Posted on May 7, 2021March 12, 2023 by Resurgent Art LLC — Leave a comment

An Interview with Christians In the Visual Arts (CIVA)

Artist and Prophet? Tell me more.

April 20, 2021

Below is a recent conversation between CIVA and member Donna Gonzalez about prophetic art.

CIVA: What is prophetic art? How do you understand it?

DG: To some people the phrase “prophetic art” invokes notions of spiritual mysticism or foretelling events, in truth it’s comparable to the Old Testament prophet who spoke forth God’s word to the people. Under the New Covenant, prophesy is a prophetic gift the Holy Spirit grants believers to speak forth what God has already said in His word, being used in accordance to their faith for the edification of the Church. (Romans 12:6). To me, “prophetic art” is a very specific art genre which includes four indisputable essential components: a work created by a Christian led by the Holy Spirit, communicating a biblical truth, blessing others and resulting in God’s glory.

CIVA: Should Christian artists be considered prophetic artists?

DG: Yes.

CIVA: Why do you say that?

DG: It’s part of our identity, who we are as new creatures in Christ, created and called to do good works that were already prepared in advance for us to accomplish (2 Corinthians 5:17, Ephesians 2:10). We are commanded by Christ to fulfill the great commission (Matthew 28:19-20), it’s just artists have the unique opportunity to accomplish this through their talent and creativity. St. Paul urges believers “…whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” (I Corinthians 10:31). I’m reminded of a situation that happened to Moses where the Spirit of the Lord came down, rested upon 70 elders who immediately began prophesying, which one would expect – but God also placed His Spirit upon 2 other men, and they prophesied too. A young man ran and told Moses requesting he restrain these two men from prophesying. I find it quite interesting what Moses said. He didn’t get upset or rebuke them rather he said, “Are you jealous for my sake? If only all the Lord’s people were prophets, that the Lord would put His Spirit upon them!.” (Numbers 11:24-29). Those words echo what St. Paul said in I Corinthians 14:5 “I would like every one of you to speak in tongues, but I would rather have you prophesy. The one who prophesies is greater than the one who speaks in tongues… so that the church may be edified.” So yes, I believe that all Christian artists should be considered prophets declaring God’s word edifying the Church and declaring God’s truth to a lost and dying world!

CIVA: What is your journey? How did you come to consider yourself a prophetic artist?

DG: Years ago, I didn’t understand what prophetic art or a prophetic artist was. My journey simply began one night before retiring asking God what He wanted me to paint, I just wanted to use my art for His glory. Immediately a vision of a colorful mosaic came to mind. The next day I started painting a mosaic, but since it wasn’t much to look at, I decided to duplicate the painting multiple times in a photo editor, placing them into a pattern where hidden symbols and objects became visible. Having asked the Holy Spirit what this meant, He gave me scripture that corresponded perfectly with the hidden objects. It was so unreal! The iconography became God’s message; a mini bible study if you will. There was no way I could do this if it weren’t for God’s interaction. I was awed and humbled that God would grant me the opportunity to be a conduit of His message. That’s how it all began and my mosaic paintings became the “Mosaics with Meaning^TM” prophetic works, “Here Am I Send Me”, “Fishers of Men” and “Seek the Lord” are a few.

I also paint typical prophetic works, done by inspiration after prayer and meditating on scripture, or after listening to praise and worship music, or from a vision or dream. “My Body Broken for You” is based upon a vision I had during a conversation at church.

CIVA: Any last thoughts?

DG: Our work as Christian artists is significant, it’s redemptive, not because of ourselves but because it is a divine gift from the Great Master Artist Himself.

Donna Gonzalez lives in Wayne, MI, teaches art and is the founder of an art ministry, Resurgent Art LLC. She enjoys gardening, reading and is currently writing her first book.

Learn more about Donna at www.resurgentart.com or follow her on Instagram (@dgartist1982) to see her prophetic art and other artworks.

Posted on August 26, 2019January 4, 2021 by Resurgent Art LLC — Leave a comment

Why Christians Shouldn’t Shy Away From Asking God For Patience

“Yeshua” © Donna Gonzalez

This week I am teaching art to a group of 3,4 and 5 year olds at a local art center; the theme is ” Art with Heart”, and how people can use art to show kindness. I had gathered the children around me to read aloud a short picture story about kindness. One little boy kept interrupting me to tell me story after story of how he was kind to his little brother or how others were kind to him. I repeatedly said “Thank you *Aaron for sharing that story on kindness…” and was just about to continue my reading when he’d interrupt again. This resulted in the reading taking twice as long to finish.

As I was driving home…I thanked the Lord Jesus for teaching me over the years how to be patient and to wait without grumbling or complaining. Many people say: “Never ask God for patience!” and you know why? Because God WILL give that person many opportunities to learn how to be patient with another without complaining about it. So people don’t want to go through that hardship and they avoid that prayer like a plague.

Ah! But let me tell you something that many forfeit by NOT enduring the trials, hardships of learning patience without grumbling or complaining…they forfeit many a blessing from God! They forfeit growing onto further maturity!

You see, when we endure those impatient times (which God uses to teach us) it is like…we have a choice: to fill up a well with patience inside of us or not. The end result is for our own good, that when trying times come (and they will come) when we NEED to give or have patience…we have it.

But, if we haven’t filled up our well full of patience.. through all those patient enduring opportunities to learn patience….then we have NOTHING to give to others, our well is empty.

