Sat, Sep 22nd - 8:36PM
Restoration
An artist of great renown resided in a beautiful country side setting. It was both idyllic and ideal - ideal for his occupation - painting. The air was pure and the surroundings reflected purity as well. The birds' songs were uninterrupted. The flowers' blooms were undisturbed. The man himself was the crown jewel of this setting - a man of quiet spirit and a pure heart. His great talent for painting captured all the qualities of this rare equation.
How could his paintings not reflect the same? There were no wild scenes of distress, no meaningless meanderings flowed onto his canvasses. Only order occupied the final work. His reality was ideal, ordered and thus, beautiful.
But with reality came age. Life, and with it his setting, changed. He grew old, frail and dependent. The house was sold and to the city he went - finishing his life dependent upon his son.
Although he died, his works lived on and increased in fame.
His memory was especially important to his nephew. He took on the task - adventure to him - to collect and gather all paintings, sketches, any memorabilia of his now famous uncle.
Logically he returned to his uncle's country setting. New owners welcomed him and urged him to search any nook and cranny he desired. And search he did - high and low! His search led him to the basement, the attic, the barn - and he just happened to open the stinking chicken coop door. The chickens flapped and clucked, the smell overwhelmed him, but there in the back corner, behind a chicken perch, were several canvasses.
Were they? Yes! they were paintings! His uncle's signature emerged as the dirt fell away. But dirt was not the only residue. Indiscriminate farm "dirt" spotted the canvases. Paint had chipped off - holes and rips everywhere.
But this did not spoil the nephew's delight at his find, or determination to carry on with his task. In fact, it energized him.
Of course the present owners demanded a price. A high price. It rankled the nephew. Whose paintings were these anyway? They had no sentimental attachment to them. And from the look of things, no appreciation for art and the finer things of life either. The word redemption came to his mind. Yes, he was buying back what was his in the first place. He considered the cost - great, but small compared to the value he attached to these orginal works of his uncle. Parting with dollars was really insignificant as he lovingly loaded his vehicle with his new found fortune.
He sped back to the city. He consulted art restorers at the museums, and honed his art restoration skills. No flaw was too large or too small. With the magnifying glass his best tool, he examined every brush stroke, repaired every chip of paint, and sealed the holes and rips. Time was not of essence, quality and his uncle's name was. Years were devoted to this project and the complete collection of the art. His desire was to see it all on display. His imagination was lit by the possibility of this art touring the world, hanging in quiet galleries, reflecting the talent of his uncle and the beauty of his personage as well as the setting in which he painted.
Eventually all was restored, and his uncle's work made whole and perfect. Not without much labor and love, is anything of value restored.
Not without much labor and love of God are we restored. "We are God's work of art, created in Christ Jesus, to live the good life as from the beginning he had meant us to live it." Eph 2:10. He not only redeemed us at a great, and the ultimate, cost, He also works day and night to restore us. To restore His most perfect creation, His most perfect work of art. No matter of ruined the canvas, how dirty our souls and hearts, His means and ways of restoration are inscrutable and always wise. And as finished works of art, we shall shine as the stars of the morning , with Jesus our Crucified Lord. And all God's works of art, finished or unfinished, restored or still in the painful process here on earth, say AMEN!
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Tue, Jun 5th - 9:41AM
CREATION
CREATION
Infinitely long ago
and forever far away, the Holy Father and the Holy Son communed, were
One,
because of the Holiest of Spirits that they shared.
Gen 1: 1
This Team of Three was
ever One. After many eons of perfect and matchless communion, all
timeless infinity, the Father decided to create another universe.
PS
102:25
Vast Voids are a
challenge to a Creator! So to His Holy Son He laid out His Divine
Plan. "Let Us start another universe - right there - yes
-it's a perfect spot for another galaxy. You will speak THE WORD and
Our universe will be. The possibilities are as infinite as I AM. What
ideas do you have?
EX 3:14
. . . and The Son said,
"'Let there be Light,' and there was Light."
Now
there was Light and Blackness. The Holy They decided to call the
Light Day, and the Blackness, Night.
Gen 1:3-5
What a
Beginning! Where would it all end? Yes - Let Us make order of all
this water. Water, Water, - everywhere – Yes, Son, this IS better -
a Heaven above - Heaven, indeed!
