Thursday Yr B Sunday bet Jul 17-23
I Chronicles 11:15-19, Colosssians1:15-23, Psalm 89:20-37
Colossians 1:15-23 (New International Version)
The Supremacy of Christ
15He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. 17He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. 19For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross. 21Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of[a] your evil behavior. 22But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation— 23if you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant.
The Creative Spirit
Amy perused the art exhibit with her friend Susan. They looked at oil paintings and sketches in charcoal. There were pen and ink drawings and several sculptures that stood in the middle of the room. As they went from art piece to the next, they read about the creator of each work along with the date the piece had been completed.
“You know, this is a one woman show.” Amy pointed to the name posted beside the large canvass. “Jane Merryman. 2008. Wow, we keep finding her name on each thing. She created so many different kinds of art.”
“Look at that sculpture.” Susan reached to touch the smooth surface of a bronze bust. “It’s a Jane Merryman.”
“This one is a Jane Merryman, too, but it’s in clay.” Amy noted.
“That oil is a Jane Merryman. She does everything!” Susan exclaimed.
“Yep, here’s a pen and ink drawing by her.”
“Oh, I want to meet her. I thought you had to focus on just one thing and you couldn’t do art in different areas. I so enjoy sculpting and painting and drawing.”
The girls moved around the room, absorbing more of the work that the artist had rendered. Finally, they asked their friend, the curator if it were possible to meet Jane Merryman. She led them to the artist and introduced them.
“Jane, this is Amy and Susan, they are from the youth group that I teach on Wednesday nights.” The girls and Jane shook hands.
“You work in different mediums.” Amy blurted.
“Yes, I do. Inspiration strikes on different days in different ways. Some days, I have to sculpt; others, I draw.” Jane walked with them and showed them paintings and sculptures and talked about the ways she had been inspired. She described how some of her work wasn’t visible to people but was in the layers, created textures; was in the planning and preparation…visible and invisible art–subject to inspiration.
“Inspiration can come out of the blue, can’t it?” Susan asked.
“Actually, my biggest inspiration comes from God.” Jane acknowledged. “I feel closest to God when I am creating. After all God is our creator. The Bible talks about Jesus being the creator of everything. In Colossians 1:16 “For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him.”
“Wow, just like everything in here is created by you, everything in creation is created by Jesus.” Amy smiled as she spoke.
Susan jumped in, “I get it. That’s why you feel closest to God when you’re creating…because Jesus is the ultimate creator.”
“Exactly, I feel God’s pleasure when I create.” Jane looked at Susan, “When you do your art, ask Jesus to help you create your best for him. Then you can feel it, too.”
“If I pray, then I will reconcile myself to Jesus when I create.” Susan volunteered.
“We are reconciled to Jesus when we accept him as our Savior and we can feel his pleasure when we create to please him. It goes both ways.”Amy nodded.
“I always pray before I begin to create and pray while I am creating, …and then I really pray, hoping that they will sell.” Jane laughed at the end.
“I’m going to try that when I paint. Praying for the work I am going to do. I want to tap into the source—the creator of all, when I am doing my art.” Susan ventured.
Amy’s head bobbed, “I hadn’t thought of doing that before, either. But I’m going to try it next time.”
“God bless you both in your art.” Jane grinned. “You’ll give me competition before I know it.”
“I hope so.” Amy grinned back. “I want to please God with my work too. Jesus, the creator of all can be…is my example to follow when I create.”
“Me, too.” Susan added. They said goodbye to Jane and made plans to bring some of their work to show her the next week.
Daily prayer: Creator God, all the thrones, dominions, powers, principalities, authorities were made by you. You are in charge of everything. Forgive me for not trusting you to take care of me. Forgive my sin against you. Help me to follow Jesus and create what he wants me to do each day for him. In Jesus name, Amen.
Memorize: Colossians 1:16 “For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him.”
