Clearing Storms

I believe that God speaks to His faithful in many voices – some intended for the ear, some for the eye, and all for the heart. As a painter, my role is to interpret and clarify allegorical scenes that are rich with meaning. Clearing Storms is such a symbolic scene, charged with a message of hope that can give us the fortitude to go on.

Storms – dark, brooding, terrifying – are a part of all our lives. When we’re in the grip of storm, we may feel overwhelmed, powerless, abandoned by God. The meaning of Clearing Storms is that God’s love is eternal, and because of that, the dark times always pass. The power of the waning storm is still evident in the wild and turbulent sea. But up in the sky, God’s light has touched the clouds with a myriad of colors, transforming them into harbingers of hope and overwhelming man’s feeble attempt to light the darkness with the lighthouse.

I love to paint lighthouses. To me, they represent such strength and stand steadfast against the storms. They guide us to the safety of the shore. Shore, of course, can mean many different things to us, but usually it means safety. A timid stream – which suggests to me an individual human life – makes its way to the great ocean. A gazebo provides refuge for the lighthouse keeper when storms have passed, where he can contemplate the wonder of it all in one of my favorite ways – drinking in the warmth from a cup of hot tea. Whatever your safe haven, I hope that Clearing Storms will remind you that after the dark times, light and hope will prevail.