‘For Me’ took over a month to work on but only a couple of days to paint and it represents a significant point in my own Christian understanding. As a child I had imagined myself doing something noble to help Christ as he carried the cross to his crucifixion. Understanding, as an adult with a certain amount of life experience and mistakes behind me, I realised that I had in fact nailed the hands of my most precious friend to the cross myself. My whole perspective changed as the weight of what Christ did for me hit me. I felt angry that Christ had done this for me initially. Then the reality sunk in – it was him or me. I recognised for the first time the wholeness of God’s grace, forgiveness and love. It was awe-inspiring. The knowledge of Christ’s resurrection washed over me with a new understanding of my humanity and the immensity of his grace in being my friend.
‘For Me’ features in ‘Your Bible’ by Redemptorist Publications and hangs at Queens Ecumenical College, Birmingham