OUR MISSION - Journey - ABOUT ME
Everlasting Words Design reflects God’s beauty in an inspiring way that invites you to draw nearer to Him. Every piece is unique and personal and it’s done with excellence and dedication. Pouring God’s love into each brush stroke is one of the most important things, if not the most important, about this business. You deserve to feel that love always, and that’s what the Bibles to reflect, God’s love for you, for detailed intricate things, for excellence.
MISSION
Inspiration is what Everlasting Words aspires to evoke. We want to create a story intricately woven with the one inside his word, heart, and mind. By crafting cover art for bibles, among other pieces, we strive to tell a tale of LOVE, GRACE AND REDEMPTION. More specifically, WE WANT TO TELL your unique story with The One that created you through artwork that is personal, unique and beautiful.
JOURNEY
The logical place to start the story of how this came to be is going all the way back to High School. I studied at an all arts school, where painting and drawing became my passion, but it was not the career I chose to pursue. After obtaining a degree in engineering I found myself grasping for something, a something (I wasn’t quite sure what) that gave me a feeling of purpose. It wasn’t until this year that I finally found what that was.
Trying to get back to a place where I was 100% comfortable I went back to what I knew and loved, art. Suddenly, a friend asked me to paint a bible for her, and the rest is history. The whole thing snowballed, and in a matter of months, what started off as a way of re-understanding who I was turned into a steady job that led way to this ministry.
God made us all with specific gifts, talents, and abilities for a specific purpose, and I unveiled mine as the holy spirit kept prodding me to pursue something that many thought a waste of time. Creating individual and personal works of art became a matter of reflecting God’s beauty with significance and everlasting purpose, not one of fulfilling my dreams and ambitions. He transformed me first, and I have an ardent desire for Him to transform you, perfect, beautiful, and special you. I am convinced that God has called me for such a time as this, to speak purpose, life, and light into His children. He made me for this ministry, and hand in hand with Him I choose to paint a story of the world seen through His eyes, not the other way around.
How did you move from being an industrial engineer to creating a Bible painting ministry?
It was definitely not a short process that brought me to where I am today. I graduated from an all arts school set on becoming an art teacher, yet did not pursue it. There were many things to consider, but mainly it was pressure from the media that instilled in me a fear of instability if I chose education as a career path, so I went with industrial engineering instead. I figured, “I like math too, and it’s a steadier job”, so I went with it.
Striving for excellence I managed to graduate and land a steady job, but I was deeply unhappy, although economically stable. I quit that job and took on a secretarial position for a lawyer. Soon after, I met the man who is now my husband and ended up making a drawing of us. Quickly, I realized that the talent and passion I’d had years ago in high school were still there. Over a span of a couple years drawing led to watercolors, that led to portraits, that led to hand-lettering, that led to Bible painting.
Short as it seems typed out like this, the journey to get here was long, hard, and full of struggles. Still, God was faithful, and brought me back to the passions I had, reminding me that where his hand leads He provides. I don’t know for certain what the future holds, but I know God is preparing me for new things, and I’m ready to hold on to Him fiercely as we walk through this next journey together.
ABOUT ME
What is a favorite Bible passage of yours and why?
“Take delight in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.”
- Psalm 37:4
My entire life I’ve served the Lord, growing up in church, it’s all I’ve ever known. It is beautiful to see God’s faithfulness to his promises in this verse and understand that what I have chosen to believe in is true. Now, more than ever, I’ve been able to see how the dreams He placed in my heart are becoming a reality full of holy ambition, a reality I have the privilege of experiencing hand in hand with Him.
Don’t let fear stop you from doing the things you are passionate about. Chances are, those are the very things God wants you to use for His kingdom. Find out what those talents, gifts, passions, and abilities are and use them to the best of your ability for God’s glory. Most important of all, don’t embark on this journey alone. Surround yourself with a group of people that inspire you to do what God has called you to do and that help you reach those things. Let them remind you who God called you to be when you’re starting to forget, allow them that space. If these designs do anything for you, may they inspire you to open that Bible and more than read it, live it, to the point where you reach a level of intimacy with God that you never imagined. I know a painting alone doesn’t do that, but God-willing, it will bring you one step closer.
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Edna Marie Esparra Cruz, happily married and momma of two adorable dogs, is a self-employed business woman with a bible painting ministry based in Puerto Rico, where she was born and raised. Art, always a part of her life, is more than a way to earn a living, it is an opportunity for her to paint the world seen through God’s eyes and speak life and light into his children.
She founded Everlasting Words in December 2017 which has given her the opportunity to reach people around the world. Edna has a passion for ministry and for people to know the beauty of the word of God.
An avid love of flowers, landscape views, writing and music, it is not uncommon find Edna sitting in her home studio painting fields of wildflowers and hand lettering whilst she listens to her newest playlist.
I am a creator, just like my Father, and that is the greatest privilege anyone can have.
