July 10th, 2016, is one of those days forever woven through my testimony.
It was a crossroads season… A season that caused me to really take a deep hard look at the path I was on and give lots of consideration to throwing in the towel and changing course.
I had given my dad a chartered fishing trip in the marsh at Bayou Dularge. I woke up at 2 am so that we could make the two-hour drive south to get our lines in the water as we watched the sunrise. We decided to drive separately, as I was heading to Swollfest Fishing Rodeo and my dad was heading back home after we fished. So, that two-hour drive was a constant prayer asking for direction.
It was a tough season, and things were not going “my way.” I was wrestling with my own decisions while dealing with the consequences of those choices...
Do I quit chasing this dream? Do I go after a more traditional career path? Do I simply work a 9-5, punch a clock, go home, and do it all over again? Or do I stay the course and chase after a life making art?
Throwing in the towel was looking more and more appealing, but God…
Some deals were made during those two hours behind the wheel. I don’t know if it’s right to bargain with God but I do trust that He knows the heart of His own!
I told Him that I needed to see something tangible. I asked Him if I were to stay the course I was on, I’d need Him to make it known… I said, ”Write it in the sky,” and this is where the real journey began.
We loaded Captain Travis Lovell's boat and looked at the forecast, which was not the most favorable weather for a fishing trip.
We dodged storms, got caught up in storms, took refuge at a marsh camp called “Love Shack” with strangers, and - yes - we caught fish!
The sky went from gray to blue, to gray, to clouds and rainbows everywhere.
“Lord, if I am meant to be an artist, tell me… Write it in the sky for me."
Friends, I cannot explain what I witnessed that day. From the moment the sun broke the horizon until we put a cooler filled with fish in the back of the truck, there was NEVER a moment where there was no colorful ribbon in the sky.
At one point, the sky split, with darkness and storms on one side and a blue sky on the other, with a symbol of God’s promise cutting through the two. He spoke, and I knew it... How could I not?
He wrote it in the sky, just as I had asked.
Did things change immediately? NO!
It took seven years to realize the promises He gave me on July 10th, 2016, but during these last seven years, I gained a new perspective on the journey.
I knew, without question, that if God created me to be creative, He would use my gift in a powerful way.
My work is a reflection of the Creator. That day of fishing was the inspiration behind the colorful array of alligators hanging in my living room. It’s a reminder of the promise He fulfilled.
I think about that day often - Storms come, and they surround us, but would we ever see a rainbow without them?
It’s okay to question, and it’s okay to try to dodge the storms. But it’s also okay to go fishing in the rain!
-Leslie
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