Deeper...

 

I recently attended the If:Gathering at my church. This two-day women's conference is an annual event that explores our faith through a series of Christian speakers.  The theme this year was "If the worst happens; we won't lose faith" 

The simulcast speakers were motivational, inspirational, and I left the conference feeling refilled, re-invigorated and inspired. In particular, Pastor Mike Todd had a half hour segment on going deeper in our Christianity, and it really spoke to me. His energy, comedic engagement, and shift to seriousness really drew me in. 

The overview of his message is basically that we think we are safe in the "shallows" of our faith. Sadly, God can't do what he wants to do with us there, we need to go out deeper in the water. Many of us are afraid to go out deeper, because we can't see the bottom or are worried about what might lurk in the deep water. He is calling us out in to the deep water, though... out of our "kiddie pool" Christianity.

In the deep water, God has given us an anchor for our faith.  

In the deep, He can work with us, and we can hold on to the he steadfast hope that is Jesus.

Not only can we hold on to the anchor (that is useless in the shallows!) but we ourselves can become anchors for those around us as we lead them out in to the deep.

I was reminded during his sermon about our town beach at the local lake. 

There is diving dock where the water is 25 feet deep.  My children like to swim out to it and do cannonball jumps. They have asked me to swim out there with them many times, but I am literally afraid to swim out over my head because I cannot see the bottom of the lake.  It was as if Mike Todd was speaking directly to me.

Last summer, I swam out to the dock.  I was terrified.  I had to psych myself up and pray to God to give me the courage and be with me so that I wouldn't chicken out and turn around, but I did it. This sermon was practically screaming at me... it is time to dig deeper into my faith.
Explore my ministry. Look for my purpose. Be more public. 

It bears saying that I have a praise report, too.

I've been struggling with an eye condition for three years and on the first day of the conference, I finally found a medication that brought instant relief and I could see with perfect clarify for the first time in a long time!

I started hearing/feeling the Spirit prompting me to draw an anchor. 

(I haven't done any art in so long because I spent the last year obtaining my Master's degree.) 

I began a sort of conversation with God in my head....

Me:  Oh!  I hear you telling me that I need to draw an anchor!

God:  You haven't drawn in so long.  It's good to draw again, yes.  An anchor... but think bigger.

Me: A whole underwater lake scene maybe?  With seaweed and fish.  Maybe sunfish like at the lake.

God:  Nope.   Bigger.

Me:  But, the story.  It fits me so perfectly

God:  It's not about you.  It's bigger than you.  Think bigger.

Me:  OK.  Ocean?  I can draw it digitally in Photoshop in case I make a mistake.

God:  Good.  Ocean is good.  Not digital.  Use watercolors.  

Me: Watercolors?  If I make a mistake it is ruined, and I'm still a beginner with watercolors.

God: Have you ruined one yet?

Me: Well.  You just fixed my eyes. Surely I can't say no to you if you want watercolors.  Watercolor ocean anchor it is.

The next day, I started painting the scene... the full painting took three days of working on and off.

The final piece is framed in a 16x20 frame, with an 11x14 opening.

Some of the verses that influenced its development:

Ephesians 4:11-14

Hebrews 6:19-20

Hebrews 12: 1-3

1 Corinthians 15: 58

Daisies for Mama...

This watercolor and ink drawing was created for my friend's mother. She suffered some pretty significant medical issues over the past two months that required extended hospitalization. My friend truly thought her mother was soon to be lost. I painted daisies, Mama's favorite flowers. There are 4 to represent Mama, her 2 daughters, and her son.

Thanks to the many prayers sent up on her behalf, the amazing medical capabilities of our doctors today, and strong determination, her mother has recovered. I painted this to be displayed in her room at the rehabilitation center where she was going for her aftercare, but it is now displayed at home instead, where she is doing great! A miracle indeed... 

Joyful Eyes...

I drew this portrait for a friend after she posted about the loss of her "Poppa".  As I read his obituary, I was struck by the kindness in his expression and the joyful sparkle in his eyes.  He looked like a truly and genuinely happy person, and I felt compelled to draw him immediately.

