Monday, December 22, 2008
Art, Worship, and Divine Creation
Art has always been a significant part of my life, both in admiring the work of others as well as creating my own. Lately, this passion has fallen a bit by the way side due to a lack of sufficient time. However, with the completion of yet another semester of college, this morning I found myself with a little bit of free time. So I decided to paint. I find art to be therapeutic, calming, and freeing. I’ve learned to see it as a form of worship. The mind set free to pray, adore, and praise. But this morning I saw it in a different light.
As I began to paint I was thinking about God as creator of the universe. I was reflecting on all the incredible intricacies of the world when I stumbled upon an unexpected realization… The Lord who created the stars, mountains, and seas, the Lord who paints the most miraculous sunsets, is the same Lord who created me. And beyond that, of all the incredible things his hands have made, he chose man to be created in his image. Imago dei. By simply creating, I was reflecting the image of my Lord, like a small child chugging along with a toy lawn mower imitating his father. We may be far from being able to do the real thing, but by imitating we are saying, “I want to be like you.” What greater form of flattery is there?
Art transcends the physical restraints of this world and is a partaking in the divine process of creation. Melodies and strokes unite to form an image that comes not just from the hand of the creator, and not just the mind, the heart or the soul either; but rather from the uniting of every part of your being. This is in essence, what it means to be alive. And when this is set in perfect rhythm with the heart of God, that is true worship. Worship is not about the song being sung, the sight being gazed upon, or the masterpiece being created. Worship is the uniting of the heart, soul, mind, and strength to imitate the ultimate creator. It’s saying, “I love you, and want to be like you.”
Strength will rise as we wait upon the Lord
I recently heard someone pose an interesting question: What would God want for Christmas? As I thought about the question, I couldn’t help but think that what God wants for Christmas isn’t any different than what He wants from us every day of our lives. So maybe, the better question is: What has God’s desire been for humanity since He cast the earth into existence? The Bible is explicitly clear that the Lord yearns for His creation to be redeemed and for us to be reconciled to him. He hungers for us to be able to experience the world as He intended. Life to the full. Life in the Kingdom . . . on earth as it is in Heaven.
Life where. . .
. . . widows and orphans are cared for. (James 1:27)
. . . the hungry are fed. (Isaiah 58:7)
. . . the homeless are given shelter. (Isaiah 58:7)
. . . the naked are clothed. (Isaiah 58:7)
. . . creation is no longer subjected to frustration. (Romans 8:20)
. . . we don’t pass judgment on one another. (Romans 14:13)
. . . we forgive because we have been forgiven. (Matthew 18:21-35)
. . . our citizenship is in Heaven. (Philippians 3:20)
. . . we love our neighbors as ourselves (Mark 12:31)
. . . we love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. (Mark 12:30)
Is this not what is promised with the return of Christ to earth?
Advent is a season of preparation for the coming of Christ, both at incarnation and for the second coming.
From the Latin word adventus, advent means “coming” translated from the Greek word parousia commonly used in reference to the second coming of Christ.
So as we await the coming of our King this Christmas, may this be our prayer:
O Come O come Emmanuel
And ransom captive Israel
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the son of God appear
Rejoice, Rejoice, Emmanuel
Shall come to thee o Israel
O come thou dayspring, come and cheer
Our spirits by thine advent here
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night
And death’s dark shadows put to flight
Rejoice, Rejoice, Emmanuel
Shall come to thee o Israel
Oh come Desire of nations, bind
All peoples in one heart and mind;
Bid envy, strife, and quarrels cease
Fill all the world with heaven’s peace.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel!
But let’s not stop there. As it is written, “You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming.” (2 Peter 3:11-12)
So this Christmas, let’s stop asking how can we get what we want? And start asking how can we give God what He wants? After all, shouldn’t that be the purpose of our lives?
Life where. . .
. . . widows and orphans are cared for. (James 1:27)
. . . the hungry are fed. (Isaiah 58:7)
. . . the homeless are given shelter. (Isaiah 58:7)
. . . the naked are clothed. (Isaiah 58:7)
. . . creation is no longer subjected to frustration. (Romans 8:20)
. . . we don’t pass judgment on one another. (Romans 14:13)
. . . we forgive because we have been forgiven. (Matthew 18:21-35)
. . . our citizenship is in Heaven. (Philippians 3:20)
. . . we love our neighbors as ourselves (Mark 12:31)
. . . we love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. (Mark 12:30)
Is this not what is promised with the return of Christ to earth?
Advent is a season of preparation for the coming of Christ, both at incarnation and for the second coming.
From the Latin word adventus, advent means “coming” translated from the Greek word parousia commonly used in reference to the second coming of Christ.