Instead the only thing we have to give people is our old man, the old flesh …our grumbling, complaining, frustration, fits of anger, hurtful words, and so on. You see how this leads to misery and brings a stench of death on a Christian’s life and witness?

Learning patience is like having a resource we can lean into and use when we need it. That is a great blessing from God! And the best thing is ….. when we have learned patience, our well is full, we can draw up from it in times of need and give it to others! AND we don’t have to worry about loosing our witness for JESUS because at that moment we are showing JESUS to others! Amen? This is Soo cool guys!

So my brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus, don’t shy away from the opportunity to ask God to teach you patience from Him for He knows it’s for our own good, yes it is hard ….its the narrow way, no? And yes, we experience the joy of the Lord and it results in good to others and best of all Jesus gets the glory! Wow! Praise Jesus! Amen?

I Corinthians 13:4 ” Love is patient, love is kind…”

May you be encouraged in your walk with Jesus today!

Donna

*Aaron is not his real name

Posted on June 7, 2018May 29, 2023 by Resurgent Art LLC — Leave a comment

Chi-Rho Newsletter – Living Stones Mosaic

“Living Stones Mirage Stained Glass” © Donna Gonzalez

Would it surprise you at all if I told you that what you are looking at is not a painting of a large stained glass window but instead you are looking at one painted mosaic duplicated multiple times? Fifty-four times to be exact. Each mosaic piece is not haphazardly placed but purposefully, resulting in a consistent pattern which is a unified whole.

If one of the mosaic pieces could speak about itself it would tell you it thinks it is of no consequence whether or not it were in the painting…because what is it among so many other identical mosaic pieces? Quite insignificant hardly serving any purpose at all.

On the contrary if that mosaic piece wasn’t there, it would have a great impact on the entire composition. My painting would be incomplete without it. Because the entire pattern relies on each mosaic piece fitting alongside the next mosaic piece in order to achieve any kind of symmetry, unity or harmony. Not one mosaic piece can be placed at random. Hmmm…

Christians, though not identical to each other are born of the same Spirit. We are one in Christ and in that sense each of us are like a mosaic piece or as the bible says a living stone being built up into a building for God’s purpose I Peter 2:4-5 . In Christ none of us are inconsequential in the Kingdom of God. All of us are His workmanship created to do a specific work Ephesians 2:10. A Christian cannot say because they don’t have exactly the same work or gifting of the Holy Spirit as another that they are less qualified, insignificant or serve no purpose in His Body. I Corinthians 12:15-19

Have you noticed not all of the mosaic pieces create an optical illusion of rings in the painting? Would those mosaics be considered less important than the others? Just the opposite! Those pieces are crucial as they unify the entire artwork and serve to frame and support those mosaic pieces which do create the optical illusion. The illusion wouldn’t appear otherwise!

The optical illusion of rings is highlighted in black below and run throughout this mosaic.

We do not come into this world unplanned by God nor are we place in His Body haphazardly. Just the opposite, the Lord Jesus knows us and puts us exactly where He determines us to be in His Body in a specific time in history and for a specific work to accomplish. When believers come together making every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace something remarkable occurs Ephesians 4:3. Like the stained glass window made up of many pieces working together to create something beautiful, so do we and it’s pleasing in our eyes…and in His eyes.

Be blessed!

Donna

Posted on May 20, 2018May 12, 2021 by Resurgent Art LLC — Leave a comment

Chi-Rho Newsletter – Wait for The Lord

“Water Lilies Stained Glass” © by Donna Gonzalez

Note: This is a longer iconography but well worth the reading!

wait /wāt/verb

Stay where one is or delay action until a particular time or until something else happens. Synonyms: hold on, hold back, bide one’s time, hang fire, mark time, stand by, sit tight, hold one’s horses.
Used to indicated that one is eagerly impatient to do something or for something to happen.

noun

A period of waiting.Synonyms: delay, holdup, interval, interlude, intermission, pause, break, stay, cessation, suspension, stoppage, halt, interruption, lull, respite, recess, moratorium, hiatus, gap, rest

pa·tience /’pāSHəns/noun

The capacity to accept or tolerate delay, trouble, or suffering without getting angry or upset .Synonyms: forbearance, tolerance, restraint, self-restraint, stoicism, calmness, composure, equanimity, imperturbability, phlegm, understanding, indulgence, perseverance, persistence, endurance, tenacity, assiduity, application, staying power, doggedness, determination, resolve, resolution, resoluteness.

I happen to love words and learning new ones too. In truth while writing this post I had always thought the word “wait” meant the same thing as patience and was a synonym for it as well…hmmm….was I wrong!

Perhaps you knew the difference. Take a look at the definitions above; two very different words and not having even the same synonyms! This past month while doing my errands I’ve noticed how very impatient some people are on the roads, perhaps you met them too on your travels.

Waiting is something most people are genetically opposed do even less show any patience. Because waiting and patience are two very different things. Staying where one is or to delay action until a particular time or until something else happens is one thing. One can pass their time by becoming busy changing the radio station in the car.

But who wants to learn a virtue at the cost of experiencing trouble and suffering – as in paying attention, using the breaks to slow down to the actual speed limit behind me before I quickly completed my right turn before said driver plowed into me? No, that is extremely difficult for some people to do.

Instead it’s far easier for driver to keep foot glued on accelerator gunning the engine past me on the left while mouthing something and shaking their fist in the mirror.

