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After working for four hours on my BIG Poppy Painting today. I believe it is done. 🎉 And I have been itching to get my watercolors back out. They are so therapeutic for me. So tonight I decided to paint some geraniums in memory of my mom. Saturday will be 6 months since she went home to be with the Lord. So I thought I would share a thought or two... As I was LAYING DOWN the water and pigment I couldn’t help but notice it looked like TEARS as it POOLED on the paper . I wasn’t crying but memories WASHED over me like waves. Then I would DAB the pooled water with more pigment to leave behind a stain of FRESH color. I would PICK UP color with a paper towel in places where it was too HEAVY. Once the pigment was deposited I would go back with a CLEAN wet brush to LIFT STAINS AWAY and leave behind a high-LIGHT. So many scriptures came to my mind about Jesus and His blood. How He washed us clean. How His burden is easy and His yoke is light. And He leaves behind His peace, His promises and His Light. Tell me art isn’t therapeutic and God can’t speak to us as we co-create... This little piece isn’t done but instead an in progress like my heart in the grieving of my mother. She loved geraniums. She loved all flowers. So I joyfully co-create and heal tonight as I reflect on all of His goodness and good memories of her. And like my palette tonight, life can be messy and colorful at the same time. It just depends on how we see it. And I want to just say that I am so thankful for the family and friends that God has placed in my life to support, love and pray me through. You are all GOLD 💛 Written by Dionne White

As you may already know, I am working on a new fine art design collection. At the beginning of the year I felt I was to go and explore my craft in a new direction from what was my "usual" go to ideas. I have BIG ideas and plans for this and I am confident as I go down this avenue it will only get better with time and practice. When I truly decided to give my gift back to the Lord something changed. First I heard "You giving your gift back to Me means that you are choosing to collaborate and display what My heart desires." WOW, I didn't expect that. Then I heard, "Ok, now that I have taught your heart how to heal through creating with Me it's time to truly share that with others and display my glory." This was a scary but good thing. Scary because it has caused me to TRUST Him in a new way. Good because it is confirmation on so many levels spiritually and creatively. I have always prayed 'give me Your eyes to see, Your ears to hear and Your mind to know'. I felt like this step in my art was another way for Him to challenge and answer those prayers. I truly want His desires to be my desires and I want His thoughts to be my thoughts. I come to you today with this little snippet of what I have been learning in the process of co-creating this new collection with Him. Let me stop right here and say the healing of our hearts is never at a stopping point. That won't happen until we reach heaven. But it is an ongoing process of becoming like Him. Weeding, tilling, seeding, growing and bearing the fruit there of.  So just when you think you you're "good to go", be aware that the enemy is still out there prowling around seeking to destroy you, your purpose, and gifts. But more importantly the Lord wants to stir and cultivate our hearts to be more like Him. Maybe it's more of sanctification process than healing. None the less it causes us to become more like Him. He has healed me from so much in this life and continues to do so faithfully as I continue to meet Him in my studio and at the easel where I may medititate, contemplate and execute all that I do with Him and for Him. So as I have been engaged in this new work I am continually hearing Holy Spirit speak. Sometimes I write it down and sometimes I do not. It depends on what He is saying. If it is something that I want to remember or want to share to encourage others with then I will write it down. But a lot the time it is just Him spending time with me, teaching me and coaching through my process. I hear Him encourage my heart in that moment when my confidence eludes me. I feel the gentle nudges of a good nurturer and the challenges of a good coach. Then He is the one I hear say "well done" and affirms my heart and creative attempts. He is all of these things to me in that moment. Over the past few days of painting the hours have flown by. I've been so lost in the process trying to execute the vision and my desired outcome. I am very pleased with it so far. This really was His inspiration because it is so far from my other work. But I keep hearing the whisper "Just trust Me". Gulp!  Every time I respond "Ok." and then I keep going. There are also times I hear Him tell me "leave it" or "let it rest", meaning it's time to stop. It is our human nature to keep working it and we can get impatient and then all that does is lead to a mess and frustration. Over the last two and a half years I've been learning to live unrushed. He gently pulls me back and reminds me He is orchestrating while I am showing up and all I can do is all I can do at the moment. With my current work (and it has definitely been work) I'm quite close to finishing ( I think. LOL) but seriously I feel the end for this piece is near. I have almost 40 hours in this piece so far. It will feel so good to finish it. I titled this blog "My Paintings TEACH me" for a reason and here is why. Ultimately we know that Holy Spirit is our Teacher and He is absolutely doing that. But today it was the painting that "spoke" to me. As I was putting in some details today with gold I realized I was holding back. Was I restraining for technique purposes? So I thought, until I saw and heard it! “Don’t be afraid to apply the gold confidently!” "Don't be afraid to be bold and shine!" I wanted to cry at this point. I stopped and looked at the painting and the gold was bright, it was bold and it was center of attention. It was shining... Why would this be a problem in real life? As long as I can remember I have been one that loves to live life to it's fullest but many in my life have tried to shut that part of my personality down. Squashing me down, making fun of me, silencing my voice and many times making me feel down right worthless. I know I have a big personality, It's the one He gave me and I'm told it "fills" the room. For the longest time I thought this was a fault but I've been this way all of my life, this is the way He made me. This is like Him. He fills the room. Which tells me that I am becoming more like Him. (tears are falling as I write) Over the past few years I have embraced that even more. I have learned to love the person He created me to be and desperately want others to experience this freedom in their life. It truly is a freedom and it is wonderful. As well as I want my art to heal, inspire and create that desire in people! Living a bold, bright and empowered life comes with responsibility. People are watching. Some to follow, some to compare, some to cut down. None the less people are watching and all I can say is, this is me and this new work is an example of what He has done in me and I believe what He is doing through me. The Lesson I learned today was not exactly a surprise but an unexpected one. I didn't expect my painting to tell me  "don't be afraid to shine." That is essentially what it was saying back to me. Yes, it was the Holy Spirit but He used my painting to TEACH me. Embrace who God made you to be. Embrace your gifts and use them for His glory. Don't be afraid to be bold and shine!

