TUESDAY

Colossians 1:15

• What are some of the things Christ created that you’re thankful for?

Minutes passed by, maybe an hour. I sat on that uncomfortable wooden bench, eyes glued to the painting before me. My sister and I were meandering through the famous French museum, The Louvre, on our second day in Paris. We’d gone our separate ways, promising to reconvene at the quaint café for dinner, and I had been wandering around, basking in the talent of the thousands of artists represented there. Each piece of art was magnificent, but “Liberty Leading the People” by Eugène Delacroix arrested me immediately. The magnanimous portrait, its moody shading, the boldness of the red flag at the center…it all spoke to me in a profound way. I sat there, occasionally pulling out my little journal to catalog my thoughts, but mostly just sitting and staring.

It’s good to sit and stare, sometimes. It’s good to marvel. Especially at extraordinary art.

The Bible chronically reminds us that we are made in the image of God. The Bible is clear that the earth is God’s canvas—each mountain peak, beetle shell, and blade of grass a swipe of a divine paintbrush. When was the last time you sat in awe and just let yourself marvel at God’s creation?