Painted: Encounter Conference DaySpring 15th March ’19
Narrative: Our theme for this Encounter conference is “Revival looks like Family”. I had a strong sense that this painting would speak to this phrase, and I wrote ‘family’ in white paint on the canvas before we began. The white centre started as a heart shape and morphed into the background with a circle of gold glory and a banner overhead of angelic presence. I sensed a gathering of like-minded hearts.
As I painted the tree in the centre, with its long extensive root system, it multiplied and became different trees. Different and yet of the same family. The roots reflect differences in shape, style, and colour variations, but are deliberately entwined and holding the forest family together. The lyrics the worship team sang were “You hold me together”. The trees in the background ‘painted themselves’ in the momentum of being caught up in the spiritual zone of worship, as I sensed a unity of growth, increase and nurture.
There are trees that only stay standing because of the strength of ‘locking together’ in the root system. There are forests that grow beyond their species’ height and width because of the nourishment the taller trees supply to the smaller ones. This is family.
At the last moment, I painted strands of red through the root system, symbolising the blood of Jesus in our foundation of unity.
