The Altar of Family

I am intrigued by this article and what it says about a principle I hold dear.

"The stuff of many women's fantasies includes an adoring, faithful spouse; attractive, obedient kids; people who depend on you, love you, give you a reason to get out of bed, regularly stand up and sing your praises. And it is idolatry, just like money, power, and fame."

http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/tgc/2012/08/28/worshiping-at-the-altar-of-family/

Grace Abounds

 These thoughts are inspired by a tweet from a website I saw on Facebook:

"Be patient with yourself. To be human is to be beautifully flawed and covered in grace." @MIHImage (http://www.madeinhisimage.org/)

I don't believe that God loves my flaws. I don't believe that He accepts me "just as I am." Because what I am--human, sinful and broken--is not worthy of a perfect and holy God. I believe sin angers God. It is an offense to His perfection. Which means that my sin angers God. My flaws are not acceptable, they are an abomination to His image.

I do not believe that my flaws are beautiful. 

 

They are shameful. My imperfection is not pleasing to God... but His love was and is so great that, in spite of and because of my sins, He sent His only Son to die so that my sins might be obliterated. That His blood might wash me clean and make me white as snow: without sin, without flaw. In Christ, I am beautifully flawless. On my own, I am nothing but rags and ashes.

It is this truth that makes the Gospel so much more dear. Not that God accepts me because of me flaws, but that He accepts me in spite of them. That I was totally and completely undeserving, but His love was greater than my failure, and He made it so that I was acceptable to be adopted as His child. And not only that, but Christ's sacrifice is efficacious: continually giving me the grace to live in Him until the day of His return. 

So, "be patient with yourself", you say? I'd rather recognize that I will never be able to justify myself, no matter how much time I'm given, and thank God for the patience He already has with me.

Romans 5:20

"Where sin abounds, grace abounds all the more."

Inspirations

I find this time of year so inspiring (mid/late spring, beginning of summer), and I'm not sure if it has to do with the long-instilled sense of excitement that comes with the end of a school year and the beginning of another summer with its accompanying vacations; or perhaps it's just the beautiful weather, temperate climes and the promise of many sunny afternoons spent with a cold drink in-hand. Whatever it is (probably a combination of both my youthful anticipations and now-adult enjoyments), I love this season. Perhaps even more so this year because we had an unusually early, and warm, spring here in Chicago, and I've been soaking it up. We enjoyed not only an early spring, but a mild winter and I'm beginning to wonder if the apocalypse is near (just kidding... mostly).

Whatever the cause, I've been trying to make the most of these beautiful days. DH and I started a back-porch garden (photos to come) and are eagerly awaiting our first crop of homegrown cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, green peppers, and jalapenos. We are already enjoying the fruits of our basil and mint plantings.

I've also been enjoying some good books and good music. Most recently completed was Infelice by the incomparable Augusta Jane (Evans) Wilson, the most recent addition to my list of favorite authors (recent as in the last 2 years, joining the ranks of J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis). The image cover below is a passable rendering, but the descriptive powers of AJE's writing really deserve much better, leading to my consideration of an illustration project based on her novels. I'm afraid the audience for this type of writing is sadly limited, but one of these days I may find enough time (and the right models) to bring these stories to life on canvas. It is easy for me to call images to mind as I'm reading, but I'll admit that I enjoy illustrations as well -- especially when similar to my own imaginings.

That being said, I aim this summer to really put as much time as possible into creative efforts. Whether it be side design projects (which already take up a fair amount of my time), or painting and drawing. A fresh bouquet like this would make quite a nice little still life... Does anybody know what kind of flowers these are (they grow on a very tall bush outside our apartment)?