Hmm…. no wonder people warn others about praying for patience – but they should do it anyway. Patience really is a much higher noble virtue to attain! Which brings me to the artwork I created. “Water Lilies Stained Glass – Green” is an acrylic painting composed of 16 mosaics placed into a pattern. It comes in purple and pink too.

I happened to be conversing with a friend sharing favorite bible scriptures after a group bible study. Her favorite is Psalm 27:14. And when I got home I did something different again, usually the scripture comes after the pattern but this time I had to “find” which painting would best suit this scripture.

Iconography: I chose “Water Lilies Stained Glass – Green” as its bright colors resembled a stained glass window. There are pink and violet opened lilies surrounded by great big green leaves, highlighted in peachy orange. (See below)

The big green lily pads are highlighted in yellow and have a closed purple flower in between them. All of which is surrounded by the dark and light blue portions of the mosaic that representing water.

Easy-peasy.Now, did I know before hand that this mosaic painting placed into a pattern would create a flower, a lily pad and water? No.

Now here is where it all gets quite interesting…

I did some research on waterlilies to see if there was anything I could learn about them. I found that water lilies grow quickly and are invasive the lily pads can get really big (some up to 6′ across) covering almost the entire water surface of a lake or pond, preventing any other water plant from reaching the surface. Hmm.. so does this artwork have a good amount of lily pads too!

Now, the white lily flowers bloom in the evening, sending out a rich fragrance throughout the night. The flower must wait for a certain little beetle attracted by the fragrance to come pollinate it. Once it lands on the flower it enters in searching for nectar. The flower then closes up for a full day keeping the beetle safely inside, which it doesn’t mind at all, since it is happily drinking sweet nectar, but the flower has slowly started to change color – to pink.

And in the meantime the flower’s pollen has mixed with the pollen on the beetle. At last the blossom opens up to let loose the now heavily nectar-logged pollen-encrusted beetle as it flies away in search of another white blossom to imbibe and pollinate unknowingly. Hmm… fly, drink, pollinate and repeat…what a life! Lovely story.

But just how is all of this making any sense with Psalm 27:14? Well, a lot actually. There is so much deep biblical application in this for all of us, that I will try my very best to keep it succinct.

“Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart, and wait for the Lord.” – Psalm 27:14

This verse is part of King David’s prayer to God to deliver him from his enemies who conspire to bring him down. Being a king David could do anything at anytime against those who hated him, but instead he prays to God. David accepts that those who oppose him will most likely still give him trouble before God vindicates him, but instead of getting angry or upset he instructs his heart to be strong and wait for God’s timing to vindicate him. This is what it means to be patient before God.

Now the water lily blossoms at God’s perfect timing in the evening just as the beetle is out flying over the water in search for white water lilies. As the lily waits to bloom at God’s command so it is with us Christians. God’s word tells us to wait upon Him, not to go before Him but to sit tight, hold on, expectantly, He understands the whole matter better than we do.

So we wait with patient endurance, whether or not it includes struggles, trouble or suffering we persevere with calmness, because we know that in God’s timing it will all work out. As David did. We as believers are encouraged not to faint, or loose heart in the endurance of persevering, because when it is complete it leads us to maturity in Christ.

James 1:2-4 says: “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance, Perseverance must finish it’s work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”

What would happen if the water lily didn’t wait at God’s command to bloom but chose it’s own time to bloom; or chose instead to close up it’s petals before the beetle arrived? It would have missed its one chance at being pollinated.

When we take matters into our own hands and do not wait upon God as He says, we miss out on blessings. This is what happened to Saul when he lacked patience, didn’t restrain himself nor have the capacity to accept delay in waiting for the prophet Samuel to show up. Saul became perturbed, disregarded the word of the Lord from Samuel to wait to do the sacrifice until he came and it ended up costing Saul not only his blessing from the Lord but his very kingdom! I Samuel 13:8-14

The flower does not lack anything when the wait is finally over. You see, pollination isn’t the end of it all. For after the pink blossom has been pollinated it will shrivel up and sink back under the depths of the water and die – but here is the wonder of it all…it will bear fruit – a seed!

And this seed will now grow up in maturity to become a beautiful new water lily for the glory of God!

⁸This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. -John 15:8

Hmmm….Maturity in Christ by waiting on God showing self-control in patience – leads to blessings and fruit which glorifies God! Now, isn’t that were we all want to be?

Be blessed my friend!-Donna

Posted on December 26, 2017May 12, 2021 by Resurgent Art LLC — Leave a comment

Chi-Rho Newsletter – Thy Word is a Lamp Unto My Feet

“Thy Word is a Lamp Unto My Feet Mosaic” © by Donna Gonzalez

I hope all of you had a wonderful time with family and friends this Christmas! Though Christmas Day was yesterday, the reason for this season is life changing for the individual as well as in the course of history. It is also a way of life. And I hope this painting can help show that as it pertains to the significance of this Christmas season.

The original mosaic for this painting was done in acrylic on an 8″x10″ canvas and has an effect added to it which makes each brushstroke and line of paint appear to glow. The finished composition that you see above, however; is made up of 48 identical mosaics which when placed together creates this unique pattern. What is really cool is due to this intricate pattern it creates an optical illusion! I love how this piece came out! The scripture verse is taken from Psalms 119:105 which holds a special meaning this Christmas season.

Iconography: I’ve only highlighted a few here in pink, but throughout the entirety of this artwork are a series of yellow rectangles which depict tempo or movement. Not unlike a series of footsteps walking across a tiled floor.

