“Carried,” the piece for October, was painted in April 2020, in the throes of the first lockdown when everyone was reeling from all the sudden changes. I wanted to paint something hopeful.
This piece was a commission from a client who wanted to give a thank you gift to one of their ministry’s major supporters. At the time, the recipient was facing significant challenges with their business being adversely affected by the pandemic. The verse my client wanted to express to their friend was from Exodus 19:4 which says, “You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself.”
The image that encapsulated the concept was a ray of light pointing upwards from within some clouds. I found an image to reference off of Adobe Stock featuring a bird, which I substituted with an eagle. I also played with the colour saturation to bring out some brighter colours.
My initial attempt at the eagle resulted in a smaller, more timid bird. But part of the beauty of acrylic paints is that you can always paint over what you don’t like. So I enlarged the eagle.
For the calendar, I paired this painting with Isaiah 40:31, which is a well-known verse about eagles: “But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength.” My hope is that the image, along with this promise from God, would encourage viewers to remember where their strength comes from.
Though the storm may look dark and ominous, know that you are carried.
Questions for reflection, if you want to go deeper: What words come to mind when you look at this painting? Imagine you are the eagle, how does it feel to have God carry you? How is God carrying you in your life today?
2022 Calendars Now Available!
Exciting News! My 2022 Art (+Scripture) Calendars are now available!! Last year I completely sold out of calendars. If you want to read more about them or get one for yourself or a few (or all!) of your friends or family members, click on this link: 2022 Art Calendar page.
As always, I love to hear from you! If something in this story resonated with you, if you’re interested in commissioning a painting, or if you have other thoughts, feel free to email, or connect with me on Facebook or Instagram. Thanks for being part of my journey and for letting me be a part of yours!