In the last six years I have really had to stand on 'Christ the Solid Rock'. These words come from an old hymn and have constantly resonated with me through some very difficult times and have been of great comfort. The hymn popped up so many times in different places that I was sure that God was trying to say something to me so I turned to scripture to look up the word ‘rock’ and thought long and hard about how I would try to represent the concept of God as a rock and place of security.
I wanted to give a sense of this huge and very old rock rising from the earth and surrounded by dangerous, muddy sinking sand. I chose to make the rock look very ancient to show that it has been there forever and stood the test of time. I wanted to show that God is the same yesterday, today and for ever and did not want the rock to look pristine but damaged to represent how Jesus went through immense pain and hurt for us. There is a cleft in the rock going down the left hand side, because I was reminded of the hymn ‘Rock of Ages Cleft for Me’.
The top of the rock is gold, a colour I often use to represent God, and there is a tiny person standing at the top to give a sense of scale and safety. I wanted to convey a sense of protection from the danger so far below. The sand and mud around the rock gives the impression of the tide having gone out leaving the sinking sand with letters sinking down into it.
The artwork was made using permanent pens and watercolour paints on smooth watercolour paper.

When I was a child, we would sing a chorus called ‘The Wise Man Built his House Upon the Rock.’ It talked about the house on the rock standing firm, and the one on the sand falling flat! It was this parable that came to mind when I was thinking about the theme of ‘God the Rock’. Upon wider investigation there were many scriptures that talked about God being a rock of safety, and a fortress. Psalm 71.3 says “Be my rock of safety where I can always hide. Give the order to save me, for you are my rock and my fortress”.
The world has undergone so much turmoil since 2020, so much has changed. We live in a different world to that of 2019. We have witnessed a pandemic, natural disasters and wars. Many of us have been touched personally by all that has happened. Our world has indeed been on shifting sand in the turmoil of so many tragic events.
But our God is a rock, a place of safety and security and a fortress. In our ever-changing world, Jesus calls us to listen to His teachings and build our lives on solid rock. In all the turmoil and upheaval, we know that our God is unchanging. He is the same yesterday, today and forever, he is dependable, a place of safety, a fortress and a solid foundation for us to build our lives on. I don’t think this means that we will never have trouble in life. The parable talks about the rain coming in torrents, the floodwaters rising and the wind beating against the house. But after all that has happened the house is still there, it’s still standing on God the solid rock!

My husband Rich, who has encouraged my creativity.
My parents., Ernie and Doreen Hills, who died during the pandemic.