Between the yellow squares are darker tiles that symbolize horizontal and vertical pathways. I’ve highlighted a couple of them here, and reduced the opacity so they are easier to see. Again these also run the entire length and width of the artwork.

In between each set of four footsteps are implied lines that form an elliptical shape which appears as an optical illusion, three are highlighted in red below. As you eyes scan the artwork they appear and disappear quickly.

So how does all of this fit in neatly with Psalm 119:105 and Christmas? Christmas is the season of joy, hope and gift giving that has it’s origins back to God Himself Who would give the greatest gift of all, His Son, the promise to not only the nation of Israel but to all of mankind. Isaiah 9:6 says:

For to us a child is born,
    to us a son is given,
    and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
    Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
    Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

This promised Savior would be fulfilled hundreds of years later as transcribed by the Gospel writer Luke. The following is just part of what is often read during Christmas describing the account of Jesus’ birth:

⁸And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. ⁹An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. ¹⁰But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people.¹¹Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. ¹²This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” Luke 2:8-12

The Gospel writer John writes of Jesus entering the world:

“¹⁴The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 1:14

Later Jesus would described Himself as our light:

¹²When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” John 8:12

We look to Jesus the Word incarnate who’s very words are life, as He leads we follow in step with Him.

“105 Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.” Psalm 119:105

This is symbolized by the yellow footsteps in the painting. Just as a lamp brings light to a path for those in darkness, Jesus is our light. The darker tiles represent just how narrow that path is, so narrow it seems only two footsteps wide. We are called to walk in His footsteps. Meaning we abide close to Him and do not wander away from the truth of God’s Word. Jesus said:

“¹³“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. ¹⁴But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” Matthew 7:13-14

The great glorious King Jesus left the splendors of Heaven, to be born in the most humble of means in a lost and dying world, lived a sinless life, healed the sick, raised the dead doing many good works to show the Father’s heart. He taught us how to love God and to love one another. He willingly took the punishment that was ours dying on a cross, rose to life triumphantly three days later having conquered sin, death and the grave, that we may know the forgiveness of sins, and walk in newness of life. Jesus, the greatest gift for all times, for all people, for all seasons.

Oh…and that optical illusion…have you noticed in your Christian walk, sometimes in life there are many things that will vie for our attention, to get our eyes off of Jesus? To redirect our gaze onto seemingly more important things, or on petty things?

Just as that elliptical optical illusion shape is visible in your peripheral vision trying to distract your eyes off what is really important – the narrow path and the footsteps of our Lord; notice it appears at first as something worthwhile to look at, upon finally gazing on it one realizes it has disappeared – it’s nothing. Likewise those things that distract us off our narrow path are just an illusion, they cannot satisfy, nor offer true peace, nor last for eternity.

May this post encourage and bless you!

-Donna

Posted on October 31, 2017May 12, 2021 by Resurgent Art LLC — Leave a comment

Chi-Rho Newsletter – Seek the Lord

“Seek the Lord” © by Donna Gonzalez

Yikes! It’s just after 10 pm and I just realized today’s the last day of October and I have been so busy that I’ve nearly missed uploading October’s Newsletter on time! Funny thing is…as I write this I’m beginning to realize something and it’s exciting what comes to mind. It all makes perfect sense with this scripture! Confused? Let me explain a bit of background on this artwork…

I painted this mosaic earlier in the year using a new technique in which I simply splattered and poured different colors of paint randomly on the canvas. As the paint moved on its own the colors started to merge and blend on their own creating shapes that morphed in no particular order. As this happened I took photographs of how the paint moved across the canvas. Random yes, without God’s fingerprints, without a higher purpose? Nope!

The painting is comprised of only four mosaics duplicated three times and placed into a pattern until each side matched up perfectly.

Iconography: Highlighted below is a mirrored image of a man who is wearing a red and blue robe resembling a Christ-figure seated at a shiny glass table. He is looking both upward and over his right shoulder. Or over his left shoulder depending on which mirrored image you’re looking at. I noticed this immediately after I put the four mosaics together and thought of Isaiah 55:6. But, the next hidden image I didn’t see until I started writing this post.

At his side stands what appears to be a large angel in a red robe with blue wings holding his hands outstretched. I outlined the angel’s arms in pale blue on both mirrored images below.

At the table in front of the Christ-figure appears shapes that suggest food and drink.

The four mosaics placed together form the pattern of a cross.

The scripture is taken from Isaiah 55:6

“Seek the Lord while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near.”

If you look closely you’ll see what appears to be large areas of the canvas showing through most notable on the edges that form the central cross. Those are areas which didn’t get completely covered up with paint as it moved across the canvas.

So…just how does this scripture all fit in with me posting this newsletter an hour or so before midnight before the next month begins? Actually quite a lot.

You see, I had all the best intentions on getting October’s newsletter out much earlier this month, but try as might I have been kept from posting it, simply because…well, I’ve been focused on doing other important things.

And they were all good things that kept me away. In the back of my mind I kept having the nagging reminder to write this newsletter. I didn’t set aside TIME to do it until I realized how late it was. In hindsight that may have been a God thing to make His message all the more clear to me.

Should I happen to finish this post after my deadline of midnight it’s no biggie for me; I simply back post date this writing to be sometime before midnight October 31st. On the contrary after death, no one has the ability of going back into time before their deadline (death) to accept Christ’s gift of salvation.

