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

Person: Steve Vanderheide

Hey there, I’m Steve. I’m a video producer, and an amateur photographer.

Piece: Photography

This piece came out of Project 101010—a art intensive I really enjoyed being a part of through Park Church—where we went through Psalms 110-119. When Psalm 116 came along, I was struck by the line in Verses three and four:

“The cords of death entangled me, the anguish of the grave came over me;I was overcome by distress and sorrow.Then I called on the name of the Lord: “Lord, save me!” (NIV)

When I read that, I pictured waking up in the middle of the night, lacking sleep, and being overcome by the thought of death. This is something I have been wrestling with for a few years now. What does life look like after death? What does it mean to be with God? Unfortunately, over these years, often the concept of death has filled me with fear and anxiety rather than looking forward expectantly to being with Jesus. Losing a longtime friend in 2019 has only made these question bubble up more often.

The window on the left is my bedroom window, filled with the pale light of a morning far too early to be awake in. The graininess and darkness is both what I see literally, as well as what it feels like—difficult to focus on anything in particular, and a heaviness on my heart. Verse 7 is a reminder to me:

“Return to your rest, my soul,for the Lord has been good to you.” (NIV)

God has been so good to me. He provides over and over and over again, and in abundance. He is close when I need him. He gives my soul rest. This verse tells me that even in death, he will provide for me. He will not abandon me. If he can give my soul rest, he can give my mind and body rest. Verse 8 and 9 are something to look forward to:

“For you, Lord, have delivered me from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling,that I may walk before the Lord in the land of the living.” (NIV)

Again, he will provide, even in death. He will deliver me from it. But not just that, he will keep my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling, and allow me the delight of walking before the Lord in the land of the living. The Psalmist may have intended it for the here and now, but I also see this as what is to come. I paired this with a photo from a backpacking trip to the Grand Tetons with 3 close friends. It helps me out to picture what truly being in the presence of the Lord will be like by picturing what being with good friends on a journey is like. There is no loneliness. There is anticipation, purpose, a path, a goal, laughter, and adventure.

This Psalm helps to pull me out of the darkness, transitions me through a lost forest of thought, and into the land of the living.

I started out by photographing my room in the evening just after the sun set, so that there was enough light coming through the window to actually mimic pale light coming through in early morning. I merged this with my photo from the 2018 Grand Teton trip in Photoshop, and then used various layers of trees, filled with black, to mask the transition between the two photos. I then added grain and the verses on top. I intentionally tried to make the verses more blurry and translucent on the left, becoming more crisp as it moves to the right.

The biggest challenge of this was that the original piece was created in a super-wide aspect ratio (see above!), with lots and lots of stark blackness in the middle. The square version for this artwork series has been modified to fit your television.

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

Person: Beth Dreyer

I am Beth Dreyer, a Chicago-raised transplant living in Denver for almost eight years. I graduated with a B.F.A. in Studio Art with an art education endorsement and have been teaching elementary art in the public school system for 10 years. I am a wife to Adam and a mom to two—Ramona and Nolan. As an art teacher, I am constantly experimenting with different art mediums and techniques which, especially during the pandemic, have helped me see the beauty and mystery in the world around me.

Piece: Mixed Media

While reading Psalm 115, I felt two distinctive things: the conviction of idolatry and its contrast with the sovereignty, steadfastness, and trustworthiness of the Lord. As someone who often struggles with shame, verses 4–8 stood out to me first, addressing the idols we often build.

Through idols built by our own hands, we try to make our own way separate from God, thinking we know ourselves better than He knows us. I do this all the time. This idolatry is symbolized by the gold rock/gemstone raised from the panel, representing our attempt to build and construct our own lives separate from Him. But, by the grace of God, HE is steadfast and faithful and is the true God. The whimsical gold and white background represents the Lord’s sovereignty and faithfulness. His refinement, like actual gold, is at work in us. Even though we make our own idols and try to separate ourselves from Him, He clings to His people and frees us to rest in Him and trust in Him alone. Like verses 9–11 tell us, God is the one true God, our help and our shield. My prayer is that this rests on our hearts and transforms us.

This piece is a mixed media artwork: ink, watercolor, pastel, and spray paint. I have worked a lot with ink, watercolor, and pastel, but this was my first time working with spray paint. For the gemstone, I purposefully wanted to use mediums I could use to add more detail with—like the ink and watercolor and pastel. I wanted those mediums to represent the intense efforts we often go to to build the idols to which we desperately cling. However, for the background panel, the representation of the sovereignty of God, I wanted to use a material more mysterious—free flowing—but with the same color palette. I created the background using a technique called hydro dipping: spraying spray paint on top of water and dipping your surface in to create layers. This technique reminded me of the whimsical beauty of God and the everflowing trust in Him by His people.

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

Person: Anna Armstrong

My name is Anna Armstrong. I feel most like myself when exploring God’s beautiful creation and when those rare moments of “flow” happen with an artistic exploration. I work for a health care start-up, and painting and photography have always served as a balancing outlet for me. It was an honor to get to create something for the Psalms series again this year!

Piece: Acrylic Painting

My piece, based on Psalm 114, is an abstract acrylic paint depiction of the metaphoric waters in motion as described in the Psalm. The emphasis of the painting is the dramatic water that could be interpreted either as the Red Sea or as the River Jordan, each that “ran off” at God’s command. In the background is a land element that has a glow to imply that it is a holy place. This painting is my humble attempt to create a tangible illustration of the Lord’s beauty and strength.

This was a fun piece, it came together pretty quickly for me which is always a gift! The biggest challenge I found along the way was how much emphasis to put on the water vs. land elements of the painting. I did several iterations of the mountains/land, and ended up emphasizing the dramatic nature of the water, while keeping the land element simple. I’m grateful for the inspiration of the Psalm and excited for others to interpret the piece as they see it.