We have all heard the phrase ‘there is a light at the end of the tunnel’. Recently on one of my weekend adventures when I was with my kids, we visited an old railroad tunnel that never was finished. As we proceeded into the empty and dark tunnel you could feel the cold set in, the walls begin to enclose around us, and the light getting farther and farther away. My daughter walked closer to me as I said: “isn’t this cool, to think that men hand chiseled some of this and look how the water running through the mountain has carved space in the rocks.” She did not find it amusing, as she snugged up close to my side. At this point, we had to turn our flashlights on because we were so far from the entrance and the light was dim. Then turning and looking for my son, not much to my surprise, he was lagging behind doing his creative thing. Hahaha. We continued to walk blindly towards the end, our voices were echoing, it was cold and dark. My daughter was definitely uneasy and wasn’t comforted by my “you don’t need to be scared, I’m right here and the Lord is with us.” As I saw that she was seriously being affected by fear, I told her we would turn back. Honestly, there was nothing to be afraid of, it was completely safe. There had even been people coming back and passing us as we proceeded in the tunnel. Might I add here that she is a strong teen of the faith and she herself is a light, but sometimes darkness creeps up on us and we are not prepared. So at this point I tried being a courageous voice and encourage her to continue all the way down the tunnel with me but not a chance. So I did what any compassionate mother would do, we turned back. As soon as we turned and faced the entrance, there was the light! Her fear melted away, you could almost see it and you could definitely hear it in her tone of voice. The light had been there all along, but our backs were to it so we couldn’t see the way. I know this sounds like a cliche analogy but it was very real for my daughter that day. The other thing I noticed about the entrance and the light was how far away it seemed and how small and out of focus things were. Nothing had changed at the entrance but our perspective and distance from it and from the light. Isn’t this so true about so many things in life including our own personal relationship with God and our gifts. This isn’t a “creative blog” but very much applies to us as creatives. Everything we Kingdom Artists do must point to and reflect the Light. But in order for us to do that we must be able to ‘see the Light and remain in the Light’ along with keeping in proper alignment with the Light so we can see from His perceptive. His perspective about us as Sons and Daughters and HIs perspective about our gifts. The minute we turn our back to the Light the way gets dim and darkness begins to overshadow our thoughts and gifts. Distorting our vision and making us doubt the way we are walking at all. Tell me I’m not the only one here that deals with this. You’d be inhuman if this didn’t happen to you once in a great while. It just shows me how much HE IS A LIGHT UNTO MY PATH! It just shows me how much I NEED THEE EVERY HOUR! I’m not too proud to say that feelings or thoughts of inadequacy come but the test is, do I believe them or give in to them. If there is one thing that I have learned about being an anointed and called Daughter of the King, it is that the enemy (both Satan and my flesh) will attack those who are working and making a difference for the Kingdom. A close friend of mine told me 20 years ago when I was just a few years into being born again, that I must be doing something right for the enemy to be shooting his fiery darts so ferociously. In other words, He was ticked! I remind myself of that when I feel myself or my gift under attack. Some days it may take me a minute or a reminder from a close friend, but for the most part, I try to align myself with the Light where HE can shed His Light on the truth. That day in the tunnel was a very real moment of how powerful light is and how powerful the absence of it is as well. The Light nourishes, the light warms and comforts, the light illuminates, and the light guides and directs our steps. I couldn’t comfort my daughter enough in the dark at that moment but somehow the sight of the light did. That was all it took, seeing the light. Once she saw it she quickened her pace and she was happy and hopeful again. I would never in a million years condemn her for not having enough faith in that moment. There are just some things that only THE LIGHT can do and it is a journey we must walk on our own, no matter the comforting words of another. The Light puts everything into perspective….His perspective. Written by Dionne White

