C4SO is committed to more fully cooperating with the vision of racial and ethnic diversity in Revelation 7:9, so amplifying the voices of our Asian American brothers and sisters is a step toward this Kingdom vision. This May, during Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, we will provide opportunities for deeper learning, reflection and conversation as we begin to experience the beauty of God’s desire for diversity amongst his people. C4SO is pleased to feature Shin Maeng, an artist and illustrator whose style is influenced by urban art and manga, while the content of his drawings highlights his Christian faith.
Each Sunday in May we are reflecting on one of Shin’s artworks. For the fifth Sunday in Eastertide, we contemplate an image Shin created as a prayer of blessing and intercession for his daughter.
Week 3 Artwork: And the Darkness Shall Not Overcome Her
by Shin Maeng
Description:
This is a father’s prayer of blessing and intercession for my 3-year-old daughter.
As I think about the dangers she faces in the world—whether it’s the rise of domestic and international tensions and racism, the threat of climate crises, and the likely challenges that she will face as an Asian American woman—my heart trembles. I wish I could just protect and shelter her from all harm, but I know there is only so much that I can claim is within my control, as one limited man, as one father who loves his daughter.
This drawing is my prayer, entrusting her to the God of scripture, who is faithful to the promises that she holds in her hands. He will be the one that strengthens and protects her, so much more so than my attempts at using my strength to defend her. His hands will guide and shelter her, so much more so than what my feeble hands can muster as I draw and pray for His covering.
A royal robe is draped around her, just as the prodigal’s father draped around his son in Luke 15. The dove that is the Holy Spirit sits on her left shoulder; the gold finch, which was used in medieval iconography to represent Jesus, sits on her right as a symbol which points to resurrection hope. Tears of joy, a joy which has endured and persevered past suffering, stream down her face. The wings of new creation are spread around her, depicting the promise that the serpent will be crushed and that the Good Shepherd will guide her with his staff through valleys and heights. Her belt of truth reads “shalom” in Hebrew, reminding her and us that God’s promises are true; and protecting against and rebuking lies that claim God is unable or unwilling to love and defend his daughter. The shackles the Evil One would try and place on her are broken by the Anointed One who says that the Spirit of the Lord is upon Him to proclaim good news to the poor and freedom for the captives.
She arises from the parted sea, away from the pyramids that would keep her enslaved. The light that breaks through the darkness shatters the fists and hands that would try and do her harm. And the stories of the multiplication of bread and fish, the stories told and lived by Jesus, embroider the background beyond her wings.
This drawing declares that God is fighting the evil and darkness that would try and destroy her, and in it I surrender my daughter—the woman warrior of strength, wisdom, and beauty I bless her to be—(and myself) to God’s promises: that he will deliver, that he will shelter, and that he will be her Father and Defender.
—Shin Maeng
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Shin Maeng resides in St. Andrews Scotland. He grew up in Bridgewater, NJ, New Haven, CT and Cambridge, MA. He is married to Sarah and has a wee lass. Shin loves to create on his iPad and also loves to get his hands dirty. He has a Masters of Urban Leadership from GCTS Boston. Music, cities, stories, Marvel comics, dancing, most things on YouTube, food, justice and the movement of God’s hand are a few things that inspire Shin to create. Learn more about Shin.
Sarah Shin is a speaker and trainer in ethnicity, evangelism, and the arts, and she is the author of Beyond Colorblind. A fine artist and painter, Sarah has a master’s degree in theology from Gordon-Cromwell Theological Seminary and a master’s degree in city planning and development from MIT. She is continuing her theological studies as a PhD student at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland.
Previously, Sarah served as associate national director of evangelism for InterVarsity. Before serving in that position, she was an area director in Boston and a regional coordinator of multiethnicity. She and her husband live in Saint Andrews, Scotland, with their daughter. Follow Sarah on Twitter: @SarahShinAuthor.