Winter Comes Softly

By Hazel Holland

This is a different variation of the original watercolor painting, "Winter Wonderland" that I painted a few years ago.  I recently created this painting in order to portray the feeling of how soft and gentle the snow can seem on a cold winter days in the mountains. 

I think this art print would make a great Christmas greeting card, too.♥

To see a larger copy of this art print click here.

The Promised One

By Hazel Holland

Originally I painted this impressionistic watercolor a few weeks before Christmas 2007 and made Christmas card prints of it to give to friends. With Christmas just around the corner, I thought that this card would make a nice gift for a friend.  

If you are interested you may click here to see the price of individual cards or cards that come in packs of 10 or 25.  I pray that its message of hope will bring encouragement and assurance to your heart today as you look to Jesus who is your Peace. 

Yes, the Promised One came to this earth as a tiny baby over two thousand years ago.  "And His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace." Isaiah 9:6

He fulfilled the work God gave Him to do when He died on the cross for your sins.  Then He sent the Holy Spirit to be with you and in you forever so that you could come to know Him personally, and share His amazing love and grace with others.♥

To see a larger copy of this art print click here.

Removing the Veil

By Hazel Holland

This impressionistic watercolor speaks of removing the veil that is still over many of our eyes.  Although the shadows of old covenant images were replaced by the glory of new covenant promises when Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins, many of us still continue to set up camp under the old order of things. Although the cloud has moved on our eyes remain veiled... 

Understanding the meaning and significance of Jesus' death for us where His body (the veil) was rent in two brings us great freedom in the Spirit.  Now we have immediate entrance into the very presence of God because Jesus has given us access through His most precious blood.  

There's no veil between us anymore because the Sacrifice has already been made.  The old covenant shadows have been replaced by the new covenant reality of His life-giving Spirit.♥

A Broken Heart

By Hazel Holland

 

While I was painting this impressionistic watercolor I was reminded that when the Roman soldier thrust the spear into Jesus' side, blood and water poured forth... 

It's evident to me that when Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins, He died of a broken heart.  Praise God that He was willing to taste death for each one of us so that our hearts may be healed.♥

A Wave of Glory

By Hazel Holland

I painted this impressionistic watercolor as I remembered what it felt like in the Spirit to be bathed in a wave of God's glory.  It's like being immersed in an ocean of His unconditional love and forgiveness where the aroma of His grace completely covers you.  It's the place where He can see into your heart and you want to live in His heart forever.♥

To see a larger copy of this artwork click here.

I AM Will Calm Your Sea

By Hazel Holland

After writing the following word from God's heart one morning I was inspired to paint this watercolor later that same day as I thought about a young friend of mine who was going through a difficult time in her life...

When the situation looked the most impossible to the disciples, that's when Jesus came walking on the water...stepping through the whitecaps towards them as if the angry sea were mere asphalt. Can you hear His welcome voice as it thundered with power and authority in the midst of that storm?

"It is I... don't be afraid!

Just as Jesus, the great "I AM" calmed the sea that stormy night and brought the disciples safely to the shore, so He comes striding across the turbulent sea of your life.  With a voice more powerful than any wind of adversity, He says to you right now:

"I am Yahweh!  Don't be afraid!  I AM with you!  I will calm the sea of your troubled heart.  I will go deeper than the deepest ocean and heal the source of your fear and pain."

"I AM the Word by whom all things were made, and My Word will not return to Me void.  It will accomplish that which I have purposed in My heart for you, My beloved!"

"Two thousand years ago I would not let the crowds make Me a King, but today I will let you make Me King of your heart.  Let Me step into the restless sea of your anxious thoughts and emotions and quiet your spirit with My love."

"Let Me hold you as I sing over you. Let Me lead you as we dance over the whitecaps on this turbulent sea of life together. Let Me bring you safely to shore on the other side..." ♥

To see a larger copy of this artwork click here.

Life Without Filters

By Hazel Holland

I painted this watercolor about five years ago after I received a vision one night while praying for a friend of mine just before we attended a Cleansing Streams Weekend Retreat.  After sharing with her what I had seen, she confirmed that the visual portrayal of her in a fish tank clinging to the air filter was exactly how she felt at times as a worship leader within the church. She felt restricted and controlled by man-made rules while at the same time struggling to let go of her own need to be in control of everything.