One of my favorite discoveries in all the years of my Christian walk is how thoroughly the Father knows me. He knows how He created me and who He created me to be. HE knows the plans HE has for me. One of the ways that this has been solidified over and over is through my practice of intimate journaling. Journaling is simply the act of processing of paper. An act of emptying your mind and heart, a place to be still and align your thoughts with the thoughts of your Heavenly Father. It’s not this huge task to accomplish, it’s simply an avenue to empty and explore. No pressure to perform or “get it right”. As I have grown in maturity as a Christian it’s interesting to look back over the years in my notebooks, journals. The biggest thing I’ve noticed from the early years of my “prayers” is they have switched from a lot of pleading and striving to thankfulness and trust. I’ve always written in one form or another from the age of twelve, it started with poetry and creative writing. Then when I became a born again Christian I turned to writing my prayers, thoughts, and dreams down. It was a dark time for me in the early to mid nineties and the Lord was my only light. So I got in the habit of talking to Him through pen and paper. Sometimes when you don’t feel like you have a voice or are silenced by another, journaling is the best way to speak up. We have to be able to express what is inside of us or it will eventually cause us to become ill. Whether that be through writing, painting, dancing, singing, teaching etc. The list goes on. We were given a voice for a reason and that was meant to even be creatively. I can testify to what Ray Hughes says, “Impression without expression leads to depression”. There is so much truth in that. I lived it. Little did I know the journey of journaling would take me on. How intimate I became with the LORD and how so much creativity was birthed in the process. I look back twenty three years now of my intentional journaling practice and see that it was more than good. I have boxes and boxes of journals and notebooks, not to mention little notes I find stuffed in books or bibles along the way. Scriptures that were key to me I would write down in a little bound index card book. I would read the Word, write the Word and then recite the Word. And some days even sing the Word. I would carry that little index card book around with me in my purse and when I had any down time, I would read it and recite it outloud. (Faith comes by hearing ;) ) Then I would flip the page and do it again. I was renewing my mind actively and intentionally. For example, I would do this in the car line for pick up at school or waiting in the doctors office during my many many appointments. I was determined to know and experience the Word of God in my life. One of the things journaling helped me to do was to envision my prayers, envision my dreams and conversation with the LORD. I have been given vision after vision from Him to encourage, guide and help me persevere over the years. Sight, whether naturally or spiritually, is a powerful tool. Look at the addictions that arise from the perversion in the world with of our sight. That is why we have to guard our hearts, minds, and eyes along with keeping our spirits built up by staying in communication with Him. The eyes are the windows to the soul. Something powerful happens when we “see it” in the spirit. It can be a flash, a still snapshot, or a mini movie playing in your minds eye. Some may “see” as real as the hand before them. This type of seeing has only happened to me a few times. I see and experience in the spirit of my minds eye on a continual basis, including dreams. How can this be? That is because we “dwell” in two places, in the natural and the supernatural. We are spirit and we are body. So why is this important in journaling? Journaling lets me dream and believe. It is amazing how many prayer requests and dreams have come to pass as I look back at my journals. Some I don’t want to read because of the time I was in but Holy Spirit always met me there in those pages. There was just this fulfillment and satisfaction that came after emptying myself on the pages. There was a rest in my spirit that would come. Like if I wrote it down I trusted Him with it and rested in that. The important thing to do when you journal is to press in and envision. I cannot stress this enough. When we “see” we begin to believe. It fuels our faith. It’s not that we don’t have faith in God to accomplish these things without seeing but we need it. It propels us to persevere, to push on to see it come to pass. If we don’t do our part in pressing in and pressing on then it’s not just going to happen by accident. Have you have been called a “dreamer”? Well, I’m here to tell you that is not all bad. It actually can serve you well in this life. If we don’t dream then our hope in this life can die. I’m not talking about the Hope we have in Jesus our savior and our promise of eternal life. I’m talking about that hope that is deep inside. You know, those things He put there that drive you to live. Those things that you love to do that make you feel alive with purpose. To almost lose hope is to die while living, I’ve been there. You wake up and wander from day to day wondering why in the world am I even alive... I’m telling you today, DREAM, PRESS IN, GET A VISION, WRITE IT DOWN AND MAKE IT PLAIN! Don’t go another day wandering and wondering! I’m so thankful for the visions God gave me in my intense years of struggle. Just when I felt like I was