June Caedmon's Blog, page 4

A Pattern for Life

The bleak mid-winter days are challenging for even the most sanguine among us. Those of us who live in all but a few places on this planet must endure the cold dark days of winter each year. For some these days are longer and colder than for others.

A good book, a hot cuppa, and a cozy, weighted blanket are often enough to get us through. But when we are in the midst of troubling situations, the dismal view outside our window can make things seem even grimmer.

The book of Nehemiah may seem like a strange place to go during such a time, but this man of God has always been an inspiration to me. A wide view of the account of his mission to Jerusalem gives us a good pattern for facing difficult times and bleak winter days.

Nehemiah is in captivity, serving as cupbearer to the king of Persia when hears of the trouble his fellow Jews are facing in Jerusalem. The city is in ruins. The great wall has been broken down and the gates destroyed by fire.

What is the first thing that Nehemiah does? He confesses the sins of his people, his family, and his own sin before God.

“I confess the sins which the Israelites have committed against You, and of which my father’s house and I are also guilty.” Neh 1:6

Whether the situation we are facing is the result of our own poor choices or the consequences of someone else’s the first step is to bring our own feelings and failures to God.

Even when dealing with the fallout of something that wasn’t our fault, shifting our focus from blaming others to our own actions, and dealing with them honestly before God, frees us to forgive others and forgive ourselves. Forgiveness begins the healing process and allows us to ultimately rebuild relationships.

In response to Nehemiah’s prayer, God made a way for him to return to Jerusalem and lead the rebuilding of the wall around the city.

Doing the right thing, confessing our sins, forgiving others, and so forth starts us on the pathway to resolving our problems and reconciling with others. But that doesn’t mean the path is sunny and without pitfalls.

Nehemiah was met with great opposition and even violence.  Men, calling themselves friends, tried to discourage, deceive, and lead him to sin against God. 

God protected Nehemiah and gave him the wisdom to see through the lies. God does the same for us. “If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God and it will be given him, for God is a generous giver who neither grudges nor reproaches anyone.” (James 1:5)

Once the wall was rebuilt and the people could dwell safely again, Nehemiah immediately turned to the word of God. He gathered the people and had the word read in their presence, so that they could understand all that was required of them before God.

Beloved, when we are facing overwhelming situations the Word of God is a vital piece of armour. Paul describes it as a sword that the Holy Spirit gives us. (Eph 6: 10-18) What did Jesus rely on when He was in the desert for forty days being tempted by the evil one? He refuted every temptation with God’s word. (Matt 4)

Partaking daily of the Word will give us the wisdom and strength we need to endure, whether our situation lasts forty hours, forty days, or forty years. The people wanted to weep when they heard the word of the Lord. It had been so long and they had fallen so far. But Nehemiah said, “Let there be no sadness, for joy in the Lord is your strength.”

And, Beloved, it is our strength too.

Finally, before Nehemiah returned to the capital city of Susa to resume his duties of cupbearer to the king, he instituted religious reforms to help the people live their daily lives.

A great many priests and Levites and heads of families were tasked with maintaining the outer and inner workings of the house of God. There were doorkeepers, Levites in charge of collecting the tithes, singers, gatekeepers, workers in the temple, and those in charge of the songs of thanksgiving.

Beloved, it’s essential that we build “habits” into our lives that point us to God. These are not legalistic rituals done out of obligation but rather practices that flow out of a desire to know Him better. Acts that raise our perspective to a higher plane out of the muck and mire that often surrounds us.

Daily or weekly worship through song or other creative outlets. Daily meditation or prayer examen. Recording and thanking God for daily blessings. Writing in a prayer journal. Celebrating/observing the holy days of the Church calendar in whatever way is meaningful to us.

The point is to build a life structure that keeps us connected to God. When we do, no matter how bleak, cold, or dark life gets we will never be alone. We will always have the Son to guide us and carry us through.

The pattern we see in Nehemiah: confession, reading of the word, and thanksgiving is a life-long model we can follow again and again to navigate the bleak mid-winter days, no matter what time of year they come.