So as we await the coming of our King this Christmas, may this be our prayer:
O Come O come Emmanuel
And ransom captive Israel
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the son of God appear
Rejoice, Rejoice, Emmanuel
Shall come to thee o Israel
O come thou dayspring, come and cheer
Our spirits by thine advent here
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night
And death’s dark shadows put to flight
Rejoice, Rejoice, Emmanuel
Shall come to thee o Israel
Oh come Desire of nations, bind
All peoples in one heart and mind;
Bid envy, strife, and quarrels cease
Fill all the world with heaven’s peace.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel!
But let’s not stop there. As it is written, “You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming.” (2 Peter 3:11-12)
So this Christmas, let’s stop asking how can we get what we want? And start asking how can we give God what He wants? After all, shouldn’t that be the purpose of our lives?
Saturday, December 6, 2008
Give Me Your Eyes
Looked down from a broken sky.
Traced out by the city of lights.
My world from a mile high.
Best seat in the house tonight.
Touch down on the cold black-top.
Hold on for the sudden stop.
Breathe in the familiar shock of confusion and chaos.
All those people going somewhere, why have I never cared.
Give me your eyes for just one second,
Give me your eyes so I can see,
Everything that I keep missing,
Give your love for humanity.
Give me your arms for the broken-hearted
The ones that are far beyond my reach.
Give me Your heart for the ones forgotten.
Give me Your eyes so I can see.
Step out on the busy street.
See a girl and our eyes meet.
Does her best to smile at me.
To hide what's underneath.
There's a man just to her right
Black suit and a bright red tie.
Too ashamed to tell his wife he's out of work, he's buying time.
All those people going somewhere, why have I never cared.
Give me your eyes for just one second,
Give me your eyes so I can see,
Everything that I keep missing,
Give me your love for humanity.
Give me Your arms for the broken-hearted
The ones that are far beyond my reach.
Give me Your heart for the ones forgotten.
Give me Your eyes so I can see.
I've been there a million times.
A couple of million lives.
Just moving past me by, I swear I never thought that I was wrong.
But I wanna second glance so give me a second chance to see the way you've seen the people all along.
Give me your eyes for just one second,
Give me your eyes so I can see,
Everything that I keep missing,
Give me your love for humanity.
Give me Your arms for the broken-hearted
The ones that are far beyond my reach.
Give me Your heart for the ones forgotten.
Give me Your eyes so I can see.
Give me your eyes for just one second,
Give me your eyes so I can see,
Everything that I keep missing,
Give me Your love for humanity
Give me Your arms for the broken-hearted
The ones that are far beyond my reach.
Give me Your heart for the ones forgotten.
Give me Your eyes so I can see.
(Give Me Your Eyes - Brandon Heath)
This should be the prayer of each of our souls...
Traced out by the city of lights.
My world from a mile high.
Best seat in the house tonight.
Touch down on the cold black-top.
Hold on for the sudden stop.
Breathe in the familiar shock of confusion and chaos.
All those people going somewhere, why have I never cared.
Give me your eyes for just one second,
Give me your eyes so I can see,
Everything that I keep missing,
Give your love for humanity.
Give me your arms for the broken-hearted
The ones that are far beyond my reach.
Give me Your heart for the ones forgotten.
Give me Your eyes so I can see.
Step out on the busy street.
See a girl and our eyes meet.
Does her best to smile at me.
To hide what's underneath.
There's a man just to her right
Black suit and a bright red tie.
Too ashamed to tell his wife he's out of work, he's buying time.
All those people going somewhere, why have I never cared.
Give me your eyes for just one second,
Give me your eyes so I can see,
Everything that I keep missing,
Give me your love for humanity.
Give me Your arms for the broken-hearted
The ones that are far beyond my reach.
Give me Your heart for the ones forgotten.
Give me Your eyes so I can see.
I've been there a million times.
A couple of million lives.
Just moving past me by, I swear I never thought that I was wrong.
But I wanna second glance so give me a second chance to see the way you've seen the people all along.
Give me your eyes for just one second,
Give me your eyes so I can see,
Everything that I keep missing,
Give me your love for humanity.
Give me Your arms for the broken-hearted
The ones that are far beyond my reach.
Give me Your heart for the ones forgotten.
Give me Your eyes so I can see.
Give me your eyes for just one second,
Give me your eyes so I can see,
Everything that I keep missing,
Give me Your love for humanity
Give me Your arms for the broken-hearted
The ones that are far beyond my reach.
Give me Your heart for the ones forgotten.
Give me Your eyes so I can see.
(Give Me Your Eyes - Brandon Heath)
This should be the prayer of each of our souls...
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