sinking again He would lovingly drop me a vision and it would give me the desire to live and persevere. The visions gave me hope and when I would see them come to pass they would build my faith. Because how many of us know we have to cultivate and grow our faith. He knows that too. We are all given the same measure but it is up to us as we partner with Him to grow our faith by seeking Him first, reading His word, listening for His voice, hearing the rhema and logos word and through connections in our faith community. Nothing will grow without the right elements. Once you begin to submit to and understand this process of journaling and envisioning you will begin to experience what you are writing. You will begin to experience what He is showing you. This is tasting and seeing that He is good and that all His promises are ‘yes and amen’. The Word of God is alive and words can transform us. His words transform us but we have to start believing that they can. They are not simply for Christian knowledge they are LIFE! Partner those words with vision and you have a recipe for purposeful life. A reason to live. The life He designed you to live. Written by Dionne White All written material is original and ©️ of Dionne White

A Creative Business Blog Written by Dionne White Let’s be honest here... We creatives can be our own worst critics. Usually that is a bad thing, being too hard on ourselves. But today I challenge you to look at it from a different perspective. When we are honored to create for another person they are putting their trust in us to deliver what they want and also to get what they pay for. It is said that we artists can be temperamental, emotional and our own worst critic. But I believe that there is one case where this can be a good thing. Let’s put ourselves in our clients shoes. You find an artist who can execute skillfully the work you want done, you also like their style. When you meet them and they catch your vision, a connection is made and you are willing to pay the price for it. We will pay for connection. It’s true...when another has something to offer that you need and want you are willing to pay for them and their service. After you come to an agreement on design and price you expect nothing less than honesty and excellence for the work. In the Kingdom we call that integrity. Now you as the artist have the opportunity to create and complete a work with excellence and integrity. From the beginning of the contract, through the co-creation process, to the very end of the business deal of delivery and payment. THIS IS OUR RESPONSIBILITY AS THE ARTIST. If they want to be deceived, shortcutted or taken advantage of they can get that in the world. But as Kingdom Creatives this should never be a part of our practice. The art you produce when you are contracted is the essence of who you are and the kingdom you are carrying within you. It will be a creation of their vision and emotion that you have the honor to co-create with Holy Spirit on to execute. They are trusting you with this as well as getting what they pay for. So how do we go about making sure we are holding up Kingdom Standards in our work and business relationships? It’s easy...I keep myself in check all throughout the co-creation process and when I am finished I ask myself one question. Would I be satisfied with the work I produced if I was the one buying it? The way you answer this will of course depend upon your standards and values. If I say “YES, I LOVE IT and I WOULDN’T CHANGE A THING!” (Without being critical of my current skill level) But being honest with what we agreed upon. Did I complete the artwork according to our agreement? Size, subject, feeling, vision? Is it neat and clean without any possible unintended blemishes? Am I giving them what they paid for? Would I pay for my work, seriously? If I can answer all these questions with a ‘yes’ then I call it done! If I cannot answer all of these questions then I will make it excellent or make it over. I will make it with integrity and kingdom character in mind. Not just money in mind or another sale but character and integrity. We must treat our work and clients how we want to be treated and deliver what we would expect to get, down to the delivery service and a follow up thank you note. I would rather do one commission with excellence and integrity in a month than do five at one time to turn over sales. I will not miss the experience of the process when co-creating with Holy Spirit. This is so precious to me. I want to deliver excellent work and will continue to cultivate business relationships with integrity. IF there is any question about what I produce and how I present it, I will not proceed without fixing my attitude or my work. So you see being self examining or critical of ourselves and our work can be positive when it comes to being a Kingdom Artist. Check your standards and maybe have a “mental Kingdom check list” when going through this process from beginning of the agreement, through creating, to the end of delivery and payment. Would you pay for what you deliver and how you deliver it? Choose to only deliver excellence.