Stories of Old

Stories, especially the great stories, often fall short when adapted for film. Tolkien’s masterpiece, The Lord of the Rings is no exception. Vast sections of the story (Tom Bombadil!!!) are left out completely.

But there is one scene depicted in the film that exceeded where my imagination could go when reading the book. The Fellowship has left Lothlorien, and as they float down the great river they come to Argonath, the Pillars of the Kings. Upon great pedestals the kings of old stand, wrought out of stone, soaring hundreds of feet above the water, their left hands stretched out in warning. Watching the scene unfold, you can well understand the awe and fear that fell upon the company as their boats whirled between the feet of these towering giants. In his book, Tolkien describes how Strider is transformed from the weatherworn Ranger to Aragorn son of Arathorn, the exiled king. For seeing the likeness of his forefathers reminds him of the great deeds of the past and the role he is to play in the future.

All throughout Tolkien’s stories, the dead are remembered; the past is recalled as stories within the greater story. Deeds are recounted, whether they were good or ill. The stories are told for a purpose: to inform the present.

The Biblical stories are no different. Consider the Acts of the Apostles. Here we learn what the disciples did after Jesus left them. But these stories have another layer, humming beneath the surface. Having walked through the gospels with these men, especially Peter, we can see the dichotomy. The Peter before and after the resurrection. The Peter before and after he received the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

Chapter 11 is revealing. This man who once acted so rashly and defensively when challenged now responds calmly and concisely.

And when Peter came up to Jerusalem, those of the circumcision contended with him, saying, “You went in to uncircumcised men and ate with them!” But Peter explained it to them in order from the beginning,” (Act 11:2-4)

Moreover, this man who once rebuked Christ Himself (Matt 16:23) because his mind was on the things of man rather than the things of God, would now enter the house of a Gentile without hesitation, and eat with him.

Then I remembered the word of the Lord, how He said, ‘John indeed baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ If therefore God gave them the same gift as He gave us when we believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could withstand God?” (Act 11:16-17)

We don’t have to understand everything about first-century customs, laws about clean and unclean foods, and the centuries-old animosity between Jew and Gentile for these stories to inform our present.

Peter, the rock on whom Christ said He would build His church, is highly exalted in our world today. Basilicas and an untold number of statues have been raised in his honor.  And, in so much as the beauty of the workmanship and the life of the saint points us to Christ, they have their place.

But for me, it is the story of the sleeping Peter in the Garden of Gethsemane, the broken Peter at dawn when the rooster crows, and the restored Peter revealed for us in the first chapters of Acts that arrest my spirit.

Because I can see myself in his failings and I can see my God in his redemption.

Windows

These cold, pollen-laden days of mid-winter make it difficult for me to spend much time out of doors.

Shut up inside, focused on work or worse, a constant flow of negative news, it is amazing how quickly our minds can narrow, darken, and become anxious.

The windows save me. Portals of light, even on dim winter days, they beckon. Looking out, I’m confronted by Beauty. Even this limited view awakens my soul to Him.

The birds, fluffed up against the cold. The sky, layer upon layer of tinted white. A boundless canvas. My mind is enlarged, enlightened, and calmed in the presence of Beauty.

Matthew chapter six is such a fenestella of light.

Jesus begins by telling us something remarkable. “Your heavenly Father knows what your needs are before you ask Him.”

What follows this astonishing statement is an outline for effective communication with our Father, a warning, an encouragement, and a direction.

The prayer outline that Jesus gave His disciples, recorded in Matthew 6:9, shifts our focus from worldly needs to eternal matters. Worship, God’s will, Daily communion, repentance and forgiveness, and protection against the enemy.

Jesus goes on to warn that if we treasure the material things of this world, rather than the eternal things which endure, our hearts will become a dark and decayed place.

Our appetite for material comforts leads to an appetite for excess. Excess breeds an attitude of entitlement and privilege. Gratitude is quickly replaced with reproach. Contentedness with anxiety.

To avoid this downward spiral, our Lord encourages us to look out the window, as it were. To observe His creation. The birds of the air, the lilies of the field. All these exist because of Him and He provides for them all.

Creation reveals to us the authority and equity of our heavenly Father.

