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SNOW HERD
Contemporary Art Palette Knife Horizon Painted Pony Horse Art by Laurie Justus Pace

18 x 27 inches Thick Oil on Canvas
$750 SOLD off the BLOG.
Thank you!
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Laurie


The Sounds of Silence

“The Lord was not in the wind . . . the earthquake . . . the fire;
and after the fire the sound of sheer silence.”
1 Kings 19:11–12 (NRSV)

When I posted this painting I immediately thought of the quiet silence of snow falling totally out of focus of the horses, which of course are a contrasting noise; even when standing they snort and stamp their feet, eager to push on in the silence of falling snow. Where is the strength, in the snow or in the horses?

Wondering and roaming through my bible, I remembered in my distant brain the power struggle between Elijah and Ahab's wife Jezebel. She was a foreigner and she worshiped Baal and not God. When she moved in with Ahab (King of Israel), she brought 400 of her favorite prophets and priests. Can you imagine sitting in your home surrounded by non-believers for several years? That is when Elijah enters the picture and tells Ahab there will be a drought because of these Baal believers. The drought comes and does not let up. Ahab calls Elijah back to do prayer combat again the Baal believers. The Baal group sings and prays and surrounds Elijah trying to get rid of the drought...

Elijah is only human and probably made some off the collar remark about Baal off doing something else so he can't hear them. Then with firm belief, Elijah falls to his knees and prays . The result was immediate as God sent fire down. This was impressive. A thunderstorm followed the fire as Ahab hurried home to tell Jezebel there was only GOD. Jezebel was pretty ticked off and sent Elijah a message to watch out for he was basically a dead man.

Elijah fled through the desert and into the wilderness. Angels cared for him and guided him. He traveled 40 days to Mount Sinai, the mountain of God and there he found a cave. In the silence he heard the Lord speak again, "What are you doing here, Elijah?" Elijah left the cave as instructed telling God he was worn out from standing up to non believers. As he stood outside, he watched the Lord pass by with a mighty windstorm that tore rocks loose from the mountain. That was followed by an earthquake and then a fire. As the fire sizzled down and silence took over... there came a whisper from God... Elijah rose and listened as God told him to go back and deal with the problem at hand.

Every day we deal with so much around us. Often it is fear, violence, chaos, noise, noise noise...and then silence. God will speak in that silence. Are you listening? Discouragement tires all of us and in the silence God continues to work strengthening us to pick back up and deal with life lighting the way for others.

If you are down today, feel the silence of the Lord as He is working all around you. Take the time to heal and gather back up to go out and light the world.

A quick note to let you know Stacey saw her doctor today and they think all is well but she must stay on bed rest. Mom is in a sling for three more weeks with her dislocated shoulder and then therapy is in store. Thank you for your prayers.


Joy and Abundance
Laurie

"I cried out to the Lord, and He answered me from His holy mountain. I lay down and slept. I woke up in safety, for the Lord was watching over me. I am not afraid of ten thousand enemies who surround me on every side." Psalm 3 4-6
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Comments

Angie in AZ said…
Laurie, I have been following your work for a while now and just love it. I'm curious. How much do you sketch out before you start with the palette knife? I'm going to be trying this palette knife painting for the first time and just wondered how you progress through these fabulous paintings.

I also love your passages along with them. Today's passage is really powerful and one I needed to hear today. Thank you.
7:36 AM
Laurie Justus Pace said…
Any presketching I do on canvas is done with charcoal. LIGHT charcoal. It is easy to wipe and change as I sketch...but not to heavy or it grays the paint mixing in with it. I can only advise you as I do my students.... experiment and find your way in art. Do not try and imitate other artists or your art is never truly from your soul. Pick up that knife and work with it. You will find YOUR way and not MY WAY. I have 56 years behind what I do... the experience does not come overnight. Don't try and skip the journey or you will miss the adventure of the trip.
9:13 AM
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