Heal & Paint: Where You Are Right Now Matters
After we finished painting the roots, we moved upward.
We moved to the trunk.
The trunk represents your present.
Not who you were.
Not who you’re becoming.
But where you are right now.
And this part requires honesty.
The Tree Rings: Every Year Tells a Story
If you’ve ever looked at the inside of a tree trunk, you’ll see rings.
Those rings form year by year as long as the tree has life.
And here’s the beautiful part:
Every ring tells a story.
When the rings are thick, it usually means the tree grew during a healthy season.
There was sunlight.
There was support.
The soil was rich.
Growth felt natural.
When I relate that to our lives, those are the seasons when things felt aligned.
You could breathe easier.
Think clearer.
Move forward without resistance.
Life felt lighter.
Maybe even peaceful.
The Thin Rings: Growth During Hard Seasons
But then there are thin rings.
Thin rings form during harder seasons.
Storms.
Pressure.
Uncertainty.
Lack.
Moments when you had to figure things out as you went.
And if we’re honest, most of us know those seasons very well.
Trying to heal while still showing up for everyone else.
Learning boundaries the hard way.
Holding it together when nothing felt stable.
Growing while grieving.
Trusting God when the answers felt quiet.
Those seasons do not look glamorous.
But they are not wasted.
What Scripture Says About Hard Seasons
The Bible speaks directly to this in Epistle of James 1:3–4:
“The testing of your faith produces perseverance.
Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, lacking nothing.”
Hard seasons are not interruptions.
They are formation.
They are building depth in you.
They are strengthening your spiritual endurance.
They are producing something that comfort never could.
No Matter the Season, the Tree Was Still Growing
This is the part we often forget.
Whether the ring was thick or thin…
The tree was still growing.
Whether life felt abundant or uncertain…
Growth was still happening.
You may not have liked the season.
You may not have understood the season.
But you were still being shaped.
The thin rings matter just as much as the thick ones.
Without both, the trunk would not be strong.
Key Reflection
“The thin rings matter just as much as the thick ones. Growth is still growth.”
This Part of the Painting Was About Honesty
When we painted the trunk at Heal & Paint, it was not about making something look perfect.
It was about acknowledging where you are right now.
Without shame.
Without comparison.
Without pretending you’re further along than you are.
The present season deserves to be seen.
Even if it feels messy.
Even if it feels uncertain.
Even if it feels slow.
Because even in the storm…
God is still growing you.
Experience Heal & Paint in the Room
If this part of the journey resonated with you, I want you in the room next time.
Our next Sister Circle of Chicago Heal & Paint is happening soon.
Don’t wait until you see the recap to wish you were there.
Come experience it.
Come paint your present.
Come recognize that your growth did not stop just because it was hard.
And stay tuned for Part 3. We move into the branches, the future you are becoming in God’s timing.
That’s where we move into the branches — your future and what is becoming…
