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The paint is still wet on the canvas.

The colors glisten in the sun.

Texture and technique equal vibrancy extraordinaire.

The Artist has created brilliance.

 

But instead of putting down His brush, He waves it over His creation and breathes directly into the painting. The colors receive His breath and begin to move. Rhythm gives birth to shape. Silhouettes become personalities. Life explodes through the canvas.

 

It’s a masterpiece. What the Artist has captured is beyond your imagination. You don’t want to blink for fear of missing something.

As your focus intensifies . . . you’re able to see beyond the kaleidoscope of vivacity . . . and you’re stunned.

You’re looking at you.

 

The Artist has included you in His painting.

It’s hard to swallow.

Your heart is racing.

How is this possible?

 

It may be hard to believe . . .

but breathe a sigh of relief, because it’s true.

 

YOU are inside the greatest painting in the world.

In fact, even before the Artist picked up His brush,

you were on His mind.

 

He knew the color of your hair before He painted it.

He saw your laugh lines before sketching them.

He places so much value in who you are, that He never thought twice about placing you in His creation. In fact, if you look a little closer, you’ll see a resemblance between you and the Artist . . . for He fashioned everything in this masterpiece after His own image.

 

YOU are in the painting.

YOU are part of the masterpiece.

YOU have reason to rejoice.

 

As you study the work before you,

it begins to move . . . and you realize this is not a still painting.

It’s a moving piece of art.

 

Let’s not simply look at the painting or admire it from a distance.

Transformation never comes from simply viewing.

The Artist has extended His hand.

He has issued the invitation.

Will you join Him?

He invites you inside the masterpiece.

 

Go ahead.

Step inside.

Look around. Characters are moving swiftly now.

The Artist Himself is quickening. He’s engaged. He, too, is inside the painting. And He’s moving more rapidly than anything else on the canvas.

 

What’s He doing?

Look around.

Notice every detail.

This is all about you.

 

Soak it in.

The Artist is shifting everything in the painting to get to you.

From His vantage point, it’s you on center stage.

The painting revolves around you.

He’s literally moving heaven and earth to get to you.

He’s chasing you.

He wants you.

He’s calling you by name.

 

Allow yourself to be captured

and

captivated by Him.

 

It’s all about you.

If you were the only one in all the world to paint . . .

He’d still use the richest, most vibrant, all-expensive colors

on you.

 

It’s all about you.

You’re the one for whom He died.

You’re the one for whom He refused to stay in the tomb.

You’re the one for whom He has purchased the new canvas.

 

You’ll meet some fascinating personalities affected by the Artist.

You’ll become part of the story inside the stories the Artist has breathed onto the canvas.

 

Go ahead.

Accept His invitation inside the painting.

Discover your story by learning His.

Along the way, you’ll engage in 18 encounters that prove

it really is

all about

you.

 

(The above is the introduction to my new book Masterpiece: 18 Encounters With Jesus That Prove It’s All About You)

Last week we began chatting about finding God’s will for our lives.

 

#1. First, God’s will has a lot to do with our desires.

(See last week’s blog for this part.)

 

Let’s look at a couple more ways to know His will.

 

#2.  God’s will is found in God’s Word.

Simply put: God often speaks to you through the Bible. Are you reading the Bible consistently? My pastor mentioned in a recent sermon that most Christians aren’t reading the Bible. He said the majority of Christians who come to church read the Bible when it’s flashed on the screen with the morning’s message.

Wow.

That’s pitiful.

If you’re NOT reading the Bible, why not? Let me give you an easy challenge: Start reading the Bible one minute every day. You’ll be surprised at the difference even one minute each day will make. And really, anyone can do that. So start there. Just one minute a day. Begin with the Gospel of John. After you’re finished with John, read Proverbs. It has 31 chapters—that’s one for each day of the month.

 

#3. God’s will never contradicts God’s Word.

He’s pretty clear about saving sexual intimacy until marriage. So for someone to say, “I realize that, but I’ve prayed about it, and I feel it’s OK”—that person isn’t hearing the voice of God. He or she is hearing Satan who’s disguising himself as God’s voice. Yes, he can do that. The Bible tells us he disguises himself as an angel of light. (See 2 Corinthians 11:14.)

God’s will is NOT a feeling.

Feelings come and go. They’re often unreliable, and they’re not a sound source for guidance.

Feelings can also lie. Have you ever made a decision that felt right . . . but later it proved to be the wrong thing?

Our hearts can be flakey. Even Scripture says so:

“Who can understand the human heart? There is nothing else so deceitful” (Jeremiah 17:9 TEV).

In other words, our feelings can lie to us; they play tricks on us. Satan can create feelings. So just because you had a feeling about something doesn’t mean it’s God’s will.

Thoughts?
Comments?

Next week: Something totally different