Wilderness

This is the image I’m sharing with today’s question: When did painting become more than technique for you?

At some point, for many artists, painting becomes more than making a picture well. It becomes a place of searching, listening, risk, and discovery.

I’d love to hear from others:
When did painting begin to feel like something deeper for you?

#Wilderness #PropheticArt #HumanMadeArt #PaintingProcess #CreativeProcess #ContemporaryArt #SpiritualArt #ArtistCommunity

@Steven Maranto - here is the free digital download book I was telling you about that came into my inbox. The author, Barry Adams, is a close friend of the friend who sent it to me. Barry is also the author of the Father's Love Letter...it was a global phenomenon about 25 - 30 years ago. The opening of this book directly speaks to your point about wrestling with faith in the midst of institutional religion....https://www.onefather.com/a-love-beyond-measure.html"

Psalm 91...Dwell in the secret place of the Most High, abide under the shadow of the Almighty. Be covered and cocooned from the trouble of the world.

Sunsets are usually a supernatural visual for me in the sky. This was done in a medium that I don't use that often with soft pastels. The cool calm blues contrasting with the fiery red. Peace with tranquility combined with atonement, power and brilliance. The elements of sky and water together,

Have you noticed there is a cohesion to our artwork shown together? Just struck by that this morning. I receive this as a gift. Thanks so much for sharing everyone.

"Friend of the Bridegroom" cropped detail from an earlier version of "Canada Arise" acrylic on canvas 24 x 34 in. https://www.annereidartist.com/warehouse-open-edition-prints/art_print_products/friend-of-the-bridegroom

They are the 2 smallest figures (the swans) in the drawing but they are creating all the patterns and designs in the water. Similarly, we may seem like the smallest things in life but we never know just how much we have affected the lives and people we have come in contact with. The love, inspiration and friendship that we leave are the ripples of our lives that reach out in this lifetime. Water is also very symbolic of spirit. Holy spirit poured out, anointing, baptism with fire and water etc. The water is what is carrying the 2 swans on their journey.

Hello Group.. been checking out all the good poetry on the community page, very nice stuff..and thought I would chime in with new one I just finished up.. I kind of kept with the theme of the painting and was trying to put a little of my life experiences in as well.. I think the poem has a kind of tragic yet hopeful theme to it??hope you and enjoy and that it either resonates or has an impact.. as usual all comments welcome.. keep posting...#poetry #poetryart #poertyandart #artpoetry #poemart #poemandart PS trying out the new upgraded app as well.. I think this is how this works..? take care.. Steve

Sharing an article I received in my email inbox yesterday.

Craftsmen in a Season of Dominion

• Anna Rider, Apostolic Prophetic Council

• Posted: March 19, 2026

It started when I heard my husband stirring in bed and getting ready for the day. I thought to myself, Gosh, it’s quite early; he’s getting up in the middle of the night. I looked at the clock and saw that it was 4:44 a.m. It’s unusual for him to wake up that early, so it caught my attention. 

Later that day, I pondered and asked the Lord regarding 4-4-4. I looked up several Bible verses.  I felt led to open Zechariah, and it was a gold mine of treasure. 

When you read the first six chapters of Zechariah, you will see a theme of 4 4 4.  

Then I looked up – and there before me were four horns! I asked the angel who was speaking to me, “what are these?”.  He answered me, “these are the horns that scattered Judah, Israel and Jerusalem.” Then the Lord showed me four craftsmen.  I asked, “What are these coming to do?”.  He answered, “these are the horns that scattered Judah so that no one could raise his head, but the craftsmen have come to terrify them and throw down these horns against the land of Judah to scatter its people.  

Zechariah 1:18-21 NIV

Horns symbolize military power, strength, and authority.   The four horns in Zechariah represent kingdoms of darkness that seek to oppress God’s people from all sides — that is, the four corners of the earth. The number four represents universality, completeness, and totality.  There is oppression from many systems around us, but God has a deliverance from evil planned!    

In the same vision, God immediately shows Zechariah the four craftsmen as the solution to dismantle the oppression of the enemy (Zechariah 1:20–21). How amazing! The four craftsmen are symbols of God’s response to break those horns. They are skilled workers with tools.

Why do you think God chose craftsmen to break the horns? Because He wants to partner with us to administer heaven’s justice into the systems of the world and to break patterns of oppression. These craftsmen are described as builders, engineers, and workers with tools—skilled agents sent to dismantle oppressive power. They are everyday people doing their everyday work (assignments) whom God will use to bring solutions and dismantle the works of the enemy against His people.  

God is aware of every source of oppression, and He has raised up deliverers in every area, every industry, and every sphere of influence. It’s four versus four and we win, along with the four spirits dispatched to help us.

So, to summarize so far: 

• Every oppressive power has a matching counterforce

• No horn exists for which God does not already have a response for

In short, no empire rises without God already holding the tools to bring it down.

In Chapter 6, the four chariots appear.

Vs 1-3 (NIV): I looked up again, and there before me were four chariots coming out from between two mountains—mountains of bronze. 2 The first chariot had red horses, the second black, 3 the third white, and the fourth dappled—all of them powerful.  

In verse 4, Zechariah asked the angel who was speaking to him: “What are these, my lord?”

Vs. 5-6 (NIV): “The angel answered me, “These are the four spirits of heaven, going out from standing in the presence of the Lord of the whole world. 6 The one with the black horses is going toward the north country, the one with the white horses toward the west, and the one with the dappled horses toward the south.” 

Vs. 7-8 (NIV): When the powerful horses went out, they were straining to go throughout the earth. And he said, “Go throughout the earth!” So they went throughout the earth. 8 Then he called to me, “Look, those going toward the north country have given my Spirit rest in the land of the north.”

So why did the north country give His Spirit rest? Historically, the north is where exile came from. The Babylonian exile—Israel’s deepest national wound—came from the north. This emphasizes that God’s judgement is specific and reaches the source of trauma and oppression, He is dealing with the root systems not just downstream consequences. 

These four chariots and the four spirits of heaven indicate that God’s unstoppable, worldwide governance is being dispatched at this time. They are sent to the four corners of the earth—the four winds—as things are being activated in the Spirit. It’s a global dispatch.

This reminds me of this verse in Habakkuk. 

“Were you angry with the rivers, LORD?
Was your wrath against the streams?
Did you rage against the sea
when you rode your horses
to victory, your chariots of salvation?”

Habakkuk 3:8 NIV

In Habakkuk, God rides the chariot → emphasizes personal intervention

In Zechariah, God dispatches chariots → emphasizes delegated, global action that executes God’s judgment and restores order.

Same power, different mode:

• Habakkuk: God comes

• Zechariah: God sends

I can almost hear the sound of the war horses straining to go throughout the earth. The times have changed. We are in a season of dominion, and God is calling us to be sent ones. That is the apostolic mandate. We are all craftsmen in our spheres of influence, and it is time to take our place and occupy the land.

Good morning community:) Had fun checking out everyone's art today in your artist profile.

Question: Some artists describe moments where an image seems to appear unexpectedly while they are working.

Others say inspiration comes before they begin — almost like a direction they feel drawn to follow.

For you, does inspiration usually happen:

• before the work begins
• during the act of painting
• after you’ve been working for a while
• or in moments of silence or reflection

I’m curious how different artists experience this.