THE HEART OF THE ARTIST

THE HEART OF THE ARTIST

"It started when God said, "Light up the darkness!" and our lives filled up with light as we saw and understood God in the face of Christ, all bright and beautiful."

2 Corinthians 4:6, The Message

THE PRIVILEGE

I believe God has given each one of us talents and gifts. To some it could be music (e.g. singing, playing instruments), to others dancing, to you might be writing (poems, stories, novels) or photography or sculpture. Mine is drawing though I admit there are lots of great artist better than me. But that doesn't matter; I'll just practice so I will improve and use it for God.

Whenever I have drawn something that satisfies me or makes me happy, I remember Genesis 1. Seven (7) times the phrase "God saw that it was good," the seventh with the word "very", is written in that chapter. I could imagine God smiling with a smile that reached His ears, so happy that His eyes danced. Imagine God looking at YOU and then He would say "It was very good." I'm sure there's a satisfied look on His face when He rested from all His work on the seventh Day. God never sleeps and I believe that what He did on the seventh day was look and observe His creation. I always do that after drawing something. I love staring at my drawing. It's not that I admire my drawing or that I admire myself for being able to draw. It's just that it makes me happy just by looking at what I have created. There is a sense of contentment or satisfaction.

If you ever feel or think that you have not done anything to make God smile, just think about this: your mere existence, the sound of your breathing, the beating of your heart, the rushing of your blood pleases God. Knowing that your body is doing its function as God has designed makes Him happy. I know we have hurt God countless times and we get disappointed with ourselves not being able to do spectacular things for God and in His sight but when that happens, think about those things.

Our talents are given to us by God to be use for His glory and not just for our own gain. Although yes, part of receiving these talents, we can make it as a mean to earn or to make a living but the main purpose why God has given us those talents is to glorify Him, to magnify Him, to make Him known to the ends of the earth. Fame and Riches are only the fruit of giving glory to God and not the end result. Also, do you know that your talent or gift is a privilege which God has given you? God has given us the privilege to experience what His heart feels when He created the universe and us humans. And I can testify to that! The happiness to create something, the contentment, the satisfaction, that's what God feels when He created us and He wants us to share in His happiness. He wants us to take part of what He is doing. He wants us to be His co-creator. And though He never wants us to feel the pain He felt when His creation rebelled against Him, the pain comes together with happiness in creating.

THE GOOD TURNS BAD

I remember years ago when my sister and I had a fight. The reason was nonsense, really. I don't even remember the reason now, it was petty. She sprinkled rubbing alcohol on me while I was drawing something for a friend and then she ran to escape my wrath for she knows so well how I treasured my drawings. When I looked at the drawing on my hand, I saw wet marks. Thinking it was ruined, I cried so hard that later I saw more wet marks on the paper, obviously from my tears, and my drawing was even wet than before.I wasn't that so Christian then that I gave my sister a murderous stare and schemed for revenge.

It must be very painful for God when the "very good" He created turned to be "no longer good." I believe God cried so hard and felt so bad as if His heart was pierced when the first man and we, even up to this generation,sinned. Man --God's masterpiece, the object of His love, the reason why He created the universe in full detail. The "very good" was no longer good. It has become spoiled like food no longer suitable to be eaten or else it will make your stomach churn. Satan had marred God's masterpiece. A mud on a beautiful painting. God knows so well that with Satan, man is heading towards destruction.

If you were the artist who painted that painting which Mr. Bean ruined, what would you feel? What if your "preciousssssssssssss" (Smeagle, is that you? LOTR fever) was stolen from you or what if the novel you've been working for months was burn by some pyromaniac before you were able to publish it, will you act as if nothing happened?

The artist would either throw out the painting he worked so hard thinking it is already useless or try with all his might to fix it. God did the latter even costing His very life. He covered the painting and washed the mud with His blood. He never gave up on us.

God makes us beautiful again by coming to earth as a man only to die on the Cross as a ransom for us. The very moment when we accepted Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour, we became new creation... The old is gone and the new has come.... Jesus' beauty now reflects in us.... and we are beautiful again in God's sight...

To the Greatest Artist--GOD--be the glory!!!

Your sister through the blood of Christ,

Rizeru