Featured Artist >> Ashley H

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Ashley, a dancer and painter from Florida, USA, has just returned from two years of service in Western Asia. She travelled with a performing arts team, sharing stories of God's transforming power and love through her dancing. She also held her own art exhibition, showing paintings that portray redemption through Christ.

"Two years were characterized by difficulties, challenges, frustrations, lessons, deep relationships, many hours of travel, many good conversations and cups of tea, some moments of fear and intimidation, and moments of complete joy. It seemed like a completely different world, filled with people both very different and very similar to myself, and I did not know how to communicate or relate to them.

Upon arrival I didn't know who I was in Christ or who I was as an artist and I have learned the former and am still learning the latter. The beginning months were filled with learning to trust God to help me complete seemingly very simple, everyday tasks and as time passed I learned to trust Him with much more difficult tasks. Many of the people surrounding me were living hopeless and often destroyed lives and I simply could not understand their situations on my own. I was pushed into situations that weren't necessarily enjoyable or easy at the time, but it was in those situations that God began to teach me about His true character and show me that Jesus is the only one who can truly heal us and instill hope in our lives.

Spoken communication is difficult for me in my native language, even more difficult in a second language, however visual communication seems to simplify things while explaining difficult concepts…Having an extended period of time to learn about the people and the culture allowed for my paintings to portray specific aspects of their lives, while showing Christ as the solution. I often approached a piece not knowing how I wanted it to look, but knowing what concept I wanted to portray. I needed to release my grip on my work and learn to trust God to work through what I created. Results weren't always tangible, but God's peace came through the work and the surrounding atmosphere and was seen and felt by the viewers."

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