Author: tiroshjourney

Acrylic Ink
18 x 18 inches
Nov 2022

The ‘Journey of Faith’ is not a blind faith but a journey of Trust
without knowing the end result.

A journey depending on God’s guidance and
beholding Him for our every move.

It is a lifetime partnership with Him doing exploits as
we are conformed to His image from glory to glory.

Price : S$400

Journey of Faith

SGD 400.00

Oil painting on canvas
23.25 x 33.25 inches
27 March 2021

Have you ever wonder whether you really travelled to places when you dreamt that you were in another country in your dreams?
Or have you ever experienced visiting another person in another place/nations in your visions?
This I called them Holy Flights. They often happened after a prayerful time with the Lord when the earthly and heavenly realm become as one.

Part 1 : Living Life is an Art

Every success emerges out of many failed stories. Similarly every completed painting is birthed out of triumphant outcome of overcoming many personal battles and warfare. Ask yourself why some half-complete paintings are chucked aside at the corner of your room? Why is the canvas sitting there starring ‘blankly’ at you after months or even years of hibernation? All of us go through this in one way of another whether is arts or any creative work. It bothered us but somehow we do not really know how to confront them. Pushing them aside only allow  frustrations and guilt to seep in. Soon we will start to wonder how did we get ourselves into this position? Before we realized, we have already made up our mind to get out from the ‘discomfort’ and resigned to the fate that we are not called to do art. Something inside us died.

I went through the process of creating and giving up many times. I am now in my 12^th year of painting and still going through this turbulent ride each time I start to pick up my paint brush (though it does get easier each time). I considered drawing/painting process as the ‘pause button’.  Over the years I have learned that art slows down my steps by engaging our emotions and thoughts; confronting me to re-evaluate my desires and values.  In short : it allows me to see more clearly and try to make sense of the chaos in life. Once we see truths about life from within, it empowers us with corresponding actions to overcome in life. The Art of Living!

Be still, and know that I am God…(Psalm 46:10)

‘Resting’ in the Lord does not equate to inactivity. Creating art process is similar to the stillness  : it slows down our activities to learn the truth of who He is; which in turn reveals who we are; and propels us forward with corresponding actions to do His works that He has already prepared for us.

Art is indeed a verb not just a noun. It is not just an end product that reveals the world around us or served not just as an instrument for redemptive evangelism; most important it  teaches how to live life when we interpret the soft skills in arts. Art is a chaotic sequential change process that gave us a safe platform of life to engage, confront, embrace and overcome.  So let us begin…. again.

8 Jan 2020

2 Jan 2020 :
I was seeking from the Lord to show me what He has for 2020 during the last few days of 2019. I expected it to come on Christmas day like what happened last year but it only came on 2 Jan 2020.

In the dream, I was flying…. very very fast… kind of rocket speed (much faster than aeroplanes) from place to place …kind of seconds from place to place). I did not know the places I was flying in/to but had the sense that I stayed for some seconds until it was time to fly again. I enjoyed the flying as the feeling was ecstatic!

One flight was a little difficult and slow (as though the gravity pull was heavy pulling down my flight and make it difficult to fly). I wondered whether I flew at all. A lady in my dream told me that I did managed to fly some distance… it was from North of Haifa to South of Haifa… not very far and still within Haifa. Only then did I realized that I was in Haifa. The dream ended.

I woke up in the morning while this dream was still fresh in my mind. I turned to my mobile while still on my bed. The facebook page popped up a painting of a flying bird done by a prophetic artist Christine and she mentioned ‘flying’ and what Prophet Nate Johnson mentioned in his prophetic video for 2020. This got me really interested to find out more about my dream.

In Nate Johnson’s prophetic video, he mentioned several things… those things that caught my spirit was ‘flying’, ‘2003’ and ‘cup’. I suddenly remembered that the only time I was in Haifa was in 2003! (17 years ago). Anything significant in Haifa in 2003? Yes, there was a few suicide bombings in Haifa that killed and injured many. God reminded me to look up on the word ‘Haifa’ which means : cover, shield, shore. Is that why ‘Haifa’ was in the dream for such a time as this? I was also reminded that Mt Carmel is situated at South of Haifa.
(The ‘cup’ was speaking to me about my personal journey which I will not share for now.).

7 Jan 2020 :
I seek God for understanding and revelation as the dream was too weird to comprehend. I only had some understanding yesterday 7 Jan and decided to journal it today. I believed more will be revealed as days to come.

The word ‘Spirit of Elijah’ came while seeking interpretation of the dream from the Lord. I began to see the connection. If you know the story about Elijah and how he ‘fly’ (caught up by the whirlwind of fire) and how God demonstrated His powers through Elijah on Mt. Carmel, you will see the connection.

