2023 Announcement!

For 2023 We are doing something a little different.

Every Week, Starting the first Monday of January, we will announce a painting that will be 25% off for the rest of the week, every print, in every size! This means there will be an opportunity to purchase 52 separate images at a major discount.

These sales will be announced on our Facebook and Instagram, so be sure to follow those if you are not currently.

Also, for the first time, Art 4 God originals will be announced to be sold. Stay tuned, this promises to be an exciting year!

Thank you so much for all of your love and support.

International Beauty

Recently, Steve was approached by The Urantia Book Fellowship Magazine to create a magazine cover in celebration of their new readers from around the world. While the request was for a single painting, as Steve researched more about these three areas, Uganda, the Philippines, and Latin America, he was too inspired to stop at one piece. Three paintings were created in celebration of these beautiful parts of the world, and the extraordinary women that live within them. Also in the paintings are birds which are native to those areas. Steve enjoyed exploring and learning while creating these uniquely beautiful paintings.

He hopes that these pieces may inspire others to connect with other parts of the world and learn about other cultures. In thanks for the opportunity, Steve is donating 20% of the sales profits to The Urantia Fellowship.

The originals of these pieces are for sale, which is something rarely offered for Steve’s work, so if you are interested don’t wait.

Counseling Online

Stephen has a video podcast called Closet Church. This is primarily available via Facebook with over two hundred videos. Here is the link: https://www.facebook.com/ART4GOD. Private consultations are available using NLP as the foundation. (NLP Neuro-Linguistic-Programming. Stephen is a Master Practitioner through Global NLP/Nicole Schneider)

TRUST

Every day I am impacted by trust.   Whether it is about me being trustworthy or depending on others to be, there seems to be nothing which is free from the impact of trust between humans.

I am one of the fortunate ones.  I have experienced the life changing value of being someone who can be trusted and the inexpressible joy of having someone to trust.

My wife is the most trustworthy person I have ever met.  Experiencing that trust has made her more beautiful than I ever could have imagined. 

So much of my life has been a reaction to those in whom I placed trust and then spent hours or years feeling the ripples of the betrayal of that trust.

Among the many things which I can be grateful for every day, living within the circumference of trust is one which has improved all the others.

Jesus and Heroin

“How is your son?”

The question came as a surprise to me.  Part of managing someone’s social media, as I do for Steve, means having access to their account and occasionally coming across messages meant to be to them, or from them to others.  This helps me to know that people are being responded to promptly, etc.

However, this was a response to a conversation that had ended December of last year.  Steve remembered, and was checking in on, the mother of a drug addict who had reached out to him months ago. 

Today, in art class, I was surprised again as that same mother stopped by Art for God’s Versailles, Kentucky location to be gifted a large print of Calvary, the piece she had written to Steve about. 

Typically, when you think of Christian Art or paintings of Jesus, you don’t think about drugs.

Upon first seeing Calvary nearly everyone has a different response. Depending on your experiences in life, the way you view Jesus intervening and taking a shot of heroin for a man could produce a variety of emotions, and Steve has heard them all.  The responses have varied from, “F**K off Jesus, get your own heroin,” to several testimonies of people that were nearly in the grave from heroin use who stopped immediately after seeing the painting.  The positive responses are something he attributes completely to God and his love for that person, and the negative responses just cause him to sigh. 

Today however I was able to see someone genuinely touched by art. Heroin addiction in Kentucky has reached record numbers.  Lives are being lost and destroyed every day because of drug use, and the drug problem in Kentucky is nothing short of an epidemic. 

Drug use effects not only the user, but their entire family.  And, although Steve has not personally experienced this, his compassion astounded me.  

When writing this I went back to read the message he had written to this drug user’s mother when she first reached out. 

“The suffering your son endures from addiction; he does not endure alone.  Beyond your pain God endures the suffering on an entirely different level of compassion.  Even for decision far less debilitating Jesus still says, “Father forgive him for he knows not what he does.”” 

I spoke to this mother today, her son has been clean now for 3 months, but she has to take each day for what it is, and be grateful for each day and what it brings.  Who knows what tomorrow will hold, but she is grateful for today.

