The Call

 
Mark 2:17 States that Christ did not come to call the righteous but to call the sinner. The world at large then and now has a problem with that. I admit that at times I have a problem with that but it is what we are called to address and accept. Why? 1 John 4:8,16 says "God is love". That is not an idle statement. God put His only son among us to show His love for all of us. The self righteous rejected Him and the sinners embraced Him. The self righteous crucified Him. In this single act He cleansed us from our sins through His sacrifice. All of the animal sacrifices on the altar throughout the ages could not do what this one act of sacrifice did. Free us from our sins. This does not make us no longer sinners but it does provide forgiveness for All of our sins. It provides a path to redemption by confession of sinfulness and sin. Does the call to the sinner by Christ make more sense now? It doesn't remove the "I don't understand why that happened" or offer answers for senseless acts of sin. It does offer a way to handle life and those we share this world with. God is Love and His love is offered to everyone equally then share it.

Today I am sharing a simple retro image of some grapes. This is from my wanderings and collection of images from some years ago. Digital Tuesday is the site it is from. It was not as simple as you might think to color it. There is several hours of work in this one. The fine detail took some time. I think it was worth it.

The copic colors are:

That will do it for this week. May the good Lord bless and keep you always safe. Remember to always "Love The Details."

Love of Hate

 

The quote above is very true. The title of this post is not a mistake. In light of the state of the hatred of race, religion, and overall condemnation of all things we don't understand or believe in it would appear that there is a love of hate or a love to hate in this world. Christianity is based on John 13:34 we should love one another. If we think we are true Christians then 1 John 4:8 states that "God is love and who ever does not love does not know God."  1 John 4:16 says "God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them." Those that hate have no part in the life in the hereafter. All forms of hate are abhorrent to God. The quote from Dr. King is true only when it is practiced in faith towards all others with sincerity and belief. In this way there can be no doubt of the truth  you display toward your persecutor. Remember the three scriptures above are the cornerstones of our faith. The more you practice it, the more you believe it, the more you will experience the truth of it.

The image today came from Pinterest. Unfortunately I don't know where on Pinterest since it has been some time since I have been out there. I have found that the images I like are not always free of copyrights. I often hesitate to post a colored image from Pinterest for this reason. This is one of those images. It is simple and yet beautiful in that simplicity. Color makes the image come alive. 

The Copic colors used are:

I tried to use only the minimal colors to keep it simple. Beauty is often in simplicity and this face is beautifully simple. 

That is it for this week. May the good Lord bless and keep you safe. Remember to always "Love the Details."

Some Personal Thoughts

The point of this quote is all that can be said of God. God is Infinite. There is nothing negative about God. 1 John 4:16 says "God is Love". Every day that love is felt. Every day it is the strength of life. There is no failure when love is there to pick us up. All things are possible in that love. It is the cloak around my shoulders that sustains me. In that love there is no fear. Psalm 23:4 "though I walk through the valley of death, I shall fear no evil for you are at my side". It is often said of God that He is to be feared. If you fear god it is not possible to love Him at the same time. He loves us at all times and His corrections are not to be feared if we love Him in return. There was a woman outside a grocery store that was waiting for a bus. She was suffering from Proteus syndrome.
She was very self conscious of her appearance as I passed. I looked into her eyes and saw someone that God loved. I smiled at her and nodded. The beauty inside was a light that out-shown the physical appearance. God is love. Jesus was born to let all know the infinite love of God for His children. Infinite love from God sees no ugliness, only beauty. It is our choice to be blind to love as God loves. Look around you and tell me what you see. 

I trust in Jesus to be the love and guide to my journey through this life. I have learned that I am incapable of the journey on my own. Trust in His love is first. Lose sight of that love and you will soon be off the path. That path is unique to each person traveling hand in hand with the Lord. If we compiled each journey for each person it would not be possible to finish reading the finished journal. That is how it is  with God. When we are called home an eternity is not enough to learn all there is to know about Him. That is why He is infinite. This blog can never be kept long enough to list all there is to know about experiencing Jesus and God the father. With that, I will shift to the image for this post.

This image is nowhere near what the in person image is like. That does it for this post. I will try to post one more time before the end of the month. Until then, Remember to always Love The Details and God bless.