A just and righteous God, which He is, provides for the least of His creation, the birds and the lilies. How much more will He provide for us; those who are made in His image, those in whom His Spirit dwells.

Even as His hearers are still considering these great truths, Jesus gives us a directive: “Set your mind on God’s kingdom and His justice before everything else, and all the rest will come to you as well.”

By keeping our focus on His kingdom, through those areas He outlines in His prayer, we will freely receive all that we need.

Daily we experience this truth: “Each day has troubles enough of its own.” (Matt 6:34b)

Matthew Henry’s statement, “Thoughtfulness of our souls is the most effectual cure of thoughtfulness for the world,” rings true, as well.

It is out of our right relationship with our heavenly Father that provides for every other aspect of our life flows.

A Kindness

In my New Year’s post on IG and Facebook, I shared some glimpses from my 2021 monthly gratitude lists. One of those entries was “a kindness that smote my heart.” I’d like to tell you about it.

Each year, before Christmas I start looking for something special. Something our family can use or enjoy to celebrate the holidays. When Jordan @jordanandco shared a picture of her Advent candelabra and said she was taking orders, I knew I had found this year’s ‘something special.’

I eagerly placed my order . . . and waited. The candelabras are made to order and the process of forming the clay, firing, glazing, and all the other magical things that Jordan does, takes time.

Trust me, her creations are worth the wait.

Finally, the box arrived! I opened it and began unwrapping the layers and layers of bubble wrap, thinking all the while of how much care Jordan puts into her packaging.

I’m sure you can imagine my disappointment when the final layer of wrapping fell away and I saw my beautiful candelabra smashed in a half a dozen pieces! My visions of the year’s Advent candle lightings went up in smoke.

As I feared, there wasn’t time for Jordan to make me a replacement. She refunded my purchase in full. Not only was I disappointed about the candelabra but I was dismayed because Jordan had lost a sale. Despite her careful packaging, there was little hope she would recover her costs through a shipping claim.

There was a mug in her shop that I’d had my eye on for some time. It couldn’t replace the lost candelabra (for either of us) but I put an order in hoping it might help cover some of her loss.

Another box came, another carefully packaged treasure. And something more. Lovingly wrapped and nestled next to my mug was one of Jordan’s beautiful Ebenezer candleholders.

Unexpected. Unlooked for. Carefully wrapped. Appearing in the midst of disappointment. Disappointment larger than just a broken candelabra.

Jordan’s kindness meant all the more because she gave abundantly, even out of her own loss.

Friends, I’m not making more of this than I should. Not every act of kindness is a sacrifice. Not every act of kindness costs us something. But when they do, they are mighty powerful indeed.

For they give forth the aroma of the Great Kindness: Jesus’ sacrifice for us.

The Blessing

Luke 1:39-45: I love this greeting between these two women. Elizabeth proclaims a blessing, but who is really being blessed here? and who is doing the blessing?

“Now Mary arose in those days and went into the hill country with haste, to a city of Judah, and entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth. And it happened, when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, that the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. Then she spoke out with a loud voice and said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! But why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For indeed, as soon as the voice of your greeting sounded in my ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy. Blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord.”  Luke 1:39‭-‬45 NKJV

If you pause for a moment and consider each woman’s situation, I think you will see God’s blessing, His care, and concern revealed in this intimate moment as the Holy Spirit moves over their lives.

Why does Mary seek out Elizabeth in the first place? I can only imagine how scared this young, suddenly pregnant teenager might have been. I think she sought out Elizabeth because she knew her to be older and wiser. Getting out of Nazareth and away from the judgmental looks had to have been a relief as well.

How Elizabeth’s greeting must have encouraged and strengthened Mary’s heart! Isn’t it just like our Lord to encourage us through others when we are scared and doubting? It is unlikely that anyone in Mary’s hometown would have offered her such a word. But God knew just what she needed to hear and from whom she needed to hear it.

And Elizabeth? She had been in seclusion for five months after learning of her own miraculous pregnancy. Imagine her joy! After a lifetime of yearning, God had finally heard her prayers. Still, I think she must have been a little uneasy about the coming birth.

