Were You There? Find Yourself with Jesus

Paintings by Ron DiCianni, Stories by Neil Wilson

Since Easter celebrations continue to Pentecost, it doesn’t seem inappropriate to be telling you about this wonderful book even though Good Friday and Easter have come and gone. While I personally was not familiar with Ron DiCianni’s paintings, apparently they are very well known and Neil Wilson describes them in his introduction as “artistic reflections on Scripture” and many of them can be seen in the Billy Graham Center in Wheaton, Illinois. I used this book as a devotional the 30 days leading up to Easter Monday and they do, as Neil says, make you “recognize [biblical events], but also [invite you] to participate in them”.

The stories begin with Gabriel’s Message and continue through the Nativity, the Shepherds’ Visit, Jesus’ temptation, His parables, the story of the servant, the events from Passover through the cross and the empty tomb, and on to the promises of salvation and eternal life. Each story is told from a personal perspective and some offer “convicting encounters with an enduring truth”. Each one closes with a question or two or profound statements for meditation.

This book makes Jesus’ life, death and resurrection very personal and shows us the profound meaning behind the gospel message and the immense love of God for us. The paintings are amazing; the full pictures, the close-ups of parts: the baby’s hand in the cradle, Simeon’s face as he cries out to God, Bartimaeus’ blind eyes, Jesus washing a man’s feet, Christs’ chained hands as he stands before a judge, the centurion guarding the tomb nodding off. Some of DiCianni’s work inserts modern dress participants into the scene. Each painting and each story will strike you in a very individual way. It is a book that can be used over and over again.