A Light at Dusk

Photograph         ©Maleko 2012      (Edited using PicMonkey)

My Darkness

Resting

In the Morning

Photos taken of the morning sunrise in late August 2012 on my early morning bike commute in the Pacific Northwest! (Collage done using PicMonkey) ~©Maleko 2012

Love in Black and White

"A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another." 

John 13:34 

 

 (A picture of my girl and her dog, edited using PicMonkey  Maleko ©2012)

In the Dark

Eyes of Grace

The quiet of descending night

Colors fade in the darkening

(Free Write Friday - Image Prompt)

Lost in  a world of confusion

Believing in one small spark

A haunting of romance

Calls on the soft breeze

Feel the pull of something more

Timeless, ancient yet new

Alone but not;

My head says I won't,

but my heart says I might

Searching for God's face

Silently watched by loving jealous eyes of grace

The caged animal is free

Not realizing the animal is me

Maleko ©2012

Visit Kellie Elmore's site and to view this weeks Free Write Friday image prompt, read the intro and join in the fun.   Thanks Kellie for the weekly inspiration!

Resurrection

"Resurrection"       Colored Pencils on Black Paper        5x7 inches

Maleko ©2012

"But for you who fear My name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings"

Malachi 4:2 

Often only through pain do we find our redemption.  Choosing to believe that there can be a resurrection every time we fall.  This drawing represents the sacrifice of Jesus for us willingly giving up his life to save us for all eternity, and his ultimate triumph over death as the grave to this day is still empty.  The horse is ready to rise from the pool of blood in which he is standing, wings posed ready to take flight out of the pain which still clings to his legs.  We too can have this and rise above our pain if we only just believe.

Seasons Change

I am love falling, breaking unsuspecting hearts

Cleaving deep darkness, I am lightening flashing

I am thunder crashing, defeating silent echos

Searching endless thoughts, I am fears growing

I am loneliness hiding, behind mirthful smiles

Appearing creative fiction, I am truth living

I am water dripping, dry ground soaking

Tossing boulders high, I am wind howling

I am beauty glowing, dripping dropping ashes

Within darkness is receding, I am faith rising

I am strength holding, hope tightly clinging

Shining light into dark, I am his delight

In myself, I have...

In myself, I have no right to ask

As I tentatively crawl to Your throne

"Sunset Visions"  

©Maleko 2012

In myself, I have no voice to speak

As I soundlessly scream Your name

In myself, I have no strength to stand

As I lie silently prostrated at Your feet

In myself, I have wholly lost my way

As I dance masquerading my weakness  

In myself, I fear the deep residing dark

As I stare blinded by Your white light

In myself, I have no hope of redemption

As I feel Your strong and loving embrace

©Maleko 2012

Overwhelmed by Wonder

He found himself standing at the base of a wall that stretched out of sight to both the left and the right.  As he slowly looked upward the wall appeared to grow and continue on into the gray overcast sky.  The air was still and silent with no sound of any living thing.

The wall comprised of dark grayish black bricks approximately one foot square made of solid granite.  He reached out his hand and as his fingers contacted the bricks they were cold to his touch and they sat tightly against each other so that no spaces could be seen.  Dark green moss and lichens grew between the slabs and spilled out of the crevices and down the side like a flowing green river.

Where he stood the grasses around his feet grew wild and came up to mid-calf.  The ground contained no traces of any previous human or animal presence.  He felt as if he were standing where no one had stood before.  As his eyes scaled the wall in front of him, he noticed no doors or windows, only the solid impenetrable mass of rock that prevailed before him.

As the moments passed, he thought of the lies he had believed and the wall he had built around his heart and life.  He thought about the choices he had made and the pain this had brought through his cowardliness and despair.  The wall mocked him with a silence that evoked a vision of the prison that he had created and how that kept him from pursuing the dreams he had imagined over the years in his mind and in his heart.

He knew that the truth and life lay beyond and on the other side of the wall; his destiny.  He believed that his future that lay outside the wall was a life of discontentment in a world of darkness.  Every fiber of his being screamed in desire to pursue the truth but his strength just as quickly began to wane with the realization of the futility of his own inability to breach the wall.  His head dropped, his eyes closed in silent despair.  A light breeze gently rustled the grasses around his feet and they brushed against his pant legs, his ears detecting the barely audible sound..

Slowly opening his eyes and lifting his head, he felt the presence before he saw the stranger standing next to him.  Dressed in common well worn clothes of blue jeans, button down shirt and a weathered brown leather jacket, the man portrayed a silent power and confidence, born from wisdom and conflict.  Turning towards the stranger, he found himself staring into the most compassionate face and eyes he had ever seen filled with love.

The stranger smiled warmly and asked in a soft kindhearted voice, “Would you like to go beyond this wall?”