Gen 1:6-8
But now Father, the
water needs work. It's all over the place - just floating there - no
form. Any suggestions? Gather it , yes, that's it - limits. However
unruly, it will obey any boundary We set. We'll keep the water in -
in oceans, seas, rivers, lakes. And the Dry Ground appeared as THE
WORD was spoken. And it was Good. But was it complete? Maybe a bit dull? Drab? Plain?
Brown? We'll use the Light to provide color. Let Us decorate,
embellish, adorn - grass, flowers, herbs, trees and then seeds in all
to impart Our Infinity. Yes, it was Good, so very Good.
Gen 1: 6-12
JOHN 1:1
PS
104:7,8
Light? Dark? Too much
light? Too much dark? You are right, it does need to be ordered,
disciplined. A-a-a-a-h-h-h-h, yes, orbiting lights, revolving
lights, twinkling lights - Sun, Moon and Stars. The creation of the
Third day especially appreciated the kinder, gentler moonlight when
the blazing Sun faded away at the end of the Fourth day. Then there
was darkness, but the blackness was gone. What Design! What Order out
of Chaos!
Gen 1: 14-19
But wait - there's more
- Of what use was this grand production, this ever-changing canvas,
this panoply of perfection? The Holy Trio agreed, the water was
empty. What treasure those liquid bodies could hold, sustain and
maintain! What an Exhibition Hall the skies could become! At THE WORD
the waters literally came alive and its unruly restlessness became a
challenge for creatures great and small. There were winged things of
every shape and size for those blue, blue skies. It had been Good,
but Goodness had outdone Himself again! The blues, the greens, the
varieties - all so Good and all unmatched in other galaxies.
Gen 1: 20-23
Ps: 104:24-25
As the Earth turned
away from the Sun on that Fifth Day, plans for the Sixth day were
reviewed.
The
Sacred-Three-Yet-One again replayed the original conversation.-
carefully considering the implications. If we create a creature with
a choice and a seed Eternal Good if he chooses Us, Eternal Evil if he
chooses Evil. Our whole creation would be at stake. All the Beauty
gone in a single choice. . . A creature with a choice and without a
seed - what would be the point? . . . A creature with only Good
choices - but would he really be Ours with only Good to choose?
OURS - Yes, he will
always be Ours. Even if he chooses the Evil One, he is OUR creation
and always will be. Yes, that's it, We'll rescue him, buy him back,
Redeem him!
Redeem? Buy back? What price will Evil
demand? The Price will be Death - until now, a word unknown
in Our Paradise. Separation will be the Price. Our Most Holy Trio
broken, Holy Communion split asunder. As I shield my Face from sin,
You, My Own Holy and
Precious Son, will have to pay that Price.
JOHN 3:16
The
Rebel Angel also surveyed the new universe. "But God - You've
made it pretty safe, haven't you? Not one of those moving things
even has a choice. Those winged things can only sing. Which of those
flapping things will ever question? Wonder? Make a decision? No
choices, huh? A bit cautious this time? God? No more rebels, right?"
Job 1:6
As the
Earth turned its face again toward the Sun to begin the Sixth Day,
the lush landscape was flourishing. Could it be any better?
Beauty, Life, Sacred
Scenery, Creativity, Art and Purity all Divinely present.
And yes, a Choice Creature
would be the Climax of Creation
The decision had been made
long before The Son spoke into being "the living creature
according to its kind, cattle and creeping thing and beast of the
earth,"
GEN 1:24.
And
before the Earth turned away from the Sun on the evening of that
Sixth Day,
a new and unique Creature
joined the NoChoicers.
Out of His Heart of Love,
JESUS cried out with a loud voice
Matt 27:46
"Let Us create Man
and in the Image of God created He them -"
Gen 1:26
Col 1: 26
And on that evening of
the Sixth Day, the New Galaxy was Very Good.
Perfection has no
competition.
Gen 1:31
And what
about the Choice ? We know not on which day the Choice was made -
but all humans have and
will always suffer from that choice
until sin is forever
vanquished and Time is no more.
I Am the Alpha and
the Omega, The First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.
Rev. 22: 13
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Name: Thea Alberda
