The Garden Time is when we quietly enjoy fellowship with our Master, our Friend, our Redeemer... Just basking in His glorious presence. It is an interlude of great peace, pervading serenity and joy, all wrapped up in unspeakable love.

You are pictured in your seaside garden with arms folded as a one who has completed requisite tasks and spends time meditating on the Lord rather than vainly running to and fro in a rush of senseless activity... as one who has learned to wait upon the Lord in times of need or decision.

The arbor overlooks a sea shore we cannot see, yet we can hear the waves and the scent of the surf wafts to us on a gentle breeze... We know the shore is there just as we know that heaven is real for we can taste its sweetness through the Holy Spirit.

The four pillars of the sturdy arbor represent the four Gospels which, like these pillars are strong and can hold up the shelter of our faith. And like us, the arbor is set apart. We are set apart, holy to the Lord and must remain so.

Representing the Tree of Life, the evergreen is atop a retaining wall which keeps its root system safe from erosion, reminding us to sink the roots of our faith deep into the Word for nourishment and into Christ for the Living Water. We, too need a retaining wall of corporate worship cemented with the mortar of Christian fellowship.

As in all my art, the blues represent Truth and Purity (along with the whites which also stand for the Light - Jesus Christ). Reds remind us of the shed blood of our Savior and the scarlet thread of salvation which runs throughout both Old and New Testaments.

As believers, we are a royal priesthood, and I have placed blue, purple and white flowers very close to you in this scene, for you shine forth the lovely qualities they represent. Without seeming effort, your life glorifies the Lord and stands as a shining witness for all that is good, pure and holy.