The very last painting step I take with every piece is to grab my tubes of metallic paint along with black and other very dark hues to add the finishing touches. It is the step that really brings the painting to life. Adding the very light reflective elements and the very dark tones makes the painting sing.
The step reminds me of a family reunion we had where we stayed at a cabin with water that smelled like rotten eggs due to the high sulfur content. When I told a friend about it, she said, “You know that’s a reunion you will always remember because of the bad smelling water. We often forget the “good” times, but we remember the best and the worst.”
In this adventure called life, we will always walk through “best and worst” times.
Psalm 84 talks about the pilgrimage—the journey—to the temple. It is unclear whether verse 6 speaks of a literal place or a figurative spot sojourners must go through when it refers to the valley of Baca. It says,
Passing through the valley of Baca they make it a spring;
The early rain also covers it with blessings.
They go from strength to strength,
Every one of them appears before God in Zion. Psalm 84:6–7
“Baca” can be defined as “weeping.” In a spiritual sense, we all must go through the valley of weeping. Let’s call them the lowlight times of life.
I am struck by the notion that passing through the valley of weeping creates a spring—“they make it a spring.” It is as if our tears are the very early rain that bring blessings, or the highlight times in our life.
What I do know is that it is both the sparkle of highlights and the depth of lowlights that make our lives sing. We are not called to a life lived “in the middle hues.” We are called to the pilgrimage of meeting God in Zion each and every day.
Be encouraged. If you are in a valley season of weeping, know that you are just passing through. Your tears produce the sustenance for the blessings found now and those that are just around the corner.
You will go from strength to strength.
You will appear before God in Zion.
It is God’s Presence that empowers you to be who He created you to be and to do what He created you to do. Allow Him to meet you in the lowlight times in your life and He will open your heart and eyes to see and experience His blessing—the highlight times in your life.
This painting is another from the Fruit of the Spirit Collection (the full collection coming soon). It is the painting for kindness. As it depicts God’s kindness falling like rain, the lowlights and the highlights can be seen.