Friday, January 28, 2005

Monet's Sunset and God's Work

The setting sun has been very prettily Monet-esque this week: a perfect orange sphere gracefully burning and dipping into a navy-blue sea displacing a dollop of night mist, silhouetted chimneys smoking grey-blue in the horizon. Colours like his "Impression, Sunrise, 1872".



Which brings up those old little aesthetics (also 'A' level GP paper sure-come-out-one-or-you-can-adapt-answer) questions: does art imitate life or life imitate art? and in which should we find beauty?


Happily, these questions are now academic niceties to me. Enjoyment and delicious delight can be had in both the wonder of nature and the prettiness of man-made art because one God made them all. And this same God also created us and put in us the ability to find ecstasy and delight in these things and in him. So much much more than the beauty of nature and of art, I can delight in this God because of who he is: he created all things. And more amazingly, I can delight in the relationship I have with him.

It's mind-blowing to think that I can even have a relationship with the Creator of the universe. Yet more incredible is that
while I was still his enemy and totally opposed to him, he took the initiative to bring me into relationship with him. Even more out-of-this-world is that he gave his own Son to bring me into relationship with him, and phwoah, after all that he asks me call him "Father"!

Funnily enough, this Revelations song has been in my head the whole week while I watched the magnificent sunset (floating on the warm sea breeze, sung straight, pure and clear and passionately by a tanned mediterranean mezzo-soprano):

Salvation belongs to our God
Who sits upon the throne,
and unto the Lamb
Praise and Glory,
Wisdom and thanks,
Honour and power and strength.

Be to our God forever and ever,
Be to our God forever and ever,
Be to our God forever and ever, amen.

And we, the redeemed shall be strong
In purpose and unity
Declaring aloud
Praise and Glory,
Wisdom and thanks,
Honour and power and strength.

Written by Adrian Howard and Pat Turner
© 1985 Restoration Music, Ltd.


Labels: ,