gladness.
With his love, he will calm all your fears.
He will rejoice over you with joyful songs.””
Good morning, friends. See this photo? It’s from Pottery Barn - it features my art. The bottom left pink abstract piece. When this hit their internet store my heart was swollen with excitement and that little thing called - pride. I wanted to share it, but of course appear humble. During that part of my journey as an artist - I cared more about what people thought of my accomplishments and the praise I would receive for getting into “cool” places. You know what? The attention faded quickly and I was on the hunt for the next big accomplishment that would yield the “high” of recognition and the validation that I/the art mattered.
Fast forward a few years. God has been working on my heart, my intentions, my career He is covering up the old layers and painting a new thing. Praise the Lord for His never ending mercy and grace. As I embarked on being fully seen with the Christian Creative Art journey my one and only desire was glorifying God with my gifts.
Pride still likes to rear its sneaky head some days, but I truly believe in sanctification and God purifying my heart daily as I surrender and pick up a paintbrush to express the gift that only He gave me.
My heart always wrestled with being fully vulnerable with my Christianity and how closely it is tied up in my process. Still, I get shaky in sharing with people who may not understand me - but my heart is now aligned with Him (a daily process) and that feels so much more rewarding.
If you’re an artist, by all means SHARE your accomplishments, don’t hide. However, check your heart and remember who your Genius is. And a little verse I find helpful… “Therefore it is written: ‘Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord.’” - 1 Corinthians 1:31
Energy of Redemption
“God loves you, God loves you, Gold loves you!!!” The speaker was practically yelling from the pulpit at the half-awake student body. To be honest, that week of worship hadn’t really struck a chord with me, I was there for the worship credit. I didn’t enjoy the speaker. But, the last day something profound happened. The speaker’s final, forceful, push of this repetitive phrase penetrated my core. I can remember the literally feeling of an arrow piercing my heart. God’s Spirit was beckoning me. There were things to do and places to go. One of the places to go was Heubach’s morning worships. I had been attending them sporadically throughout the spring quarter. The next morning I was determined to wake early to make it before my first class. Looking back, I can’t remember if we met at 7am or 7:30am, but I can tell you as a college student - sleeping in and pushing snooze a dozen times was the norm. However, I remember popping out of bed and showing up right on time. I sat in those hard, beautiful, wooden pews as the pianist began to play a hymn. I tried to sing, but words wouldn’t come out, only sobs. I mean ugly cry, makeup gone for the day, nose dripping, drenched shirt sobs. Surprisingly, no shame or embarrassment surrounded the moment. It was only the most cleansing cry I have ever experienced. I was being emptied and filled. I was being delivered from a dead life. I was waking up to a life of love, acceptance, healing, all the things promised and yet to be discovered. He was bringing me alive to Himself.
I left that sacred space not really understanding what had happened. But now, I believe the Holy Spirit had come to me. Burdens I had once carried had disappeared and I felt physically lighter when I walked back to my car.
Reflecting on Romans 8 brought all these memories flooding back. I’d like to close with some powerful words in Romans 8 from The Message translation.
“It stands to reason, doesn’t it that if the alive-and-present God who raised Jesus from the dead moves into your life, he’ll do the same thing in you that he did in Jesus, bringing you alive to himself? When God lives and breathes in you (and he does, as surely as he did in Jesus), you are delivered from that dead life. God’s Spirit Beckons… God’s Spirit touches our spirits and confirms who we really are.”
A big thank you to my Alma mater @wallawallauniversity for fostering a place where students can encounter The Divine in monumental, life-changing ways.
Dreaming in Color
Touching the heart, these words. For I love to dream, yet I dream not what you have waiting ahead for me. I love you, Lord and I lift my voice.
By faith…
By faith Abel - OFFERED
By faith Noah - BUILT
By faith Abraham - WENT
By faith Joseph - SPOKE
By faith Moses - REFUSED
By faith Rahab - WELCOMED
Layers of bright colors on mixed media paper
Winter has really arrived this week in Portland. The cold is here and I have found myself layering turtle necks under my vintage wool sweaters, and puffy coats over those. My mind can’t help but bounce around as it tends to do and I find myself thinking of everything that is layered! Layered paint on a canvas, layered desserts… “Layer the products of the same scent,” we used to tell customers. Warm Vanilla was my favorite, but the most popular at the Bath and Body Works store I worked at in college was probably Cucumber Melon. It makes me smile to think back on that time in my life!
When I look back, I see that if you wanted to walk past someone with a waft of the scent you loved, you had to layer the product. First, use the sugar scrub, then the body wash, then the lotion, and finally the body mist and you’d be smelling the part of your favorite scent. It dawned on me that this same concept can be applied to Bible study. We can layer the individual parts and carry with us the sweet aroma of Christ into our world, every day. So, here are the six layers I practice as I journey through scripture. I hope they inspire you to do the same.
o Take a time to quiet the mind, set the mood for peace, light a candle, make some tea, or open a window. Place any distractions (like your cellphone) in another room. Inhale and exhale a few deep breaths and surrender. Earnestly ask the Holy Spirit to speak truth as you open the Word
o Read slowly out loud or in your mind depending on what impacts you the most. Then re-read, and finally write out words and phrases that are making an impression on your heart and mind
o The impressions that have been made, what are they speaking to you. Ponder this in your heart. As you begin to discover the meaning behind these texts, ask the Holy Spirit to uncover the significance of why these are important
o Record the verse or word that most impacted you and rehearse it. Biblical meditation is focusing on and repeating these verses and words to oneself. You might even pick a favorite text to memorize and mediate on or post a word in a prominent place in your home where you’ll see it throughout the day
o Take the overall message you received, those key phrases and words and make them applicable to your life today. Carry them out into the world and administer with guidance of the Holy Spirit
o Reflection prayers are wonderful. Reflect on the information you’ve been gifted and write out a prayer. Then, sit and receive the message’s power to transform.
Inspired by Smith Rock in Central Oregon. Representing STRENGTH as I read and reflect today.
Trying to keep tears off the pages as I read Hebrews 12:12 today. This chapter speaks volumes to me as I am a little lower than normal. The beginning days of January always bring memories of 2010 – the year that would bring a psychotic break, a diagnosis, and a deep depression. And so, I interpret Hebrews 12:12-13 in my own words today and this is my prayer:
// Like a fawn // I am // asking for strength // strength for feeble arms // my shaky weak knees // with self-care // guide me // to make my path stable and straight // so that others // may take notice // not being dismayed or disabled // but // also find healing //
A painting to represent stillness by Kandyce King