11in x 14in | Oil and acrylic on canvas board.
Refuge was originally inspired by an out of focus blurry photo I took of some leaves, but later departed dramatically from the reference image. As I worked on Refuge, I was thinking a lot about the Garden of Eden, storing our treasure in heaven, and where scripture says about God’s throne, “around the throne was a rainbow that had the appearance of an emerald” Revelation 4:3b. When praying about the name, the Lord brought the word “refuge” to mind, and after looking it up in scripture I found it is used over 80 times in the Bible usually in the context of, “the Lord is our refuge” or to “take refuge in Him.” This word and image of God being a place of protection, stillness, peace, and rest has been a sweet comfort to me. Specifically, Psalm 91 talks about God being our Refuge and Fortress and that under His wings we will find Refuge. Whenever life brings pain, grief, heartache, and hard days I’m reminded of the sweet comfort the Lord brought my heart through painting this picture and that no matter what may come He will always be my Refuge.