A new year begins...

"Grace" A silkscreen print by Suzanne Halstead and mosaic frame by Margaret Almon

We are indeed drawing nearer to 2013, only a few days hence... 

This past year has been full of joys and sorrows and many changes too -  in location, jobs, leaving friends and making new ones.  Most recently adding a rescue cat into our lives while mourning the tragic loss of life in CT & NY and frankly, around the globe.
Grace, God's Grace is needed now more then ever as we wrestle the realities of climate change, gun control and health care - to mention a few...
Grace is a tough word to comprehend.  We say, "grace" at meals, we sing, "...God shed his grace on thee..." We wonder at how grace happens through communion, through prayer and even with the phrase, "grace under firer..." We notice when someone is being graceful, or may intone the words, "Hail Mary, full of grace."  How do we become grace-full and grace-filled in a world that seems "out of control" right now?  So much pain, so much sadness, so much need! The cries come in the mail box, on Facebook, or from concerned friends each day - worthy causes, organizations and institutions each trying in their own way to stem the tide of suffering for men, women, children, animals and the earth itself.  Its overwhelming.  It can lead to depression or anger, despondency or ambivalence.
"Where is God in all this?" - we may ask.  Emmanuel!  God is with us.  Gracing us always with the passion and compassion that moves us to be aware, to care and then to share. Grace is love in action.
If we allow God to fill us up with Grace, then to be grace-filled is to overflow with the action of loving others as ourselves.  I pray that this new year each of us will be filled to overflowing with the individual passion of our hearts and that compassion will live out in this world to bring the hope, peace, joy and love that is so needed now and always.  So be it!  Welcome Yule!

New Adventures in Art & Prayer

-->

Greetings from Ohio! (more on that shortly)

Wanda and I have been a bit remiss in contributing to our Drawing Nearer blog lately – lately as in almost a year!  So I thought, since much has changed in my life, that I would take a stab at catching the blog up to the present (at least from my perspective).

OK – here goes.  First and foremost, I must say a heartfelt “Thank you” to all my dear friends and family who have seen me through this transition of leaving my beloved labyrinth and home in Pottstown, PA for new adventures in Berea, OH.  Husband Gary received a call from a wonderful church there and we felt the Spirit confirming that, “Yes” we did need to move AGAIN and be in ministry on the west side of Cleveland.

What happened to the 9 Fruit of Spirit stain glass mosaics? 

"Fruits of the Spirit" next to labyrinth

They came with us of course!  But first we had a spirit-filled dedication for these beautifully crafted word-art pieces as we walked the labyrinth with two-dozen artists and friends on October 1, 2011.  Artists Margaret Almon, mosaics and Wayne Stratz, stain glass are know together as Nutmeg Designs and collaborated to create the 9 “Fruits” with myself as mosaic border maker, grouter and sealer of each piece.  Joy, Love, Peace, Patients, Kindness, Self-Control, Goodness, Gentleness, & Faithfulness graced our Yarnall Road home & studio till January 2012 when we packed them up and moved to our new Elmwood Drive home & studio.

What about the ministry of Drawing Nearer?

Wanda Schwandt and I continue to maintain our website and to offer our printed resources, retreats and workshops using our Drawing Nearer process of prayer experiences blended with creative activities.  Of course it is more difficult to do our jointly led workshops & retreats since we are now 7 hours apart! However this also gives us the opportunity to reach out to communities both in southeast PA and northeast OH.  We are delighted that more and more folks are using our resources to delve deeper into their personal spiritual journey and also with groups large & small.  

 If you would like to learn more about our process, please visit our website www.drawingnearer.com or email us at drawingnearercc@gmail.com.   One or the other of us will respond as soon as we are able.

What’s new in the way of creative expression and artworks?

During the process of working together on the “Fruits” project, Margaret Almon and I came up with the idea of creating new collaborative artworks using my expressive oil pastels and her mosaic design expertise.  This turned into a series of truly unique artworks we call our Marzanne Collection(Margaret + Suzanne). To see more of these inspirational works like "Orange Nautilus" (on the banner), visit Margaret's Etsy Shop where they can be seen and purchased: http://www.etsy.com/shop/nutmegdesigns

"Worship" by Suzanne Halstead

The artwork used in our book, Drawing Nearer: Devotional Workbook of Creative Prayer continues to be available on our website.  Some of the original oil pastels are already sold, however you may still purchase a quality giclee print of any of the 48 images.  If you are interested in these pieces or the artwork in our Advent Angels booklet, please contact Suzanne directly: shalstead@wowway.com to purchase the artwork or for any other information about the artwork.

To learn more about how my passion of art making came to be and also the story of how it came to be used in the Drawing Nearer book, you may be interested in reading this 2-part interview:

http://margaretalmon.com/interview-with-suzanne-halstead-part-1-seining-the-soul-to-bring-vision-into-being/

http://margaretalmon.com/interview-with-suzanne-halstead-part-2-release-from-realism/

Well, I think that’s it for now, 

Blessings, Suzanne