So I will give You as a light for the nations, that You should be My salvation to the end of the earth. Isaiah 49:6
Hello! My name is Eva Silva, and I am an artist and blogger. I call myself "The Pondering Painter" on social media because I love to combine my thoughts and my art. If you’ve come across my work, you’ve likely noticed that it carries a deeply spiritual and faith-filled theme, and this is because my faith is at the center of everything I do.
So what do I believe? I was raised as a conservative Christian. For years I struggled so hard to understand my faith. During my teenage years, I begged God to help it all make sense. I believed so deeply in Him, but I felt something was wrong somehow with my walk. Something was missing. I asked God to help me know Him, and He answered that prayer.
I began to dig into His scriptures and ask myself why we religiously did certain things as Christians that I couldn't find anywhere in the Bible - such as keeping the Sabbath on Sunday or celebrating certain holidays. When I realized that much of this came from the early church fathers and Catholicism, I was convicted to start eliminating all man-made traditions from my walk with God. As I dug deeper into honoring the Sabbath, I began to understand that God never ...............
intended His Laws to become optional the way most churches teach. When I tried to share my thoughts on this, I was met by a lot of rejection from Christians, and they said I was Judaizing. I didn't care that they thought I was falling away, because I had come to know God so intimately through His Torah that I was certain this was what I'd felt had been missing from my faith. I felt just like the author of Psalms 119 felt when he marveled over the beauty and blessing of God's laws. After I started keeping His Torah, I experienced healing in my life and miracles through His protection and direction, even despite my own poor decisions. Through His mercy and this newfound understanding, nothing could make me give up the faith that I'd found.
As I dug deeper into what Christians termed as "Judaism", I had to ask myself, if Yeshua, the one who I believe is the promised Messiah, taught the Torah and was Himself a Jew, why should I be hesitant to associate myself with Judaism? The fear that many have with this faith is that you are following God's laws thinking you don't need a Messiah, but since I know where my salvation comes from, I realized everything I practiced was indeed according to the pure and ancient Judaism that the all the great fathers of the faith practiced. Because most of Christianity refuses to accept that you can believe the Torah is neccessary AND believe in the Messiah, I chose to no longer identify as Christian. I see most Christians as my brothers and sisters, but now I happily identify as Jewish like my Messiah.
I am constantly inspired by God's graciousness, love, and infinite understanding, and it is my greatest mission to spread the truth about Him through my projects to those who are searching for deliverance and more to life. I pray that my creations can bring inspiration or healing to you!
My Life Story in a Nutshell
I grew up in the rugged beauty of British Columbia, Canada. My family lived on a quiet acreage in central BC, where the seasons are fierce - winters can drop to -40°C, and summers soar to +40°C. We had many pets and livestock, so some of my favorite outdoor hobbies were gardening, animal care, and building things. Art, however, would always be my main focus. I couldn’t keep my creativity bottled up, and it constantly found its way into everything I did. To this day there are pen drawings on the old stove in my parents' home where I let my creativity get the better of me.
When I left home and found less time for art, I wondered if my art really had a place in the real world. It felt impractical - foolish even - in the midst of survival and real-life responsibilities. A good friend of mine, however, saw the talent I had and encouraged me to not give up my art. So because of her and God's nudging, I kept at it! Later I heard God calling me to use art to spread His light and encourage others. I went through some very life-shaking experiences where things could've gone far worse had I not had God's protection, and because I wanted others to experience this grace of His as well, I chose to call my art business "Hananeel".
The Hebrew word "hananel" means "El (God) is gracious" or "God has favored." Hananeel was also a tower in Jerusalem, and since Elohim is my fortress, my tower, I saw it fitting. Below, I share my personal testimony of how I grew up and how it shaped who I am now. I experienced extreme isolation in my childhood which contributed to deep confusion and depression in my teenage years. Many dark and sad thoughts constantly plagued me, and I would express them in my all my drawings. After God called me to lay down all my fears and follow Him, I finally broke through all that confusion, and He delivered me from this darkness. After that, I had no desire to portray darkness, but rather light in every painting. God called me to be a "Spreader of Light" in all that I do. My art was transformed by Him. Since light always brings out vibrant color, almost every painting of mine must incorporate the whole spectrum. This has become my recognized trademark.
My aim is to inspire others to forsake darkness and look upwards with hope, so my slogan "forging inspiration" reflects this. My testimony below also shares my journey out of cult-mindsets and manmade laws into the freedom of following only God's instructions, such as Sabbath keeping, following a Biblical diet, and celebrating His prophetic holy days. Even if you do not agree with my perspective, I hope that this testimony can be an encouragement to anyone who has suffered confusion, guilt, and rejection because of religious control. I hope it inspires you to connect with and serve the community around you instead of letting fear isolate you. The incredible blessings that come from extending ourselves the way God instructs is without regret. (Please Note: since the recording of this, I have noted that some of the people we discussed have gone off into strange teachings, so I want to express that I don't follow any specific teachers. I base all my beliefs off scripture and hold myself accountable to the believers in my community.)