I was happy to see her and give her a hug, despite coronoavirus quarantine in full swing. Sometimes you just need to hold on to someone for a minute.  I didn't stay long, but I could see the portrait brought some fond memories to the surface.

On the way home, I received this lovely photo of the portrait in its new home.

I feel so blessed myself to be able to have blessed Poppa's family with this small gift and that it brings them comfort and joy. 

Thank you, Father, for giving me the gift of being able to draw and for showing me how to use that gift to bring joy to others in Your name.  Amen... 

Free Indeed...

This image was inspired by a man I was acquainted with recently. After knowing him a week or two, he told me his testimony of how he came to Christ.  He told me he was once an alcoholic, and he showed me a photograph of him at his worst; severely overweight, red faced from the alcohol and out of control blood pressure.

The story ended in celebration, however, as he was receiving his 2 year sobriety medallion today.

I felt compelled to draw this prayer of praise and thanksgiving on his behalf.

He is now free indeed!

Only minutes after his testimony, another man gave me a similar testimony, and just 4 days later, a third gentleman today told me he was celebrating 1 year sober this weekend!

The artwork is pencil, ink, with black shimmery gel roller pen on the chain and silver gel roller pen for the beams of light coming from the cross. 

Thank you, Father, for putting these people before me and allowing me to be on their path and touch their lives on their walk closer to you.  Let my light guide them closer to you, as you reach out your loving hand to take them into your arms and walk beside them.

You change us from the inside out and mold us into your image. 

Please continue to change all of us in wonderfully powerful ways.

In Jesus' name,

Amen

Loss...

This is Matt.  He was just 17 when he was recently killed in a senseless act of violence by two boys years younger than he was. His life was cut needlessly short, and my heart breaks for his family. They made an incredibly selfless and immeasurably generous gift of his organs.  Matt will live on in others and be remembered always.

I drew this as a remembrance in his honor and sent it to his family. It took me some time to finish it because he born within weeks of my oldest daughter. It hit me hard to imagine how quickly our children can be taken from us. I drew it through tears and so many prayers of comfort for Matt, his mother, his sister, and the rest of his family, his friends, and his community who were stunned by this tragedy.

Father, I pray that you hold Matt and his family in your arms.  Comfort them in their time of sorrow. Allow them to see that they gifts they made of his earthly body will have a ripple effect resulting in stories of love and gratitude throughout his community. Use this tragic event as only you can to create something beautiful... In Jesus' name... Amen. 

Metamorphosis...

Last year, I printed my own Christmas cards with the image from my post called Songbirds. The birds represented my children in our season of winter as we are learning our way through the difficulties that come with breaking up a family.

This year, I decided I am starting a tradition that my holiday cards will feature an art piece I made to represent my year and hopefully inspire those I give them to.  This year I'll be using the image above for my cards.  It has many layers of meaning, the over arching theme is transformation and the miracle and wonder of life.  

On a personal note, a friend recently sent a text that made me choke up:  "You are so different now. God Bless You.  Yes, people near you are taking notice now... God is fabulous"

Yes, God IS fabulous.  And if we listen to Him through studying his Word, we can't help but be transformed and renewed and utterly changed from who we were "before".  I know that I myself am more patient with the world in general, more empathetic, less stressed. I've learned to handle what I can and to give what I can't to God to take care of.  Sure, I'm not perfect, but the change has been AMAZING for my mental, physical, and spiritual health.  

In the Northeastern US where I live, we would never find a monarch on a real Christmas tree.  The cold would have killed them off by this time of year.  They tend to leave the area in September or perhaps as late as early October. However, I recently saw a documentary and was amazed to see footage of pines in Mexico literally covered on each entire branch with monarchs.  These images below cannot possibly due the sight justice.

This butterfly may not "belong" in a Christmas tree, as it is too cold here, but it persisted through the cold and when brought into the warmth and light of the house, emerged as beautiful as God meant for it to be. Like us, as Christians, are called to transform ourselves through meditating on God's Word.

(Another layer to the image... my family has developed a hobby these past 2 years of raising and releasing monarchs through out the summer that we hatch from eggs, so there's a fun nod here to my crazy sister who hatched something like 150 or so this year! It is such a fascinating process to watch! I highly recommend it if you have children.  It is an easy to manage science project that will instill a wonder for life and creation!)