It was once easy to assume that drug addiction only effected a small percent of the population, but the recent heroin crisis in Kentucky has proven this theory wrong.  However, God is with all of us, in everything, Jesus’s life proved that God is willing to meet us in any circumstance and be our rescuer. He became sin, who knew no sin, that we might become his righteousness, at least that is what Calvary means to me.

-Allison

CALVARY on CBN

http://www1.cbn.com/cbnnews/us/2018/august/when-you-hurt-yourself-you-also-hurt-god-christian-artist-explains-dramatic-painting-of-jesus-with-a-

'When You Hurt Yourself, You Also Hurt God': Christian Artist Explains Dramatic Painting of Jesus With a Heroin Addict

08-17-2018

Mark Martin

The painting is titled, "Calvary," and it's a dramatic depiction of what appears to be a heroin addict shooting up Jesus with the drug. The addict uses a syringe to stick a needle into what looks like the arm of Jesus, who is standing behind him with an expression of agony.  

The painting, a work of Christian artist Stephen Sawyer, is going viral.

"Naming a painting has a lot of value – trying to come up with a name that honors the story you're trying to tell," Sawyer told CBN News. "And Calvary... it's a pain that we associate with not only great sorrow but great victory."

"We know that Jesus said, 'The Kingdom of God is within you,' which means the temple is not a facade that you walk to; the temple is the human body," he went on to say. "And it houses if we allow it – we can create a magnificent home for the Presence of God in our lives."

"And so in the painting what you see at first glance – some people see the junkie shooting up; some people see the junkie shooting up in Jesus' arm," Sawyer continued. "But the truth is, I was trying to demonstrate the fact that, God does live inside us, and those two arms are the same arm."

"And if you look at it you see that it is Jesus' arm, and it's also the junkie's arm," he said.

Sawyer went on to say that with all the prints of the painting, he chose to use the Scripture, "When you've done it unto the least of these, you've done it unto me."

"Because normally we take that Scripture to mean, 'When I was thirsty, you gave me water. When I needed clothes, you clothed me. When I was hungry, you fed me,'" he elaborated. "But these kinds of truths are universally spherical."

"No matter which way you look at it, it holds truth, which means when you hurt yourself, you also hurt God," Sawyer continued. 

"In a way, when people abuse their bodies... so when we abuse that precious part, and the temple is defiled, to me it wasn't a long stretch just to think it's kind of like another crucifixion because we're hurting the Presence of God in our life," he explained.

"And it just seemed like a natural thing to name my painting, "Calvary," Sawyer said.

The artist shared with CBN News that the model for the addict in the painting is a former user who is now clean and serving and helping others who have been "damaged" by drugs.  

Paula Berry Butler shared the painting on Facebook. In her post, she writes that she saw the artwork in the window of a shop in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, a tourist town in the heart of the Great Smoky Mountains. Sawyer owns the store, which is called, "Art for God".

"I was shocked but it gave me the chills," Butler wrote. "My friend Garry & I thought it should be hung in every rehab center, jail and hospital E.R."

Butler ventured into the shop and said a young female employee started up a conversation with her. She wrote that the woman told her she was a recovering addict and was grateful for the job.

"We asked if her family supports her now...she said no, they are ALL addicts," Butler continued. "She found her 23-year-old sister dead on a park bench, needle still in her arm."

"I told her I was sorry & mentioned I had lost my daughter when she was 29," Butler wrote. "At this point I have tears in my eyes and so did she. She comes over and gives me the biggest hug."

"She asked if I noticed there are only 3 arms in the painting and I said yes," the post continued. "She said at this point the addict isn't feeling any pain but it hurts Jesus when we hurt ourselves."

CBN News reached out to Butler for comment. She had not yet responded to our inquiry at the time of publication.

Sawyer said he believes God called him to paint the painting.

"We even have testimonies of people in prisons and jails... the painting, God used it as a catalyst, and people have stopped cold turkey – permanently," the artist shared.

Sawyer told CBN News the painting has gone viral a few times, and he believes millions have seen it.

"It's gone around the world since 2006 multiple times," he said.

Prints

Finding a printer in the Lexington, KY area who is willing to print high quality prints with archival inks, is basically impossible. 

