Tag Archives: art

Parable of the Sew-er

One day a tailor named James went to his shop to sew. He gathered his needles and thread and laid them on the table. He then selected four pieces of cloth.

The first was a piece of thick black leather used in making jackets for bad-ass bikers who rode Harley Davidson motorcycles and screamed neo-Nazi slogans while roaring down the street. The needle broke in the tailor’s hand when he tried to stick it into the cloth. It was too hard.

The second piece of cloth was made of finely woven silk. The needle and thread passed through the cloth easily. But the silk was so thin that when the fibers got hot, they melted into a puddle of delusion. The only customers who bought the cloth were under-employed Hollywood starlets who thought they might benefit from a wardrobe malfunction when paparazzi flash bulbs started popping.

The third piece of cloth was a blend of fibers from the coffee bean and poison ivy plants. The needle and thread easily bound the fabric together. But after an hour, the customer would break out in a fit of hyperactive itching constantly checking their cell phones while scratching their armpits.

The fourth piece of cloth was made from one-thousand-thread-count Egyptian cotton. Needle and thread stitching seemed almost invisible. The tailor made a lovely cap that he wore to cover his bald head while singing songs in Central Park to nostalgic baby boomers worried about losing their social security benefits.

Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear!

For more information about the Parable of the Sower
Retreat Guides-Lessons from Mark #6-Parable of the Sower
Vincent Van Gogh and His Sower Paintings

Wind Talker

Introduction: Jesus had spent the day teaching and healing at the Sea of Galilee. Late in the afternoon, he said to his disciples in the boat with him, “Let’s go across to the other side of the lake.” He then proceeded to fall asleep in the back of the boat. Here is what I think happened next. (Ruah, by the way, is the Hebrew word for breath or wind. I have personified it here in the same way that we might call a storm Harvey or Irma.)

Wind Talker

From his perch on the mountain peak, Ruah looked out. Then he roared. His breath surged down the canyons and blew across the surface of the sea.

Trees fell. Dust flew. Wind howled.“Who dares cross me without asking my permission?” said He.

Seas swelled, waves crashed and seamen screamed, As their tiny boat was tossed like a cork in an angry caldron.

Some men prayed, others puked, still others pulled vainly on tattered ropes and sails.

All the while, one man slept. Unperturbed, unafraid, at ease in slumber while elemental forces raged all around Him.

“Who is it who sleeps?” said soaked sailors to one another. “Does he not care that Death shall swallow us whole?”

“Sleeper! Awake from your repose! Cry with us to the gods for mercy. Leave us not alone in the dead of night. Awake that we may perish together!”

Dream Maker opened his eyes to see twelve men whose hearts heaved with helpless fear, hopeless despair, angry anguish.

Looking skyward he said, “Lord of the Lake, what upsets you? It is I, do you not recognize me? We pass in peace. Calm down.

Then the winds ceased. The sea settled. All became quiet as the glow of dawn slowly appeared over the hills.

But twelve speechless men stood stunned. Faces white with fear and awe, knocking knees, trembling hands.

Who is it who talks to wicked winds and surging seas? Who is it who commands the breath of chaos, and it obeys? In his presence are we safe?

Who is safe with one who dangles death like keys on a chain? Who is safe with one who talks to the wind? Who is safe?

 

For more on this topic:

Retreat Guide- Lessons in Mark #7-The Storm

Christ and the Storm by Rembrandt

Friday Night at the Mall

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Or The Drama of Aging

Nancy was lookiChinese Girl smallng for shoes. I was looking for someone to sketch. So while Nancy wandered through the shops, I parked myself in the middle of the mall and waited. I didn’t see her when she first arrived as I was trying to capture the image of a young man typing on his computer to my right. When I finished sketching him, I sat back, looked to the left, and there she was tucked inconspicuously in the corner. She was wearing an orange ski jacket, yellow scarf, and bright blue head phones. Her eyes were riveted to the lime green I Pad that she was pecking away on. The table in front of her held a computer that she typed on every few minutes before returning to her I Pad pecking. About every five minutes she reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out her cell phone to check for messages. She was Chinese and looked to be high school age. During the fifteen minutes that it took me to sketch her, she never once look up or around the room. She was completely ensconced in her own electronic world.

As I watched her sitting alone and invisible to the Friday night shoppers who scurried around her, something stirred inside of me. I remembered being an insecure adolescent transitioning to becoming a teenager. I too felt alone. I longed to be connected to friends who thought that my life mattered. I longed to be noticed, and I wondered apprehensively about the life that lay ahead of me. What is strange is that those same feelings have surfaced again recently, but I’m not fifteen now, I’m sixty-seven. What is happening to me? The next moment I looked to the right again and saw my answer.

Man smallSeated on the couch thirty feet away was an older man wearing a dapper red cap. He too was alone on a Friday night and I imagined that he had come to the mall just to be around other people. (Then again maybe he was waiting for his shoe shopping wife as I was, though I didn’t see a wedding ring.) I assumed that he was retired and when I did so, some feeling fluttered inside. Twice this past month I was asked if I was retired (No) and when I was going to retire (I don’t know). On both occasions I was irked by the question and felt defensive but didn’t know why. When I looked left and then right, at the teen and at the old man, it came to me. I was in a life stage transition again and the passage towards old age feels very similar to the teenage journey.

Life Transitions

For many of us as teenagers, the road ahead seemed foreboding. Unanswered questions related to college, career, and community loomed. Would we be able to find our role and place in the competitive, chaotic world of adults? Would someone notice us? Would we be able to find love? By the grace of God, I can answer “Yes!” to all of those questions.

