2nd Christian tattoo

I got a second tattoo! Just above the first one, with the same artist since he's so awesome at shading. There's a gear, which represents me and I'm being tested and purified by fire from God which represents this hard time of my life I'm going through. When it's all done, I'll finally be ready to fit into God's plan like a cog in perfect clockwork.

It's my favorite shades of blue!

the back of it

tattoo is finished

Finally! And it turned out so well. It's not as detailed as I originally wanted it to be but it still looks complex which is the point. And I also love how it twists around my arm! I've made a lifelong commitment to have this tattoo that represents Christ and the Lord on my skin and forever in my heart, no matter what.

tattoo part 1

On Monday I got my tattoo! But only part of it. The designs from the book of Kells will happen sometime next week. This part is Christ's monogram. The letters that look like P and X are the first two letters of Christ's name in Greek. The early Christians used this symbol to recognize each other when they were being persecuted by the Romans (I think) and it is what Constantine saw in a vision in the stars which brought him victory and made Christianity the state religion. I was a bit nervous about how it would feel because I knew it would definitely hurt but luckily two of my friends came along and chatted with me the whole time so I was distracted from the pain. It wasn't too bad and in the end they weren't sure if I even felt any pain judging from my reactions. But it stung quite a bit for the next day or two. It's pretty good now and I can't wait to see what the tattoo artist comes up with for the rest of the designs that will go round my arm!

enduring/tattoo/school

I've been doing better these days, a friend of mine says there's more pep in my voice which I guess is a good thing? I feel like some of God's truth and love is trickling in a little into my heart which is awesome. I can't really explain it but anyways it is good to look towards Jesus and study the Word! It is also good to listen to Christian metal, especially when the lyrics are biblically based or have hope etc. I love the song Endure by Becoming the Archetype. I can relate so well to the lyrics and I need to keep telling myself to endure the spiritual and mental pain because my only other choice is death and hell and God will save me from myself and these things. Wow, that's pretty bad sentence structure but I'm sure it's clear enough. Here's the lyrics:

Endure - Becoming the Archetype

This life is an open wound that will not heal.
I cry out to God with all of my strength.
Desperately, I reach for Him in the night.
This misery keeps my eyes from closing, keeps my mouth from being able to speak.
Is this as far as the arm of God extends?
Has the fire burned itself out?
There is no profit in this way of thinking.
I must escape this frame of mind.
And when I think of all He has done, when I consider all that He is, I am complete.

And so I shall endure but at the same time, I feel so weak. My mind occasionally rebels against me and craves destruction. I need something physical to help me remember and understand Jesus' saving grace. I think alot of Protestant Christians today have underestimated the importance of ritual or physical manifestations of our faith. It's just part of human nature to need these things once in a while. Thus, I am going to get a tattoo. And it's my gut feeling (and more) that it is God's Will, and something that will help me in my faith. There's the above reason which is the main one and needling ink under my skin is just painful/extreme enough to mirror my spiritual pain. The permanence is great because it will be Christ's monogram and designs from the book of Kells which is a manuscript of the Bible illuminated by Irish monks in the dark ages. These are things I would never want erased from my skin or my heart. What I find most fascinating is that these old manuscripts are so intricately decorated because monks would work on them their whole lives and contemplate God's mysterious and complex nature as they illuminated them. It is like peeking into God's nature when you look at the incredibly detailed designs and get lost in them.



So, I thought it would be so awesome if there was a Christian tattoo artist who could benefit while doing my tattoo by also contemplating as the monks did but does a Christian tattoo artist exist? To my surprise, there's even a Christian tattoo artists' association! But would I find one here in Montreal where so many people are militantly secular? Again to my surprise, there's one in a reputable shop just down the street from my school! Wow. I have a consultation with him in two days. I also found this site which I found quite helpful for Biblical references to tattooing:
http://www.religioustattoos.net/

Some more good news; I'm almost done the work for my last semester! Art theory class is done, I just need to write some exhibition reviews for painting class and then that's done, and I have a long extension for lithography class to do one minimum 6 colour print! I can't believe I'm graduating...