Often she felt like she would die at times if she didn’t get some fresh air soon. She wanted to receive the gift of the Spirit, but was afraid that God might send her a “stone” instead of “Living Bread”. Consequently, she found herself resisting the work of the Spirit by telling God how to do His job. Finally, the wall of fear that she had erected collapsed, and she was freed to venture beyond the confining walls of the “fish tank” and discover an ocean of clear Living Water where there were no restrictions to Life in the Spirit…

My prayer is that God will release us all from fish tank living into the Ocean of His Amazing Grace where we can drink daily of His River of Delights. 

"God, we're tired of being bound to man-made filtering systems that keep your Holy Spirit from breathing His true Life-giving Energy and Presence into us.  Lord, we want the quality of Life that comes from living in You with no filters, because You came to give us Life to the fullest!  Free all of us who have found ourselves confined by the limitations of life within the tank!" ♥

You may read more about this here.

To see a larger copy of this artwork click here.

The Aroma of Grace

By Hazel Holland

While I was painting these watercolor flowers today I was reminded that Christians are called to be the aroma of grace in this world.  But the message of God's love for sinners is often drowned out by our images of ungrace.  Sadly all others see and smell of us at times is the scent of ungrace.  Perhaps that's because Christians are increasingly perceived as religious moralists who want to control other people's lives.  

Thus, our real challenge as Christians, particularly here in the USA, should not be to try and Christianize America, or any other country for that matter, but be God's hands and feet as we share His heart of love and mercy for all people.  That's what Jesus did.  He attracted the most unlikely people... the moral outcasts of society.  And let's not forget that it was NOT the notorious sinners who called for His death, but the moralists. 

Jesus came to establish a new kind of kingdom that could co-exist in Jerusalem, and also spread into Judea, Samaria, and the uttermost parts of the earth.  That's why in one of His parables He warned that pulling up weeds may also destroy the wheat along with the weeds.  So He advised us to leave all judgment to the one true Judge. 

Although Paul had much to say about the immorality of individual members of the church, he had little to say about the immorality and abuses of pagan Rome.  Both Jesus and Paul concentrated not on the pagan kingdom around them, but on the alternative kingdom of God.

So this leaves us with a very clear message of what we as believers need to be focused on.  We're not called to restore morality to the United States, but to concentrate more on spreading the aroma of grace from the kingdom that is not of this world.♥

To see a larger copy of this painting or order a print of it, please click here.  Then click on "Art Print" and you will be shown the different sizes that it comes in.

A God-shaped Hole

By Hazel Holland

As I was painting this abstract watercolor and letting the colors run at times and bleed into one another, I asked God to help me paint something beautiful that would point people to Him.  It wasn't until I was finished with the painting that I saw the doughnut-shaped hole, and immediately was reminded that God has created a God-shaped hole inside each one of our hearts that only He can fill.

Sometimes we get to hear the words of famous people who describe the emptiness of life inside of them as a gaping hole.  All their talent, success and fame do not satisfy the gnawing emptiness they feel inside... The inner thirst they have craves for something more. 

How about you and I?  How much of our lives are also spent trying to fill this God-shaped hole in our hearts with things that do not satisfy?  Do we also have an inner yearning for something more?  Of course God knew we would experience this aching void inside our hearts outside of a loving relationship with Him.  That's why He offers us the security of Himself. 

Yes, there's a God-shaped hole inside each one of us that cannot be filled by anyone or anything other than God Himself.  "You have made us for Yourself, Oh God, and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in You alone." ♥

To see a large copy of this artwork click here .

God's Kaleidoscope

By Hazel Holland

As we drink from the Living Water may our roots grow deep into Him,

and our lives reflect the colors of His grace.♥

After I finished painting this watercolor I was reminded that grace is all around us and shows up in the most unexpected places.  So often it's displayed through the lives of the most unlikely people, and comes free of charge to people who don't deserve it.

I feel sure that Jesus must have been aware of our gut level resistance to grace because He talked about it a lot in parables without hardly ever using the word.  He saw grace everywhere.  His Father's world was a place where the sun shines on those who acknowledge Him and those who don't.

On the other hand, because we are so accustomed to finding a catch in every promise, it is sometimes hard for us to believe that Jesus' stories of extravagant grace included no catch phrase that would disqualify people like you and me from receiving God's love.

God didn't wait for us to come to Him.  He became a Man and came looking for us.  He came looking for the sick, not the well.  He came for the unrighteous, not the righteous.  He came for those who betrayed him... like the disciples... like you and I... and His response is always like that of a lovesick father.  He rejoices when one of His "real" kids repents and returns home.