The image was sketched in pencil, water color painted, and inked with a quill pen.

Holiday Gift...

While considering a Holiday Gift for my friend that would be both meaningful and useful, I decided to customize this simple 2020 planner that I picked up at a local department store.  I pictured it being used at work to stay on task, or better yet, to keep a prayer journal - this particular friend is a prayer warrior on the prayer team at his church.

I decided not to be sneaky or stealthy, and straightforwardly asked for some of his favorite Bible verses.  He sent me  four or five of his favorites.  I took his top 2, and made them into artwork for inside the covers of the planner.  The planner had no holidays marked inside it for some strange reason, so I then went through the pages of the book and marked and decorated each holiday on its monthly calendar page.  (There are additional weekly pages where he could keep track of prayer records or meetings, etc.)

This was the artwork that I put on the right side inside the front cover.  As you open the cover, you immediately see this bright and encouraging image.  On the left side of the inside cover, I hand-wrote out the verse and colored the edges of the page in matching blue and gold watercolor.  The image was sketched and watercolor painted, and overlaid with black ink from a quill pen.

The favorite verse, Romans 15:13, from the NLT translation

I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.

_____________________________________________

Inside the back cover of the book, I similarly sketched, painted, and inked an image for his second favorite verse, Mark 12: 29-31 and on the opposite side of the cover, I hand-wrote the verse.

“The most important one,” answered Jesus, is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. The Lord our God is one Lord. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’  There is no commandment greater than these.” 

The reaction upon opening the package?   

"It's Simply Beautiful."

Full of Light and Color...

I spent a LOT of time on art this weekend!  As I continued to experiment with my watercolors and watercolor paper, I realized I needed to get a lot "looser" and more "painterly" with the brush to really succeed with watercolor.

I spent some time mowing up the leaves in the yard today. I always wear my headset and play my praise playlist when I'm riding the lawn tractor.  Simple inspiration to try some fall colored birch trees for practice and meditation.

I adore the fall colors in my area! I spent time telling God how beautiful his creation is as I worked out these trees.  The conspicuous empty spot on the right needed a verse about trees, but I was called to this quote I found online instead.  And afraid to completely destroy the painting with a calligraphic error, I decided to electronically overlay the quote instead.

I had no idea who John Burroughs was, but after a quick online search, I found he was a naturalist and a writer about the beauty of nature from the early 1900's, and who lived not very far from where I live!  While researching, I saw another of his more famous quotes, "The Kingdom of Heaven is not a place, but a state of mind."  This quote gave me more to meditate and talk to God about.

Housewarming gift...

My good friend moved into a new apartment and had a housewarming get together. I wanted to make her something special, so I painted and inked a hydrangea for her, her favorite flower. 

I wrote in a verse on the back of the painting for her: Luke 12: 27-28

“Consider how the wild flowers grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you—you of little faith!"

Here is the picture, framed and ready for gifting... 

Wait Patiently...

This project was simple practice for me.  Experimenting with my watercolor pencils and watercolor paper, and my new brush pens for calligraphy.  It's not perfect, but it is one of my favorite verses, and spending an hour or two focusing on one of your favorite scriptures is always time well spent!

My spot...

I gave my life to Christ on October 8, 2017.  To celebrate the 2 year anniversary, I decided to create an drawing of my spot.

It began as a pencil sketch of the location where I was saved.  I then used black ink to deepen the darks and tree branches. The picture looked drab and depressing, not the vibrant and colorful autumn image that I always seen in my head when I think back on that day.

I decided to experiment and added watercolors to the trees, and sky, the beach area. 

Sadly, my experiment with the mixed media went awry. Watercolor on regular sketch paper makes the paper pill and peel, so the lake water itself was not able to be completed without completely destroying the paper.    While I feel like the piece itself is incomplete (the lake looks more like a snowy field to me), I did learn a lot about how the watercolor pencils I have acted with each other and I was really pleased with the resulting fall colors in the trees.

I have since purchased a pad of watercolor paper for future watercolor experiments, and I may make another effort at this same image someday.

Anxious for Nothing...

