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Finding Jesus in a Swirl of Colors

by Amber Bishop

I have been talking about it for years. It has been rolling around in the back of my head since college. I have even thought of enrolling in a class. But the other night, I finally said, “I’m going to do this!” So my dining room table became a laboratory where I conducted a little experiment in spiritual formation. I was never really into science experiments in high school or college and my grades prove it. However, I love conducting what I like to call “formation experiments” - Deliberately putting myself in a place where Jesus can do what he likes with me. This was the day to experiment with Jesus and paint.

Lately I’ve been thinking about what keeps me energized. Is it simply getting more sleep, or rest? Or is it actively pursuing the Creator just as he is actively pursuing me? I realized if I really wanted Jesus to teach me how to be like him, that meant everything was fair game. What I eat, how I exercise, run my business, raise our child, be a wife, plant a church, spend my free time etc. Even my assumptions about creativity need to be renovated by the master Creator.

For years, I have known that I love to work with my hands. People say I am “artsy/crafty” or that they like the way I decorate my home. Decorating and crafts are very energizing to me. I feel like I have to do something creative on a regular basis or I start to get restless. Then I started putting the pieces of the puzzle together. Was this because in my creative expressions I was connecting with the Father in a way that I did not even realize? With this knowledge, I embarked on a journey with Jesus at the dining room table using a $19.95 starter set of acrylic paints.

It happened like this…each time I visit a local gallery, I am drawn to one particular beautiful painting. The last time I was there, it hit me, “I really like this. Why do I really like this? I always stop right here and think if I had $3865.00 I would by this in an extravagant heartbeat.” So this was the experiment: to see if Jesus was drawing me to this painting to teach me about himself and his kingdom.

So I sat and I prayed and I started. My idea was to mimic what I had seen in the gallery the best I could. The colors were different and the technique was lacking, but the joy was there. I instantly found myself amazed at the different colors I could create mixing and matching. It was so much fun. I really felt like a little kid playing and having a blast. The Master was forming patience in me as I painted - I would have to wait for the paint to dry. He taught me about simplicity - less is definitely more. There are so many layers to a painting – it is multi dimensional, just as there are ever increasing layers of wonder and mystery found in God’s Kingdom. It was so much more about the process then about what was being created. Then the defining moment, you sign your name to the piece. I think I learned more in that moment than in a thousand Bible studies.

God signed his name on me. Every part of me was hand picked by the Master, and he found great joy in doing it. He continues to find great joy in my formation into Christlikeness. The more I participate with Jesus in my formation I find myself lost in the joy of the Master’s hand. It is a life long journey that at times can be hard and painful and yet filled with unimaginable joy. So did I find Jesus with a paintbrush? I guess you will never really know by just reading this story. You will have to try it for yourself.