Wisdom In Watercolor
I am so grateful for the privilege of voting in America! 🙂
It’s broken my heart to watch people un-friending one another on social media (and in person) over this vitriolic election.
With that in mind, here’s what I’m choosing to do today. I hope you’ll join me. 🙂
Do you know someone who struggles under the weight of stress? This may help…
Sometimes I picture my emotional stress as a voracious animal. He’s fed by my thoughts. When I mull over regrets and guilt from the past or dwell on imagined fears of the unknown out in the future, this evil beast not only survives, but thrives.
Do you know what I’ve discovered starves and shuts down my stress monster? Shifting my thoughts from the past or the future to the right now, the present moment.
Engaging my hands in art- coloring, painting, drawing- helps move my mind to the present. Just think about it: we cannot paint in the past or the future, but only in the present.
While engaging my hands in art, I’ve learned to engage my mind in meditating on Scripture to give that old stress monster a one/two knockout punch that disarms his power over me.
Psalm 119:105 says:Â “Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.”
I’m so grateful for the gift of Scripture to light my way through not only the daily decisions I have to make, but also out of the deep, dark cave of emotional stress!
Here’s a link to a short interview that aired recently on our local ABC and FOX affiliate about my Soul Soothing Scriptures coloring book that’s designed to help people use coloring to meditate on Scripture and ease stress in the process. (Click on the image below if you want to see the short segment.)
If this Soul Soothing Scriptures coloring book could help you or someone you know to engage your hands in art while meditating on Scripture, you can click on the image below to find it on Amazon.com. . .
Blessings,
PS The lovely page below from my Soul Soothing Scriptures coloring book was colored by Lindsey, an amazing young mom in Houston. She wrote on Instagram, “After a sleepless night of scratching and screaming, B (her precious little boy) is finally napping. Worship music playing, and meditating on the One who gives rest! #myhappyplace ”
Didn’t Lindsey do an amazing job? I love it! 🙂
Placing light against dark is a powerful technique used to create art. It can draw a viewer’s attention, create a focal point, and provide visual drama.
This weekend commemorates the darkest days of the year on the Christian calendar. On Good Friday, Jesus was crucified at 9 a.m. At noon, the skies turned black. At 3 p.m., Jesus breathed His last breath and the earth quaked.
Christ’s death on a cross and placement in a tomb was the darkest time in all of human history, but, praise God, the brilliant light of Jesus’ Resurrection was coming!
As much as we may dislike darkness, without it, we can’t have light. Dark sets the stage for the light to show up and shine.
With all the meanness going on lately- around the world and even in our own communities- things can look so, so dark. I hope this Easter weekend serves as a bright and beautiful reminder to you and your family that the darker the world gets, the contrast of Jesus living in and through us shines brightest.
He is the light and He can shine beyond the deepest darkness.
John 1:1-5Â In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
Jesus is LORD! Have a beautiful Resurrection Day!
What’s the secret of growth for a grape? It’s pretty simple: remain connected to the vine.
I’ve never heard the sound of grunts or groans from the grapes in a vineyard. Have you?
In His last moments with His disciples, Jesus made His way across Jerusalem, moving from the Upper Room to the Garden of Gethsemane. Here’s a little piece of what He told them…
John 15:4  Remain 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.
As we focus on intentional abiding in Christ-Â remaining in Him, thinking of Him, looking to Him- growth will come. Guaranteed.
I hope this painting will serve as a visual reminder to remain in Him. 🙂
Blessings,
PS Love grapes? or purple? or both? Prints of Fruitful Legacy are available on paper or canvas in my ImageKind gallery.
For your “artistic inspiration,” here’s a short story about a special art project that was commissioned for a church choir room. I had a great time creating this and hope you enjoy learning about the back story. . . and the importance of both vocals and visuals for worship leaders.
What fun it was to create “Christmas Joy” for the 2015 Christmas Day cover of Amarillo Globe News.
Packaged in a squirmy little soft skinned baby, hope was born in Bethlehem.
Joy reverberated through the skies as peace became present in a person. Scared shepherds were told, “Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.” Luke 2:11
The great joy of Christmas is that’s the time the Rescuer showed up!
I’m so grateful Jesus Christ came in to the world, but I’ve got to say, I’m especially grateful that He came into my heart.
