Related to visual or fine art.
I had the chance to bike ride sl-ow-ly with my husband yesterday in the valleys near Hawk Mountain. One stop included a delicious fresh spring, next to Stoudt’s Mill (1750) Here are some photos from our trip.
Your responses are welcome.
We not made out of such strong stuff, are we? Dust to dust.
Though at times we feel confident or even invincible, reminders of imperfection, mortality, weakness, and helplessness spring up everywhere.
Suppose you placed a lit candle in a jar–a solid jar, what would happen? A bit of light would come out through the top, yes?
Now suppose that jar was punctured, shattered and pieced back together, or cracked in places. Some could think the piece was ruined. Others would admire it even more, once a lit candle was placed inside, because the spaces would fill with beautiful light. The weaknesses of the jar would shine as the most beautiful parts, making a unique and dazzling spectacle of shapes and illumination for others to see. The specialness would be the combination of once-perceived flaws co-mingled with the luminosity and brilliance of something added to it, working through it for something altogether appreciable and precious.
Be encouraged, you broken pots out there! Never over-worry that you have made mistakes, or that you have flaws, weaknesses, gaps, and broken spots. We all do. The grace and radiance of Christ will shine that much more through you because of them, if you allow it, and let the Light work in you. Each space that you give over to the Light will be made beautiful. Christ, and his love and grace is the light that gives new hope, and a new purpose for the scars we carry, and broken parts we’ve sustained.
Verses to ponder:
2 Corinthians 4:7 – But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show us that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.
2 Corinthians 12:9-10 Each time [God] said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
What broken space has the light shined through in your life?
Will you let all your broken places be a light for others?
What area might this be in, and how will you move forward in this process?
(all comments, thoughts, ideas welcome)
I was up about an hour earlier than normal. This made my morning walk very different. I saw the sunrise. I took some pictures. Which is your favorite? What do they remind you of, or make you think of?
What about God, his presence, or his nature do you think is present in any of these photos?
I was allured by this Flickr picture the second I saw it. It seemed beautiful, yet also strange. A genuine napping red fox in a field of tall clovers? Curious.
The image info told that it was indeed this fox’s last rest. Possibly rabies did him in. What a mournful occasion, but what a comely little beast.
(I apologize that I haven’t been able to find the image again, to properly link to the artist. If anyone can help me with that, I’d appreciate it.)
Your thoughts or comments are welcome.
After over a 7 year break from music, Jennifer Knapp announces the release of her new album, and reveals her same sex relationship of 7 years in an interview with Christianity Today. (full article)
What will her fans do? How will she be treated in the Christian community?
Here’s my proposal:
Let the Judgment Begin!
(on ourselves)
Ask yourself a few important things:
What in your life should you look at more deeply?
If you like to come up with decisions about people, is it to make you feel better? And what other ways could work better?
What is your hidden payoff for taking the focus off your growth to focus on someone else’s shortcomings?
Are you hospitable?
Are you welcoming?
Are you loving?
Are you gracious with the same amount of grace you’ve been given?
Could these areas improve?
Let’s get serious, and List a few ways how we could work toward our own improvement, through God’s grace.
What does speaking any ill of Jennifer Knapp do for our practice of hospitality?
Or, for our Christ-likness?
Or, for our growing in the Love of Christ?
Do Christians HAVE TO be the best at shooting our own wounded ones?
Please, I beg you, no.
Let us enter into a concerted time of Spirit-led introspection, discovery, confession (to both God and each other), repentance, accountability, and ongoing, loving discipleship–in unity.
Sometimes these types of personal revelations seem interesting or fascinating–along the lines of scandal, intrigue, and excitement. Yet, it’s dangerous to fixate with our idle curiosity on public figures, like Knapp, or the ordinary people we know. It’s distracting. It misses the lesson. It skirts the point of the Kingdom.
The truth is, men and women like Knapp are in pews, or they are afraid to be, and they are on the fringes. They feel like they have to choose between being secretive, or being pushed out of the church community. If we had Christ-like hospitality, we would know about them. We would walk *with* them, not just talk *about* them.
But more importantly, if we weren’t so concerned about Knapp, in a judgmental way, we could do the deeper, and far harder work of looking within, and allowing God to work his sanctifying agency.
I pray no one vilifies Jennifer, rejects her, or condemns her. But, I think it will happen. The temptation is just so irresistible. Laying waste to those anything like Knapp is so common, that it hardly seems wrong to our conscience, in general. We have this corny idea of righteous indignation, to give us motivation. But guess what? It’s more irresistible to gossip under the cover of righteous indignation, and far more common than same gender attraction! If we only had righteous indignation for our own problems, first, or ever! Imagine the spiritual growth then.
I don’t think we should applaud her, or marginalize her, but rather know that her journey is neither yours, or mine, directly. When I think of her, I think of the words Jesus said.
Matt.9:11-12When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and ‘sinners’?” On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.”
BUT-Here’s the distinction. I know this verse is about me. If you don’t realize you need God, and you need help, well, you won’t get any.
Besides that, It saddened me to read that in the article with CT, Jennifer said she was not involved in a church family now. We all need community, to be our best. What could be more beneficial to her than to be surrounded and supported by brothers and sisters in the faith? She dearly loves God. She continues to sing to him, and seek him, unabashedly. Now is not the time to focus on her particular statements, though. We have greater work to do. It’s the kind where personal change is truly possible–the kind within ourselves.
Let us love one another, for everyone who does not love, does not know God.