The Lord of the Desert
Song for this piece. Press play and let yourself experience the painting in a deeper way.
A wild prince that ruled the sands
The lord of lifeless desert lands
Of desolation, scorching heat
Of arid wastelands 'neath his feet
Alone he trod the great terrain
Whom none could capture, rule or tame
Scoffing at any who would dare
Challenge his freedom or his air
Stamping his feet, his horn held high
Obstinate with a glistening eye
His strength, his pride; his will, his law
Till came his unexpected fall
A beast so proud could not be tamed
Except by One of greater name
The day arrived when he would meet
One who would put him at His feet
The fight ensued with fervent heat
The unmatched king refused to yield
With full resistance he would buck
But soon knew he was out of luck
The ropes that bound his willful heart
Strong cords of power, wisdom, love
Were more than match for his disdain
The beast unruled became the tamed
Low he becomes, a prince once unruled
Now subject to Him who over all rules
Flory 2025
“A proud man is always looking down on things and people; and, of course, as long as you are looking down, you cannot see something that is above you.”
Would you believe that I first started this piece in 2023? It was a humble horse sketch from imagination. I was using Clip Studio Paint, and it was purely to remember how to use the program again after a long time away from it!
Little did I know this would become a piece that was very, very important to me.
This piece represents my struggle with coming to faith in God.
Despite being someone who knew the Bible well, for years I struggled to put my faith and trust in God. Deep down, I thought that God wanted to take away everything I liked and to control me. I resisted God some of the things that He wanted to do in my life. I thought I knew better. Like the unicorn in the painting, I wanted to be the ruler of the desert. There’s not much life in a desert…
There are some lyrics from the song ‘Clocks’ by Coldplay which I think are really fitting for what happened next:
Tides that I tried to swim against
Have brought me down upon my knees
Have you experienced something like this before?
For a long time, I struggled, but eventually God broke me. It happened when I began to see that He wanted the best for me all along. I only had to trust Him while the path was not fully clear. I started to put together what I had read and heard about Him with who He was in my experience. My heart began to grow warm towards Him. I began to understand.
“Acquaint now thyself with him, and be at peace: thereby good shall come unto thee.”
You know, I did not think any of this while I was initially working on this art piece. When it was only a horse sketch on a brown background, I thought, “Why don’t I add an environment? A desert will do.” Then came the glowing ropes. Then I left it for a while as life happened. Now, it’s finished. I chuckle to myself.
The song I’ve included is one that I listened to back in 2024 while I worked on the piece. I think it fits it perfectly. Bounding resistance. I’m curious if you can feel it too.
I am so glad this piece is finally completed and I can move onto the next. Now we know who the real Lord of the Desert is.
Enjoy some process and up close shots below.
