Studio
I am so glad you stopped in!
Section of stained glass panel by Louis Comfort Tiffany
How refreshing would it be if you could dive right into these colors?
The door is open. Enter, gentle reader.
They say when a door closes, another one opens. Well, in many ways, the hallway of my life has many closed doors, the rooms having been mostly explored and the boxes packed up for when I need those experiences later. My faithful Guide is leading me to another adventure door I never dreamed I would open, this site...a whole new ministry and a virtual retreat community online. Most artists need a little sanctuary and mine is virtual. It is quiet and peaceful here.
Welcome to my studio, where I write, paint, read, study and pray, muse and hopefully let the creative juices run over onto the screen and other canvases of my craft. What doors have you walked through and closed behind you? What hallway rooms do you have in your story? Do you have a sanctuary and can you describe it?
Why bother with all this? Life is busy enough and there is little time to devote to creativity and art
And then, I read a book by John Eldrege titled Waking the Dead and the dormant answer stirred and snapped awake:
Because it is how we can nurture and guard our hearts. For those of us who have a faith in Jesus, seek to share His love, and live by example...our heart is the wellspring of life. We are told to take care of them for we can't possibly nurture others if our hearts are overly burdened, weary or unguarded. Time spent on our craft is not only a good habit..it is essential to our heart and spirit.
Though this poem was written a few years ago, it found its way back to me when I needed it most:
The Gift of Me
For my birthday this year
I'll give myself the gift of time.
Time to meet myself anew;
to rediscover silence
and come back to life.
To taste a crisp, cool grape
and lose myself in a book's world.
Time to start over.
Time to get to know
the me I have become.
April 29, 2004
And a more recent poem:
This summer I ask my soul to dance.
My fingers long to unlock the gift given and let it soar.
I'll squeeze my hopes, desires, repressions and expressions onto my clean beginning,
write my struggles into prose and soothe my senses with new surroundings.
I'll turn the key and find...the possibility of Providence.
Freedom or frivolity? Freedom now.
My will and time are in an alabaster jar broken and poured out on the Master Artist's feet.
June 2009
Painting Myself Into a Corner
I'm chasing my artistic self around the ole calendar again. First, I set aside Sundays to paint, pray and get refreshed. My art time was displaced by much needed sleep or the motivation eluded me. Now it can't find a place to land. So I joined a local artist guild in hopes that this will help me nail down that slippery thing called discipline. Perhaps it will have to be a two-four day a month Renaissance Recluse Retreat at home. That is what our crock pot and freezer are for, me thinks. My spirit longs for visual expression. I crave color, texture and the sound of the brush on canvas, the familiar pungent scent of my acrylics. My new water-based oils stand by for experimentation. There are some things words can't express. Please get me there, Lord! Put the world on hold and let me pray with paint.
Strains of Sovereignty.
Sometimes, it only takes one divine appointment, one perfect conversation or even one aptly spoken word to show us which path to take. The Master Conductor picks up His baton and allows the first notes of a perfectly orchestrated moment to burst forth in a crescendo of confirmation. Indeed, when such a rare and precious thing happens, the heart is liable to want to give Him a standing ovation of adoration and praise.
Turn it up.
Chasing after Wellspring.
It is time to really buckle down and work more consistently on the first Bible study kit, Got Thirst, Dirt or Doubt? Jesus the Wellspring of Life. Most of the prepwork has been set, now it is a matter of making final changes to the script, then I need to record the audio narration for the remaining sections and continue to find and include images. The text which will appear in the study DVD also take time to create. It is exciting to see the pieces come together! My faithful editor and I should be working with a rough cut by the middle of February.
It's time to let some laundry pile up, get out the paper plates, back away from the phone and Facebook and get down to business. If you feel led to pray for this project, please know prayer is very much appreciated. Send me any requests you have and I promise to pray for you as well.
Reading Catch-Up...
This summer, besides launching this site and writing all the content you are hopefully enjoying, I caught up on some reading and am glad to say most of the books were worthwhile and beneficial. I do not sell or formally endorse these, they are just suggested reading and as always, they should be read in light to and compared to the Holy Bible for accuracy.
Here are my one to three line reviews:
Scribbling in the Sand by Michael Card. (2002) Refreshing book on faith and the arts along with letters from professional, seasoned creatives in the faith. The font is a little hard to read and there is a companion workbook.
*What in the World is Going On? 10 Prophetic Clues You Cannot Afford to Ignore by Dr. David Jeremiah. (2008) Fabulous, well-organized book with a easy format about the end-time event timeline.
*Epicenter 2.0: How the Rumblings in the Middle East Will Change Your Life by Joel Rosenberg. (2006, 2008) An updated version of his original book and good companion book to the above. Also very informative and more in-depth. Companion DVD is also excellent and highly recommended. (His newest DVD and book are called Inside the Revolution which I haven't read/seen yet.)
http://joelrosenberg.com/epicenter2.asp
*These two books and the DVD are vitally imporant resources to help us understand how what is happening presently will impact us and usher in the Lord's return for the Church.They are must-reads in my humble opinion. I couldn't put them down.
Your People Will Be My People: How Israel, the Jews and the Christian Church Will Come Together in the Last Days by Don Finto. (1984) A summary of the history of Israel with prophetic portions which have already been realized.
Still in progress with reviews to come:
Believing God by Beth Moore
A Fragile Stone: The Emotional Life of Simon Peter by Michael Card and Brennan Manning. An enjoyable look at the many facets of the apostle's life and character.
The Creative Call: An Artist's Response to the Way of the Spirit by Janice Elsheimer. We are goin through this in our group named A Second Renaissance. If you are interested in joining in, we are on chapters three and four and have an online page where we discuss it, share projects in progress and prayer requests. Look for it on the left hand side of the page.
If you have any suggestions on books along these themes, please comment. Thanks and may your reading be blissful!