I painted ‘Arise’ consisted of a flying Elijah in 2018. I am using this painting now to speak what God has impressed in my heart through the dream :

15th December 2019

There is a ‘Roar’ within all of us. Most of our roars are in preparation and nurturing mode until it takes a vision to bring together into the alignment of God for a unique season and time. 2020 shall be a very significant year for many of us. It shall be a year where God’s presence become very prominent in many areas of our life, many shall see and know the Lord and His will shall be birthed through those who loved Him.

This special project ‘The Roar 2020/5780’ was initiated by God in 25 Dec 2018. It was a dream I had about the lion roar that I decided to paint a roaring lion titled “I heard the Roar”.
(you can read about to the dream and painting : https://tiroshjourney.wordpress.com/2018/12/26/i-heard-the-roar/ )
I thought God was speaking to me about my personal journey initially since I have always been a lion painter and the dream was just one of those many weird dreams I had. As 2019 progresses, many prophetic words came forth from many parts of the world declaring 5780 (Sept 30 2019 onwards) as the year of the Roaring Lion. Something ticked in me. I started to seek the Lord what He actually wanted to do. It was not until Aug 13th 2019 that I received the understanding to gather artists to declare God’s destiny over Singapore on her 55th birth year 2020 with a Roar!

I started to invite artists to participate in this assignment without sharing with them about my dream (some of them may have heard and read about it). Those interested artists were given 4 months to create the artwork based on roaring lion. The purpose was not to influence their decision to participate but for those artists who truly resonate with the theme and they felt called to respond. I believed the artists who have responded with the ROAR are those who have heard from the Lord and are determined to pursue their escalated destiny God has instored for them in 2020.

A similar exhibition called ‘The Gathering of the Lions’ in 2014 was organised by 2 friends Georgina, Patsy and myself 5 years ago. We managed to gather 24 participating artists age 6 to 60s from 12 different churches. It was a physical exhibition with 49 lion paintings declaring over Singapore 49th Jubilee held at Goodman Arts Centre. This next ‘The Roar 2020/5780’ will be virtual/online exhibition and it seemed to be a followup on the earlier one though it was never my intention. I really appreciate and thank God for those artists who responded to both exhibtions : they shall receive double blessings!

I want to say a big THANK YOU to all artists who have participated in this extra-ordinary journey…. let your voice be heard and your God given inheritance be manifested to serve the people and this nation into greater heights. Let the Sound of Heaven declare :

A little one shall become a thousand, and a small one a strong nation: I the Lord will hasten it in his time.
(Isaiah 60:22 KJV)

The Journey Within
Oil painting on canvas  (24″ x 30″)
Completed 17th June 2011
Artist : Irene Wong

4 Dec 2019
Met up with a artist today and had some coffee talk. We were reflecting and sharing some ups and downs of being a artist. Skills and techniques are important whether you are doing fine painting or abstract works but this is not the vital element for you to move forward as a artist. It is the overcoming of the our negative thoughts whether it is a ‘battle’ or ‘warfare’ (depends how big or small) or even ‘spiritual warfare’ that many artists have quit. Skills can be developed over time but having the ‘mind of Christ’ are developed through every day’s trials and victories when no one is watching.
Just like the different animals in the painting, we need to be a lamb to follow and learn in certain paths…. some seasons we need to be humbled to hitch a ride when we are tired. There are times we have to be strong for others… and there are times we have to take the lead. Understanding the season and times to posture ourselves will be a good start to begin any endeavor.
What role are you posturing yourself for the path ahead?
I am more like a tortoise now hitching a ride, grateful for the the strength of others have extended to me. You know who you are. THANK YOU.

17 th June 2011
In order to discover new possibiities in the outside world, we must first explore our internal world.
When we begin to work on something entirely raw and new, something unprecedented, we have to switch from a mode of familiarity and certainty to a place where risks, exploration, resistance to conformity, learning to learn are allowed to take over.
When I began as a painter, it started as a hobby, something I have always wanted but could not find time to do. Once I embarked on this journey, I realised I need to struggle with many conflicting thoughts and feelings; embraced and rejuvenated by many other emotions with refreshing ideas ALL AT THE SAME TIME!  It is both confusing and paradoxical. No wonder artists gave the impressions that they are either ‘weird’ or ‘crazy’. Through it I have learned how to face fears and uncertainties, employ new tactics, ideas to engage my imagination and creativity from within to overcome each obstacle. This period of incubation & illumination is a necessary phase to prepare each new painting. At the end of each artwork, I felt as though a battle has been won with birth of new ideas with wider & more relaxed understanding of human nature. This experiential process of generating is called creativity.

There is indeed transformative power behind any creativity initiative :
What we find inside us is more valuable than what we produce for the external world.
It is reconciliation of God and His creation.