²⁷And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: – Hebrews 9:27

God is holy and desires to restore our broken relationship with Him. He provided the only means possible, through faith alone in His Son Jesus Christ. Jesus wants us to be born-again, to know Him as God and Savoir before every person’s deadline has come. Unfortunately many people take a cavalier attitude towards the Gospel message, defer obeying it since more “important pressing things” need to be done and experienced first.

As the Christ figure is seated at the table waiting to eat in the painting, in reality Jesus waits for everyone to come and dine with Him, to have a relationship with Him. I was being reminded throughout the month to write this post before the deadline and likewise, the Holy Spirit reminds people who’ve heard the Gospel message yet not followed through to make that decision to follow Jesus before it’s too late. The food symbolizes the bread and the wine, our communion remembering all He did for us. Jesus says:

“Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.” – Revelation 3:20

Jesus is the author of salvation and the only One who can remedy man’s sin problem before a Holy God. He paid a very high price for our redemption, likewise the symbol of the cross is central in the painting. So very important is everyone’s eternal destiny that God urges everyone to come to Him today and not wait for tomorrow. Without salvation in Christ Jesus in this life, there is no hope of eternal life in the next. God says:

“For he says, “In the time of my favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you.” I tell you, now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation.” – 2 Corinthians 6:2

“Seek the Lord while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near.” -Isaiah 55:6

“Come now, let’s settle this,” says the LORD. “Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool.” – Isaiah 1:18

Many people are deep in sin-sick captivity, bondage to all kinds of things; fears, addictions, obsessions etc., they are lost and bound in darkness having no idea that by calling upon God He is willing to save, forgive, heal, restore, deliver and set at liberty those who are captive.

¹¹For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. ¹²Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. ¹³You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. ¹⁴I will be found by you,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back from captivity.” – Jeremiah 29:11-14

“For “Everyone who calls on the name of the LORD will be saved.” – Romans 10:13

Did you know there is not one paintbrush stroke in this painting? The paintbrush never touched the canvas. Neither did I intentionally paint an angel, a table, cross or the Christ-figure, that was all God’s fingerprints. Likewise neither is salvation wrought by any man or woman’s merit or work. It is all God’s doing.

⁸For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, ⁹not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” – Ephesians 2:8-9

“In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” – Luke 15:10

One last thing about this painting, it’s the angel. I imagine this angel has been asked by Christ if a person has responded to the Gospel message. What the angel’s response is depends on how each viewer of this mosaic painting responds to the Gospel message. Is the angel about to rejoice or is the angel sadly replying; “No Lord, they said not today.”

May this post encourage others to see the value of each person’s worth and the incredible significance in believing in Jesus Christ for eternal life today and not put it off for another time.

in Him,

Donna

Posted on September 19, 2017May 12, 2021 by Resurgent Art LLC — Leave a comment

Chi-Rho Newsletter – A Threefold Cord

“Threefold Cord” © by Donna Gonzalez

This painting is what I chose for a sister in the Lord who sent in her favorite bible verse that I had requested from friends in August of this year. I painted this artwork last year. The composition is comprised of 80 painted mosaics neatly placed together to form this unique pattern. The result is warm, inviting and quite pleasing to look at. And looks something like lace or latticework, of interwoven cords of yellow, orange, and red against a very deep burgundy that mimics a deep warm brown. Amazing how some very deep hues appear much different than its original color!

The scripture for this painting comes from Ecclesiastes 4 verses 9-12:

“Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their labor. 10 For if they fall one will lift up his companion. But woe to him who is alone when he falls, for he has no one to help him up. 11 Again, if two lie down together, they will keep warm; but how can one be warm alone? 12 Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him. And a threefold cord is not quickly broken.”

Old King Solomon was the wisest, most wealthiest of all the kings in Jerusalem in the era of which he lived and composed a lengthy discourse of his memoirs containing his experience, knowledge and wisdom which was granted to him. These six short sentences speak of the importance of having a good friend in one’s life, especially one that is beloved, trusted, and faithful.

A scripture that came to mind as I pondered over this artwork and its verse is: “A man who has friends must himself be friendly, But there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” Proverbs 18:24

Hmm…we’ll get to that in a moment.

It’s the title of this piece, taken from the last verse of Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 and the artwork’s pattern in relation to Proverbs 18:24 that I want to focus on. I’m not going to take it to the extreme, you may come to a different conclusion than I and that’s all right. There may be more scriptural truth here but this is what I noticed so far.

Iconography: The orange cord meanders at a decorative pace horizontally, while the yellow cord runs vertically twisting every now and then. The red cord travels horizontally with slight undulation among the yellow and orange cords. The orange cord represents man, the yellow cord represents woman. The red cord represents Christ.

So how does this pattern relate anything at all to Ecclesiastes 4:12 and Proverbs 18:24 you may ask? Well, a lot actually.

Men and women as we already know are so different from one another and I’m not just referring to our gender. Often, we don’t understand each other relationally or emotionally. Women are a complex mystery to men and likewise women can’t figure out why men do what they do and some conclude they must have come from another world. Yet despite our many differences both often become best of friends coming to the aid of each other. Sometimes the result is of two lives desiring a lifelong faithful commitment to each other instituted by God in marriage.

This is represented by the yellow and orange cords intersecting each other at two different angles, just as a man and a woman were not meant to be clones of each other identical in every way, but to have variances in our makeup, experiences, dreams, desires, talents, and ability.

