Story Behind the Art

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Welcome to the From the Heart Art Blog, where I share weekly inspiration to encourage & uplift you on your faith journey!

From stories behind the art I create to behind-the-scenes looks into the creation process to DIY tutorials and more... I post a new blog post every single Wednesday to share, uplift, & encourage you on your journey! Welcome to the blog & I can't wait to connect with you through this new blog space every single week. If you want to know when new blog posts go live, make sure to join our exclusive email newsletter community! You can also join the waitlist for our Bible Journaling Community, opening again soon!

 

“Rest in God alone, O my soul, for my hope comes from Him”

I was in my new bathroom thinking about how very thankful I am for it, when I was reminded of this verse. God has been using my new bathroom to teach me many valuable lessons. We’ve actually had several renovation projects in this house that have been used as His classroom! Often, “His classroom” reveals bad attitudes, wrong motives, impatience in His children, and gives His grace, mercy, and love plenty of opportunities to be displayed!

A Lesson From God From a Renovated Bathroom

Six years ago we decided to renovate our cramped galley kitchen. It all began when my husband took out the counter bar. It was the type of counter that left a very narrow opening into the kitchen and could quickly trap you in if the refrigerator door happened to be open. Well, it had trapped him in that kitchen one too many times and it had to go. Removing that end piece of the cabinet became one of those small projects that quickly turned into a BIG project! 

Before long, the entire kitchen was gutted! To make a long story short, we flipped the kitchen to another part of the house and in doing so, we lost a bathroom, but that was ok, we had full intentions of relocating the bathroom once the kitchen project was complete. So now we were down to one bathroom on the opposite end of the house, but felt it was worth it to have a kitchen that we could both work in without feeling trapped... and besides, we would be adding another bathroom back anyway.   

After a Lot of "Life Happened"

So six years later, after a LOT of “life” happened, things lined up for us to finally add a new bathroom. The project took all summer long. It was a bit stressful, as most building projects tend to be. But in spite of a lumber shortage and several other covid-related hindrances, the new bathroom came to life! 

A Quiet Place of Rest

The bathroom is nicer than anything I had imagined in my mind. My husband did a fantastic job working with the builders to design something we could enjoy now and also grow older in. It has become a place of quiet rest for me.  Every time I walk in there I just sigh and am so thankful. The years of inconvenience helped me be open to seeing the bathroom as more than just a bathroom.

Rest after a season of unrest led me to a new level of appreciation.

Finding God in Difficult Times

Recently, I had a conversation with a lady going through a really difficult time with her son. It has been an incredibly long and painful season that has lasted years. She was so discouraged and wondered would this season of suffering ever end.

I was asked, "Can you have joy even in the middle of pain?" I’ve been in deeply painful seasons, too.  Some that feel like they won’t end. I can relate to her weariness. 

What in the world does my renovation project and a new bathroom have to do with a season of suffering and this verse from Psalm 62?

A "Special Place" for You

I told my new friend that I have recently been in a rut, but through that difficult place I was learning about something new in the midst of a season of hardship.  I’ve experienced a glimpse of something that is hard to put into words.

There is a special “place” found in balancing God’s sovereignty with His Goodness and His rescuing Grace and His enduring Love while keeping Eternity in view.

This Too Shall Pass

I have a dear friend that is constantly reminding me, “this is temporary”.... I imagine it comparable to traveling through a deep dark forest and then suddenly getting a glimpse of a light filled clearing coming into view.  

Sometimes it takes being in a deep rut to really appreciate when light comes into view.  Often it takes being in an incredibly painful place to recognize the relief of His presence. 

There are some lessons only learned in the darkness. We won’t “know Him” as healer, without the wound. We won’t “know Him” as Savior without knowing our need to be rescued.

She asked some hard questions, “Can you find Joy while in pain?  Can you be happy in spite of brokenness?  Can good really come from this “bad situation”?  Is it wrong to want to be happy here?"

A Sigh of Relief

I know that I would have appreciated the new bathroom, even if we already had 3 other bathrooms. But it was going through the season of inconvenience that caused a deeper level of appreciation. I just sigh when I look at it.  

A season of unrest can lead to rest. 

Brokenness can lead to healing. 

Weariness can lead to strength. 

Joy and sorrow can reside in the same heart. 

 

There is a special “place” found in balancing God’s sovereignty with His Goodness and His rescuing Grace and His enduring Love while also keeping Eternity in constant view… remembering that everything “here” is temporary.  

 

Some versions of Psalm 62:5 read:

“My soul, wait silently for God alone, For my expectation is from Him” NKJ

“For God alone my soul waits in silence and quietly submits to Him, For my hope is from Him” Amplified Version

I Pray For Us Both!

Friend, I pray for us both! We do have such a good Father. I pray He opens our eyes to see Him actively working on our behalf, even in the midst of painfully long seasons of suffering. That He will guide us and redirect us when our attention shifts from Him to earthly hope & fulfillment. That He will guide us and redirect us from selfish and sinful motives to submitting to Him and His perfect will. That He will sustain us in long seasons of waiting. He is for us! He is able to accomplish what He has started.

May He bless you with rest in the secret places of His presence and renew your strength in the places you feel so weary!  

Sincerely, 

Pam Coxwell | From the Heart Art

 

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P.S. I feel the need to say that if you are currently in a season of suffering, please don’t suffer alone in silence. Surround yourself with trusted Christians who will speak Truth and life to you! I would like to recommend a few authors who have helped me:  Paul David Tripp’s “Suffering” and “New Morning Mercies”,  John Piper has several, Jennifer Rothschild has a wonderful podcast and books, Lysa Tyrekyst & Laura Story both have amazing stories, Joni Erickson Tada, and Kay Warren and there are SO many others who openly share their stories while pointing their listeners to the Truth of God’s Word. Please remember He is the One who gives true rest and hope and victory. Blessings to you!