Mary’s visit comes at just the right time. She is there to help Elizabeth in her final months. Once again, God knew exactly what Elizabeth would need. The kind of help she likely wouldn’t get from her elderly friends.  Mary was uniquely able to help Elizabeth in preparing for the birth of her baby.

A baby that would one day prepare the way for Mary’s baby; our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Can you see the Spirit weaving It’s way through their stories, Beloved?

God was preparing to bring into the world, the Savior of the world. And yet,  He cared deeply for the thoughts and feelings of His messengers, Mary and Elizabeth.

God hasn’t changed,  Beloved.  He is still all about salvation, redemption, and reconciliation.

At the same time, He still cares deeply for His children. His messengers.

You and me.

Advent gives us time to ponder these truths. Time to sit in wonder. Time to remember. To consider our role in HIStory.

Time to praise Him for what He has done, for what He is doing, and for what He will do… soon, Beloved.

Very soon.

Confetti

Someone is having a party. Confetti tossed all over my yard. Tiny gems of red, green, and gold. Gifts from our Tallow tree.

I love this tree.  She has a soft voice. A rustle and a whisper that speaks to me all year round. In the winter she adorns herself with white pods, baubles that shine silver in the frosty sun. Just before the first signs of Spring, they turn black. A feast for the birds.

In early Spring, her tiny buds unfurl into heart-shaped leaves of yellow-green.  And then, as spring turns to summer, she is baptized. The Queen butterflies come and kiss her inflorescence; clusters of flowers arranged on a spiked stem.

It nearly broke my heart this past April when her branches remained bare. No tiny buds emerged to greet the rallying sun. The week-long freeze we’d had in February had wounded her. With fanciful thoughts of being heard, I caressed her trunk and whispered, “Don’t give up. Grow you.”

Finally, in May when she should have been hosting butterflies, a few branches began to sprout from the main trunk. By July her center stood, lush and adorned, surrounded by bare fingers. The evidence of her inner ache.  She never bloomed.

Yet, she still extends an offering. Her leaves have turned to wine and gold. Despite her wounds, she still reflects the beauty of her Creator.

There will be no baubles shining silver in the sun this year. As she enters her winter rest, I pray for her inner healing.

My prayer is not for her alone.

My prayer is for every one of you who has been wounded. Whether your bruises are visible or invisible. New or old. Raw and bleeding or deep and aching.

The Tallow reminds us that we can bear these hurts. Because another tree, two thousand years ago, bore our Savior. We do not walk alone in this world. We do not suffer needlessly or unattended.

He is making all things new. Righting wrongs and redeeming all that has been lost.

Our sufferings can give witness to this truth. Even in the midst of our grief, we can reflect the beauty of our Creator.

Beauty defies despair.

Shaking Things Up

My dad was a baker.  Not in any official capacity mind you, but when he wasn’t tending the animals on our small family farm in Vermont, you would find him in the kitchen baking bread, and pies, and donuts.

Oh, how I miss the delights that emerged from his oven, filling our farmhouse with ambrosial scents!
He had his method of doing things as we all do, and one process stands out in my memory.

He always sifted his dry ingredients. Flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt; whatever the particular recipe called for. I can vividly remember him holding the sifter over the mixing bowl, working the mechanism, and tapping the side to make sure everything fell through.  This was also a good job for a little girl who wanted to help her daddy in the kitchen.

I often see these flour sifters at antique stores, so I’m not sure that anyone uses them anymore. My dad did and it served a purpose.

Sifting does several things, it removes lumps and adds air to the flour making it much lighter and therefore easier to mix with the other ingredients. Dad saw it as a necessary part of preparing the ingredients.

We can use a lot of analogies for the process we go through as Christians in our journey of faith. The ‘working out of our salvation’ as Philippians 2:12 says. Sometimes it feels like a refining fire, a threshing floor, or a wine press.

The truth is God is shaking things up.  God says, “I will shake not only the earth, but the heavens also.” (Hag 2:6; Heb 12:26) When He is done, only that which is unshakable shall remain.

Beloved, these experiences don’t make us who we are, they reveal how we will embrace the truth of who God made us to be. And in Christ, we are heirs to this unshakeable kingdom.