But notice there is also some space between the two cords. One cord doesn’t dominate or control the other, nor one cord crowd the other preventing the other from moving, neither do they create a tangled mess. Instead just the opposite occurs, both the yellow and orange cords harmonize with each other in lovely lacework pattern where each contributes. Without the yellow cord with its circles or triangles the pattern is incomplete, without the orange cord the pattern is also incomplete.

Now, in a painting an artist will deliberately position an object or a subject to be dominate, by creating that object or subject larger, or exaggerated, or more colorful, or separate from all the other things in the artwork to purposefully call attention to the viewer to look right here, because this is the most significant thing about this artwork. That object or subject is called the main focal point. All the other lesser elements within that painting will work to draw the viewer’s eye along towards the main focal point so the viewer really doesn’t pay much attention to the lesser objects or elements in that painting. That is called hierarchy in art, where there are degrees of rank and order among all the objects or subjects within a painting.

Did you notice there is no hierarchy in this painting? Neither the yellow cord nor the orange cord stands out as the main hierarchical element in this artwork. Both cords are equal, of the same tonality, shape and size, one doesn’t dominate the other by any differences in texture, size or position, other than the individual color there is nothing to suggest hierarchy. Both cords have their own unique style and color and each one’s movement in the artwork creates beauty.

In marriage, both husband and wife are a unique creation in their God-given talents, attributes and in the gifting the Holy Spirit has imparted to each one. Both are to work alongside each other, not dominate each other, or oppress or abuse the other. Husband and wife are called to love one another dearly as Christ loves His Church, by showing reciprocal submission to each other out of mutual respect for one another in the fear of God. Ephesians 5:21.

The red cord represents Christ, who is the only One positionally and spiritually the Lord and Head over both the husband and wife, who joins them in marriage. The red cord weaves in close between the orange and yellow cords symbolizing Christ being very near to both husband and wife who is the Friend who sticks closer than any brother.

Notice the red cord isn’t ornate either, nor flamboyant, extravagant in color, or larger than any other element in the painting to even remotely suggests hierarchy. Is not that how our Lord Jesus is? Humble, never ostentatious. Though in reality Christ’s hierarchical position is the main focal point in a Christian marriage as both Lord and Head over the marriage and over each person within the marriage.

Lastly, it is the red cord which makes the twofold cord into a threefold cord in the painting. Without Christ as the solid foundation in a marriage it can become broken and eventually destroyed through constant wear and tear of the storms in life; however, a threefold cord with Christ as the sure foundation in the marriage is much stronger and able to withstand all the storms of life.

For those who are single, Christ still remains as your Friend who sticks closer than any brother.

May you be encouraged by this post and remain strong in your faith!

-Donna

Posted on August 31, 2017May 12, 2021 by Resurgent Art LLC — Leave a comment

Chi-Rho Newsletter – Rivers In The Desert

“Rivers in the Desert” © by Donna Gonzalez

I love how this mosaic came out it’s one of my favorites! It is comprised of multiple mosaic panels offset on an angle to create this mesmerizing abstract painting. The use of repeated mosaics creates the effect of movement. The blues and greens capture the rippling movement of fresh water glistening in the sunlight contrasted against the desert browns, yellows, and oranges representing sand and rock.

It reminds me of several scriptures relating to water. However; Isaiah 43:19 seems to say it best as the Lord says:

“Behold, I will do a new thing,
Now it shall spring forth;
Shall you not know it?
I will even make a road in the wilderness
And rivers in the desert.”

Those words are part of a longer discourse from the Lord to both Israel and Jacob. In this chapter God repeatedly acknowledges Himself as “The Holy One of Israel” then lists His credentials: your Savior, your Redeemer, your King, your Creator. Then says everyone called by His name He created for His glory. Wow! Incredible words describing our God and our purpose!

The last line of this chapter reads: “…Because I give waters in the wilderness and rivers in the desert, To give drink to My people, My chosen, This people I have formed for Myself; They shall declare My praise.”

We try all kind of things to drown out or fix our problems, when really only one thing is needful.

To the outcast, downtrodden: “Jesus answered, ’Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again,¹⁴but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.’” – John 4:13-14

To those who believe: ³⁷On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. ³⁸Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.” ³⁹By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.” – John 7:37-39

Many people are lost, walking in a dry wilderness, searching in vain for anything to satisfy a gnawing thirst in their souls which can never be quenched by anything of the world. Those who are born-again and are filled with the Holy Spirit have that living water. The ministry of the Holy Spirit flows out of a heart that has been redeemed by God and it blesses other believers. Through the believer it brings a word of life to a lost and dying world.

And that is why I really love this mosaic, because it not only speaks of the believer’s calling and purpose but it is a constant reminder for the believer to continuously draw strength from Christ. No matter the circumstances or how bleak the situation we may experience or what dry patch of wilderness a believer may go through we look to Jesus. Only He can make a path where one doesn’t exist, bring life out from a barren wasteland, and bring beauty from ashes. Jesus exhorts us to come to Him for wisdom times of refreshment, healing and rejuvenation.

From eternity past to present and for all eternity, Jesus will continue to reign supreme as the Holy One of Israel, our Savior, Redeemer, King, and Creator. In agreement with Peter let us who are redeemed be strengthened in these words: “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.” – I Peter 2:9

Be encouraged!

Donna

Posted on April 23, 2017May 12, 2021 by Resurgent Art LLC — Leave a comment

Chi-Rho Newsletter – Jesus Christ Chief Cornerstone

Yes, this month’s newsletter comes at the last day in April and what better way to wrap up this busy month than to begin again remembering Jesus as our Chief Cornerstone our sure foundation!