Jesus is GRACE.  He made the first move by coming to this world.  And in spite of the fact that we live in a world of sin, it can never disrupt the flow of God's grace. For grace does not depend on what we have done for God, but rather what God has already done for us!

God is grace.  God is the One who loves.♥

To see a larger copy of this artwork click here. 

Tears of Joy

By Hazel Holland

As I was painting this watercolor that is both impressionistic and abstract, these particular verses of Scripture began flooding my heart. "When the Lord brought back the captives to Zion, our mouths were filled with laughter... our tongues with songs of joy...  Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy." Psalm 126:1-6

Then I remembered how the Spirit had prompted me to use this particular passage of Scripture in the introduction to my book, "The Naked Truth...", a book that I wrote and published on Amazon three years ago.  This book deals with the spiritual healing that God wants to bring to many of us who have been unknowingly involved in an incestuous family system within a church setting.  Trying to hide the family's dirty laundry from outsiders has caused a litany of human wreckage in so many lives.

The desire of my heart is to let the Lord uncover the roots of pain and dysfunction that have entwined themselves around our hearts, and thwarted many of our attempts toward spiritual healing and a healthy intimacy with God.  Although we may have wept tears of sorrow for what seemed like a night, God's promise to us in the gospel is that His tears of joy will flood our hearts in the morning! ♥ 

To see a larger copy of this artwork click here.

Fiery Splendor

By Hazel Holland

This is an impressionistic watercolor that I did a few days ago using wet colored tissue paper and watercolor paint.  Although I didn't know what the outcome would be for this new way of watercolor painting, I wanted to create a background of fiery warm colors because I sensed God's heart of passion and love for His children. 

So I began to let some of the colors run like water because I wanted to create the effect of God's love raining down on us.  However, I intended for this to just be the background for a painting where I would actually put in more details.

Then I decided to flip the painting over and low and behold this was the result--a forest aglow with the fiery splendor of sunset on a lake.  Everything was reflecting the colors of His agape love!  God's love raining down produced a forest of beautiful trees. 

Like these trees, we are designed to bring glory to His name as we reflect the beauty of who He is.♥ 

To see a larger copy of this artwork click here.

A Sea of Broken Hearts

By Hazel Holland

As I was painting this watercolor of a sea of broken hearts I wanted to convey a  message of hope to those of you who are hurting.  If you are feeling tossed about on the sea of life by the turbulent winds of adversity, I want you to know that Jesus will hold you close to His heart.  And through every storm you face, He will calm the raging sea inside of yours.  

I used rainbow colors as a way to remind you that God is the Healer of broken hearts.  He wants to turn your tears into laughter and your weeping into songs joy.  Let Him lead you as you and He dance over the whitecaps on this turbulent sea of life together.  Let His love bring you safely to shore.♥

To see a larger copy of this art print click here. 

An Icon of Grace

By Hazel Holland

"He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and 

familiar with suffering... He was pierced for our transgressions, 

and He was crushed for our iniquities... 

and by His wounds we are healed." 

Isaiah 53:3-5

Five years ago I was compelled to paint this watercolor as the Holy Spirit moved upon my heart to depict the sacrificial love that sent God's Son to the cross.  Today I'm compelled again to post this watercolor with this quote from Paul Young that so touched my heart.

"God did not invent the cross, but anticipated it. It was the worst torture device that human beings could ever create, so that is where the Father, Son and Holy Spirit went, to camp inside our losses, the place where we would use this torture device to even kill God. And God says 'Bring it on.' And then He transforms a man-made torture device into a beautiful icon of grace and a monument of compassionate kindness... He took our wrath. He met us at our deepest, darkest places, and embraced us. And now He climbs into our messes and begins to transform us from the inside out." ♥

To see a larger copy of this art print click here.

Travail of Tears

By Hazel Holland

When I painted this abstract watercolor a couple of days ago I wanted it to convey a message of love and hope from God's heart to ours.

I want it to remind us of what Jesus Christ went through in the Garden of Gethsemane when He poured out His heart to his Father in a travail of tears.  He drank the bitter cup of suffering and death on our behalf so that He might turn our tears of weeping into tears of joy! ♥

To see a larger copy of this art print click here.

Peeling Back the Layers

By Hazel Holland

Did you ever feel like God was peeling back the layers of pain in your life in order to expose something that you didn't really want to see?   He will do that you know, because He longs to restore our wounded souls and bring healing to our hurting hearts.

