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Living Water, Refining Fire, Thriving Tree

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Completed 5/15/15

I couldn't sleep last night, so I decided to start a new drawing. I wanted to do something that wasn't a still life, so I sifted through some old ideas and came across this one. It turned out way better than I ever would've expected it to, especially considering I was working on it so late in the night. From start to finish, nearly every part of the design is intentional. I am very proud of this piece.

If you are detail-oriented, you might like the "numbers" I put into this drawing. Some of it was intentional, other parts of it were not:
-There are 4 visible roots, with 6 extending into the water
-There are 5 main limbs extending from the top of the tree
-The total amount of branches that split off from the limbs equals 15
-The number of the dark red, fire outline brush strokes also equals 15
-There are 3 leaves in the water
-If you consider the reflection of the tree in the water an object, that makes 10 objects in the water total

Those numbers don't particularly mean anything in and of themselves, but this drawing does have a lot of symbolic significance. The title sets up the meaning:

Living Water is a reference to the Bible verse where Jesus says "Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him."
Jesus was talking, not about physical water, but about spiritual water for the soul. This is the life that Jesus pours into us, that fills and fuels the believers' soul.  
The water is painted with watercolor. It is blue, deep, expansive and tranquil. The ripples start from the very center of the tree and move outward.

Refining Fire is a reference to the burning bush that Moses encountered. "Moses saw that though the bush was on fire, it did not burn up."
There's nothing particularly amazing about a bramble bush in the desert on it's own. But when that bush is on fire, and maintains it's green consistency, something has to be up. While God's Spirit in the believer on the one hand is like water, it is also like fire. God's presence changes and purifies things. If we yield to him, he begins to refine areas of our lives that we might not even have realized would be problematic to our walk with him. But that is also part of his grace. The refining fire can definitely be painful at times, but it is worth it. "For he works together all things for the good of those who love him."
The dark red of the flames was applied even before the ink of the tree was applied. I used water to push some of the red color inwards to give the fire more depth, while keeping the outline simple.

A Thriving Tree is the result of the two combined forces. The tree is sustained in a dry world by an unlimited stream of water, while the dead and dying branches are pruned and removed by the fire. I considered using brown on the truck, instead of black, to denote more liveliness to the tree, but I wanted to make sure the viewer's eyes stayed focused on the colors and the symbolism instead. I considered not including the green, oil pastel leaves (for fear that it would ruin the drawing), but I realized that without the leaves, the fire and water would seem antagonistic to each other. But by the grace of God, they aren't. All of these things are aspects of a genuine Christian walk.

There is a fourth symbol in the drawing actually. But it isn't included in the title and it isn't readily apparent. Can you tell what it is? Look at how the tree is bent, how it's branches are pushed back and how the fire leaps up towards the side. This unseen symbol is the Wind.

"I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, 'You must be born again.' The 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."
Image size
3320x2452px 4.04 MB
Make
Panasonic
Model
HDC-SDT750
Shutter Speed
1/100 second
Aperture
F/1.7
Focal Length
7 mm
Date Taken
May 15, 2015, 3:32:00 PM
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