You see, I grew up as a “church chick,” familiar with the world of stained glass, piano/organ duets, church choir, potlucks in the fellowship hall, and sermons. (To this day, I absolutely love a good sermon.)
Those are all wonderful, valuable things, but somewhere along the way I mistakenly thought my church activity was what made me right with God, kind of like I was earning points in a frequent flier program.
That’s when the LORD stepped in.
As a sophomore in college, I was plopped down among some girls who had a real relationship with Jesus, not just a calendar full of religious activities. When adversity came along, instead of having a melt down like I would, they responded to tough situations with joy and peace.
How could they do that? Because the Prince of Peace was present inside of them.
Like light against dark, the stark contrast between their faith and mine let me know there was something wrong with the picture of my life: something was missing.
As my pastor, Dr. Howard Batson, once said, “You can’t clean a fish before you catch it.” God “caught” me just as I was and called me to something more than the life of a superficial church activity queen I’d been settling for for so long. He brought joy into my world. From that day, I’ve been undergoing His “clean up” phase (where I expect to remain for the rest of my life).
Jesus came to love people right where they were. That’s what He did for me. All He asked me to do was believe in Him as the starting point.
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. Â John 3:16
He loves you right where you are at this moment, as well. The question is: Will you believe in Him? I hope so. It’s a Christmas decision that can make all the difference in your world.
If you’re already a believer, take time today to thank Christ for coming into the world and into your life.
I, for one, am so very grateful He came. Joy To The World! Merry Christmas! Â Â Â ~Debbie
PS  Visit my ImageKind gallery for information about “Christmas Joy” prints.
Here’s a tiny little peek at a tiny little portion of my mixed media art piece commissioned by the Amarillo Globe News for the Christmas Day edition of the newspaper.
I’m so incredibly grateful for this opportunity to share the blessed message of Christmas with the wonderful people of the Texas Panhandle.
My prayer is that this image will bring joy to those who see it!
“Emmanuel Candle” Mixed Media- Acrylic on canvas board, watercolor, old hymnal music
What a joy to create this art piece for the First Baptist Church of Amarillo Christmas program, “Emmanuel- God With Us.”
My artistic process started by listening through the music for repeated words and themes. One of the most moving, majestic portions of the program came as the orchestra swelled beneath this powerful line: “Emmanuel, our God is with us” in a part called the “Manger Suite.”
Tears came to my eyes as I listened to this section. When I was told it was the title of the program, the idea of Jesus coming as a light in the darkness came to mind. (Read John 1:1-18 to see what I mean.)
A  joyful rendition of “Hark the Herald Angels Sing” opened the program, so I used a piece of an old, old hymnal to create the “glow” of the candle.  I love, love, love purple and knew it would be the perfect backdrop for a candle created in lighter, complementary colors of orange and gold.
I repeated the circular shape of the candle glow in the abstract colors of the background to communicate movement and life.
The candle was painted in watercolor, then carefully cut out and positioned on the background.
Within weeks of putting the art together then singing in the program came news of violence in Paris, then San Bernadino. There’s been so much meanness in the world lately, I’m extra grateful this year that God came to be “Emmanuel- God With Us“- to walk with us through hurts and pains and losses- especially when the days we’re living in seem to be so, so dark.
On a lighter note…
One of the absolute highlights of the program was our guest tenor, Eric Barry. He is an amazing, world- class singer- and pro golfer. (Does that sound like a fun combination, or what???)  I just about lost it when he sang, “Mary, Did You Know?”
I got a fun picture with Eric after the program with a copy of the program (that sounds funny to me):
If you live near Amarillo but missed this amazing Christmas musical experience, you can catch the televised broadcast of the program here:
Thursday, December 24 Â Â 10:35 p.m. Â Cable Channel 12 (KFDA)
Friday, December 25 Â 9:00 a.m. Â Cable Channels 12, 112 (KFDA)
Friday, December 25 Â 2:00 p.m. Â Cable Channels 6, 106 (KZBZ)
Have a blessed and beautiful Christmas!
PS  I never, ever, ever expected to see my art on a billboard, but the LORD specializes in taking little, yielded things and making them into something bigger. All those birds perched on top made me smile. I hope all they enjoyed seeing it up close! 🙂
This print is available in my ImageKind gallery.