Thirty years ago when I painted just the onion part of this watercolor, it was the ugliness of unforgiveness that was buried deep within my heart.  But I was not yet ready to really see the ugliness that was in my own heart.  All the wrongs that had been done against me as a child, and all the pain that had been inflicted upon me as an adult by my own sins and the sins of others...it had all left its ugly scars.

Then later... in God's timing, He showed me that my heart was like a red onion, I saw that each white layer of pain and unforgiveness were the scars in my life that were always covered by a red layer of His saving blood.

I not only recognized that I was covered by Christ's blood and forgiven for my sins, but the sins of others done against me were also covered by His blood! Even before I had repented of the hardness of my own heart, I had been forgiven!

The truth of God's heart of agape love brought me to my knees. The goodness of God led me to repentance. It broke my heart to see such love revealed in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ for me.

Seeing God's goodness revealed to me like this freed me to forgive myself, and let go of the hurt and wounds from my past. It set me free to love others unconditionally with God's agape love.

So tonight I finished the painting by placing the imagery of the peeled onion on a colorful patchwork quilt.  Each piece of the quilt represents different aspects of my life that God has restored and healed by His Spirit. 

Of course healing and forgiveness is an on-going process.  But it's the only way to live life to the fullest.  Because His love has restored my soul and healed my heart, I want you  to experience His healing grace, too.♥

To see a larger copy of this art print click here.

Fleeting Moments

By Hazel Holland

     

As I was painting these impressionistic butterflies I wanted to depict their delicate beauty and remember the struggle they had gone through to emerge from their cocoons with their new bodies and wings intact.

The transformation from a caterpillar to a butterfly is a scientific wonder that only the heart of God could have imagined and created.  I feel sure He had each one of us in mind when He created them, because they are a reminder to us of the life-changing encounter we may all experience with the living Christ.

Butterflies are here today and gone tomorrow because their life cycle is very short.  Our life cycle is short too when you put it into perspective with eternity, isn't it?  But we both have a destiny to fulfill while we are here.  

The fleeting moments of our lives cannot be extinguished like the butterfly's, because His resurrection life lives in us.  Although we may physically die, our spirits will remain alive in Jesus Christ.  Because we have been transformed by His Spirit, we will soar again... like beautiful butterflies.♥

To see a larger copy of this art print clear here.

A Bluebell Carpet

By Hazel Holland

I painted this impressionistic watercolor of bluebells to recapture the good memories I have from my childhood of picking bluebells in the Springtime.  I usually didn't keep to the pathways that ran through the woods, but would run and skip through the blue carpet of flowers, enjoying the sweet fragrance of the delicate blossoms.

Bluebells always seemed to beckon me to pick them.  I couldn't resist the charm of their dancing bell-shaped faces.  So I would gather as big a bouquet as my hands could hold.  I'll do the same again now if I ever get the chance.   After all it's not every day that beautiful wild flowers like this roll out the blue carpet for you.

You know... I believe God had you and me in mind when He created such beauty.  No one may ever roll out the red carpet for us, but God planned that bluebells would carpet the woods in the springtime.  What pleasure this must bring to His heart when we praise Him and acknowledge Him as our loving Creator. ♥

A Vase Full of Sunshine

By Hazel Holland

I was doodling around with wet colored tissue paper and watercolor pencils and this was the result... a vase full of sunshine!

Why don't you give some sunshine today to someone who has forgotten that the sun is always shining just above the clouds.♥

Heart Flowers

By Hazel Holland
 

I had fun painting these impressionistic heart-shaped flowers.  I don't know if heart-shaped flowers like this already exist, but they do now! 

Then my friend, Chris, reminded me that they look like shamrocks.  Of course, she's right!   I'd forgotten all about the shamrock having heart-shaped petals... actually leaves.  I use to pick them as a child when we lived in Ireland. They always grew down near the ocean.   Every time we would go to the seaside (that's what we called the beach back then) I would look for the little white shamrock flowers so I could pick the heart-shaped leaves.

I'm remembering now that they are related to the clover.  Once in a while in my hunt for shamrocks I would run across a four-leafed shamrock and squeal with delight.  I remember now how the leaves are very sensitive to light.  They will react dramatically to light...opening to sunshine and closing up if the light dims!

I painted the flowers these colors because I wanted some petals to reflect the sky and the clouds, others the green grass and trees, and then one flower was devoted to the color of love.

But love doesn't really come in any shape or color, does it?  Love comes from the heart and shows up in the most unexpected places.♥

Click here and here  for further information on purchasing a copy of this print.