To honor the Blodgetts and Fords

In honor of the Blodgetts and Fords who purchased homes next to each other in the Lowell neighborhood several months ago in order to pursue community and ministry as families together -- who ripped down the fences between them as both a symbol of their shared life and a practical way to increase space -- I made this stained glass for the Blodgetts. I made a similar one for the Fords a few months ago. This one depicts their houses, both with fireplaces burning with the love of Christ, which drifts out to the neighborhood and forms a cross, defining the hope they offer. Highlights on the tree are in the shape of doves, alluding to "seeking the peace of the neighborhood" (Jer. 29:7).

To this I add this prayer:

God of light
The glass puzzler
Cuts and assembles individual panes
Colored and stained,
Separated by tracks of lead came,
Glazes and whites, buffs and
Borders them in a dull, zinc frame
So that nothing may detract from the splendor of what
Streams through -- dancing on the walls in a
Rainbow distortion of the same.

Glass Puzzler God
You also gather panes in a pattern,
Tear stained,
Dark with worry,
Separated by the heavy routine of work or the
Mere space of months,
The rut of winter, of rain.
Your hands are cut and bleeding from the
Edge of each pane,
Each pain.
In your eyes are tears from the fine residue of grinding,
Not silicone but souls,
To make every piece fit -- and flame,
Your mind constantly on the final image
Which You suffer to produce
In Amber and Craig, so the sharp, white light pouring through their lives
Will dance in colors on the wall
And lead us to its source.

To You be all glory and fame.