Grace

Grace

Grace: It’s That Simple

White gesso and string on canvas

Exhibited at Grace Creations Art Show at Our Saviour’s Atonement Lutheran Church

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 THESE ARE NOT ON THE NEW SERVER. I NEED BETTER PHOTOS. 

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In trying to answer the question: what does Grace mean to you?  I came upon 2 Corinthians 12:9, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”

To me Grace is when something in us is broken and God fixes and renews us without us having to do anything.  We do not deserve the transformation, yet we are blessed with it.

I found a canvas that was ripped and put aside.  As I painted it all with white acrylic gesso, I found the strips left in the canvas to be flimsy and weak.  I began to use string to make the canvas strips taut and strong.  This process was fast and I felt used by divine inspiration.  when I looked at the piece, I saw a beautiful symmetry.  The three strings at the top represent the Holy Trinity, Father, Son, and Spirit, flowing down and converging in one spot, holding up that which was weak.

I wasn’t sure the painting was done because it seemed too simple.  Now, I realize Grace is really that simple, it is us, in our humanity, that makes it complicated.

Grace is simple, which is why I believe it is a difficult concept for many of us to grasp.  In this world we are taught to do in order to receive, but God grants us gracce without us having to do anything.  Grace is when something is broken and God uses it anyway to make something harmonious and beautiful.  I had held on to a broken canvas for years, now it is a symbol of grace.