“The kingdom we are given is unshakeable; let us, therefore, give thanks to God for it, and so worship God as He would be worshipped, with reverence and awe; for our God is a devouring fire.” Heb 12:28-29

God is not only shaking things up, He’s making things new.

“Then He who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.” And He said to me, “Write, for these words are true and faithful.” ‘ (Rev 21:5)

The flour and other ingredients alone don’t sustain and feed us. Mixed together they make bread, which provides nourishment to the body. All our human analogies will fail at some point, but scripture speaks clear:

In Christ, we become a new creation (II Cor 5:17). [Mixed] together with Him, we are now part of His unshakeable kingdom and able to serve the body of believers and perform (walk) in the good works for which He created us! (Eph 2:10)

Bottom Line

And he shall plant the tents of his palace between the seas and the glorious holy mountain; yet he shall come to his end, and no one will help him. Daniel 11:45 NKJV

The next to the last chapter of Daniel reads like a great apocalyptic saga. Nations rise and fall. The kings of the north and south parley, feint, attack, and draw back. Until, finally, the king of the north sweeps over country after country like a flood.

Yet, scripture tells us, he too shall come to his end, and no one will help him.

When we look out over the landscape of our world today, we may not see the same revelation the angel gave Daniel in chapter 11 but the prevailing scene, the voices that are shouting at us the loudest, are those of chaos and fury. Division and resentment.

It takes diligence and a good deal of searching to find the good deeds, the random acts of kindness, and heroism. They are there, but the enemy has made sure that it costs us something to find them. It costs us something to BE them.

The forest is blocking our view of the trees. We are worried about many things and choosing what is “best” is getting harder and harder.

Much of this chaos is fueled by fear. The enemy has convinced us that we are no longer safe. Technology has brought every act of violence and maleficence into our homes, into our hands, and the hands of our children. Often in real-time.

Christians are not immune to this fear. However, the Spirit of Christ within us gives us the power to fight against it. The Spirit also gives us something else: a responsibility.

The responsibility to speak against the fear. To tell others about the hope we have in Jesus. To show them a better way. To reveal to them a reality they cannot see. (II Tim 1:7; Phil 4:6-7; Isa 41:10; Psa 118:6, and on and on…)

To do so effectively we must be grounded in the Truth. We must narrow our focus to a razor-sharp point. Seeing through the forest – to the trees of our faith: the Tree of Life, the trees of promise, and the tree on which Christ died, we must stand our ground.

After forty-five verses of chaos in Daniel 11, the bottom line is this: evil meets its end

We would do well to remember that the same bottom line is in store for the chaos in our world today.

There is a time coming when ‘the power of the holy people will no longer be shattered.’ All these things we’re worried about in our world today, they will pass away.

It’s not that we don’t care about these things. Rather, in order to care effectively, we must maintain a proper perspective.

The confidence we have in the reality we know but do not yet see must be our anchor. It must be the thing that grounds us, encourages us, and spurs us ever forward. (Heb 6:19; Heb 11)

For we are not among those who shrink back and are lost; we have the faith to preserve our life. (Heb 10:39)

As Christians we must, by our words and deeds, shine the light of Christ’s love on a world governed by fear and hopelessness.

It’s a daunting task, to be sure. But we don’t do it alone.

The Creator of the world is on our side.

“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” Jn 1:5

Birdsong

I hear the birdsong outside my window and wonder. It’s a three-part trilling I don’t recall hearing before. The song is too enticing to ignore. What if it’s a new bird I’ve never seen before?

I disengage from the electronic overlords and push back my chair. Peering around my curtains avails nothing so I sneak out onto my porch.

Mystery solved.

It’s my little friend, the Carolina wren. With several dozen song variations and a repertoire of calls, it’s no wonder he’s able to fool me every time!

Very few sounds fall between 2.5-5 kilohertz. Birdsong is one that does, and I am blessed to hear it.

I can remember when my dad started losing his earing. He said he didn’t mind as long as he could still hear the birds sing. The timbre of my voice often alluded him, but he could always hear the birds.

My ability to hear birdsong is a gift. A miracle really. It reminds me that there are many things we can’t hear, or don’t hear, or refuse to hear.