Batching Your Art. What it is and Why it works to your advantage. Recently I had my first opening at the gallery in the studio. I had several pieces to display but not much for the walls. I had a lot of my mini masterpieces and a few others for the wall. But I really wanted to display a cohesive look and collection for the wall on opening night. I had already been impressed to do more of my poppies but was immediately inspired by my surroundings at the Mill to incorporate those elements into my poppies. So I began with an idea and inspiration then turned it into a collection. They weren’t all the same in look but they were the same in nature and idea, incorporating similar colors, textures, and message. I was batching my art. What is batching your art? Batching means to produce or arrange things in sets or groups. This is a great way to find your cohesive style and artistic voice. You create several pieces of art at one time causing you to explore what is inspiring you but express them in different fashions. For instance I took the inspiration of the Mill and the elements surrounding it. The Mill is historic, a time from the past, and it has unique colors and textures. I started with decoupage backgrounds of vintage sheet music or scripted tissue paper. Like the piece I was creating had a story to tell from the past. Then I mixed molding paste with the paint color of my choice and applied it over the decoupage collage with my pallet knife, but not covering up the music or script entirely. This gave it a rough texture representing the peeled windows or chipped paint on the doors or stair rails. Then I began to define and color in the rest of the piece giving it “life”. I added more details depicting the age and beauty from my inspiration. I love using Golden’s fluid acrylics to cause a staining or a dripping effect. My favorite is their Quinacridone Nickel Azo Gold. A warm rustic brown with Antique effects. I use it in a lot of my paintings. It is great to tint a clear gel medium as well. I would prep all the backgrounds at the same time and let them dry. As one dried I would proceed with the pallet knife texture process, trying to do them all in an orderly fashion. But what is interesting about this process is that they never turn out looking the same. I am simply creating in small batches giving my artistic voice to several different pieces but they take on their own identity. Yet still having a similar technique, style and message. This allowed me to have a collection for the gallery and honor the Mill and days gone by but with my own unique voice. Batching helps creativity flow and it can help sharpen your technique skills. I always have to have several pieces in process at once. Sometimes we need to retreat to that other piece that is waiting in the shadows. It doesn’t mean our creativity is divided or distracted. I actually think that it means that my creativity is quite rounded and complex. It doesn’t matter how much space you have as an artist, you will always end up filling it with works in progress.. hahaha. At least I find this to be true. I will say that you should not stay in the mindset of always batching art. I just think it is a great way to practice your skills and find a cohesive style. Kind of like exploring your creative bents. What you don’t want to do is always work in a batch or small bulk form because you could lose your vision and voice and it becomes about just producing. This is not fulfilling to the core of you as an artist. I do love how this collection turned out and it just confirmed some of my artistic techniques that I love to use. I am hearing great feedback from others about it as well.  If you haven’t tried “batching” with your art then give it a go. It can be refreshing and inspiring. I truly believe it is a great way to find your creative voice. Plus people love “collections” of art styles. So go for it. Create and multiply. Written by Dionne White

Just Begin... So many thoughts fill my mind today.  Lately I have felt a heaviness with my art, my visions, dreams and assignments the Lord is calling me to. I hear myself say in my head “HOW DO I DO THIS?” As I seek Him. Or to be even more detailed “How can I possibly do this?!” Then I hear from the Spirit, “you just begin.” Of course He would say that “Just Begin”. If I never begin then I won’t know what I can do or what I can’t do. Why am I doubting myself? Where is my faith in myself and my God? I don’t doubt God, I doubt myself. But I am selling myself short based on the past and not the present or even future. I’m selling myself short from even putting faith in myself and not Just beginning. I’m assuming the outcome before the start.. WOW that was a wake up call. Assuming the outcome before the start! This is so contradictory to the Holy scriptures of how we are to believe, receive and proceed! God trusts me enough to ask me to do it. WOW! I was believing something about a situation that hadn’t even begun yet. I’ve had inspiration, impression, vision and prophetic confirmation from numerous sources and I was still doubting myself. I’m a bit embarrassed to admit it. That all stops today! If I don’t have faith in myself then I’m actually kind of not having faith in God that He can help me accomplish what He has called me to do . I always pray “help me walk worthy of the call you set before me and give me your eyes to see, your ears to hear and a mind to know like you Lord!” Guess what...He sees me and says I’m worthy. He has given me his eyes (vision) He has given me inspiration and ideas (his mind) and the fact that I am saying with question of direction tells me I have his ears too. I have heard. Now it is to “Just begin”. He trusts me! So much so He has given me the desire and the assignment and has confirmed it over and over again. I don’t need fireworks in the sky or one more word to know that this is Him. I didn’t need the other confirmations, I knew it was Him all along but He kept sending me love notes of confirmation and votes of confidence in me. We need not get out of the way so He can work, No, we need to get IN THE WAY and work with Him trusting that as we apply ourselves He will cause all things to align and unfold according to His plan. Jesus invited the disciples into the miracle process all the time. He was their TEACHER! When he fed the 5000, the disciples were in possession of