This piece was inspired by the August 2019 sermon series from Pastor Craig Groeschel of Life.Church called "Anxious for Nothing".  You can view the messages on the Life.Church app, or on YouTube.  Here is the first message of the series:

At around the 24 minute mark of the video above, Pastor Craig brings his lovely wife up onto the stage to demonstrate what was happening in 1 Kings 19: 11-13, when Elijah goes out to stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord.  Pastor Craig's visual demonstration of Satan yelling vs. God whispering because he is close to us really struck me.

At the same time I was watching this series, we discussed various birds in the bible (and who/what they represent) during one of my bible study lessons.  I envisioned Pastor Craig in the position of hearing Satan squawking at him in the form of a vulture, yet fending off the effects of the anxiety-inducing squawking by standing close to and in the presence of the Lord who is near.

I, myself, am guilty of putting too much weight on the words of the squawking vulture in my mind, and not enough focus on the Words of the one who is always near. I used to often say that I was my own worst critic, but I am working on focusing on the truth of who God says I am, not the random noise of my anxious mind.

This image started out as a pencil-only sketch, but as it took form, I added colored pencil (that I had purchased from the art supply store that were saturated with vibrant color) and added black ink and white ink to pop shadows and highlights.

Feedback: Sing

 

The original post for this piece can be found here.

I was pleasantly surprised to receive a small notecard in the mail recently.  I didn't recognize the return address, but the handwriting was lovely.  I curiously opened the small envelope and found a card from the lovely lady I drew the "Sing" prayer for.  Her name has been deleted for privacy, but her words touched me deeply and encouraged me to continue in this "accidental" ministry that we know is not an accident at all, but rather the will of God himself placed on me.

The handwritten note reads:

"Dear Delia,

I have been wanted to send this note for so long, in fact, I asked H for your address months ago!  When I received your picture I was in such a low place. I was discouraged and felt lost as to what my place was within ministry. Your incredible gift helped me to keep my eyes on the cross, and also on the fact the cross was empty... That His life, death & resurrection power is the reason I sing! That I can live a life full of love and gratitude and belonging. There was so much more that your picture spoke to me - and continues to speak (as it now hangs beside my bed and is often the first thing I see!) Thank you for using your gift to bless me.  Most sincerely, J"

You are most welcome, J, of course!  I pray that the image continues to speak to you and remind me to use your beautiful gift to send up praise and lead others to do the same.

I will keep your note in a safe place... I look at it often, I took a picture to keep in my phone to encourage me when I have drawing block or just need a pick me up.  This picture in my cell phone, in fact, has lead me to consider a new addition to this blog and my ministry - downloadable copies of the images that can be set at cell phone wall papers... Keep your eye out for that coming soon!

Much love to you and may you continue to grow in Christ!

Feedback: Comfort for God's People

 

The original post for this piece can be found here.

 

I received a thank you letter from the beautiful woman who I created this prayer for when she lost her daughter.  In the interest of maintaining her privacy, I won't share the full note, but I feel compelled to share a small portion of the handwritten card, name redacted, that caught me by the heart and squeezed.

 

"As Christ went to find the lost lambs, T was a shepherd always searching for lost lambs she could care for.  Your choice of images could not have been more perfect in representing T's life then and now, as she is safely at home in his arms."

Messages like this encourage me to continue in this ministry. 
I'm so blessed to be able to give comfort to others through art. 

I'm listening...

This song, I'm listening by Chris McClarney, is reaching me today.  

I "heard" some encouragement today that made me feel that I am on the right track with God's will for me.

Firstly, I seriously worried about how I handled the prayer presentation for the comfort drawing that I delivered tonight.  I was worried that I might not have said the "right thing" in the card, or have chosen "the right" verse in Isaiah 40:11.  God allowed me to hear a clip on the radio after I left the wake that focused on Isaiah 40, and I knew it was Him telling me I had chosen well.

Secondly, I attended a Worship Night concert at my church tonight.  (Side note: I LOVE Worship Night at church!  I always leave energized and uplifted, and after attending two wakes today, the emotional boost was even more appreciated than usual.)  Our worship leader prayed that we would BOLDLY go forth in faith, and I brought that prayer deeper into me.  I prayed that as "real life" people around me begin to learn of my drawings that they will be touched by the Word and that I will boldly proclaim the Good News to those around me.