Many people has introduced me as a prophetic artist. I have been painting prophetically for many years yet I still cringed at the idea of being called that name. Lately I have received requests to teach ‘prophetic’ painting which I have turned down in the past. I guess I do not fit into the conventional way other prophetic artists are trained and painted in church. Spiritual painting during worship/sermon/conferences or card drawing are a common form of outreach/prayer/healing and blessings. As for me, I take weeks or even months to dwell on one single painting and most of all they are not free. I charged a fee for those who request for a personal prophetic painting (though there are times I painted for free). Theirs is a ministry, mine is a vocation.

I got to know about prophetic painting in the year 2009 when a team from Bethel Church : Kris Vallotton , Kevin & Theresa Dedmon had a conference in Singapore. They taught about prophetics and introduced prophetic art. I was greatly blessed. I got to explore drawings and create prophetic cards for outreach on the streets. Unfortunately that was as far as I could pursue at that time. That was something totally new to churches and I had yet to grow in confidence to boldly do it on my own. I eventually put my quest for ‘prophetic’ painting to sleep.
How and when did I ended up as a ‘prophetic’ artist? Looking back at those years of my art journey, I could only say God was the one who orchestrated this art journey.

I left my job in 2008 and started painting only in 2009. I had no prior art experience nor do I had any art education (except for the few months/once a week art class at NAFA). I practiced painting on my own and job hunt at the same time. I painted everyday and managed to complete about 60 pieces of artwork during the 1 year period with no job in sight. With God’s grace. I sold some paintings and eventually succumbed to the idea that my vocation has taken a change in its course.

I stumbled into ‘prophetic’ painting in late 2009 when a friend commissioned me to paint for her friend as a gift (I was only given her name and the rest was up to me to seek God for revelation). It was a challenge because I had never done it before and had no idea how to start except for the brief training I got from Theresa Dedmon’s conference.

I was desperate and pleaded with Him to reveal what to paint. NOTHING came for a month of seeking. I gave up waiting and turned to work on my daily chores ….. it was only then a vision came. I painted right away…and the rest was history. Requests for personal prophetic paintings started to come in and I have not stopped painting ever since.

Through the years of ‘prophetic’ painting, I have learned to identify the way He revealed to me : there were no dramatic signs and wonders but rather sparks of visions or sometimes a still small voice surfaced when I was attending to my daily chores. This does not mean we should stop waiting on Him to seek Him. What I have learned was that those times spent meditating on the word and praying in the ‘closet’ had actually positioned and paved my way to receive His revelations when I was not in a position to seek Him. All of us are wired in our own unique ways. It is crucial to know the unique way that He speaks to you.

‘Prophetic’ painting has grown and evolved through the years though I believed it could have grown faster and greater if not for the lack of exposure and understanding of art in church and the suspicions among
a) prophetic artists & church
b) prophetic artists & professional artists
c) spirit led/download & skills
These may seem irrelevant for those who paint prophetically within church context. But for those who paint prophetically as a vocation like me, we will need to identify our individual uniqueness and address our roles and responsibilities as ‘prophetic’ artists in order to walk this uncharted path. Indeed we have a long way to go……

Procrastinate : Delay or postpone action; put off doing something. 

Hibernate :  Remain inactive or indoors for an extended period 

(Meaning based on English Oxford dictionary)

Animals hibernate in winter time to rest from activity and conserve energy in order to survive.

Do man hibernate? I do. I remember a time when I took some off days from my hectic work life to simply sleep and rest and eat at home. My aim was to rest physically and mentally away from the heavy demand of my workload in order to restore energy to prepare for more challenges ahead.

Hibernation is for survival, Procrastination is a form of escapism.

When I get stuck at conception of ideas for my next painting, I usually choose to walk away from my canvas & paints and indulge myself in other things like watch a movie or listen to a sermon from unconventional preacher…clean my house… etc so I get the subject matter out of my mind though my heart is still ‘cooking’ the thoughts/ideas. This process is incubation (to keep them warm and bring them to birth) not the same as hibernation.

I do hibernate in-between finishing a painting and starting a new one when I want to adopt a total new approach to my painting style. I would like to do something I have not done before or have not done for a long time…travel to a new country…paint my wall green… dye my hair red…(etc …..??!!). Pamper yourself in a brand new experience by putting your mind totally away from painting i.e. putting my painting to sleep. But there is a high chance I may not pick up painting ever again if the hibernation period were to last too long. If prolonged hibernation suits you, it is time to consider other calling/vocation other than painting.

If you are thinking of changing a new career path, hibernation will be a necessary process to allow the authenticity within you to emerge… find your purpose driven life.

Procrastinate : Delay or postpone action; put off doing something.

