Friday, October 18, 2013

Gibbs Gardens Honors Norma Boeckler



The website announcing the event
featured this Norma Boeckler painting.


Norma Boeckler

Norma BoecklerNorma Boeckler is an artist from Midland, Michigan. She visited Gibbs Gardens in fall 2012 and was so inspired by the Garden’s tranquility and beauty that she used photos of Gibbs Gardens on her newest book “A Treasury of Inspirational Quotes,”
Norma’s medium is watercolor and mixed media. An award-winning artist, she has been painting for thirty-five years and her work has been accepted in national and international juried shows. She was one of seven artists chosen from the Mid-Michigan region, to exhibit her work in the Tokushima Cultural Center and Awa No Santo Gallery in Tokushima, Japan.
Norma BoecklerIn 2004, she had a one-artist show of her watercolor paintings at Box Hill Community Arts Centre in Victoria, Australia. Mayor CR. Robert Chong of Victoria introduced me at the art reception.
“The Art of Norma Boeckler” and “A Treasury of Inspirational Quotes,” have been published, and are available on Createspace, Amazon, and Barnes & Noble in paperback and Kindle ebook.

Gibbs Gardens Events


Norma Boeckler's biography was published in the Midland Daily News.

You can write a customer review here - click on the link.



Product Details

A Treasury of Inspirational Quotes by Norma A. Boeckler (Apr 3, 2013)



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Many of Norma Boeckler's painting are featured on this blog. She has also designed book covers for Martin Chemnitz Press and illustrations for various books published there.

Oddly enough, our family lived in Midland, Michigan for six years, but we did not meet Norma and her late husband at that time. Like many orthodox Lutherans,  we ended up in contact with each other, and Norma and Walter helped form a congregation there.


The Beatitudes by Norma Boeckler

Norma also shares her religious art on Facebook, where I can hardly keep up with her regular posting. When I share those graphics with 1440 FB friends--who belong to all denominations, Judaism, and no religion--the Gospel is transmitted across the world. I have noticed my friends sharing them in response, and no one knows where this stops. It is exponential.

Many of those graphics are published on a Christian arts blog for Ecclesia College, Springdale, Arkansas. There too, people are viewing and enjoying her work all over the world. I looked at the blog map just now and noticed glowing dots around the Third World, America, and South America.

I talked Norma into Dreamweaver as well, so she created this website for Jesus Lord of Creation. I have graduate students who groan at the thought of learning website design, even in doing the simple work of blogging. They need the skills for online education. Norma learned the skills for extending her church work.


The Spirit of Truth, by Norma Boeckler


Norma Boeckler is a delightful person with an endless supply of artistic talent. I encouraged her to try Photoshop, which is a dream for every artistic person. She took lessons and quickly became proficient, thanks to her energetic nature and artistic eye.

If readers wonder why my Photoshops have improved, her advice is the reason why. I cannot match her ability, but I am happy to take her advice.

The best part of her sharing is her ability to display the message of the Christian faith to people around the world, enjoying the painstaking labor and rejoicing in its spread. Some Lutherans should stop and think about how much Gospel has been spread for no additional cost when they believe than money is the Means of Grace, the sine qua non of effective evangelism.


The Lamb for Sinners Slain, by Norma Boeckler


A Treasury of Inspirational Quotations by Norma Boeckler

Midland, Michigan has already hosted a promotion for this new book, and Gibbs Garden in Atlanta is doing the same. Norma has won many awards for her art and traveled to Japan to show her work. She has been active in local artistic groups in Michigan, a vocation that began when she was a young girl.

This book features fourteen thematic sections:

  1. Jesus is Our Savior.
  2. Jesus is Our Lord.
  3. Jesus is Love.
  4. Baptism.
  5. Jesus Forgives.
  6. Jesus is Our Righteousness.
  7. Jesus is Our Confidence.
  8. Jesus Our Help When in Trouble.
  9. Obedience to God.
  10. Faith in God.
  11. Holy Spirit.
  12. Prayer.
  13. Return of Christ.
  14. Eternity.
He That Believeth on Me, by Norma Boeckler



Norma uses Scripture passages from the English Luther Bible - the King James Version. And she quotes from The Lutheran Hymnal, which has not been equaled in over 70 years - not that anyone has tried very hard.

The combination of Christian art and classic sources is a treasury, available in print and also as an e-book.

Since this is a visual book, I am going to post a number of examples on this page. They are some of my favorites.


Saved by Grace through Faith - by Norma Boeckler

Who would want to own this book?

This volume would be welcomed by young and old alike, because it honors Aristotle's dictum to edify and delight. Drawings and photographs dominate the space, but they are united with hymns and the Scriptures. I can picture grandparents and grandchildren enjoying the book equally. All ages, laity and pastors, will appreciate the spirit and design of this volume.

When someone wonders what kind of special gift to give someone, for a birthday, anniversary, or confirmation, this will work out well. If they have faith, they will welcome the message. If they are spiritually inert, they will be drawn to the beauty of the work and perhaps stay for the message of the efficacious Word.


 The Art of Norma Boeckler - Her first book.



Product Details

The Art of Norma Boeckler by Norma A. Boeckler (May 3, 2012)


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