Lastly, the recipient of the Holy Spirit drawing told me that she continues to be blessed by drawing, nearly two weeks after I gave it to her - that she has set her cell phone wall paper to the drawing and it continues to speak to her daily.  What better validation than that?  To hear from the person you prayed for that your prayer literally has blessed them with such an impact?

Dear Heavenly Father,

You are so incredibly generous with your Grace. I am humbled and overwhelmed to consider the fact that you love me so much and have a will and a plan for me. You have blessed me with these skills that allow me to draw visual representations of your Word and these drawings are reaching and blessing those around me.  I ask that you continue to bless me with opportunities to pray for and draw for people in need.  I ask that you continue to help me see your will for me - continue to speak to me in ways that I can recognize, whether a song on the radio at the perfect time, a well timed sermon message, or a social media message to encourage me when I am unsure.  You know your plan for me, Lord, and I know it is a plan for good and not harm.  I will continue to seek you out wherever you send me to look.  Thank you for all you have done for me.  My life is not my own, I give it all to you.  Amen

Comfort for God's People...

I completed this pencil piece tonight.  It's larger than my usual 8.5" x 11" sketchbook page at 11"x14". 

I wish that there was a happy prayer associated with this drawing, but that is not the case.  My heart is heavy today as I learned that a colleague and mentor of mine lost her adult daughter unexpectedly last night.

As a parent myself, I cannot fathom the loss of one of my children.  I can only imagine the level of heartache she is feeling, and I wanted to draw an expression of comfort for her to show my support for her family at this most difficult time.

Isaiah 40 spoke to me and I was inspired by verse 11 specifically.  In my bible app the NIV version chapter is labelled as Comfort for God's People.  

 'He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young. '

Isaiah 40:11

I understand that "gifts" are not a tradition for the mourning, but it is my prayer to the Lord that His word and this drawing of the verse bring her, her remaining daughter, her husband, and all who knew this beautiful young woman, a sense of peace and comfort in their time of sorrow. The photo has been framed and will be forwarded to the family with a card expressing my condolences and the significance of the drawing and the verse.

Dear Lord, I come to you tonight to ask you to gently carry the mother who has lost her precious daughter.  Lift her up and carry her close to you, as you carry the little lamb in your bosom.  Embrace her with your love and allow her to feel your presence with her so that she may be comforted with the knowledge that you are not only with her, but you are with her daughter and caring for her, as well, as she walks by your side. The faith is strong in their family.  I pray that their faith is strengthened during this season of sadness.  I pray specifically, Lord, that this drawing you allowed me to create reminds the family to lean into you for support in their time of need.  In Jesus' name... Amen.

Side note: this will be a significant step outside of my "comfort zone".  In an earlier post, I mentioned that I am feeling compelled to remove some of the anonymity of this blog and my drawings.  The anonymity gives me a sense of safety, a sense that people close to me won't judge me for my beliefs, or try to attack me because of them.  This will be the first drawing that anyone outside of a very select few in my "real" life have seen.  (Perhaps only 5 Christian friends have seen these drawings in person. My parents and siblings have seen a few, but not all.)

To step out in public faith - in front of my coworkers and a respected mentor at my place of employment - will be a real demonstration of my willingness to be more public with my faith, to share the Good News, and to minister the Word to others around me as I study the bible more and more deeply each day.  

My Beloved...

Take Number 2 for attempting to draw a wedding gift for young friends getting married in September.  I decided to use a verse that is a bit more passionate and less preachy for my young friends. (My first attempt turned out to be destined for another couple, see my previous post called "Wives...")

I wanted a hand written look to the wording, but was able to admit to myself that my calligraphy skills are a bit rusty, so I "cheated" and used the laser printer to print the verse.  I then set out with my handy waterproof drawing pens to draw in the flowers.  I specifically chose two flowers and positioned them "leaning on" each other, or embracing each other.  

This verse is from the Song of Songs (the Old Testament) which was the first Old Testament book I studied thanks to a Pastor Craig Groeschel / Life.Church series called Love Song.  You can find the series on YouTube.