I have been searching for this for weeks.  After a couple of years of lessons from Steve, my art has reached the point where people are interested in purchasing it. However, an original isn't in everyone's budget, so, some people want prints. 

While voicing this frustration, Steve revealed to me that he does this, and does it well.  So, this blog post is a favor to you artists out there, see Steve. 

Below are some recommendations from some other artists who have used Steve for their prints.  They're glowing. It shouldn't have surprised me.  Steve seems to build his career around serving others and helping other artists.  Yet, I was surprised to find yet another service he provides. 

-Allison

"I have tried many highly recommended, expensive printmaking services in the past and I have always been disappointed with the way my art prints looked.  The prints were one disaster after another.  I was so disappointed because I had wasted so much money on bad prints.   A few years ago all that disappointment ended when  I found Stephen Sawyer.  In my opinion his prints come out far better than any other.   Also his prices are very reasonable and fair and he is excellent at what he does.  I would not use anyone else!"

-Nancy

"I am so fortunate to have my original pastel artwork, that is showing at Art for God Gallery, printed by Stephen Sawyer.  The results are wonderful!  His work is of the best quality, and the Giclee images are virtually indistinguishable from the originals.  He uses the finest quality archival paper and inks, adding to my confidence in the final product.  I also really enjoy working with Stephen, in part because it is so obvious that he truly cares about my art and my art business.  It takes the worry out, to be able to trust my artwork giclees to someone who treats them with the same care that he would his own."

-Debbie

"I have been greatly blessed, and forever inspired, to have been afforded the opportunity to work with Stephen Sawyer over the years as he has reproduced several pieces of my art.  Each time, I have been simply stunned with the quality of the final products; often seemingly superior to my original!  With Steve, I have always been provided with much more than just high-quality reproductions.   Having such an accomplished artist give of his time, talent, knowledge, energy and advice in the hopes of furthering this meager novelist's career and work are of a value that I could never put a price upon."
Doug Miller

If Life is Not Turning Out the Way You Expected or Planned, Read This

Consider this, an honest observation of the natural world witnesses chaos and violence as an integral part of progress. 

Survival of the fittest is a provable reality. 

Whether it is water tearing through a river basin or reshaping boulders, water wins. Is there destruction in the wake of a flood? Does the serpentine shape of a newly formed river follow the laws of chaos? 

On the open plains of the Serengeti the slow zebra is surely the dead zebra and the fastest most violent self-serving lion will eat at the head of that steaming black and white table all the while reluctantly sharing the feast with other lions.

Considerably farther down the food chain, honey bees are not self serving. Every act of the honey bee is for the sake of the queen and the hive.

Most valid research indicates that these types of creatures existed long before humans. So what did God learn from this?

God was able to verify that life on this planet is and will always be very predictable. The lower orders of life would function selflessly. The higher orders, with limited free will slowly added to the recipe, predictably became more selfish. 

Mankind is now ready to take the stage. Born with a remarkable balance of free will and instinct, man is set to attempt what no other creature has ever done.

History unfailingly tells us who we are and what we are capable of. Even though the winners write history to glorify themselves, the facts lay before us in pools of blood, chaos, and violence. Unable or unwilling to kill other humans, the kind and meek died on the battlefield by the millions.

To the agnostic and atheist this life experience denies a loving God or a god altogether.

And God wonders, "Can my children use their free will to overcome their laziness, selfish fears and violence? Will they allow my spirit to help them overpower their animal ancestry of these very same traits? Will they break through the inertia of the animal kingdom to experience the power of free will dominated by love and thereby learn my true nature?"

I believe there was once such man who accomplished this.
He made preposterous claims that he and this creator were the same and yet he would always yield and say, "It is not my will but your will be done." 

There are written stories that say this man was able to defy natural law. Real physical ailments and diseases were cured within moments. These events, if they were accomplished, weren't done by shouting prayers for healing repeatedly. There are no recorded statements that a collection plate was passed around after the miracles. This man simply inquired if such a healing was the will of the creator, which he called, "Father". If he determined it was he would simply say something like, "rise, take up your bed and walk."

