WE ARE VIRTUOSO.

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Loose Brushstrokes

Helping Hand

Softly and Tenderly

Softly and tenderly, Jesus is calling/ Calling for you and for me/ See on the portals He's waiting and watching/ Watching for you and for me/ Come home, come home/ All who are weary, come home/ Earnestly, tenderly, Jesus is calling/ Calling, "O sinner, come home."     A bruised reed He will not break, and a smoldering wick He will not snuff out...

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In utero

The Inmost Place

My frame was not hidden from you     when I was made in the secret place,     when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body Psalm 139     He gives life. Knits and holds together. Hears cries, answers prayers. Knows our names. Ordains days and lifespans and places and times.     Directs kings' hearts. Defends orphans and widows. Sees all. Grants mercies. Gives judgments and calls to account.     The One who forms as a weaver and potter is the only One who can rip out threads and dash upon rocks. The One who gives breath to all life is the only One who can rightfully take it away again.     Our unformed bodies-- known and seen by Him. Knit and cherished and planned by Him.     Let us be in agreement with Him....

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Was There Ever A Day

Was there ever a day like that one?   It was a day when a young woman's fears couldn't have been been greater.  Her first child was on His way.  He was ready to come into the world in the usual way, and yet also in a way that was anything but usual.  Would they make it to their destination on time?  Would there be an experienced midwife to aid her as she brought Him into the world?   It was a day when a man's energies were exhausted from days of traveling by foot on dusty roads.  But an arrival at their destination would not bring rest, but rather labor.  Did he have the strength to endure?  Was he following the right leading? ...

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Incarnation Paradox

The Son is the image of the invisible God Deity wrapped in bone and blood In manger, the Spirit became Flesh and now even mortal eyes could rest upon the Maker's form and countenance   the firstborn over all creation Ruler of flower and beast and nation Bethlehem hills, drawn by His hands Now He dwells upon the land His voice had made with His command   For by Him all things were created All things, from the smallest up to the greatest Fly that buzzes 'round His head, Wood that cradles Him as bed, Swaddling cloths of fibrous thread   And in Him all things hold together Infant wingspan, able to tether Unseen and seen, bind atoms and stars while nestled within in His mother's arms, helpless to defend against what harms?...

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Burning Bushes

A bush on fire, yet not consumed, catches the eye of all in the room Who can't help but notice? Who could ever miss A heart that's devoted to one's Lord like this? A life on a pyre, a fiery plume, whose only desire--his Lord's renown.   And God speaks there within the flame Sealing our stare, calling our name. Commissioning servants, Revealing His plans, Ennobling the worthless so that they can stand. And stand we where He takes His aim to show His care and love and fame....

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The Work-In-Progress

Have you ever seen the back of a tapestry while it is still on the loom?  There are often spools of thread dangling haphazardly all over the place.  It's a jumbled up mess!   Have you ever seen a painting in-progress?  It looks weak, disjointed, and indecipherable.  Some portions rise to the fore, some portions get lost.   The same can be said of a clay pot.  Incomplete in form and perhaps misshapen, it still has a long way to go under the direction of the potter's hands.   We find our own lives to be in the same place, don't we?  Rough around the edges.  Unrefined.  Incomplete.   But there is hope, friend!  We have a loving God, Father, and Creator who is infinitely capable to finish...

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God Paints Loosely

Artists talk about tight brushwork and loose brushwork.  Some elements of painting are free form and depicted in broad gestures; others are fastidiously developed.  In my paintings, I employ passages of both techniques in all of my compositions.  Some of my loosely painted areas are graded washes, textures on objects, and flowing, evocative shapes.  It got me wondering, "What could be God's loose brushstrokes?"  Here are a few ideas:   The skies in all their clouded splendor Veins of coal within a mountain Flowing locks of hair on His people Tendrils clinging to one another Seawater splashes on rocky shorelines Molten lava snaking its way downhill Jellyfish tentacles   Can you come up with other examples of God painting loosely?  ...

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I Will Try

A people chosen A priesthood royal A nation holy Owned by the Most High   Bought with purpose: Declaring to darkness "He called me to His wonderful light!"   Can I through colors Washes and brushes Speak as though thunder illumines the night?   Can I with sponges compositional touches proclaim all Your wonders? Lord, I will try....

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We are God’s Master Poem

When you look in the mirror what comes to your mind?  Do you see yourself as a masterpiece?  A poem, carefully crafted?  A work of great glory and detail?  A being of importance?   Perhaps when your hair is out of place and your breath smells less than desirable, you can't imagine that any of those nouns and adjectives apply to you.  Me neither!   Perhaps when you sin by ignoring the needs of those closest to you, or angrily lash out at a co-worker, or impatiently grumble at the trials of life, you don't feel like any of those nouns and adjectives apply to you.  And once again, I am right there with you.   Yet in the midst of both our disheveled hair and...

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