What It’s All About…

I love art, always have, and few activities in my life bring me more joy than making art.
But that’s not what it’s all about.
I love traveling all over the country, painting my pictures and telling my stories.
But that’s not what it’s all about.
I love pastoring my church and creating new ways to preach and help people get it,
and that’s closer, but that’s not what it’s all about.
I get paid to paint pictures and tell stories and I have made friends all over the world, and that is amazingly cool, but that’s not what it’s all about either.

So what is it all about?

It’s all about Jesus.

It’s about helping people come to know Him.
It’s about following His leading.
It’s about answering His call.
It’s about learning all that He has for me, the easy stuff and the hard stuff.
It’s about telling the story of what He has done for me.
It’s about speaking His truth to whoever will listen.
It’s about trying to honor Him for all that He has done for me.
It’s about knowing the price He paid
and it’s about knowing I am completely unworthy and completely and perfectly love.

It’s all about Jesus, and if I keep Him as my focus, honor Him as Lord, worship Him as Savior, everything else will work out.

Jesus is life. Life is Jesus.

LOVE

IllustrationFriday.com Challenge: Silence

IllustrationFriday.com Challenge: Silence

This one was a little different for me. Silence felt hard to describe for a moment. I thought about distractions and considered making an entirely blank piece as that might be silence in my thought addled world, but then I took a different direction. I began to think of a person being bombarded with noise with his hands over his ears, screaming for silence, but what would the noises be. And then I saw it. Many artists, including this one sometimes suffer from horrible self-esteem, maybe it’s because we take so many risks or have so many critics, I don’t know.

I do know this, there are all these voices in society and sometimes in our heads that tell us all kinds of lies about ourselves. We’re too stupid, too ugly, too fat, too thin, worthless, useless and on and on and on. I also know artists are not alone in this many are bombarded with these voices from within and without. We lose when we listen to them. The only way to win is to “silence” the voices. This is not done with some act of violence. We silence the voices when we don’t listen and keep doing what we do. The best way to silence a critical voice is to prove it wrong.

For followers of Christ though, there is a better way. It’s to remember who you are and the high price Christ paid for you. Every voice around you and within you may want to tell you you’re worthless, but the only voice that really matters values you so much that He gave His only Son to die in your place. Let that silence the voices.

Can’t see the image? Click here.

IllustrationFriday.com Challenge: Stripes Part 2

The second image for the IllustrationFriday.com stripes challenge may be slightly less predictable.

IllustrationFriday.com Challenge: Stripes Part 2

Isaiah 53:5 says: “But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.”

Those stripes were wounds driven deep into the flesh of the Savior by a lead tipped Roman whip. The intense punishment that began what we now call Good Friday. You see before they would place a convicted person on a cross the Romans would beat him nearly to death. Such was the beginning of the price Jesus paid for up. It’s a conundrum. How could a day of such torture be called Good Friday? Surely not because it was a good thing to happen to Jesus. I’m sure the disciples saw that day as anything but good. No the goodness was on the cross. It was Jesus doing the greatest act of good a person can do. He laid down His life for you and me. See, those stripes, they were yours and mine, but he took them.

The word at the bottom of the illustration is Tetellestai. It’s the last recorded word Jesus spoke before dying on the cross. Your English Bible records the word as the phrase “it is finished.” Jesus finished the work of Salvation when he hung on the cross, but that word Tetellestai has another meaning as well. In the market place, in that day, when a purchase was complete the merchant would sometimes shout out Tetellestai and in this context the meaning of the word was another phrase, “PAID IN FULL.” That’s what Jesus did. He took the penalty for everything wrong that you, me and everyone else has done and will ever do and took it on Himself. If you place your trust in Him as your Lord and Savior, your sins are forgiven and your debt is paid in full.

Jesus paid it all.

If you’d like to know more about Jesus and what He did for you, leave a comment or better yet drop me an email at AMOKArts@aol.com

This note is extra meaningful to me today, two days ago my friend Curt left this world. He was a guy who had a lot of struggles in this life but in spite of it all, he came to know and love Jesus. Jesus paid Curt’s price and today as I miss my friend, I know his struggles are over and he’s just beginning to enjoy the very best God has to offer.

Praise God for the stripes that heal.

If you can’t see the image above, click this link.

One of those God Moments

I was preaching at a meeting not too long ago and I got the opportunity to share one of my favorite stories. I found the video online of me sharing the story and thought I would share it here.

Sometimes God asks us to do things we don’t want to do. The painting in this video is one of the best images the Lord has ever given me. I love to paint it, but I was in a place working with all these really creative artists and I wanted to do something really cool and different. I was praying for a new image but I kept feeling like God was pushing me to paint this piece again… The video tells the story

The end of the story is I gave the painting to the girl. I’ve painted that painting probably a dozen times now, and I have never kept it more than a few days. The image of Christ as lion and lamb, king and sacrifice, savior and Lord is not meant to be kept, it’s meant to be shared.

