THE CURRENT HEAT By Lynn Downham

Lynn Story Downham is a fourth generation artist who returned to North Carolina in 2014 after twenty-six years on the Florida panhandle. Her seventh family tree commission was for a “family tree for Jesus.” Twenty years later she is a born-again believer with a best-selling print, a beautiful family and a passion for sharing Christ through her art. Find out more on Facebook by looking up “Lynn Story Downham’s Art” or “Lynn Downham Jesus Tree.”

As I sit here writing, the heat index outside is around 100 degrees and it feels like we’re back in Florida even though I know we’re in the North Carolina mountains. Actually, we’re in the foothills and I know if we go up the mountain thirty minutes away it will be ten degrees cooler and ‘twere not for my chores waiting for me, we would go today. Indeed, the heat is on, the August heat I mean, and with a vengeance, it seems. I prayed early in the spring for a long cool spring and it not to get really hot so soon and that prayer was granted in that the temps have been perfectly lovely until just recently. Now it’s as if all that heat was saved up for a few short months. I hope!

I’ve painted the “Holy City” painting twice, once in Florida and once in North Carolina. The first belongs to our pastor in Florida and the second to our pastor here in Carolina. I was and am trying to depict the verse, “Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.” Revelation 21:2

In verses 10 through 21 of Chapter 21 of Revelation it describes the holy city and I studied these carefully to get the colors of the foundation in their proper order and the other details, the pearl gates and the angels at the gates. The color for the painting was chosen for the glory of God, the orange I mean, but because colors are classed by artists according to their “temperature” as warm or cool colors, I decided this would be a good painting for this month as the dominant color is definitely WARM. I will, Lord willing, paint this picture again as I would like to have one around and because dear reader, you know I like to paint clouds!

My husband right now is walking around the kitchen fixing leftovers and expounding on the idea of the heat being allowed by God to punish the ungodly who have turned their back on Him. And he brings me right to my next point. The heat is definitely on, folks. With the pandemic and the unrest and the disruption of the status quo, there has never been a time that Christians should be shining their lights as now. We’ve all heard our pastors say, “You might be the only Bible these people have ever heard!” All of our time sitting in pews and soaking in the Word of God, all of our time reading and memorizing His Word is needed, “… at such a time as this...”

It is difficult under pressure to remain calm, collected, and controlled by the Spirit, I know. I was in Walmart the other day and was getting really cranky about the whole mask thing, but when the heat is on, I know I’m supposed to NOT look like the world, but take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. Pray for me, brothers and sisters, for I am praying for you. Pray that Jesus’s people down here are bold in their faith, calm under pressure, and truthful when asked the reason for their beliefs. Remember that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego were not hurt by the fire!

“...And the satraps, administrators, governors, and the king’s counselors gathered together, and they saw these men on whose bodies the fire had no power; the hair of their head was not singed, nor were their garments affected, and the smell of fire was not on them.” Daniel 3:27