THE ARTIST speaks

A VOICE CRYING OUT FROM WITHIN THE MASTERPIECE

BY MIKE MAZYCK

What if I told you there was somewhere you could go to see God? I’m not talking about Heaven. I’m talking about somewhere you can see Him right now, today. What if I told you that, wherever you are, it would take you less than five minutes to get to this place? Not only would you be able to see Him, but after you behold Him in this place, you would then possess a key that unlockstrue intimacy with Him; You would understand the very nature of who He is, in His innermost being. Of course, you would think I’m lying. You’d be wrong though, because I am not lying. There is such a place, and there is a scripture that will show you how to get there!

“For since the creation of the world, God’s invisible qualities — His eternal power and divine nature— have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.” (Romans 1:20)

That verse says something very powerful; God has revealed Himself to every man through His creation. He has revealed not just Himself but the very depths of Himself. He has revealed His invisible qualities. He has revealed His eternal power and divine nature. He has revealed His very essence. We wonder why God doesn’t make Himself visible. But he has! He doesn’t let us see the outer form of Himself. He does better; He lets us visibly see who He is in His innermost being. He has revealed Himself intimately to us through what He has created. When an artist creates something, it reflects the artist who created it. It’s a reflection of the artist’s heart. It’s a reflection of the thoughts in the artist’s mind. Do you want to see God? Take a step outside and behold His creation; You will see God on display.

King David echoed this very sentiment in the Psalms, “The heavens are telling of the glory of God; and their expanse is declaring the work of His hands. Day to day pours forth speech, and night to night reveals knowledge.” (Psalm 19:1-2) He didn’t just create a world for us to live in; He created an exhibit of Himself and then placed us inside of it!

One of my ongoing prayers has been that God would continually open my eyes to see more and more of Him through what He has created. One of the simplest ways He has answered that prayer has come when I begin to doubt His goodness. I now find that all I must do is look around me. As I reflect on the beauty of the flowers that grow in my backyard, the sweetness of a strawberry as I bite into it, or the way, even now, as I am typing this, I see two birds playing in the fountain by my pool. They seem to be almost splashing one another. One takes a drink and then flies away while his companion chirps and then playfully chases after him. When I behold creation, I see that the innermost being of my God overflows with goodness! He cries out to me through His creation, “See how GOOD I am!”

But let’s go deeper! What is His greatest revelation of Himself within this masterpiece He has created? To answer that, it only makes sense that we look for His greatest creation. We no longer look outward; We now must look inward, within ourselves. We were His greatest work of art. We are the culmination of His masterpiece. And what do we discover about Him as we search within ourselves? What is the invisible quality of Himself that He desires to reveal to us? What isthe speech that pours forth to us, as David said, when we examine His greatest creation? I pondered these questions, and I believe I have found the answer. It is most certainly the love of a parent for their child.

What is that great and unstoppable force that exists within the heart of a mother or father towards their child? It is love! Love is the very essence of this relationship. Only a mother or father truly knows and understands this love. It is a love like no other. It is not of this world. It must have been placed there. It is beyond all feeling unbreakable, unrelenting, and there is no end to which it will not go. It is a fierce love. As we behold this great love of a parent towards their child, we are meant to see the heart and mind of the Artist. We see His supreme and central message of the entire masterpiece; I LOVE YOU! We think this indescribable love is about our child and us, but it’s not! It was put there by Him to cry out to us. It’s as if God Himself is begging us, “Please, my child, behold how great my love is for you! My love for you is not of this world. It is beyond all feeling unbreakable and unrelenting. There is no end to which I will not go, and indeed, have not gone for you! My love for you is FIERCE!”

I wish I could stop there. That last paragraph would have been a fitting end. But I feel it would be incomplete. I must take it one step further. I am a dad myself and have had the privilege of knowing the power of this great love that a parent has for their child. As a result, I have come to know His great love for me more intimately and deeply than ever before. However, after 18 years of being a father, I have come to know something else as well. As unrelenting and fierce as my love is for those kids, I must admit that it still does not compare to the love that my wife, Tiffany, has for them. Her love overflows out of her very nature towards them. For me, it can be work. I am a selfish man. But for her, it comes naturally. She pours out patience, selflessness, kindness, and tenderness toward them. Love towards her children flows naturally out of her innermost being. How does she do this? She can do it because she is a mother! There is no other reason. It is the gift of God to her — and all mothers. But why did the Artist give them this special gift? I wonder what He’s revealing to them.

If the things I have written thus far are true, it seems that mothers may be able to see and understand God’s love toward them in a very special way. A mother’s heart is bonded to her child in a way that only a mother can understand. Therefore, the mother has been given access to a revelation of His love for her that seems unique to them. It’s as if the Artist has painted a special section of His masterpiece that only a mother’s eye can see. This is a unique gift of God to mothers. It’s as if God is crying out to all mothers, “I have heard your prayers. I know and understand. I see that you are exhausted and lonely. I know you are weary and afraid. So, to you, I have not whispered of my unrelenting love. I have shouted it. I have not spoken in riddles of my unbreakable bond with you. I have disclosed it to you personally when I let you carry the child in your womb. Look to your child and see the height and depth of my love for you. My daughter, look to your child and see I will never leave you. Have I not shouted my unfailing and unbreakable love within your heart? My child, my love for you is FIERCE! Behold it, and it will cast out all your fears.”

HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY To read more of Mike’s writing, visit MikeMazyck.com