Trying to Follow the Master Painter

Trying to Follow The Master Painter

Two things that have had a huge impact on who I and how my testimony is what it is... are first of all, painting and secondly, the mountains. I am a strong believer that Heavenly Father gives us talents and hobbies for a specific reason, to either help us grow closer to Him, or to help others grow closer to Him, or both! I'm sure I'm far from the point where my art brings others closer to Him and I really hope to get there some day, but mostly I want to express how painting and my love for the mountains have brought me closer to Him, the Significance Behind Colour for me.

As a painter I absolutely painting skies... night skies, sunsets, sunrises, stormy skies, blue skies, and the skies of the galaxy. Many times I'll be looking at the sky and think of how I would go about painting it, and many times while painting a sky I am amazed at all the detail and color that goes into it, something that is always right above our heads. I then remember who the Master Painter of the all skies really is, He paints a new sky for us constantly throughout the day and throughout the night. I then look down and look all around me and I come to know this Master Painter even better as I see the beauty that is just pouring out of the trees, rivers, mountains, animals, lakes, glaciers, grass, flowers, and in the people I know. I often go to the mountains and just try to take it all in. I try to see my Fathers hand in the beauty of the mountains. I picture him sculpting the cliffs and rocks and trees, and try to envision Him painting the sky with his finger tips. I love going to the mountains because I am so close to the hand of God and I am surrounded by his creations without the interruption of the things of man. Our Heavenly Father blesses us so much by the beauty that surrounds us and through painting I can catch a glimpse of the joy that comes through creation. I love trying my hardest to follow the prefect brush strokes of the Master Painter's glorious hand.

(The painting above is the view of Mt. Nebo from the summit of one of my very favorite mountains to climb.)

I Believe We Are All Like Seamen

Brightly Beams Our Father’s Mercy

Philip Paul Bliss was directing the singing for a series of services being conducted by the well-known preacher Dwight L. Moody. As he closed his message, Moody told the story of a captain who was attempting to bring his boat to the Cleveland harbor one very dark and stormy night.

       The waves rolled like mountains, Moody said, and not a star was to be seen in the clouded sky. He pictured the boat rocking on the violent waves as the captain peered through the darkness for the sight of a signal light by means of which to guide his vessel to safety. When he finally spotted a single light from the light-house, he turned to the pilot and asked:

       “Are you sure this is Cleveland harbor?”

       “Quite sure, sir,” the pilot replied.

       “Then where are the lower lights?” the captain continued.

       “Gone out, sir,” the other man answered.

       “Can you make the harbor?” the captain asked anxiously.

       “We must, or perish, sir,” the pilot replied.

       But despite his strong heart and brave hand, in the darkness he missed the channel. With a resounding crash the boat piled up on the rocks and then settled slowly to a watery grave.

       As the congregation listened intently, Moody concluded with this admonition to the Christians:

       “Brethren, the Master will take care of the great light-house; let us keep the lower lights burning.”

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We are all like seamen. We've been sent on a journey into the dark and raging waters of the sea, to return home to the welcoming docks of our Heavenly Father. Though sometimes we may feel alone and swallowed in the darkness of the waters, we need not to fear and we need not feel alone. Our Heavenly Father has blessed us with numerous sources of light that will guide us home.

The first and most important is our Savior, Jesus Christ; He is the lighthouse shining ever so brightly at the docks of our Father. He is there to be a perfect guide and to protect us from the rocks we may face throughout our journey.

We are also blessed with the light of the stars; also known as the words of the prophets living and past.  If we study the stars we will be guided to the dock of our Father.

Lastly, is the lanterns of those seamen who are striving to return home. We are blessed by having each other. Some people will refuse to see the stars, some will refuse to see the lighthouse and some refuse to see both, but in times of trial sometimes all they need is to see the light of one of their fellow seamen to help them strive to follow the lights Heavenly Father has provided for us.

Many of us are struggling seamen, striving to follow the lights as best we can. We need to make it a priority to raise our lantern and let it shine as brightly as possible; we may never know who is following our light. It is also our responsibility to find those who may be lost and alone. It is our responsibility to help them see the stars and the lighthouse of Christ. Once a struggling seamen who was lost, finds the light and is striving to follow it, it becomes undeniable that is the only way. The struggling seaman is then filled with hope and cannot help but raise their lantern for all to see and follow. (D&C 50:24)

WORLDS IN OUR HEADS

WORLDS IN OUR HEADS

As humans we get so caught up in the present. We only look at the world that is right before us, and therefore we make decisions that we believe will "only effect" the world in front of us and more importantly "only effect"  present time. I guess what I'm trying to say is... We need to look at the Big Picture! We need to keep in mind that we are eternal beings, surround by eternal choices. Every choice we make and every thing we do will effect our eternity. There is a reason for everything that occurs in our life, there is always a lesson to be learned, a battle to be won, and a friend to be made. I believe that if we keep an eternal perspective and view everyday situations as eternal choices we will be more kind, more wise, more creative, more productive, and most importantly more happy.
In my painting I wanted convey how wrapped up we get in the worlds in our heads when there is so much around us to be seen. I like to use space to represent eternity, and in this case I used a skull to represent eternal life, because even though we may see death occur on earth that doesn't mean there is an end to our spirit.