Windstorms that Strengthen

The Underpainting:

Growing Strong in Life’s Windstorms

When I begin a painting, I often start with what’s called an underpainting—a base layer, usually in burnt sienna or deep orange, brushed across the canvas. Then, instead of adding paint, I begin removing it. With tools like Q-tips, paper towels, and dry brushes dipped in thinner, I carve out light and shadow, form and movement. I’m not creating the full image yet—just shaping the foundation.

This layer will mostly disappear beneath the colors that come later. But it’s essential. Like roots beneath a tree, the underpainting gives structure and unity to what follows. Without it, the final painting wouldn’t have the same life or depth.

As I worked on this particular piece, my thoughts wandered to trees—young saplings trying to stand tall. They need sunlight and water, of course. But they also need wind. In fact, when staked too tightly, trees can become weak. It’s the movement—the resistance—that triggers growth. Swaying in the breeze releases growth hormones, deepens root systems, and thickens trunks. Without wind, they remain fragile.

Isn’t that how it is with us, too?

We long for ease, but we grow strong through adversity. Trials act like windstorms, shaking us, stretching us, rooting us deeper.

James 1:2–4 reminds us of this:

“Count it all joy when you face various trials, because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance. Let endurance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, lacking nothing.”

It’s a hard truth. But a hopeful one. Trials may not change our circumstances, but they shape our character. They teach us to lean on God, to ask better questions, to stay rooted when everything around us sways. And slowly, the unseen work begins: endurance forms, peace grows, our inner life strengthens.

Like the underpainting on my canvas, God’s work often starts beneath the surface. He’s forming something in us—something cohesive and beautiful—even when the picture isn’t finished.

This particular painting still sits unfinished in my studio. But every time I pass by it, I remember God is still working on me too. His Spirit is shaping me through every windstorm. And if I let Him, He’ll use even the mess to root me deeper and help me stand taller.

This unseen, soul-strengthening process is the underpainting of God’s greater creation in us.

Started painting: 2023

Started writing: 2024

Still becoming: 2025