You’ve probably heard the famous question: If a tree falls in the woods and there is no one around to hear it, does it make a sound?

What about things that are declared but never spoken?

“The heavens declare the glory of God; And the firmament shows His handiwork. Day unto day utters speech, And night unto night reveals knowledge. There is no speech nor language Where their voice is not heard.” (Psa 19:1-3)

What do you hear when you stand under a night sky and gaze at the heavens?

The rhythms of the seasons, the tides, the sun and moon, do they speak to you?

When someone shouts out in anger, do we hear the pain or fear that lies beneath their words?

To all these things, are we listening without prejudice?

These are questions the birds do not ponder.

Again and again, Jesus said, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!

“Clearly, He was referring to more than our physical ability to hear sounds.

If we are to truly “hear” what the Holy Spirit is teaching us we must, seek to understand the Gospel and aim to experience the Gospel by practicing what it teaches.

To do this we must engage our spiritual ears, not just our fleshly ones.

There are many sounds outside my windows. The cars racing by, a neighbor’s chainsaw, the distant hum of an airplane. Yet I hear something in the birdsong that doesn’t exist in the other sounds; my Father’s voice.

For in Creation, “His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead.”

“He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

A Weapon Against Death

Outside my window the late summer sun filters down through a canopy of oak and cedar. The oppressive heat of August has shoved its way into September. It leaches the moisture of yesterday’s rain out of every blade of grass as it covers Texas like a weighted blanket.

And yet, the way it turns the edges of every leaf and petal to gold is breathtakingly beautiful.

As the specters of two towers rise from the backdrop of deplorable current events, our hearts fracture under the weight of anamnesis. Our minds struggle to comprehend how audacious beauty can exist alongside such horrors.

Martha of Bethany had witnessed the healing power of Jesus. When her beloved brother became ill she sent word to Jesus; fully expecting Him to come and heal Lazarus. Imagine the confusion and pain that enveloped her as days went by and Jesus did not return.  Finally, He arrives. Four days after her brother dies. Still, Martha’s faith is real. She believes in Jesus’ power to heal. Even, maybe the power for more than just healing.

“Now Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever You ask of God, God will give You.””

Jesus assures her that her brother will rise again. Martha believes Him, “Martha said to Him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.””

But the current pain of loss for Mary and Martha is real. It was devastating. Their hope in the future didn’t negate the grief they were feeling. They want their brother now.

What Jesus says next changes everything for Martha and it changes everything for you and I as well.

“Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?” She said to Him, “Yes, Lord, I believe that You are the Christ, the Son of God, who is to come into the world.””

This truth is the precept that allows beauty and horror to coexist in this world. It allows us to feel joy in the midst of pain. Gladness for mourning and hope for despair.

Jesus was telling Martha, I am the resurrection and the life – NOW! In this moment. You don’t have to wait for the last day. Just as Jesus rose Lazarus from the dead – He takes us from death to Life. In a moment.

“I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” (Gal 2:20)

When we live in the light of this Truth, everything changes.

We have His spirit inside of us, to guide and teach us the things of God. (1 Cor 3:16; 1 Cor 2:12)We have His strength to face all fears and trials. (Isa 41:10; Phil 4:13)We have His faithfulness; to keep His promises of His love and His mercy toward us. (Lam 3:22-23; Num 23:19)We have His peace. (Isa 26:3; 1 Pet 5:7; John 14:27)We have His provision, His promise to provide for our every need. (Rom 8:32; Phil 4:19)We have His help against temptation. (Heb 2:18; Psa 119:9, 11)

All this we have, in abundance, the moment we place our faith in Him.

The greatest of these blessings is the Holy Spirit within us. His spirit allows us not only to respond and recognize beauty, but to participate with Him in the creation of beautiful things.

Every act of beauty snips away at the web of deception the enemy has cast over this world. Like a candle piercing the darkness, the light of beauty dispels and transforms the shadows.

Like love, beauty is an act of rebellion against the enemy.

It is a valuable weapon in our arsenal against death and destruction.

We wield it by grace through the power of the Spirit. Believing by faith that wherever it goes it will reflect facets of His glory, and rain down hope on a lost and dying world.