Who Do You Say That I Am? #4

Who Do You Say That I Am? #4 Immanuel

“He will be called Immanuel, meaning God with us.” It’s a line from the Christmas story telling us another characteristic of Jesus. He is God with us. He was God with us when He walked the earth in the flesh and He is God with us now as He lives in the hearts of all believers. The image today represents Christ indwelling the hearts of man kind. He is still Immanuel, still God with us and in His Word He promised that He would be with us always. Does He live in your heart? If not ask Him to come in today. He’s waiting for your invitation.

My New Presentation

Defeating the 20/80 Rule with Be the Body
• Does your church have enough people to get everything done?
• Does your church have a small group of people who do most of the work?
• Does your church have a large group of people on the fringes and barely connected?
When you call upon your congregation to do the kinds of service Jesus commanded do they look back at you with a look that says, “Isn’t that what we pay you for?”
There’s a rule in most human organizations including, unfortunately, the church, which states that on average about 20 percent of the people do 80% of the work. This leaves your most faithful servants doing many things for which they are neither called nor gifted and nearing burnout while the rest of the congregation is only slightly invested in the work of the Kingdom. This is not the church that God intended.
I was in danger of becoming one of those 80 percent people and then something amazing happened. I went from struggling new believer who could barely read scripture aloud with a profound fear of public speaking to ordained minister, pastor and speaker. It wasn’t all a smooth ride and it didn’t happen overnight but it happened and I can trace it all back to one event. My pastor found a Kingdom use for my unusual gift and it changed my life. I’m convinced that there are thousands (maybe millions) of people in the church of Jesus Christ who are in the same boat. They have tremendous, God-given potential to do great things—things that will tremendously expand the Kingdom and they’re just waiting for someone to find their gift, ignite their passion and show them how to be what they were created to be to the glory of God. We are all “God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works which God prepared in advance for us to do!”
That’s what my new presentation “Be the Body” is all about. Through the use of my story, artistic gifts, interactive projects and preaching the Word of God, I will challenge the “many parts” in your congregation to become fully invested members of the “one body” of Christ. Topics covered include:
• What it means to be the body of Christ? 

• How to do and be your part.

• What to lay down and what to take up.

• Maintaining unity and more.


This can be anywhere from a single message, a series of revival/Spiritual renewal services even a weekend retreat. I really feel a strong leading to go out into the church and call people into their God given calling. The guiding verse of this ministry is 1 Peter 4:10, Each one should use WHATEVER GIFTS he has received to serve others. I would love to come to your church or event and share with your congregation. Contact me, Dave Weiss at AMOKArts@aol.com
God bless,
Dave Weiss

www.amokarts.com

Who Do You Say That I Am? #3

Who Do You Say That I Am#3 Risen Lord

We talk a lot in the church about Jesus dying on the cross for our sins and that is hugely important but there is something more important. Oh certainly the sinless Jesus died in our place to save us from our sins but the greater hope came three days later when He rose from the grave. He rose from the grave. He laid down His life and He had the power to take it up again. He is risen and that is incredibly good news, because just as He rose, so will all who place their faith in Him. He is risen, so the question for each of us becomes, on that day, when you breathe your last, will you rise to be with Him? If you’re not sure place your faith in Him today. If you’re not sure how, contact me, Dave Weiss at amokarts@aol.com

Who Do You Say That I Am? #2

Who Do You Say I Am?#2 Savior

Today’s image of Jesus could perhaps have been number one, It’s Jesus as Savior. The name Jesus literally means “Yahweh will save” and when the angel commanded Joseph to give Jesus his name, he said it was because He will save His people. Jesus came to be your Savior and mine because He loves us and we could not save ourselves. The Bible tells us that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. It further says the wages of sin is death. Right after it says those words, it give us a beautiful message of hope. It says “but the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.” Jesus gave His life and died on the cross so you could live forever in Paradise. That’s how much He loves you and how much you’re worth to Him. He is the Savior. Is He Your Savior?

Who Do You Say That I Am? #1

A friend online asked me a question. Have I ever tried to use art to answer Jesus’ question, “Who Do YOU Say That I Am?” I instantly knew I had to take this on. Needless to say it is too big to do in one image so I decided to start a collection of art. The first answer to this question would have to be to answer as Peter answered the question. He said “you are the Christ…” Some folks act like it’s his last name…you know, Jesus Christ son of Joseph and Mary Christ, but that’s not it at all. Christ is His title. The Hebrew Word for Christ is Messiah. It means the Lord’s Anointed. He is the promised King that will rule forever on the throne of King David. More than that He is the King of my heart and my life goes best when I live my life in obedience to Him. He is the King, He is the Christ. Who do I say He is? To start things off, I say He is Christ my King. Who do YOU say that He is?

Who Do You Say That I Am? #1 Christ