As I watch the seasons change, I see the brush strokes of the greatest artist ever known, the Lord, Creator God. He spoke the earth and living creatures into being, created Adam from the dust of the earth, then used his rib to form Eve. Just as He breathed life into them, He inspires and creates new life in us.
Each day, I try to read one or two sections from The Valley of Vision, a collection of Puritan prayers. The readings are like fresh dew upon the petals of my English roses, sending forth the fragrance of heaven. Every prayer brims with possibility and the vibrancy of a soul well-nourished and a spirit inclined toward God.
This morning I read a prayer about Christ’s “artistry” in our lives. His divine paintbrush works on each of us. We are His canvas until He completes the portrait that makes us into the perfect image of Christ. We are genuinely His Masterpieces. Here is some of the prayer.
“If traces of Christ’s love-artistry be upon me, may he work on with his divine brush until the complete image be obtained and I be made a perfect copy of him, my Master.” (1)
When walking in the woods or open fields, you can see how the Lord crafts a new landscape each passing day. The differences may be subtle, but they are remarkable as you learn to observe His work. Suddenly there will be a colorful migrating bird, a new cast of mushrooms, or wildflowers that have sprung up. He creates different moods in the sky based on the type of clouds. He may paint a mackerel sky – round clouds like fish scales – or drifts of clouds shaped like mare’s tails to precede a change in weather.
The cumulonimbus clouds, or thunderheads, bring lightning, rain, and yes, thunder. God power washes the sky with the rain and paints it brilliant blue after a storm. Each day’s sky is unique. Standing on the shore of a Scottish loch, I gaze at the barely blue horizon. It is almost white, where it meets the mountains and water. Following the expanse from the horizon to a point straight above me, it passes through shades of cerulean blue to the deep lapis. He gloriously attends our horizons with gold, red, and purple at sunset. He tints the clouds with rose at sunrise. Each landscape He frames with sky and paints a thousand shades of blue daily. Nothing remains the same from one moment to the next.
We, too, are unfinished paintings. He transforms us every day. We must allow Him to paint a portrait to His liking. Sometimes this involves scraping off our sin that tarnishes His masterpiece. Other times, when we resist, He tries a fresh paint or perspective to guide us toward the masterpiece He has in mind. Our Lord never gives up. He intends to make us into the perfect image of Himself.
The scripture says the Lord sees us before we are conceived. (2) He is on the journey with us and never abandons us. Just as the Lord accompanies me in the forest and by the streams of water, He stays by my side, an artist adding His nature, breath, and love, making me into His final image. Nothing can prevent this. He knows precisely when you will belong to Him. And once His, nothing can snatch you out of His hand – all His children come home.
The day He puts down His paintbrush is the day you arrive in your eternal home. A masterpiece drawn and painted by His hand, ready to enjoy and worship Him forever. Stop and take time to listen and observe. Because as He paints your portrait, the Lord always has something to say.
“I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.”
Psalm 139:15-16 NIV
- The Valley of Vision, A Collection of Puritan Prayers and Devotions, Arthur Bennet, Edt. pg. 45
- Psalm 139:16 NIV
