Fruit of the Spirit
Galatians 5:22-23
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
this series of drawings were inspired by three things: my love for flowers, my faith, and the pressure to come up with something new because i had to booth physically for HeArts Festival 2023 🤡
mostly though, i really enjoyed making these! it allowed me to listen a little more intently to God and also how He worked through my own intuitions and thoughts. being creative with Jesus is always such a freeing experience!
scroll down to read through my thoughts behind every piece!
RM8 / A6 print, RM65 full set
love comes in many forms. it cannot be contained in a single flower. love looks different for everyone. so this is how love looks like to me right now: real and abstract flowers mixed in a bouquet — some love exists to all of us, whereas some are harder to describe.
joy only exists in my head. because i think true joy is only attainable through and with God. i think it’d look like fireworks on a flower, because while fireworks only last momentarily for us, joy as a flower can live for as long as God dictates it to.
peace is squishy and fluffy. the kind of flower we all drew as a kid: simple, uncomplicated, and comforting to our now-grown-up hearts. it comes to life when we become little children to God again. when we trust, wholeheartedly.
patience will never bloom. it works a little differently from the rest — while flowers bloom for us to look and admire and experience, patience will produce fruit that we can hold, and peel, and eat. the fruit will be sweet when you wait.
kindness can be messy sometimes. kindness isn’t niceness. kindness comes from a heart of wanting to see the best for you. it can look a little scribbly and scrappy and sloppy, but it’s kindness nonetheless.
goodness does not ask to be praised. that’s why it’s a flower facing away from us. while we usually look at the face of flowers to appreciate their beauty, goodness hides its appearance graciously, never once hoping to be remembered. it is good simply because.
faithfulness is a tree that blooms many tiny flowers instead of just one. a tree that looks barren otherwise. a tree that will continue to produce flowers as long as someone believes in it. it doesn’t look impressive at first, but a fully-bloomed tree will surely blow you away.
gentleness exists in a hot and dry place full of needles. in an environment where it feels impossible to find softness, it exists. it’s small and bright. it doesn’t shout for attention. it is gentle as it is.
self-control is trying its best to be put together. but aren’t dandelions designed to be blown away? what if self-control is about surrender, about holding on but also about letting go? to let go of our desires, to surrender our control to God?