Psalm 5—Artwork

Learn more about Christ in the Psalms weekly artwork and see previous pieces here.

Person: Kari Langford

Kari Langford lives and works in Denver with a heart for creativity and connection. Guided by faith and a love for beauty in the everyday, she sees art as a way to reflect God’s light, to participate in God’s Kingdom, and to stir other souls to worship. When not painting, she might be enjoying a hike with her pup or reading with a cup of coffee in her hand.

Piece

“Listen to my words, Lord; consider my sighing.
Pay attention to the sound of my cry, my King and my God, for I pray to you.
In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning, I plead my case to you and watch expectantly.”
(Psalm 5:1–3 CSB)

There is lament in these words. There is also rooted hope and trust in them. My piece is meant to depict that gap in between.

There are multiple layers showing light coming through a window, and more specifically, morning light. There are collaged layers of pattern that bring the element of complexity and history to the work. And finally, the forefront of the painting loosely reflects the dappling of shadow from the trees above. Both the deep, rich color and imprinted markings of the shadows correspond to the immense weight of my cry.

PROCESS: OIL PAINT & COLLAGE

Truly, the most beautiful part of this piece WAS the process, and how the Father guided me through. I wrestled with this painting. I started out with an idea of what I wanted it to look like, primarily a light, joyful flow of light coming in through a window, to depict the morning time when we take our prayers to Him. Something was not quite right, so I would paint layer over layer over layer – thinking the whole time that I was wasting time and paint.

But God…

I was sitting and listening one morning, and I sensed him beautifully show me: Kari this is prayer, this is how it works. The act of continuing to come to him morning after morning, thinking we are wasting our time, but He is creating something beautiful! The process of prayer and life with God does not always feel like things are happening—like it is “working”—and it certainly is not always light and joyful. I learned more about persistent prayer and lament throughout this process and ultimately came to a place of deeper trust in the One who is always Faithful, the One who hears every single prayer that we cry, scream, or whisper.