The Safety of the Rock

The Safety of the Rock

My Beloved Husband had training at a convention in Las Vegas over the weekend, and I had the opportunity to go along with him. I love to travel with him! Some of the things we had a chance to do together were fabulous, but the overarching feeling we had while staying 'on the strip' was not a pleasant one. Both of us were overwhelmed by the darkness of the atmosphere there, where so many people celebrate the very things that are causing them great harm. From prostitution to drugs, gambling to trafficking, we saw so many things that harm and ensnare people. And they weren't under cover, they were celebrated. In fact, at one point, I couldn't stop the tears from running down my face as we walked together. So much sin. So much darkness. 

9" x 12"
Painted with artist quality heavy-body acrylic paint on 1.5” deep gallery wrapped canvas, sides painted black

Click here to view on my website

  "It looks like how I feel, honestly. There's a lighthouse on a rock and there's even brightness and sunshine there, but where I am it's chaotic and rainy and dark. It's mostly obscuring my view. I'm worn out and I don't know how I'm going to make it through the rain and wind to the safety of the Rock. Interestingly, the Rock with its lighthouse also looks like a church with a steeple."

When I finished painting this one this morning, I sent it to a few people as I often do to give them a preview. One of them responded with the quote above, and it seemed fitting to me. I have worked on this one for a long time, and it has passed through a bunch of interesting stages. It can be tougher to put into words what has been on my mind when a painting has been on the easel for a long time. But today, these verses from my morning quiet time seemed to fit both the response I got and my experience over the last week or so.

Psalm 77:16 "The waters saw Thee, O God; the waters saw Thee, they were in anguish; the deeps also trembled."

Psalm 78:35 "And they remembered that GOD was their rock, and the Most High GOD their Redeemer."

Several of the people I saw in Las Vegas have been in my prayers since I came home. I know I cannot help them, but my Heavenly Father can. HE is the Rock, the Redeemer that they can look to for rescue from the deep waters they find themselves in. 

And HE is my Rock, too. 

This painting has been accepted into the SALI National Abstract Art Exhibition XIV, Indianapolis, IN, October 5 - 27, 2018