the bread and fish and He told them to go and do, feed them. He would also send them away after being with Him to do miracles and cast out demons. He would have never created us if He didn’t desire to co-create with us. He may not need us, but He desires so. I’m overwhelmed in His trust for me, His desire to walk with me and to accomplish with me. Then I am reminded in my own natural parenting journey that I would do the same! I would see and believe in my child. I would want to walk with them, engage with them, celebrate with them. I would call out the gold in them and then cause the gold to be refined as I invite them into the process and send them out. They would begin to have greater faith in themselves and even greater love and faith in me for believing in them and for pushing them to be more of the person they were designed to be. It is about the process. It is about believing that you have already received what you have asked for and proceeding in faith and trust. He wants you to believe in yourself because you are in Him and He is in you! The outcome of the process is rewarding, but to me the process is the reward before the outcome. So let me give you a few reasons He has highlighted to me for my slow response to “Just begin” and maybe it will help you as well. *Lack of faith in myself. Why? Sometimes the past dictates to us what we are capable of doing in the present to create the future. Today again, I break agreement with that lie and my past! *Lack of formal training. The assignment He is calling me to do is not of my current skill level (atleast that is what I have told myself) and again today I break agreement with that lie and seek to attain the level of skill I need to accomplish this with and through Him. I must “Just Begin” to even know. You don’t know until you try. *Fear. In a bad and good way. Fear of falling short when I begin (again it is about process) and the fear of growth. Fear of growth? Yes, when we are faithful in little He begins to make us rulers over much and that is a good thing. Except with greater levels of growth and trust comes greater responsibility and that can be overwhelming to steward. I believe it is us that keeps us right where we are at. I want to grow, that is scary, but I want it! I will say yes to Him and no to fear! *Trust. It all comes down to trust. I asked for this and He is delivering. So I must just trust! I must “Just Begin”! Don’t let the past dictate to you what you are capable of doing in the present to create the future. “Just Begin”. Written by Dionne White

Written by Dionne White Recently God reminded me “why I paint”. Here on my website I talk about how I live to create and I create to live. Which is entirely true. But there is a deeper purpose as to why I paint and that reason is “to display His glory”! Two years ago when I was doing a great deal of creating but not selling anything, I was discouraged and my focus became off. I was focusing on the lack of sales and took it personally. I was questioning if He had called me to do this creative journey at all. HIS answer was YES I have called you to do this but remember WHY you paint -To display My glory. So the other day He expanded on this, over two years later. A lot Christian artists would interpret “display His glory” as painting a spiritual or biblical scene. That is not what He told me. He said by me answering the call to co-create with Him, then I am displaying His glory. That I was His display of glory by doing what He has called me to do despite all I had overcome and been up against. I was not only walking in victory but I WAS His display of glory. I am doing what I have prayed for so long. Lord, use my life to bring you glory in all that I do! Let me be a display of your glory. Now I am seeing the fruit for Seeking Him first and putting the Kingdom ways first. I don’t worry about sales- they come, they are the fruit of the displaying of glory, me saying yes, yielding and abiding in Him. 😊 #dionnewhiteart #displayhisglory #whyipaint #create #cocreate #divinedesign #paint #matttommeyquotes #art #kingdomartist #propheticart #propherticnature #paintprophetic

Written by Dionne White Painted August 2015 You can bloom “After the rain” Sitting in front of my easel at my art table, I envisioned a single flower on my canvas. Pink or maybe purple, I thought I would make it. Vibrant, tall and strong it would be with its face pointing upward toward the heavens. As I eyed the blank slate in front of me I pondered “what kind of flower should I make it.” So I searched butterflies and flowers, one of my favorite combinations. I seemed to have been in a season of painting butterflies too. At least the Lord was allowing me to see them in the natural and the spiritual so I painted them. I believe it was a sign of what he was really doing in me. A personal “metamorphosis” if you will. I was in a season of transformation, spiritually and physically. I found an image of a butterfly on a gerbera daisy. The daisy was a beautiful shade of pink, with hints of purple. Very vibrant! I said to myself “that’s the one!” So I poured the colors I would need for the painting onto my pallet and began creating the picture in my mind. I took a pencil to the 12x12 canvas and lightly sketched out where I wanted the flower to be. The painting began to take shape as my brush moved up and down creating the strong, straight stem. It was a luscious apple green color with highlights of where the light would hit it. I moved onto the petals and moved my paintbrush back and forth, carefully placing the petals around the stem. Tracing them with my eyes, looking ahead to see where the next one would go. Placing the shadows underneath and the highlights on top, my brushed bounced around effortlessly. My flower, my vibrant, tall, strong flower had emerged. It had LIFE! At least in my eyes it did. You see at that moment when that daisy emerged and came to life on that canvas I heard the Lord say “You are that flower and you have bloomed after the rain.” My heart fluttered and my spirit lit up. He was right! After all I had been through I was coming out victorious by the power of Christ. I had bloomed again but this time it was different. This time I was stronger, vibrant and standing tall. Just like the flower I created! As I played worship music I began to paint the rest of my creation. I now saw it as a mirror