He started with a blank, white canvas. Then, Frank Bejo Jr. went to work. He stood, he crouched, he moved left to right, up and down, his left handed continuously sweeping a brush across the 48- by 60-inch sheet. Ten
He started with a blank, white canvas.
Then, Frank Bejo Jr. went to work. He stood, he crouched, he moved left to right, up and down, his left handed continuously sweeping a brush across the 48- by 60-inch sheet.
Ten minutes later, that canvas was filled with the face of Jesus Christ, thorns on his head, and a cross. When he was done, Bejo, without a word, picked up the tools of his trade and walked off the stage.
The crowd applauded.
Bejo deflected the accolades.
“I’m honored, but I take no credit for this in any way. I just show up,” the Lihue man said after the Good Friday service at Kauai War Memorial Convention Hall.
Bejo is the man behind F.A.I.T.H. Ministries (Faithful Artists Inspired through Him).
He said years ago, he saw others sing, dance and honor God in many ways through their talents.
“What can I do?” he thought.
So Bejo said he prayed and waited upon the Lord. An answer came. His skills with brushes and acrylic paint led him to create art. Quickly, if need be, as he proved again on Easter Sunday in Kapaa during another service.
He travels the nation, sharing his faith through his ministry. Spain, Germany and the Philippines are on his itinerary. He believes his paintings are a universal way to share with all people.
“It’s like giving a message,” he said.
While his gifts amaze many, Bejo brushes off the credit. He says it happened quickly, which made it clear to him who was responsible.
“I knew it was God. If it was me, it would evolve. With God, it happens,” he said.
Bejo, born and raised on Kauai, said he often meditates on the word. He paints when called to do so.
“When it does come, I know it’s him because it just happens,” he said.
The Kapaa Middle School teacher considers himself a willing vessel to preach the word. If people are convicted, touched by his painting in anyway, if they feel drawn to God, he says that’s the Holy Spirit at work.
“It’s not me,” he said. “I give him the honor and the glory.”
Asked for his thoughts on the painting he created during the Good Friday service, witnessed by hundreds, Bejo smiled.
“That’s pretty amazing,” he said.
How did he come up with the vision for the painting he called “Passion?”
Naturally, he pointed to a higher source.
“You know how you download to the computer, just download and it comes out? It’s like that. He gives me the vision. I just roll with that,” he said.
