Grounded in Faith

By Katie White 

As an artist and a believer, I’ve noticed there is a line I come back to over and over. It’s a physical space, and yet it’s abstract. It’s a feeling, and yet it’s visible. It’s my calling, and yet, it’s my challenge.

I paint as a way to get in touch with God and listen to what He is asking of me. I wouldn’t hesitate to say that painting is a form of prayer for me. A way to settle amidst worldly distractions and zero in on my purpose. I have found that as I paint, over and over I am drawn to one specific line – the horizontal line. By definition, a line is a mark in space which begins at one point and ends at another. I feel God calling me to paint this line, specifically the horizon. 

And so, when I pray, when I create, I find myself drawing this line, painting it, over and over, the horizon, tracing it, and feeling it pull me in. What is this line all about? What is this pull toward it? This must be, in some way, God’s calling. He is pulling me back to this sacred space, “the space between.” The horizon line is God’s visual reminder that we can see the sky above, and we can see the colors below, but yet the horizon is His mystery. And I see that mystery happen quite literally when I paint. I watch the moment the paint hits the line and spills out through the water I placed strategically on the paper. It makes me certain that God is active in that horizon line, showing us that He is the Creator — not me. Seeing that mysterious moment always reminds me, humbles me, grounds me. God is the ultimate artist and shows up when we meet Him there.

He works in mysterious ways when we show up in sacred spaces, doesn’t He? Is it any coincidence that in the real world, the horizon is a physical space we often gaze upon at the end or the beginning of the day? It is the space where we watch sunsets and sunrises, knowing the day is done or just begun… and we relax into the knowledge that God is good. Watching the horizon at the end or beginning of the day brings me peace, my grounding line, my reminder of God’s ever loving presence.

Do you know your grounded place? Do you have a sacred space you can retreat to, either in your mind or physically, where you know God will be waiting for you? When the stressful demands of daily life push and pull at us in an unnatural ebb and flow, it becomes so important to find our sacred space… our line, our center… a place that allows us to experience God’s grace. Painting reminds me that when I go to my grounding line, God will meet me there every day.