I used watercolor pencils to add color to the piece, and then a water brush to blend away the pencil strokes and blend the shading.

As I impatiently waited for the watercolors to fully dry, I considered what wisdom to write on the back of the piece... I decided to write a single, simple, heartfelt sentence, and framed it up.  

I'm really pleased with how this piece came out.  This drawing feels more right for the couple I had in mind when drawing it. The bright and sunny Brown-Eyed Susans make me smile, like the bride to be, who has the most beautiful and contagious sunny smile.  The groom has deep, dark, kind, brown eyes, so the flowers are a perfect fit for them both.

I had considered making them pink, like echinacea, at first.  But yellow kept calling to me.  Turns out an alternative name for Brown Eyed Susan is Golden Jerusalem... coincidence?  I'm learning that there is no such thing! According to a flower symbolism website, they also represent happiness, so that's a bonus, as well.

I wish my friends all of the love and patience in this world.  I know that they both have an amazingly strong foundation and focus on Our Heavenly Father, so I know that their marriage will be blessed, long, and happy, and that they know where to turn to in times of trouble or sadness.  Their bond will be truly blessed. I can't wait to watch them grow together in Christ and surround themselves with a family.

A more detailed photograph of the artwork:

Wives...

Some friends are getting married in September.  I wanted to draw a prayer for them as a gift.  I drew a bouquet, using three orchids to represent the Trinity, with a red rose in the center to represent the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Colossians 3 kept coming to me, but I wasn't fully sure of it. I kept asking myself if I was letting my bad marriage influence my choice of verses for this artwork...

I also really wanted to hand ink the lettering since it had been literally decades since I had used my old calligraphy supplies.  I'm surprised that the inks weren't dried up, honestly!

In full transparency, I was very unhappy with the result of this artwork.  I am my own worst critic, and it wasn't speaking to me and felt wrong, but I couldn't tell exactly why.  I wrote to my good friend and told her how disappointed I was with the artwork, and how I actually was considering tossing it, and I hadn't tossed a piece yet.

Well, the reason it felt wrong was that it WAS wrong for the particular couple I had in mind!

My friend told me that SHE actually loved the artwork, and I realized it was better suited to her and her husband.  They had recently experienced a year-long long distance separation to try to figure out how to save their marriage.  She prayed faithfully for her husband and herself and invited the Holy Spirit into their lives to save their marriage, and they are reuniting THIS WEEK.  I am told that he is a fully changed man, who has accepted Jesus as Savior, given himself over to the Spirit, and comes back to her full of tender love.

I will fully admit that I was skeptical that there would be a change in him,  but GOD is so GOOD.  I was so thrilled to hear her good news and so utterly humbled to realize that despite praying all year for my dear friend, I did not *really* believe that God would change her husband. I am ashamed to admit that I thought he was beyond reach, but of course, no one is ever outside of His reach!

I pray that this artwork (which she plans to display in her home prominently) reminds them both to submit to each other and treat each other with love and kindness as they learn to love the new people God has made both of them into.

Holy Spirit... (Updated)

(Scroll down for an update on this image...)

I don't work in color a lot yet, but I wanted this one to be in color, the light surrounding the woman had to be blue, to match my vision. 

At a prayer night a few nights ago, we were prompted to pray and reflect on who God is, what he's done in our lives in the past, what he will do in the future, and lastly, on how he is omnipresent, he's always been with us, and will remain with us.

I felt a vision, as though the Holy Spirit was swirling around me in the form of bright blue light as I prayed and reflected on His goodness to me.

I just recently read through John, and John 15 specifically felt connected to my previous post The True Vine.  In the previous chapter (14) and again, later in chapter 15, we are told of our Helper, the Holy Spirit.  These verses were fresh on my mind during prayer night...

John 14: 15-17

15 If you love me, you will keep my commandments.  16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, 17 even the Spirit of Truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.

John 14: 26

26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. 

Update: Sunday July 14:

I thought the original intent of this image as I said above, was that the Holy Spirit was swirling around ME as I prayed.

