All posts by John Richardson

Surrender

C.S. Lewis once said, “We sit down before a picture in order to have something done to us, not that we may do things with it. The first demand any work of art makes upon us is surrender. Look. Listen. Receive.”

It is the painting that tells the story, not the viewer. Imagine someone bringing paint and a brush along to the St. Louis Art Museum and altering Monet’s “Water Lillies” masterpiece to suit his or her fancy!  To the contrary, benches are placed far from the painting so the observer can simply sit and take in the message of the artwork. 

Our approach to God, his revelation through Scripture, and the guidance of the Holy Spirit is also first one of surrender. God demands that we look, listen and receive. In order for the message we receive to be the message of God, we must give way to the voice of the Master Artist as he shows us who he is and how he wants to use us for his glory. 

Recovery of the Divine Likeness

John Wesley wrote a letter in 1734 which included, “I take religion to be, not the bare saying over of so many prayers morning and evening, in public or in private; not anything super added now and then to a careless or worldly life; but a constant ruling habit of the soul; a renewal of our minds in the image of God; a recovery of the divine likeness; a still increasing conformity of heart and life to the pattern of our Most Holy Redeemer.”

Lessons from Your Parents

I was training a group of lay counselors the other day and asked them a question to begin our session together.

“What was a lesson you learned from your mother or father and how have you put it into practice in your life?”

As we went around the table, there was laughter, crying, long explanations and ultimately a deeper understanding of our connectedness with one another and our parents. Not everyone’s memories were all positive and some of the recollections include large gaps of missing information. But we all learned important lessons.

I have lots to choose from in the lessons my mother taught me. Loosing my dad when I was only 3, my mom instilled a deep faith and hope in the most challenging of times. I learned how to smile and keep positive regardless of circumstances. And at the same time I learned it is okay to be sad and cry when things get really hard. I learned that people matter and should be valued regardless of their faults. Most of all I learned that God is faithful and gives us strength to get through each day.

I try to live these lessons out in my life. Some days I do better than others.

What about you? What lessons did you learn from your mother or father and how have you put it into practice in your live?