Thoughts of whether he could trust this stranger quickly crossed his mind while his heart screamed he just might. Following his heart for one of the few times in his life he found himself nodding a slow and hesitant yes.  Suddenly he was able to see through the wall and he immediately shielded his eyes from the blinding light that shined outwards so brightly and appeared to be everywhere at once.  As quickly as the light has come it disappeared and before him was only the solid gray darkness of the wall.

Glimpsing the light steeled his resolve and he knew he wanted more than life had offered him up to this point, though he knew not what that was. 

He asked the stranger, “What tool could you use to crush this wall?”

“Myself,” the stranger stated simply with a playful smile.

No hint of arrogance or conceit in the stranger’s voice just a confidence that seemed natural and fitting, born from battles waged and victories won.  This confused him but somehow he felt the truth of the stranger’s simple answer and he longed to see this straightforward statement fulfilled.

As Aragon upon reaching Helm’s Deep, after being feared dead pushed open the doors and strode into King Theodon’s court, in the Lord of the Rings, Return of the King so did the stranger.  The stranger turned to face the wall and raised his arms above his head, hands outstretched to the sky.  Taking one step towards the wall he reached towards the wall placing both hands against the coldness of the bricks, leaning forward with his body pushing into the wall. 

As the stranger leaned his body towards the wall arms extended forward and pushing, solid dark wood doors suddenly appeared swinging inward.  A light spilled out from behind the doors, streams of radiance cascading over the land.  The stranger’s visage shone brilliantly as the light appeared to shine through him casting no shadow on the ground.

The wall slowly began to dissolve into the light with a glowing iridescence.  The gray bricks were being replaced by what appeared to be an almost invisible clear glass that contained no blemish or scars.  Behind the wall a land emerged where colors and form spoke words of truth into his mind, but no sound could be heard.  The streets paved with gold, a shining city appeared from within. Crystal buildings and towers adorned with pearls and jewels stretching upwards to a brilliant blue sky.  The light reflected off the crystal glass streaming rainbows of color in every direction.

His heart leapt for joy, the lies he had believed for so long, like chains, dropped from around his heart.  At long last the truth was before him, the purpose for which he had been created was clear.  He was meant to reflect back the light and love that he had now been shown, sharing that light with others.  He knew he would stand firm in the truth of that light, letting the fears recede and knowing the darkness could not overcome it.

The stranger stood silently watching with a smile upon his face.  Never had he felt so loved, so wanted, so treasured and he ran beyond where the dark wall had stood.  He moved further into the light leaving behind the less of himself and becoming more, completely overwhelmed by wonder!

©Maleko 2012

An Invasion of Gentleness

"An Invasion of Gentleness"   

Pastels and Colored Pencil on Black Paper    6x9 inches   Maleko ©2012

 

Hear this, you elders; listen, all who live in the land. Has anything like this ever

happened in your days or in the days of your forefathers?   Joel 1:2

 

Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near.    Philippians 4:5

Outline in the Dark

Photography ©Grace Unveiled (Carri Schutter) 2012

Silhouetted against the setting sun

Living a faithful tension of spirit

Lines imprison the light within

Ghosts are waiting & alive

Dreams awake in shadows

Mists of smoky haze rises

I am finally real or only

An outline in the dark

           Poetry ©MalekoArts (Mark Schutter) 2012                            

Looking For... Looking Out...

Looking for colors in the darkest black, 

Looking for arms to take me back

Looking out from the darkness within,

Looking out for a chance to begin

Looking for wisdom to show me how,

Looking for love in the here and now

Looking out along the lonely way,

Looking out for a chance to say

Looking for a strength to firmly stand,

Looking for a warm gentle hand

Looking out into the deepest blue,

Looking out searching only for you

©MalekoArts (Mark Schutter) 2012

Father, please do it again!

I watched the colors in the twilight sky grow before my eyes

As water runs quickly down quietly soaking into the ground

A kaleidoscope of blues, purples, reds, yellows and orange

Colors sing a beautiful song of worship for mankind to hear

Heavenly glory and splendor displayed on a canvas of blue

Hues fade silently as crystal stars slowly appear in the dark

Father, please do it again!

©Maleko 2012 

Memories Of Eternity

'Christmas Morning'  (Photograph Bellingham, WA)

© Maleko 2011

A journey's new start

Moments slip past

A quickening of the heart

Loves rains down

A distant star

Falls to the ground

Sparks illuminate the night

And eternity beckons

Shines loves pure light

Staring into the Light

"Staring into the Light"      Watercolors    5.5x7 inches 

Maleko ©2011

A watercolor painting of a cat staring intently towards a bright light that appears to be just off the page, indifferent to what ever may be occurring behind him.  The red stocking hat points to the holiday season and the light represents the reason we celebrate Christmas.  From the first Christmas day when a star heralded a miraculous birth and the coming of a Savior that split time in two.  

May we also point our lives, moment by moment towards the source of that light.  

May we live only for His glory. 

If you are interested in purchasing prints or cards of this design please 

visit my web site on Fine Art America.  Thanks!

Merry Christmas!!! ~M