And you might say, "What about my life that didn't turn out the way I planned. When are we going to talk about that?"

This is your life. Whether by accident or intention, every man and woman has been a victim of chaos and violence. Everyone has been taken advantage of by the selfish manifestations of people they often know and call friend.

Some wear these physical expressions of a selfish heart as a Gucci suit while for others they are the sack cloth and ashes of a tormented soul.

As the honeybee lives for the greater good, sacrificing his "self" totally unaware, we are called to sacrifice our selfish cravings totally aware. The honeybee neither dons jewelry or shame.
To whom much is given, much is required.

Every person I have met acknowledges a reservoir of power that lies within the human mind and heart.
And while they rarely agree as to the source of this power and how it should be used, they know this power exists. 

Millions of men and women fawn over those with power and wealth. They want their photo taken next to a famous, powerful or rich person. Even though history shows us that their power and wealth are virtually always acquired by selfish means, we honor them anyway. 

Our churches are full of people who will tell you the famous person they met before they will tell you about the unknown, "unimportant" person they met.

This wreckage of our lives is like the twisted steel of a bridge after a massive earthquake. Our masterful rationalization, for our cosmetically covered selfish lives, now becomes something uselessly akin to a piece of abstract art. 

If I am correct. We are more selfish that we want our friends to know. We have caused as much or more chaos in the lives of others as they have created in ours.

Why should our lives turn out as we planned? We have stolen from others with our mind, heart, hands, and soul. 

Now is not the time to get depressed and think about how horrible we are.

Here is some remarkably great news. This gift of self awareness comes at a price. We are incapable of standing triumphant on the shores of a greater good without having swum through the cesspools of selfishness. It is impossible to triumphantly manifest courage, kindness, and real sacrifice without bearing the crushing weight of self love, self admiration, and the seeds of self destruction that grows from it.

Every one of us has had the opportunity to say, "Father forgive them, for they know not what they do."
Precious few have ever risen to such spectacular heights of unchallengeable spiritual power as did Jesus when he spoke those words. And I assure you those words will echo for all eternity and to the furthermost reaches of space as power, love,and hope.

But this much is absolutely and eternally true. 
We are capable of living a self-forgetful existence. 

To experience the real power of free will and tap into this power is within our grasp. 

Unlike the honeybee, we have been given the free will opportunity to make our life plans and watch them fall apart over and over and over. Unlike the lion, we have been given the privilege of forgiving and asking forgiveness as we ascend this ladder from selfish animal to unselfish man. 

As we climb the challenging and adventurous ladder of life, rung by laborious rung,our backpacks are heavy with potential failure. If we would just realize we strapped this heavy load on ourselves we might just as easily discard it. Even when someone you trust offers you the bag of selfish sorrows and bids you to carry it. Think about the longevity of that commitment.

If you believe in God, thank him for not letting your life turn out the way you planned. If it did you would have no compassion for others. You would pity them for not having divine favor, as you surely must, and you would bask in the magnificence of your reflection.

Thank God for your trials. Thank God for your enemies. Thank God for your friends. And if you have a noble and loving family and spouse cry out in gratitude every day.

Stop giving money to the church if you think God is going to give you more money back.
That is not a sacrifice, that is a selfish bribe.

Stop asking God to make your problems go away. Remember that Jesus, as an kind, unresisting self forgetful man, faced every trial and indignity with the absolute power of human potential, he loved and forgave those who spitefully used him. 

On the eve of his death, while the disciples clamored for seats of honor around the supper table,Jesus deliberately presented himself as a lowly servant and washed their dusty feet. This selfless act represented and still reflects the highest level of spiritual power that any man or woman might attain. 

While we might consciously cast aside our egos and demean ourselves to attempt holiness, in front of others, Jesus' love for his disciples once again found a way to break through their limitations and thrust a new paradigm of spiritual truth upon them. There was no affectation in this act. It was holiness manifested in flesh.

We must find the daily opportunities before us which give us the moments of choice where we can rise to the mastery of life and seize them passionately and lovingly.

Jesus did not run from problems nor should we. Jesus faced every day knowing he would make a conscious decision that his free will would be subject to the will of the Father.

