Lucille's Blog

Broad Strokes and Lines

Lucy — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 00:03:20 +0000

Contemporary Acrylics with Larissa Blake. It was my first class in painting and it was a real challenging experience. This was one of my new-year resolutions – try something new and fun, that I love. I love art and the expressive nature of paintings. I especially love art that captures life in expressive forms, not so abstract that it’s just colours, lines and shapes, but the subject embodies real things in a more abstract form. Hence – contemporary acrylics for beginners.

It was a quite difficult first class because my mindset was trying to be more precise and ensure I can capture my subject exactly as I see it – like a photocopier or camera. Larissa had to keep telling me to be random and give the painting expression using broad strokes and lines, shades of colour and tones – messy and fluid. I learnt a few tips, which was great e.g. wash the canvas with coloured wash first, layering with dark colours first and paint over with lighter colours, less is more in the details, textureize, warm colours draws your eyes close whilst cool takes you back. All in all, I had a lot of fun – and had to really do things differently.

It was quite exhilarating!!

Art of Nudity

Lucy — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 11:18:47 +0000

“The reason why it’s shocking is because you’re not use to human nudity. If our society accepts it as the norm, it would be very natural and not weird at all. They probably think it’s unnatural seeing us with clothes on”, says the man next to the portrait, as he explains his opinion fervently to his friend. She nods and agrees. In principle.

I recently attended a wedding of two friends, who had their ceremony at Springwood in the Blue Mountains. In order to make a day of it, a couple of friends decided we should go to the Norman Lindsay gallery since it’s on the way. Knowing very little about the man, other than what was explained in the movie Sirens, I was willing to keep an open mind. After a brief look around of the gallery, I realised pretty quickly that he was obsessed with the human nude form. More particularly, the female nude form. One intriguing part of the gallery was the Red Room. In it contained mostly large oil paintings of nude females in a somewhat fantasy-Grecian setting. It was amongst these paintings I heard the above statement uttered. The behavioural critique did not come as a surprise – social standards and norms dictate acceptability of human behaviour. It was how society came to this opinion about nudity that intrigued my thoughts. There are probably lots of reasons for clothing, but what came to mind almost immediately was the impact and effect of the Fall.

“Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.” Genesis 3:7

As soon as Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden, by eating the forbidden fruit, they became aware of all that is good and evil and were shameful of their nakedness. The bible says Adam hid from God because he was naked, and God then made clothing to cover them. Before their first sin, they walked the Garden without clothing and related to God in such intimate ways. It was Adam and Eve who first dictated that covering was essential by sewing fig leaves, and God affirmed it with the making of clothing.

If sin did not enter the world – and I won’t begin to contemplate the possibilities – but I’d imagine nudity and acceptance of nudity could be very different. Adam and Eve did not have to sew fig leaves, or have coverings, or hide from God’s presence. From the opening of their eyes, they became aware of all that is good and evil. Were they blinded previously? Did they have a subconscious awakening? Does this mean nudity is innately bad? Why would God create anything bad? Is nudity forever tainted because of the original sin?

I don’t know the answer – or if it’s even a question. One thing this had reminded me – that I’m sinful, for as long as clothing is a normality for outdoor wear. It does raise an interesting perspective of Heaven and how nudity may feature. To be sure, no longer will we have to hide from God, clothing or without clothing. We will be in his immediate presence without condemnation or shame – the way it was intended.

“For while we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life.” 2 Corinthians 5:4

A Bell-Curve trend

Lucy — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 02:59:45 +0000

I’ve recently returned from Beach Mission at Currarong – it was awesome! This was my third year, and like every other year, God has shown to be good and gracious in so many ways. Whenever I tell people I’m going to Beach Mission, everyone thinks it’s some holiday by the beach, with ‘all those Christian people’, another Christian Camp. I try to shrug it off somewhat and explain it through, but often simplify it down to ‘telling people about Jesus at a caravan park’. However, if you gave me the time of day, I would tell you it’s much, much, more. More about that later.

For all the years I’ve been, which is nothing compared to others on team (some in double digits), I’ve noticed a bit of a pattern leading up to and following Beach Mission. The bell curve of initial reluctance and extreme high after I come home with a gradual lowering and trough to a point when mission is about to ramp up again. I’ve always dreaded going – sometimes days, weeks or even months beforehand. To me it seems very valid. There is a lot of preparation for the work of teaching and ministering, quality time spent away from family and friends, and enduring what to me are not so great living conditions and amenities at a caravan park, and so on. I find it a struggle and often wrestle in my mind to convince myself that I do want to go. But as mission starts, and we get our hands dirty, it becomes such a blast. Not that it’s all fun – cause there is a lot of work – but by the end of it, there is so much joy and satisfaction that you just can’t stop praising God.

It dawned on me this year after mission – that it must be the work of Satan and his craftiness – the gentle placement of self doubt and discouragement. I often underestimate the criticality of spreading the Gospel to strangers – the guy on the street, the person on the train, the colleague next to you, and in this case, a bunch of campers you see for 10 days in a year. Because it’s so invisible and the fruits often a few steps removed, what great impact can you play? The doubt that the little impact you make will not lead anywhere, or the work you have done isn’t all that good anyways. But by the grace of God, when He actually gets me down to mission, I’m always reminded of his abundent love for the lost, the and the great privilege of being involved in sharing this to those who do not know.

I know this trend is likely to come full circle come sometime in November 2009. This time I’m going pay special attention to God’s tugging of encouragement rather than the deceiving whispers of satan.

“Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Come near to God, and he will come near to you” James 4:7-8

In the beginning was the Word…

Lucy — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 13:49:38 +0000

I’m not the first to profess this, but there is great power in words – in both written and spoken form. Words can teach us, inspire us, compel us, change us, direct us and incite us, just to name a few. Words can build us up and tear us down. Words can connect us and divide us. Words have potential for great good and great harm, all at the same time.

Words have never been one of my strong points – I’m more of a numbers person (where a three is a three, with absolute certainty). Words require greater effort in thinking through, interpreting, in order to understand it. This will hopefully help me to better articulate myself in words, as I find writing things down often untangles the many convoluted ideas and thoughts that runs through my mind. In certain ways, it tends to lessen my own misunderstanding or reasons to doubt.

It is also my aim to make clear the most important words that have shaped me as a follower of Jesus – the God breathed words of Scripture. It is through the bible that I have come to understand and accept the grace of God in Jesus Christ on the Cross. The bible is not a particularly hard book to understand – it is filled with all kinds of great stories, songs and wisdoms, knitted together in various forms and styles. Though I am also painfully aware that its clarity is often so easily marred by the overpowering influences of this fallen and sinful world, making it difficult to understand and accept as truth.

In many ways, I’m beyond figuring out the Scriptures and all it has to say about God – not entirely sure if it’s possible in this life. It is my prayer that through this meagre attempt at unravelling the Scriptures, it can help me to better understand, explain, critique, defend and promote His story of glory and grace. Be more convinced of His power and love – everyday!

“The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may follow all the words of this law” Deuteronomy 29:29