Studio to Street: What I have learned

The most important and most obvious thing I´ve learned (again) is that the most important thing is to keeping in close step with Jesus every day of the year, no matter what. That´s really what it always comes down to.

Smells of Europe

To travel europe in four weeks and a weekend has been a very special experience for two reasons. Firstly, we changed country and culture very quickly. One week is enough to get an idea of what the city-culture smells like, but nothing more than that. So, with only one week in each country, we easily compare the one place with the other, but also got a bit of an general experience of western Europe.
Secondly, because we shifted through the western continent so quickly, we had to learn to stay on our toes and keep adapting some of our work methods to the different cultures. Starting over again every week can be a frustration, but it was a good lesson in innovation and being dependant on God.

I was often thinking of how the apostle Paul changed his methods when he was on his mission-travels. While visiting remains of the Berlin wall, I had to think of the story in the bible where king David is unable first to break into the city of Jerusalem, until found out he could sneaks in through the city-well.
When we´re desperate enough to reach a city or cross a wall, we will find the most creative ways to do so.

Still not happy until …

One of my biggest motivations for joining the internship, was to get out my office and use my creative skills to share about Jesus. Working from the office, I felt I was limited in how much I could share of my life as a christian. I would definitively say that I got what I came for, even though I had to reach for it myself many times. Traveling Europe with the Arts Internship has gotten me into a lot of situations where I would share Jesus with people that I met that day. Mostly I have learned from others how to do this, and some times I have found my own way.
Looking back, the internship has not been the first «attempt» of mine to break out of my own creative comfort-zone. I have been wanting to make the same break with my drawing diaries of 2012 and 2013. I don´t feel I´ve gotten to make the break that I wanted to have made. And that´s probably because it´s something continual, rather than a one-time thing.

I am still not happy with how broken the image is that I show of who God is, both in my drawings, ans in my life. I am still depending on God´s grace, and that is perhaps the best picture that my life can show.

The next little project I´m on is going to be a 30 day drawing challenge that I´m going to do with a few friends here at Grimerud.