The following morning when I woke up, I was having trouble deciding whether I should go to church services or not. You see, I drive approximately 40 minutes to church, and I was very low on gas, and I didn't have money to put into my tank.

Around 9:30am, I looked at the picture and felt that I needed to go to church and give this to our worship leader.  I felt very strongly, and immediately, that this picture was of her and had a message for her.  It even looked more like her than myself... In fact, I don't even own a green shirt, but I *do* have a recent video clip of her leading worship at our evening baptism ceremony where she is just exuding joy and dancing while singing while wearing a green shirt.

I marked the two scriptures above on the back of the drawing, signed it to her from myself, got myself together and headed to church for our 11am service.

I waited until after the service, sat with her aside and gave her the picture.  I explained to her that I recalled her saying a couple of weeks ago to one of our pastors some comments about how she thought she sometimes struggled with knowing exactly what to say when leading the church in prayer.

I told her to remember that when she prays, the Holy Spirit will come upon her, swirl around her like blue light and tell her exactly what to say.  I reminded her of some prayers she has offered up that have been amazingly and inexplicably perfect for me at the time.

She was very quiet and seemed a bit stunned as tears welled up in her eyes a bit. She told me that during the first service, she was unsure of the prayer that she had led, and was praying with one of our pastors about it during the sermon, to seek guidance to "do it better" at the 11am service I attended.

The time of her prayers with the pastor that morning would have been around 9:30, when I was at home and realized the picture was of her and that she needed it.

We hugged a few times and I headed home.  She headed to the store and bought a frame for the image. She told me it blessed her immensely right away.

Later that afternoon, at home, another of my friends sent me the sermon online that he was watching  as he could not make it to church that day.  He was listening to Dr. Charles Stanley talk about Walking in the Holy Spirit, shown below.  I decided to listen to the sermon while I mowed my lawn. (Side note: I love Charles Stanley's voice and way of teaching.  It is easy to understand, and full of scripture, and I think he voice is so soothing!  If you've never watched him, you are in for a treat.)

I was driving the lawn tractor with my headphones on, and just a few minutes into the sermon when Dr. Stanley mentioned some scriptures referring to the Holy Spirit and His role in our lives...  THE EXACT SAME SCRIPTURES I posted above and that I had written on the back of the drawing.

I immediately stopped the tractor and wrote to my friends, both, to tell them of the news.  Both were overjoyed and amazed to hear of the news.

This was a clear sign to me directly from the Holy Spirit, confirming for me that I am on the right pathway, that I am hearing Him speak to me, and I am acting in the manner He is pleased with.  I still cannot fathom how or why He would choose to be near to me... A "nobody".  The answer I always come back to is LOVE, and I am overwhelmed.

Dear Heavenly Father,

You are so good to me, Lord, though You know that I do not deserve it.  You are generous with your Grace with me every day, and I am humbled to think that the God who made Heaven and Earth made me, and made me for a purpose.

Thank you for the gifts you have given me- especially the previously unknown skills to create art that reaches out and speaks to those around me.  Thank you for showing me how to draw the words I can't find to say to encourage and uplift those in my life that need uplifting.

Thank you, Lord, for speaking to me in wondrous ways; for providing me with the "coincidences too big to be coincidences" that let me feel you are with me and confirm for me that I am hearing your desires for me. 

Please continue to bless my hands to create more works of art that glorify You as I explore different techniques and styles in art.  Please help me to learn to be more bold in my testimony and my ministry as I continue on my path to spiritual maturity.  All Glory and Honor to You, Lord.

Amen.



A final thought - I'll close the update with the new Casting Crowns song (with Matthew West) because it says a lot of what I'm feeling right now.

The True Vine...

Based on the verses in John 15, this drawing depicts Jesus, the living sacrifice, hanging on a tree, and wound in vines, stretching to grow and bear fruit.

I am so pleased with the results of this drawing.  I've been encouraged to share some of my drawings in a public setting where they'd be judged.  This would require me to remove some of the anonymity of the blog and the artwork.  Only a few close Christians in my life know that I make these drawings.

I'll pray on that further before making a decision.

The scripture... John 15: 1-8

The Vine and the Branches

1 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. 3You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. 6If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. 7If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.

A more detailed view: