Throughout this trip I had many images and visions revealed to me during different times and situations that I was put in, and God gifted me with the ability to remember them forever through art. What a blessing! Here’s an overview of all that He has done through art and images for me throughout this month:
This piece I drew in the Melendrez coffee shop. I was struggling the entire week beforehand spiritually (facing sooo much spiritual warfare and having to combat so many lies from the enemy), physically (missed so much ministry from sickness), and emotionally. The day at the coffee shop for my Team Lead day refreshed me in all of those aspects, giving me time to truly get in the Word to continue my deep dive study in acts, to pray intentionally, and to listen to what the Lord had to speak. When I first walked into the coffee shop, I saw an older woman sitting down a few tables away drinking her coffee and reading the newspaper. Honestly, I didn’t give much of a second thought about her. I was more focused on refreshing and pouring back into myself. Although I did do that, and I felt so refreshed, I felt as if something was missing. I close my Bible, close my eyes, and ask God to reveal it to me. He gave me an intense vision of Christ praying, with the thought of “if Jesus dropped to His knees in prayerful consideration for me and for what I have next, who are you to not?” I started drawing exactly what I saw. By the time I was done, I just sat in awe of the Lord, staring at it for a second. I was about to fold it back up, put my notebook away, and reopen my Bible. But then, the lady from earlier got up to leave the shop. God immediately told me- “get up right now and hand it to her.” So I did. The language barrier in Guatemala is very difficult, I couldn’t have a full conversation with her without Google Translate even if I wanted to. But still, I got up. I walked over to her and gave her the sketch. She immediately was brought to tears and gave me a strong, tight hug. No words were exchanged, yet God used that drawing, God used me, to meet with another one of His children. That was one of the most beautiful expressions of His love shown to me during this trip.
Sofi, a girl that I met on the chicken bus in Guatemala, took this perspective of me drawing during church on a Sunday. The sermon was about how nothing- not even death- could separate you from God’s love. I got yet another vision of Christ praying, but this time I was told “ask me boldly for what you want to receive- and I will give it. I am here for YOU. Pray to me and I will listen and hear you.” The Lord is just so intentional, it is beyond my expectations every time. At this point of the trip, I was struggling with the fact that I had to miss a few days of ministry and it felt as if I wasn’t serving anyone in the capacity that the Lord wanted me to. Obviously, I was wrong with that expectation. The Lord didn’t have a capacity for me to enter into when serving Him, and that’s why He allowed me to sit in sickness. The sickness transformed me in ways that I may have missed if I wasn’t still enough to see them. Being told that if I just boldly ask and I will receive helped to change my perspective on my situation. After drawing this- I paused in prayer for a second and I asked the Lord just to allow me to sit with Him without guilt for a while longer. And it worked. He heard me. Although I was still sad I was sick, sitting with Him didn’t come with all the guilt and burden it once did. Praise Him for that!
This drawing I sketched out at training camp. It was one of the first ones I drew on the trip. During training camp we sat in prayer a lot, whether it be through a devotional time in the morning or pauses during worship or after sessions just to sit with Him. I remember this day I was sitting with Him after a session about being fully Spirit-led. All I was thinking was how much I wish I could just see His face. Look Him in the eye. Feel the comfort of seeing him literally face to face. Sometimes I find it hard to be Spirit-led and still at the same time, and I see His face so boldly when I just sit still in His presence. And when I asked to see His face as I’m going throughout my day, this image immediately popped into my mind. As the people around me also had their notebooks out (we were supposed to be writing down prophetical prayers or whatever the Lord was speaking to us in the moment), I pulled out my sketchbook. There’s nothing more special to me than seeing my Father. And this drawing set this tone for me Spiritually in a lot of things for the trip.
This drawing came up when I was reading Matthew 11:28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” This verse is so special to me for I find so much comfort in knowing that the Lord is literally waiting for me with open arms to grant me peace and rest in Him. In my life it feels like I’m always running around, jumping from one thing to the next, and sometimes I forget that I literally just need rest. I was reading this verse during a devotional time in the morning and the image of Him just standing at the edge of a long road, waiting with hands open wide flooded my brain. What a sweet reminder from such a kind Father!
This image came to my mind after our first ministry day in San Lorenzo. We went on a whole hike of the town, hours long, somehow uphill both ways (thank you Cesar😂). At one point, we stopped at the church there. Outside were statues depicting the woman at the well. The woman of the well story highlights to concept of Living Water very well. The thought of the Living Water entered my brain and then later that night I did a short study on the woman with the Alabaster Jar. That story highlights a woman pouring what she had at the feet of Jesus, as he defends her actions to the people that saw and criticized her for wasting expensive perfume. After I finished that study, I got an image of a woman pouring out what she had, with Jesus standing there with His arms open wide, welcoming the woman into His warm embrace. Those two Bible stories already affect me deeply, but seeing how loving He truly is through an image that the Lord gave me never fails to make my heart burn for more of His Spirit.
This image popped into my mind as I was reading 1 Peter 1:18-19 “For you know that you were redeemed from your empty way of life inherited from your ancestors, not with perishable things like silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of an unblemished and spotless lamb.” When God revealed this image to me I just felt an overwhelming sense of peace and the gratitude for His love filled me. He IS comfort, but in the drawing His comfort fills me up immensely. He cleans us, makes us unblemished and spotless in Him, makes us new creations. What a God!
God gave me this image when I was asking Him in prayer one morning what names He has appeared to me throughout this trip. I wanted to look back and be able to point out exactly what He was to me in each moment, not just the constant Father or Friend, but everything He is. The Lord blessed me with every name I called Him during this month, and during my walk in my faith as a whole, even when I didn’t realize it. Knowing that God is just so much more than one thing has me constantly in awe of Him. He is everything and anything I could ever need Him to be!
This picture just depicts a bunch of mini images that the Lord put in my mind throughout a day of sickness. I was just sitting alone most of the day at the base, with nothing but time. I sat in prayer a lot of the day, asking God to continuously reveal parts of Himself to me. He brought up His eyes in response to my prayers a lot, as a symbol that He sees it all. That I’m not alone. That He is my defender, so I don’t need to defend myself. HE SEES IT ALL! Then the song King of Kings started playing and it brought the images of both a crown for a King and the crown of thorns for our King to my mind. He is just so overwhelmingly amazing!
This picture I drew as I was waiting in the airport after our flight to Guatemala got canceled for the first time, we all were stressed out so a lot of us found our own area to just sit in for a little, and I used mine to just open the Word and see what stuck out to me. Yet again, the Lord revealed His eyes to me. He reminded me over and over that He is seeing my situation and He has His hand on it. His eyes are a flame of fire, all consuming, all comforting. He consumed the situation so I didn’t have to. He is just such an all powerful, all loving King. I am forever in awe of Him!
These were some insights on the imagery and visions that the Lord has blessed me with in my time in Guatemala, they mean the world to me! The Lord is just so evident in every situation, and I’m forever thankful that He blessed me with a gift to help capture it! ❤️
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