Go and do something that you will be proud of when you lay your head down to sleep tonight.
Should there be a tomorrow, go and do the same again. And do these things without being asked or told to do them.

Life did not turn out the way Jesus planned but he changed the world forever with his loving kindness to a world crying out for holiness while carrying their burdens of selfish desires. Go and do the same.
We have been called friend by the greatest person who has ever lived. Honor his trust in you.

The Way We Learn

Everyone learns differently.  One of the often criticized aspects of traditional public education is that many students have difficulty because they don’t necessarily learn the way a teacher prefers to teach, leading them to believe that they are just not as capable, when they truly are. Art is no different.

“I learn better by hearing,” Nancy declares while in class today.  With a sideways smile, Steve responds, “That’s interesting because it always seems to be that you learn best when I show you something.” 

The conversation struck a chord with me.  Steve is particularly good at this, understanding precisely what his students need, even when they don’t.  He’s right, of course, Nancy really responds when she is shown something.  Meanwhile, I ask for him to do something for me on the canvas, and he gives me a sideways glance, knowing it’s better if he just explains it to me and I stumble around for a bit, it’s how I learn. Other students in the class are no different.  It seems Steve finds exactly how they learn and, even when they think they need one thing, he gives them what will truly benefit them in the long run and improve their painting.

As with most of our art classes, the interactions today made me think of my relationship with God.  How often do I expect him to approach me a certain way, and then become frustrated when it seems that doesn’t happen? 

So often I hear someone give a powerful testimony, and a small part of me is sad, “God doesn’t speak to me that way,” I think.  Then, somehow this becomes an indication of God’s love for me, or lack thereof.  I know I have heard others say, “Well, God just doesn’t speak to me.”  Maybe the truth is, God speaks to us differently.  Just like an art class, he gives us each what we need, infinitely wiser than ourselves.  Perhaps we can trust him to love us and have our best interest at heart? He did send his son for us after all, how much more love can he demonstrate?  

Steve has been painting most of his life, he’s sold paintings all over the world, maybe I can learn to trust the way he approaches me too?

Advice to the Aspiring Artist

“What advice would you give to someone just starting out as an artist? Or, someone who isn’t sure if they definitely want to pursue art as a career?”  The time came for me to ask Steve a random question, disguising my need for advice with a question I hope will lead him to the answer I am hoping for.  His response startled me, “I would never suggest to someone that they choose art as a career.” 

The answer came as a shock, because only moments ago I had asked him if he could do it all over again, would he still be an artist. His response was, “Yes, definitely!”  Yet, now he was saying that there is no way he would suggest that path to anyone else. 

He explained, Steve would never advise someone to choose art or painting for a career, because the career is more something that chooses you.  It’s something that you can’t not do.  It’s something that you are called to, and despite what you may choose, you need to do it.  Then he says, even though if he had to go back and do it again, he would, if he had known all the sacrifice that would come with being an artist he is unsure if he would have the courage to do it.

“That’s the thing about culture today,” he says “everyone wants to know what the future holds. Whether it’s through intellectual prediction, fortune telling, or even through God, everyone wants to know what is in their future.” 

I thought about it.  I know this is true for me.  Particularly with the political climate of today, it seems anyone’s guess is as good as anyone else’s as to what will happen tomorrow.  Things seems so unsure, so unpredictable.  Yes, I want to know.  I want to know who wins the election, what the weather looks like tomorrow, if I will ever make it as an artist, if I am doing the right thing for my kids, and how long I have left on this planet to make an impact.  It almost seems that trying to understand what the future may hold has become synonyms with living in this world. 

Then he says, “Where is the fun in that?”

“If we know what the future holds then there is no reason for faith.  And, a life without faith, already knowing what is to come. Where is the fun in that?  What is the point?”

I suddenly became very aware of my paintbrush.  I thought of my preoccupation with how my painting will turn out, rather than appreciating each stroke as it’s made, enjoying the process. 

He’s right. 

So, what I have learned from today, to those aspiring to be artists, or really anyone, do whatever it is that you can’t help but do.  Do what God created you to do, and put your faith in him that he can get you through whatever it is you need to sacrifice in order to do it.  

Young Steve and his Family