But now a new set of questions loom. As old roles and responsibilities that created a sense of place in the world slowly slip away, as close friends struggle with cancer, as my creaky joints creak more and I imagine that my longevity on the planet could be predicated by a random lab test, I wonder, “Who sees me now? What gives me hope as losses increase around me? Where is my new place in the world?”

Christopher Bryant puts it this way, “Ideally the succession of little deaths which meet us from cradle to the grave, which we must undergo if we are to find fulfillment; can be met cheerfully in hope of what lies ahead and without backward glances. But owing to our condition of estrangement, we tend to cling tenaciously to the old and to face the new with reluctance and misgiving. We dread the loss of old security and of finding ourselves vulnerable. To overcome our dread our Author has come among us as a man among men, and as a man endured that dread at its extreme worst in order to break its power and rescue from its tyranny all who will trust themselves to him.”

Trust

It all comes down to a five letter word. Fifty years ago as a seventeen year old I heard the line, “God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life. Trust Him!” I did and I am so grateful for what he has done. At age sixty-seven, the invitation is repeated, “Trust Him.” Not only is the word my source of hope, it is the source of hope for the girl in the orange jacket and the man in the red cap sitting at the mall on a Friday night.

David and Goliath

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Saul 013

The story of David and Goliath is one of the most iconic ones in all of Scripture and maybe all of history. The little guy with big faith in Yahweh defeated the much stronger pagan enemy. Michelangelo sculpted him as a 17 foot giant of faith. Management books use the story as an example for entrepreneurs. This story marks the beginning of David’s rise to fame and influence.What impressed me about David was his ability to reframe the view of the battle between Israel and the Philistines.

I did this block print twice. The one above is the one I have used on the study guide. The one below is more colorful.

Saul 012

 

What are These Sheep and Cows that I Hear?

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The Amalekites were a tribe of nomadic marauders who for centuries pillaged and plundered their way through history. Moses, Saul, David, and Hezekiah all did battle with them. Contemporary manifestations might be Al-Qaeda or the Congolese Rebels. They were bent on death and destruction and Yahweh finally send Saul and his army to reek destruction upon them. The command of genocide sounds disturbing to modern years and rightly so. Evidence from the story, however, suggests that the attack upon the Amalekites was a localized act of judgment. The tribe lived on to fight another day. The story, found in 1 Samuel 15, also reveals that the attack was a turning point in Saul’s reign as king and in his relationship with the Lord. Notice how he uses his success as a warrior to bolster his internal insecurities. This passage highlights the profound temptation that every successful leader faces. Samuel also says the famous line “To Obey is better than sacrifice.”

The linoleum block print depicts Samuel surrounded by sheep and a cow.

Saul Anointed King

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Samuel anoints Saul privately and then sent him home to his family but not without a spiritual encounter along the way. Saul must have found the experience eye opening. Then came the day of coronation. Samuel couldn’t help but remind the crowds that their request for a king meant their rejection of God as their king. Who could follow that introduction holding their head high? So Saul did what any socially aware person might do; he hid with the baggage. Eventually he was found and crowned, but not without a few naysayers. This painting is a linoleum block print and watercolor.

Lost Donkeys

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Israel asked for a king and God granted their request. His choice was a tall, good looking farm boy named Saul from the tribe of Benjamin. Getting the king anointer, Samuel, together with the king designate, Saul, required some creative maneuvering on God’s part. So the tale started with lost donkeys. Saul and his servant went out looking for their humble beasts of burden and found something neither one expected in their wildest imaginations.

Mad Kings Throw Spears

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This summer I took a local art class in Relief Block Printing from a wonderful Kenyan artist Ngene Mwaura. I learned to carve an image into linoleum or MDF board, apply ink to that image and hand press it onto a piece of paper. In this series I was practicing with color. I began the process with a light color like yellow. I inked the plate and pressed it. Then everywhere I wanted to preserve the yellow, I cut away material from the plate. Each time I changed the color, I cut away more of the plate.

The image on the left is what the plate looked like after the final cut. The image on the right was the result of pressing the plate onto Yupo paper, which is a plastic paper and applying watercolor. The experiment is a work in progress. I am at the same time studying King Saul from the book of Samuel. His was a complex, confusing, tortured life that began well and ended in mental illness and suicide.

The Hollywood Bowl

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Last week we attended a concert at the Hollywood Bowl. It is one of my favorite places in Los Angeles. Built in 1922 in a natural canyon near the Hollywood sign, the band shell was initially designed by Lloyd Wright, son of Frank Lloyd Wright to serve as a concert venue. It’s a wonderful place to bring a picnic dinner, people watch, enjoy music under the stars, and see the firework finale. We usually sit in the cheapest seats in the upper deck where the laws of the United States don’t apply. This time we paid a bit more and sat one section closer. The sketch below is of people waiting for the concert to start, which is what I was doing while sketching.

Architectural Wonders of Downtown Los Angeles

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I spent the day in Downtown Los Angeles. My wife was on jury duty so I drove with her and worked on a writing project. In the morning I read and wrote at the plaza of the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels. The structure was completed in 2002. The facade is the color of golden sandstone.


In the afternoon I worked at the plaza of the Colburn School of Music which is across the street from the Walt Disney Concert Hall. Designed by Frank Gehry and completed in 2003 it is a block away from the Cathedral. The structure is breathtaking. I loved the way the light reflecting of the surface of the building changed throughout the afternoon.