Good Morning! My friends. Tomorrow we will celebrate the resurrection of our great king!
Hallelujah! Thank you Jesus! Our King, our savior!
We give God the glory, thank you Heavenly Father. How did you do it? The pain had to have been unbearable. Yet you watched your son die a sinners death so we could have life. So we, me, could rest knowing we are forgiven. There has never been a greater gift given. Thank you Father.
"He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the Angels of God were ascending and descending on it. " Genesis 28:12 NIV
Jesus, can you see the angels like in Jacob did in his dream? Are they dancing in the clouds? They must be singing Hallelujah with trumpets, flutes, harps and tambourines playing a magnificent melody.
Your crown no longer a crown of thorns but now a crown of glory. What it must be like to see the glory of the Lord.
Are my loved ones dancing with you today? Their shadows no more reflecting on the walls yet the memories of them forever in our hearts.
"The one who is victorious will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out the name of that person from the book of life, but will acknowledge that name before my father and his angels." Revelations 3:5 NIV
Rachel and I wish you, your family and friends a wonderful Easter. May we all rest in the truth of His resurrection.
This sculpture is called Ascension by ginny Taylor.
It is now on display at the Art Center Manatee in Bradenton Florida. I hope you have the opportunity to see it person.
3 comments:
Happy Easter!
ginny, your sculpture of the Ascension has given me new appreciation and insight of what the Lord has done in my life and the lives of every believer throughout history.
First of all, the very first time I saw it, I recall being covered in goosebumps...it had an immediate Spiritual impact on my heart. Here are some thoughts Christ gave me last night reflecting on viewing it yesterday at the Art Center Manatee.
The Crown. Thinking not only of how His crown of thorns was now a crown of glory, I was reminded of the scripture that promises us a crown in heaven, that we will lay at his feet...our crown will be a reflection of the earthy ways we reflected Jesus to a world in need of His love and forgiveness, this reality caused me to reflect on how I am doing that or if I am doing that with my entire life focus, to His Glory.
James 1:12 ESV "Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him."
The shadows of loved ones that are gone but remain in our hearts. This had such an impact on me as I considered those so close to me that are already there. My brother first 22 years ago and then my mother 15 years ago and 5 years ago my father. now are waiting across that beautiful shore to meet me there when I go. The shadow spoke to me of the legacy that they left behind, living on in our hearts and impacting my own legacy. It was a stark reminder that how I live my life is going to also leave a legacy for my loved ones. It had an admonishing impact on my heart, to make my legacy more about love more than anything else as I seek to serve and love those God entrusted to me, my children and grandchildren first and foremost and then my neighbor as myself.
The clock: Such a beautiful reminder that our time on earth is brief. My self reflection was, how am I spending the time He has given me? The Scriptures declare in 1 Peter 1:24,25 NIV "For, All people are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord endures forever."
The Book of Life with the names our Lord has written there and can never be removed. My self reflection was that I only know my name is written there because I know it isn't of my own efforts or my own will, but only by the will of the Father that through Christ I have been made an heir, a child of God. Only Jesus and his finished work on that cross can make me His child, only by placing my complete confidence in His atonement for my sin can I have full assurance that my name is written in the book of life. Because of Christ, I am a fully loved, fully forgiven child of God.
The cross where Jesus died: This part of the sculpture so beautifully depicts, even in it's location on the sculpture...hidden in a way...behind everything else...it tells the story of the mystery of it all. He makes everything above possible through His suffering and death...the death that was due to sinful man, to sinful me...because He took my place there 2000 years ago, my life is made new...He gave what I couldn't give, He was a sinless substitute for the sin debt I owed and He lived the perfect life I didn't. I couldn't earn this new life by my own efforts, by my own self righteousness, it would never pay for the debt I owed. This gift that He willingly gave...There is only one response...A grateful heart of worship.
Thank you ginny for helping me reflect upon the greatest gift of all time, Jesus and on the power of His resurrection that gives me new life...forever!
I Praise you Jesus, My Lord, My Savior, My King!
Dearest Julie, Thank you for honoring me with your beautiful refection on the Ascension sculpture. Have a blessed Easter, ginny
Post a Comment