Creative Response: Retrace your Lenten journey of the past 6 weeks with what I call a “word map of remembrance.” On a blank page, write down single words that describe anything that has come up for you in this journey from winter to spring. They don’t have to be organized or written in any order. Don’t think of this as a list but more of a map of discovery of how God has been leading you. Through prayer and reflection, see how the words reveal how you’ve been led through this season. Is there one word that especially stands out or keeps coming up?

Other ideas for your word map:

1. Find your words in magazine pages, cut them out and make a word map collage, use paint or drawing as un underlayer

2. Write a haiku using your word map

3. Write a psalm using your word map

Thank you for joining me on this devotional series. Thank you to my friends at Art House North for partnering with me in this season and sharing the weekly reflections. The art work each week was provided by my dear friend, Natalie Salminen Rude. I used close ups of an art installation she created for a Vivid Artistry retreat in 2018 which became a prayerful focal point for the attendees to interact with. This final week you see the reveal of the full piece. It consists of hand drawn maps of Duluth, MN and has since hung in Duluth City Hall. I am so thankful it could lead the way for us through the revealing of a wintering season to the new hope of spring’s arrival in our hearts. Happy Easter my friends!

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Libby John is an artist partner with Art House North and is the director of Vivid Artistry and host of the Art and Faith Podcast. Subscribe to her weekly devotionals HERE. Art Work provided by Natalie Salminen Rude.

Haiku Meditation

To all the weary

Beauty is a caregiver

Come and see, delight

“Come all you who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28

To all the weary: The definition of heavy laden means burdened by cares or spiritually anxious. You may have even discovered this burdened feeling and anxiousness manifesting itself in your body. We were designed to experience an integrated life through all 5 senses and the body often testifies to what is going on inside before our mind can understand it. Jesus’ invitation to “come and rest” is an invitation to the body just as much as it is for our hearts and minds. The rhythm of a walk, for example, can align us with the natural rhythms of our breath, the beating of our heart and help us become present and attentive to God’s presence all around us.

Each day is a pilgrimage from dawn to dusk to be aware of how God is moving in our midst. The more we find ways to enter into his invitation to rest, the more attentive we become to his presence.

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Libby John is an artist partner with Art House North and is the director of Vivid Artistry and host of the Art and Faith Podcast. Subscribe to her weekly devotionals HERE.

Haiku Meditation

Securely planted

Ready to receive the grace

Of what will become

John 1:16: “For from his fullness, we have all received, grace upon grace.” 

Securely planted: For a seed to bloom it must become undone. But it is only ready for its undoing, because it has been firmly planted in rich soil. It seems backwards, to be carefully planted and cared for only to be broken open and spilled out for all to eventually see. But this is the kingdom way that Lent reminds us to meditate on. Jesus spent time in solitude and rest, finding refuge in God’s presence before his active ministry where he was eventually broken open and poured out for all humanity.

It’s hard to feel secure and find refuge these days when it feels like we’ve been in a prolonged state of crisis. However, it’s often in turmoil or a crisis that we can see more clearly where we want to be securely planted. When all the world is sinking sand, we must press in more deeply to the One who holds us secure. When God prepares us for a new season, he often leads us first, more deeply into his Word. It is in rest and refuge in him that we can be made ready for a time when more will be required of us. Sometimes we want the fruitful, blooming season without the preparation. We want the outward beautiful things for all to see and we seek validation from what we are producing on the outside. But without the preparation season like we’ve been meditating on, we will not be ready to withstand the turmoil or chaotic conditions we find all around us. We must be securely planted in the dark, rich soil before we are ready to bloom.

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Libby John is an artist partner with Art House North and is the director of Vivid Artistry and host of the Art and Faith Podcast. Subscribe to her weekly devotionals HERE.

“And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.” 1 Peter 5:10

Cultivate beauty: The definition of cultivate is “to improve or develop by careful attention, training, or study.” Cultivating requires great intention much like a spiritual discipline. What we devote our time to and what we fix our eyes and attention on is what we will cultivate in our lives. The eyes of our heart, our imagination, is a God given gift of the ability to dream and envision a reality that is not yet tangible. Even with a garden, we plant a tiny seed that looks nothing like what it will become. However, because we can imagine the beautiful blooms, we take great care and intention to provide what it needs for those blooms to become a reality. 

Our imagination is a seedbed and what we plant in it will become what we believe to be true. Like caring for the seeds in the garden, it is vital that we take the same care of our imaginations through attention, training and study as the definition of “cultivate” suggests.

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Libby John is an artist partner with Art House North and is the director of Vivid Artistry and host of the Art and Faith Podcast. Subscribe to her weekly devotionals HERE.

Art work provided by Natalie Salminen Rude >>> https://nataliesalminen.com

“Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.” Psalm 91: 1-4

Covered through winter: A covering for a garden to go into the winter phase is meant to protect it from the anticipated harsh elements. Mulch or leaves from the fall are often used to blanket a garden bed and layer it with warmth as it goes into a restorative state. Reflecting on the story of Jesus, just before he was driven into the wilderness, he was covered by the waters of baptism and the descending of the Spirit announcing his beloved sonship to the Father. Even with Jesus, God did not send him into a barren season without first a covering of blessing and anointing…

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Libby John is an artist partner with Art House North and is the director of Vivid Artistry and host of the Art and Faith Podcast. Subscribe to her weekly devotionals HERE.

”Come to me all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest.”    Matthew 11:28

The ground has rested: Throughout the long winter months, while the ground is at rest, restorative work occurs deep beneath the surface in preparation for new growth. Rest allows for the renewal to come. By design, physical rest is an essential need of the human body. It is meant to play a participating part of our daily rhythms which allows the body to rebuild and the mind to refresh for each new day. Without rest, there is no renewal.

Sometimes we need to enter longer seasons of rest that echoe the cycles of nature. Maybe you have been in one yourself. After a difficult season, a traumatic experience, or even prolonged busyness, it’s essential to be attentive to the rest our minds and bodies require for restoration.

A season of rest is not a passive one. Jesus’ invitation in Matthew 11:28 reveals that there’s an exchange between him and us that must occur. It’s only when we come to him and lay our burdens down that our hearts fully receive the rest he promises. His rest re-forms us. When we allow his rest to inhabit us, our body can literally change. Our muscles may soften, our shoulders drop as tension releases, our inhale may deepen and the knot in our stomach might dissipate.

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Libby John is an artist partner with Art House North and is the director of Vivid Artistry and host of the Art and Faith Podcast. Subscribe to her weekly devotionals HERE.