image of the process I had gone through in the current year. Even though my story and struggle go back well over 15 years, the season I was in was fresh in my mind. I had gone through two deaths in the family within 24 hours, my anxiety had reached an all time high and I was physically fatigued and in pain. I was feeling hopeless and had lost sight of my purpose in life. Then the Lord so tenderly reminded of the word He had been giving me over and over again the last several months. He told me “ Do not worry or be anxious, trust me I am doing a new thing” referencing the Isaiah 43:19 scripture. “See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland” NIV bible. When I would find myself drifting into anxiety he would remind me of this promise. I could hear him so clearly every time! It would comfort my heart and bring peace immediately to my spirit. I took my brush and painted the background, mixing colors and painting some sections with vibrant pigments and some softer in color. Once the background was in place the Holy Spirit guided me to make a section look like the glory of God and another like rain. So I took metallic gold paint and applied it to the left side of the painting to depict the glory of God, making long brilliant strokes. It faded into the next section where I depicted the rain, which represented my broken spirit and my struggle. I took a bottle of paint and applied it to the top edge of the painting and I just let it drip down the canvas. Allowing it to run where it desired. The color of the rain was rich hues of a blue-green, like the depth of the ocean on a stormy day. I proceed to finish the painting around the flower. This is where the softer hues of color came in. Depicting the tender, compassionate, gentle spirit of the our Lord, I saw a pattern appearing as I painted down the canvas and through the petals. It looked like a spout of water running through it. It was the living water of the Lord flowing from above and as it washed through the petals and the Spirit gave it life. I saw it, like a little river flowing from above. The brush of color was one continuous stream flowing down, in and through that flower. I knew at that moment this was a prophetic word from my Lord and he was releasing healing to my broken spirit and wounded heart. I could feel the healing and the joy emerge as I saw what was happening in front of my eyes. My hands were simply an extension of the Holy Spirit. I finished the painting off by topping the center of the daisy with specks of metallic gold paint. Once again to depict the glory of God. The Lord had taken me through the storm and deposited his glory on me like a crown. My flower was standing tall and strong, vibrant with the glory of God adorning its crown. It was indeed facing toward heaven overflowing with joy. I couldn’t help but to weep upon the completion of this piece because I saw me. I had bloomed after the pain. I had bloomed “after the rain”. To this day this painting evokes so many emotions and feelings in myself and other people when they see it. I am mostly told how beautiful and inspiring it is. I am here to tell you it is possible to bloom again after the rain!

Today I wanted to share with you something that has been on my mind and felt that I wasn’t the only one thinking or feeling this. I’d like to talk to you a bit about Value verses Volume. And how when our focus is on revenue instead of value and originality we can begin to fall in the trap of mass production, then that turns into people pleasing or performance, which usually stems from a deeper root. It’s a subtle road but it can creep up on us. THE PUSH IS ON The holidays are approaching and this can bring urgency, anxiety, loss of focus or plain old exhaustion. Every artist feels that “pressure” or “push” at this time of the year to produce and to produce in mass quantities. Everywhere you turn there are craft or art shows. The race is on to produce and buy Christmas gifts. And if you’ve procrastinated then you are definitely feeling that pressure. Pressure without growth is purposeless. Often times we can be under pressure but it never produces good fruit, just frustration. If this is you - nod your head and say amen. I’ve been there done that. But not anymore. It can feel like a merry go round. Always going around and around but never getting anywhere. The ride is fun for a while but the same old scenery, motion and music gets tiring. PEOPLE PLEASING- REVENUE AS THE FOCUS I used to be a “crafter or hobby artist”. Selling at craft shows or church bizarres and I was producing things that I thought people would like. Matter of fact I tried to create everything under the sun in one way or another to appeal to everyone. Trying to “make” money all the while being miserable. I had the skill but not the passion for what I was doing. It wasn’t enjoyable. It wasn’t me. There is nothing wrong with selling your crafts or items at these shows but I want to challenge you to think of it in a little bit different way. VENDORS AND BOOTHS Recently I attended a large craft fair. The vendors ran the gamut. From painters, potters, jewelers, woodworkers, leather goods, to beautiful apparel. As I strolled the aisles it was interesting to see what booth caught my eye. I didn’t have an agenda nor was I shopping for anything in particular. But some booths drew me in because of atmosphere and the composition of the materials displayed. Some things I would have never thought to have caught my eye -DID. I stopped and talked to the different Artisans, asked them some questions about how they came to create and what their story was and complimented them on their work. After leaving that day, I look back and thought about the vendors and booths that made an impression on me. Some so much that it drew me in to their booth and some I even purchased product from. Interesting for what you will pay for at a craft/art show as opposed to what you think of paying for something in a “box store”. It’s a mindset! If you don’t see yourself and your art valuable then more than likely, others won’t either. So what drew me to their booths or art? If it wasn’t a bold statement piece or color then it was the atmosphere. Yep atmosphere. Was it appealing to the eye, did it have an inviting and organized feel for browsing or admiring? Or was it overwhelming with all different kind of products or