Art has always had a special place in my heart. It speaks to something deep within, capturing what words often fail to express. I remember vividly a particular visit to the Dallas Museum of Art. I walked through the exhibit “Bouquets: French Still-life Painting from Chardin to Matisse,” and was utterly captivated. These 19th-century oil paintings were unforgettable. From a distance, the compositions were breathtaking. Every bouquet seemed to bloom with perfection. Yet, when I stepped closer to examine the details, it was clear that not a single stroke was out of place. The intricate precision of each petal, each leaf—everything was exactly where it was meant to be. It was as though the artist had captured the very essence of life on canvas.
As I stood there, I couldn’t help but think how much this mirrors God’s truth. When we first encounter a biblical truth, it often feels monumental—like standing before a grand masterpiece. The scope, the beauty, the weight of it all is overwhelming. But when we dive deeper, when we examine each piece of Scripture closely, we find that not a single word is misplaced. The details are astonishing, and the depth is boundless. Every stroke of God’s truth fits perfectly within His divine plan.
As an artist struggles to frame the beauty before them, deciding what to leave in or out, so too does a theological writer. We try to capture the vastness of God’s truth and beauty, and yet it feels like trying to fit an endless landscape into a single frame. The truth expands far beyond the edges of our understanding, and no photograph or description can do it justice. But, oh, how we try. We try to frame it, share it, return to it.
It’s the same struggle for a writer of a bible study lesson who stands before a verse like a spiritual landscape, looking out at the vastness of God’s glory, His goodness, His wisdom. How do we even begin to capture it in words? It’s a joy and an agony, a never-ending quest to faithfully manifest God’s Word with human hands. Like the artist standing before a blank canvas, we pray for God’s guidance, for His hand to steady ours as we attempt to scribble just a glimpse of His masterpiece.
Each time I sit down to write, it feels like I’m holding a brush, dipping it into the deep well of Scripture, and hoping, with God’s help, to paint something true. Something real. Something that, though faint and incomplete, points others to the One who paints with perfect strokes. The process is both exhilarating and humbling. It reminds me that we are, indeed, God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works. And just as the artist relies on their tools, so I rely on the Spirit to help me express the beauty and truth of God’s Word in every stroke, every word.
In this life, we may never capture the full essence of God’s glory, but the pursuit of it, whether through art, through writing, or through any endeavor, is a reflection of the beauty we are meant to enjoy and share with others.
