2 Peter 1:19

When I started working with this scripture, I was initially drawn to the imagery of the day dawning and the morning star rising in your heart. It is strong and creatively fruitful, inspiring hope and a stirring a desire for beauty, fluidity, and growth. You will see these images in the movements where I reference my heart, then draw lines out into the horizon. The feeling of cold in the morning before dawn inspired the starkness in the tone of the piece.

After using the imagery to generate movement material, I went back to the thought that 2 Peter 1:19 opens with: The message of the prophets is something we can lean on and trust. Our doubtful hearts second guess the gospel as we try to comprehend a God bigger than ourselves, bigger than our actions, and outcomes. Yet the prophetic message in the scriptures keeps us grounded, telling us who Jesus is and drawing us into a relationship with Him. I have incorporated difficult balances into the piece to express the idea of a support that is present, but not available to the senses of touch and sight.

These balances take time and repetition to accomplish, similar to the way studying the scriptures takes time and practice. Several readings, several commentaries, several sermons are needed (at least for me!) before the dark places in ourselves are illuminated by turning to the One who is Light.

The overall message I received working from 2 Peter 1:19 is that we desperately need to lean into the Word in order to live more confidently in hope. At the same time, we must acknowledge that renewal is not yet complete—we still exist in a broken world. The day has not dawned.

Christ still has a lot of work to do in my heart. But there will be a day when the work is done, and I will not be estranged from my Father, Abba. In The letters of 2 Peter and Jude, P.H. Davids writes, "After the dawn, there is no need of Scripture, for the rising of Christ in our hearts gives us full knowledge...One treasures a love letter while the beloved is absent, but once he or she is present, the letter is laid aside and exchanged for the person."

Lord, we give You praise for not only wanting to commune with us, but for sacrificing on our behalf to ensure it.