About 4 months ago, while spending time with my daughters in Arizona, we decided to get creative and try out a new art form called “Pour Painting”. Now, I’ve never thought of myself as “artistic”. While I enjoy being creative, my giftings lean more towards the crafts spectrum of arts & crafts.
Without any real training or instruction and my girls cheering me on, I created my very first pour painting and was pleasantly surprised with the results. While the premise is pretty simple, apparently there is in fact, an art form to this medium that takes some knowledge and practice. I enjoyed the experience so much that over the next few months, I painted quite a bit. Some pieces came out beautiful, while other pieces were, relegated to the “do-over” pile of canvases.
My painting time has become a nice escape from the stress and demands of life. A few weeks ago, while painting, I was struck by the spiritual parallels of the process of pour painting and how God works on us to complete what He began.
He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion. Philippians 1:6
First, you start with a canvas. Any Size. Preferably new, but a used canvas will also work.
Not many of us get the opportunity to come to God fresh and unblemished like a brand new canvas. Instead, most of us come to God with a vast array of wounds and emotional scars.
Next, you plan your work by deciding on your design and the color scheme you want to use. God also plans His creative efforts. Just look at the world around us. The seasons and the climates are all his perfect design. Ephesians 2:10 reminds us that God’s creative ability didn’t stop with creation.
“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”
We are God’s handiwork. Designed by God, planned by God,
and purposed by God.
Now we're ready to paint. The premise of pour painting is that paint needs to be thin enough to flow once it is applied to the canvas. It has to be moveable so it can be manipulated by the artist to create a design. The process of adding the paint is not pretty. It actually looks very messy. But little by little as the colors are added you see beauty start to emerge.
Our spiritual journey is much like that. Sure, we come into the process with some preconceived ideas on what we want to do, how we want to change, and what we’re willing to give up to get there. But, once we submit ourselves to God and allow Him to work in our lives, it can look a lot like my pour paintings. On the surface, things can appear messy, but God is working behind the scenes to create something beautiful and will not stop until we are complete. Note to self: this is a lifelong process, not something you can put on a calendar.
Once you get the paint onto the canvas, you have to apply a torch (heat) to the paint to remove the air bubbles that when dry will mar the finished piece.
Many times, I have experienced a spiritual fire of sorts in my life. During the process, it is never fun, but as I look back at those times and seasons, I see that God was working something out of me that required the heat.
Behold, I have refined thee, but not with silver;
I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction. Isaiah 48:10
The final step is to tilt and move the canvas so that the paint moves to all of the empty places and covers the entire canvas. This is where you see the beauty of the painting begin to appear. As the paint flows together, designs that are just not possible with an artist’s brush emerge leaving you in awe and wonder.
Have you ever felt off balance? Like your world is moving and changing and you’re not sure which end is up? This past year has been like that for many of us. All of the things in our lives that were “normal” have shifted and changed to something that we don’t recognize. Many of us want the “normal” back. But God has plans for each of us. Remember, we’re His handiwork and he is making us a masterpiece. Some really beautiful things have emerged over the past year – family dinners, game nights, more quiet time (because our activities were canceled), getting outdoors and enjoying nature again, and just slowing down to find rest.
During the creation process all of the elements; canvas, paints, and design are subject to the artist’s vision of the finished work. None of them have a say in how they are used when they are used, and when they will be finished.
We have all had times when we questioned God. We’ve asked, “Are you sure”? “Why did that happen?” “Why didn’t you take care of this?” While those are all good questions, and I know that God is not afraid or offended by our honest questions, I am reminded that I am the canvas, not the artist. The bottom line for me is do I trust the Master artist? Do I have absolute confidence that He has a plan for my life? Will I continue to submit myself to His creative hand so that I can be made complete?
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