The painting above is of 16 mosaics put together to create a unique pattern, I did add a filter overlay which rendered the brushstrokes to look like neon light. The finished composition reminded me of I Peter 2:6.

As Christians celebrated Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday this month we were united with other believers around the world in memory of the glorious morning our Lord Jesus Christ triumphed over sin, death and the grave! Praise God! The disciples’ faith in Jesus was tried like never before when they witnessed the crucifixion and death of their beloved friend. And three days later it would be renewed stronger – rock solid – having seen first hand the Son of the Living God risen. What a glorious moment!

This painting is special to me because it reminds me that I not only can I depend on Jesus as He is faithful in all things but I can also have my art ministry founded on Him as well. A cornerstone is “an important quality or feature on which a particular thing depends or is based upon.” Exactly what Resurgent Art’s mission is dependent upon God and the importance of who Christ is while pointing others to Him, showing beauty all for His glory. 😀

There is an optical illusion of X’s that are visible at a distance. It happens often in my paintings, I don’t know why this happens; but my daughter pointed out to me there’s either O’s or X’s in many of my works. Hmmm….maybe it’s a reminder how much Jesus loves all of us dearly? Just a thought! May your week be blessed my friend!

-Donna

Posted on April 7, 2017May 12, 2021 by Resurgent Art LLC — Leave a comment

Chi-Rho Newsletter – New Creation

It always amazes me when I paint a mosaic painting how often there are hidden symbols! It’s just another of His fingerprints! Praise God! Now, not every single mosaic I paint does this; but a lot do. This acrylic painting is one of them. It is composed of 16 identical mosaics which are placed together creating a unique pattern. I have no idea after painting the original mosaic what the end pattern will result in, nor can I see any hidden images, it’s only when they are all put together that the hidden images emerge.

Iconography: There are three rows of crosses starting at the very top going from left to right. The second cross in the first row is highlighted in blue below. There are two more rows; and each row overlaps a bit the previous one. In between each crossbeam is a darker area that depending on your viewpoint becomes the spread wings of a butterfly flying vertically or horizontally. They are highlighted in yellow below.

If you don’t see the crosses in this artwork come closer, you’re too far away. They will appear to “fade” and will disappear altogether the further you stand back. It’s an optical illusion.

The scripture that comes to mind regarding this painting is II Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” In this chapter St. Paul is encouraging the believers in the Corinth church. Before we are born-again we are like the earth bound caterpillar busy about in sin and consumed with worldly things, and being consumed by them as well. Yet the moment we believe on Jesus for salvation the Holy Spirit works a miracle in us, like the caterpillar that must “die” to emerge from its chrysalis into a new creature. Likewise we “die” and are made a new creation in Christ Jesus represented by the butterfly. Romans 6:11 says: “In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.”

Likewise all those whom God foreknew; which by the way, is everyone ever conceived or will be conceived on this earth, He predestined to be conformed into His Son. Romans 8:28-30 says:

^“28And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. ²⁹For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. ³⁰And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.”

As Christians we must stay on our guard being ever vigilant to abide in Christ, like the butterfly in flight is always connected to the cross. When the focus of our life is no longer on Jesus and what He did for us on the cross, but instead becomes so focused on trials, worldly desires or someone or something else takes precedence over Jesus, we compromise our affection that further distances us from Him. One can easily lose sight of why they are here, forgetting who they are in Christ and what He has accomplished for them in His death and resurrection.

In doubt, one can become so discouraged thinking that Jesus has completely left them, analogous to looking at this artwork from afar and not seeing the cross anymore, in fact, stand far enough away and even the butterflies themselves will fade into the artwork while other areas of the pattern that were once not so noticeable now become prominent – over the cross! Feelings are very powerful and if not checked can make even the mature Christian begin to doubt His loving God and forget who they are in Christ Jesus. However; we like the Corinthian believers are told by St. Paul: ⁷For we live by faith, not by sight.” II Corinthians 5:7

Yet, by returning the focus back onto the cross and drawing near to God, He draws near to us cleansing us from all sin. 1 John 1:7. The scarlet color of the artwork represents the shed blood of Christ powerful enough to wipe away all guilt and shame. Praise God for His great loving kindness towards us!

As we reflect on why our Lord Jesus came to die for us during this Lenten season, let us so be encouraged that no matter how your life may have been up to now, no matter the mistakes, the guilt, the shame the sin, whoever you are, whatever you’ve done, because of His work on the cross we have the wonderful opportunity to be made new in Jesus.

May this artwork and this post bless and encourage you that you are greatly loved by God! Be blessed!

-Donna

Note: The following is for those of you reading who don’t know Jesus as your Lord and Savior and want Him to forgive you of your sins and grant you eternal life which God offers. His desire is that you become born-again, become a new creation in Jesus. Read the scriptures below and pray to Jesus asking Him to save you and to forgive you of your sins. Jesus already knows everything about you, He already knows your heart just be honest with Him. There is no works, no good deeds, no sacrifice you can ever do on your part to save yourself. You must come to Jesus the Son of the Living God on His terms believing what He has said in the following scriptures.

²⁸“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.²⁹Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30

⁶Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6.

²³For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23

⁸If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. ⁹If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” I John 1:8-9

“ ⁸For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— ⁹not by works, so that no one can boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9

“Now there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus who was a member of the Jewish ruling council. ²He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him.”

³Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.”

⁴“How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!”

⁵Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. ⁶Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. ⁷You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ ⁸The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”

⁹“How can this be?” Nicodemus asked.

¹⁰“You are Israel’s teacher,” said Jesus, “and do you not understand these things?¹¹Very truly I tell you, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, but still you people do not accept our testimony. ¹²I have spoken to you of earthly things and you do not believe; how then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things? ¹³No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven—the Son of Man.¹⁴Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up,¹⁵that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.”

¹⁶For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. ¹⁷For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.¹⁸Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. ¹⁹This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. ²⁰Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. ²¹But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.” John 3:1-21

^“9If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. ¹⁰For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. ¹¹As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.” ¹²For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, ¹³for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” Romans 10:9-13

⁷I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent. Luke 15:7

If you called out to Jesus for salvation go to a bible believing church in your area and let them know you are a new believer in Jesus so that you may be baptized. Prayer is simply you talking to God. Start reading the Gospel of John in the bible so that you understand more about Jesus and how He wants you to live. If you don’t have a bible click on any of the scripture hyperlinks they will take you the Biblegateway.com website, an online bible database. God speaks to you through prayer and mostly through the bible. Email me to let me know you’ve became a new believer in Jesus so that I may rejoice with you!

Be blessed!

-Donna

Posted on February 24, 2017May 12, 2021 by Resurgent Art LLC

Are you really trusting Him?

As born again Christians we are commanded by God to:

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight.” Proverbs 3:5-6

Sounds easy enough right? It’s a favorite verse for many. Until we get into the car and head for work. Sure enough someone cuts us off from our exit, causing us to slam on the breaks nearly missing an oncoming car. Top it all off that crazy driver sneered, laughing at us while flipping the bird on the expressway. And that old nature immediately kicks in; we lean on our own understanding by following the world’s wisdom. Ignoring the checking of the Holy Spirit to slow it down and stop entertaining evil thoughts towards another person, instead we chose to ignore His words. We curse that driver as we begin tailgating him hoping to cut him off at the next opportunity. Later we start arguing with the Spirit of God as He admonishes us that we didn’t obey Him:

¹⁷“Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. ¹⁸If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.” Romans 12:17-18

Pride won’t budge, and to make matters worse we have a mental tribunal in our minds justifying our actions as we misquote scripture to excuse our behavior of “doing unto others as they did to us”. Besides someone had to teach that driver a lesson! Clearly he was in the wrong!

But indirectly whether we realize it or not we are telling God “I don’t trust You know the best way of dealing with people, You are wrong too.”

Hmmm…

We sinned and in that ungodly behavior we grieved the Holy Spirit, negatively affected our witness to the other drivers around us, who unbeknownst to us, were probably some of our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. We are called to be ambassadors for Christ and instead that little stunt put Jesus’ reputation at stake just to prove a point.

Worse it just proved that we are not really trusting in the words of Christ. Don’t excuse it under the rug that it’s a moot point. To the world it is moot, but to God it’s a matter of whether or not we choose to fully accept that Jesus knows exactly what He’s talking about when He tells us how interact with others that insult us. Like turning the other cheek and leaving room for God’s wrath.

^{23 “}Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. ²⁴For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it. ²⁵What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their very self?” Luke 9:23-25

Jesus’ His words ring clear but does that mean I’m to carry my cross by denying myself that little pleasure of getting back at someone who flipped me off?

Yep! Trusting in God means to lay aside our old way of thinking for His ways, of laying aside our agenda and our understanding of how to do things for His perfect better way of doing things, whether they make sense to us or not.

“There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death. Proverbs 14:12”

13 “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” Matthew 7:13-14

It’s the narrow way. Entering into the narrow gate means one has to crouch low, humble oneself just to squeeze through that narrow gate. The narrow path will lead to eternal life but until then we will endure hardships, trials and even persecution in our lives. We live in a broken world but God uses those trials for our good.

2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 4 Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything to make us mature in Christ. James 1:2-4

Faith is complete conviction and confidence in and who Jesus is. There is no room for doubt. It is knowing that trails come as a testing of our faith to produce perseverance, that it must finish it’s work. We must not hinder His work in us otherwise we will be lacking and not reach maturity in Him.

“For we walk by faith, not by sight.” II Corinthians 5:7

We must walk as Jesus walked, persistent in faith in His Father. To live fully convinced that His words are Spirit and they are Life. Those that obey will be rewarded by God.

“Whoever gives heed to instruction prospers, and blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord.” Proverbs 16:20

Let us therefore not be like those of long ago who amazed Jesus.

Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own town, among his relatives and in his own home.” ⁵He could not do any miracles there, except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them. ⁶He was amazed at their lack of faith. Mark 6:4-6

One would think that trusting Jesus and in His word is given for a Christian yet what is interesting is what Jesus would say at the end of His parable of the persistent widow.

The Parable of the Persistent Widow

18 Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. 2 He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. 3 And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’ 4 “For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think, 5 yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!’” 6 And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. 7 And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? 8 I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?” Luke 18:1-8

Christians who are steadfast in faith no matter their circumstance or outcome are placing all their trust in the Father who has their back, who will answer in due time. Apparently Jesus felt faith in Him and explicit trust in His words was so important that He needed to call into question whether or not people will have any unwavering faith and trust in God as this widow had portrayed when He returns the second time. Trust in Jesus …it’s really that important.

-Donna