Hibernate :  Remain inactive or indoors for an extended period

(Meaning based on English Oxford dictionary)

What is the difference between to Procrastinate and Hibernate?

These 2 words were never active in my life when I was holding a 65-70 hours a week kind of job. I was so goal and task orientated that I have no excuse to procrastinate or reason to hibernate. Solving hands on problems and planning 2 years ahead is a common routine in my previous job until I left it all behind in end 2008. I had so much time in hand that I knew not how to manage.

“Wait upon the Lord” or “Rest in the Lord” became a common phrase I often used whenever friends became curious about how I spend my time. I realized these phrase no longer validate my state of existence after a year of wandering. That was the time when I questioned whether I was in the the state of procrastination or hibernation.

How I know I am procrastinating :
– I know something need to be done (task) but I do not like to do it.
– I am constantly reminded that it has yet to be done.
– It weighs me down and the sense of anxiety and guilt set in because I have not done it.
– I suddenly realized my putting off the matter has allowed it to roll into a bigger issue/matter and has now
become too overwhelming for me to handle.
– I would procrastinate even longer…that is when the danger of depression kicks in… I start to self-sabotage my
self-worth and often got angry with myself & others.

Why do I procrastinate
– too lazy (there is always a tomorrow)
– too busy (there are other better/important/interesting thing to do)
– too tired (taking more than you can handle)
– afraid to fail, or afraid to succeed (afraid to take responsibility or face reality)

This is what I have learned to put in-place some practice to manage my habit of procrastination :
a) give dead-lines – this is important for tasks that require more than a week to complete.
b) have a routine weekly time table – this works well for me since my mind often run wild and drift into
different directions and million inspirations of new things to do.
c) learn how to say ‘no’ – narrow down and be selective to requests/invitations to tasks or meet-ups with people.
d) sufficient sleep – having insufficient sleep puts me into an ‘anxiety’ mode which I often find difficulty in
focusing and not able to do well or complete the task. Having too much sleep slothed me in a
‘dreamy’ state : wanting only to ‘rest’ not doing anything or only selecting task that only edify my self-
importance
(I also realized the time I go to bed and wake up affects my thought life and energy level too.)

These are the little routines I find helpful in managing me back into a more fruitful lifestyle.

Hibernation is a much bigger subject which I will share later….. to be continued

1st June 2019

When I was asked to participate in one of the Aliyah event by putting paintings for auction to raise funds for the Aliyahs, I gladly accepted it and was in fact grateful for the opportunity. I have always longed to do something where I can contribute to the heart beat of God’s people, especially in the area of art.

Painting human/faces/hands/actions is a difficult skill where many painters strifed to master. I have just begun to make some progress in this area after my 11 years art journey and was so determined to do a good job for this event. I also sensed God is using this opportunity to align my art journey to the initial purpose He has initiated : The Big Shofar ‘calling His people back to the land’ https://tiroshjourney.wordpress.com/2019/03/31/the-big-shofar/

I played the Israel National Anthem ‘Haktivah’ many times throughout the painting process. This music and words just kept me going on : https://youtu.be/pI974v1Jdig though I did not know why.

When I finished painting the Abraham, Issac and Jacob (before I added the map of of Israel the golden landmark to the background of the painting), I realised the characters actually formed the outline of a ‘heart’.

I just sat in front of the painting amazed and dazed by His amazing act for a few days. I have never planned to do the shape of a heart or even dreamed I could manipulate that. Contemplating whether I should add the Gold color of Israeli map to the background of the painting; and spoil the amazing act of God when many people will miss ‘His Heart’. After a few days of negotiations with Him, I gave in as I finally understood what He meant :

“Eye has not seen, nor ear heard,
Nor have entered into the heart of man
The things which God has prepared for those who love Him.”
(1 Corinthians 2:9)

Let those who love Him have the eyes to see and ears to hear His Heart.

When I finished writing this article, the youtube played the song ‘Jerusalem of Gold :
https://youtu.be/JH8gtdDA5x0 . I believe there is more to come from this painting. Stay in tune.

2nd June 2019

Above blog was completed and published on 1st June 2019 at 5.31pm. I did went off wondering what is God’s next surprise. That same night, I received a whatsapp message with video at 10.42pm. The message speaks about June 2 being the Jerusalem day. To my surprise, the video played the song ‘Jerusalem of God‘ which I just heard and posted on the above blog earlier on!

I thought Jerusalem day is supposed to be 7 July (1967) and wondering why is my friend telling me it is on 2nd June? I googled and realised she is right : 2nd June 2019 is indeed the Jerusalem Day ! (base on the Hebraic Calendar). I am blown away again by what God is showing because today 2nd June is my birthday! I believe there is more to come.