“SOJOURNERS” is based on the passage from 1 Chronicles 29:15 “For we are strangers before you and sojourners, as all our fathers were. Our days on the earth are like a shadow, and there is no abiding.”
This project ended up being very personal for me when a few years ago, in 2020, I began to ponder what kind of art would be appropriate for this space in our church. I wanted to create a series of works that tell the big picture / story-arc of the Bible. But I wrestled with how to tell it - I kept asking myself - what kind of imagery would tell this story in a way that is fresh and new? (I mean - I loved my picture bibles as a kid but that wasn’t the kind of art I wanted to create- I wanted to create something sophisticated!).
I needed time to think. So I went away. I left town. I went backpacking in the sierras for three weeks. I got out of the concrete jungle and I went up into nature. (I hiked the John Muir Trail specifically, which in my opinion is one of THE most beautiful backpacking trails in nature) And on that trip I prayed a lot. I walked a lot - 211 miles to be exact - and while I was walking I prayed every day -all day- for three weeks. Not just about art but about everything. I had no reception, no distractions, just my thoughts. Praying and singing hymns and asking God for strength to make it over those high mountain passes. I felt an intense awareness of the Holy Spirit up there and we had some really good conversations. -maybe it was the elevation - I don’t know - but all I know is that he was THERE with me - helping me the whole way until the finale when I made it to the top of Mt Whitney.
And then I came home to my studio still thinking- praying- and asking the spirit for help, and finally after several months and several painting attempts later it dawned on me how God wanted me to tell this story- From the viewpoint of the sojourner! These needed to be landscapes! But Not traditional landscapes, because I wanted to create something poetic by using color, form and movement but also something that leaves plenty of room for the imagination - to draw us into the adventure- Beginning with a lush garden, moving under a deluge of water, then far out to the dry desert wilderness, trudging back through the deep waters on dry ground, and culminating with our arrival in that high country - The new heaven and earth - the new Jerusalem- in God’s eternal kingdom of light.
So The paintings are meant to be a personal reflection on our spiritual state before God, AND a meditation on the story-arc of scripture. We are all sojourners, in a Historical sense and a spiritual sense. We travel through this temporary earthly home, like a backpacker passing through with nothing but a burden on our backs. the journey is difficult and sometimes we lose our way. But we keep faith by remembering that God is trustworthy, and he is always with us until one day when we reach the top of that highest mountain peak - when all is made new and we are dwelling with God and sharing in his glory for eternity. (…read part two continued)