too many products like a flea market? Was it professionally displayed? Were the people friendly and did they have an inviting spirit or were they sale vultures? I assessed, all of these and thought to myself - that could have been really exhausting if I wasn’t filtering where and who I interacted with. I was drawn to the minimalist booth. The booth that was well staged, the ones that had colorful items displayed well almost museum like, the ones that looked professional-The items and the people. And to the one that the vendor was not acting like a salesman. Art is to be experienced, art is about connection no matter what craft. I needed to observe and experience the art before I knew if I had a connection or not. If I was looking for a piece of jewelry and I was given the option to choose between 10 beautiful pieces or 100 pieces I would choose the booth with ten. How valuable those 10 piece must be and the time it must have taken to create and produce. It’s priceless to the one who created it. I know I feel like that often about my pieces. Pricing our art is necessary but usually our least favorite thing to do. But now that I know my value and the value of the gifts I possess it is enjoyable to put a price on my work.  MINDSETS AND VALUE It’s time to change our mindsets. Choose to focus on God’s value over volume when creating and producing your art. In America value has a completely different definition. The mammon spirit is rampant in our country. When companies advertise “a good value” its odd that there is a low price attached. Usually “good value” in America means mass produced cheap stuff which has made it hard for us artists to be recognized, or our art to be seen with value and thrive at all in our giftings. This is frustrating. They aren’t seeing us, our gift or art as valuable...It’s unfortunate that a price tag defines a value of a piece. But in the society we live in, it does. PEARL OF GREAT PRIZE Think of something that has been given the label of “rare”. It will have a high price on it. Maybe not even be able to price it at all but WE put the value on people, their Gifts and the fruit they produce. It’s true that we are made worthy through Christ and have incredible value to him but the “value” the world defines is different than the “value” our Heavenly Father places on us and our gift. We have to start seeing the value in each other and what they offer. I’m reminded of the parable of the pearl of great prize. The pearl must undergo an intense process of being under pressure in order to become something beautiful. This is not a quick process. Methodical, yes, but not quick. The environment and elements must be right, there are boundaries and a lot of filtering goes on to create this beautiful pearl. Unique, a story of its own, holding incredible value. We know that this was metaphorical but the person who saw the value in it is the one who is willing to pay the highest price. VALUE TAKES TIME So back to value over volume...Over the last 6 months the Lord has been speaking to me as I create. Layer upon layer, walking through this process of producing a piece or even a series of great value. He told me that Nothing of great value is produced quickly. That’s unfortunate in our age of instant gratification. Beauty takes time. Refining takes time. Healing takes time. Under the pressures of HIS hand, not mans, do we become and produce a “rare” beautiful pearl of great prize. But we have to understand the process and the purpose in the process. If I just create to create then I’ve missed The whole point of why he gave me my gift to begin with. I’ve had to pull myself out of the flow of the world to put myself into the flow of Him and his Holy Spirit. I’ve retreated to reassess the situation and my focus. We cannot lose sight of what it is He has called us to do. We cannot make revenue our focus. Revenue is the fruit of the other. It is the fruit of our valuable and precious relationship with Him and the pieces we produce with Him. When done in the right spirit, in the right time, our pieces will produces the reward, money.  REALIGNING WITH HIM When we allow man and the world to dictate our production then we can be put under the wrong kind of pressure and purposeless pressure leads to loss of passion, focus and possibly depression. I’m not saying don’t do work for clients or enter a show, I’m just saying check your focus on your journey. If my focus is to produce volume over value and make a ton of money then I’m not aligning with His thoughts first. He gives us the ability to create wealth and when we align with Him the fruit and funds come.  CHOOSE TO THINK DIFFERENTLY So release yourself from the pressure and of the demands of the world and begin to take a new approach at what you do. I don’t know about you but every season is gift giving season. Yes everyone loves to get a great deal on something of quality but that can’t be the aim for our own art. If we begin to think differently about our art and this journey, then begin to treat it with great value, eventually you will begin to change the mindsets of the people around you. Your sphere of influence. Even just talking about it differently- it will begin to change peoples perspectives. At least I hope it will!  WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR ME AND MY ART? Well this a spiritual journey as much as it is an creative  journey. They converge. They are one in the same for me. God is refining my heart and reshaping my thinking with every piece I create with him. He’s teaching me about time with Him, he’s teaching me about Him. He’s teaching me how to be patient in the process. So much so that He’s tempted me to paint with oils.. hahaha. Not sure I can go that route yet. LOL. They take a long time to dry. LOL. I’m so used to having my hands in the creating process and moving on quickly.. He is allowing me to continue with acrylics as long as I methodically take time to understand the process and learn from it. As long as I let the piece sit and settle before moving on, not rushing the process. And most importantly as long as I stop, rest and SEE that what I am creating with him is good. So choose value over volume. Value translates into time spent in the process, understanding the purpose and importance YOU place on something. We have to begin to see things of value like He does. Written by Dionne White