This happened to me during the COVID pandemic.

Like so many of you, the pandemic had beaten down my creative spirit to a state of dormancy for over a year. I don’t think I touched my brushes one time during that period.

After things finally got better, I started to have visions in my head: images of women floating underwater, some of them meditating, some of them reaching for the surface. So I created a series of paintings about those visions.

Then one day, I was staring at a big blank canvas. I suddenly had the inspiration to paint the face of Jesus with unusually bright background colors. I also have a gold pen handy, so I scribbled many prophetic Hebrew words about God and Jesus onto it.

Now I know I was creating prophetic art.

In short, prophetic art is created with the Holy Spirit. Thus, it can also be called spirit art.

When I saw women underwater, the Holy Spirit whispered in my ear: paint the images to express this idea: the weight and depth of troubled time can not dim the God-breathed and nurtured human spirit of resilience.

My painting of Jesus is a piece of even more apparent evidence that the Holy Spirit had inspired me.

I Corinthians 3:9 points out:” For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building.”(NIV)

Friends, as you can see, we are called to be co-workers of God. Our Father is the Alpha and Omega, the creator of the universe, so we are also called to be His co-creators on this earth— what a noble task!

To know more about prophetic art, check out my mentor Matt Tommey:s article here: https://www.matttommeymentoring.com/what-is-prophetic-art.html

To read more about my thoughts on art and God, check out my post:

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1 John 4:16 NIV

I just finished this long-overdue painting of my boys. Because my hands and eyes are rusty from not painting oil for an extended period, this is not an easy start for me.

Often I was frustrated and discouraged. I had to repaint some areas over and over. But in the end, I am reasonably pleased with the final product.

When I think about how my creator sees me, I am still amazed and sometimes in disbelief— that despite the rough and far-from-perfect image I see in myself, my God sees me as the lovely and wonderful child of God He has made.

Like my final painting is far different from the beginning and middle stages, He sees the final product I am meant to be.

Ephesians 2:10 tells us: For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works.

Yes, it’s hard to believe that the times we mess up, again and again, the times we don’t even like ourselves, the times we are broken and full of remorse, our God still loves, forgives, and cares about us as His precious newborn babies. We are masterpieces in our Father’s eyes.

Let this truth sink in, friends, hope it will refresh your heart today as it does to mine.

Dear Heavenly Father,

Thank you for blessing us with all spiritual blessings in the heavenly realm. You designed each of us with a special purpose, and you already know what we could become, not what we have done.

Please enable me to use my gifts to encourage others and inspire their walks with you. Continue to give me good works in my hands so your glory will shine through all of my efforts.

In Jesus’s name

Amen

Ask yourself

What difference did you see in yourself before you knew Jesus and after?

How can you draw on Christ’s power even more in your daily walk with him?

The post Come As You Are appeared first on Ying McLane.