A Cross & A Rainbow

We were passing through the small, artsy town of Madrid, New Mexico on one of our western trips and we spent a couple hours wandering through galleries and enjoying the history and quaintness of the town.  They were having some sort of "Art Day" and a grizzled-looking guy was setting out cans of paint on a table in front of an old Volkswagen bus that had a canvas draped across its side.  As we passed, he asked if we'd like to be the first to paint a picture on the canvas.  Larry wasn't interested in testing his creativity, but I'm always up for a safe adventure, so I said, "Sure, why not!"

With a blank canvas staring back at me, I wondered, what should I paint?  Since I'm not really a painter my subject needed to be easy to draw and at the same time, I wanted to make an impact with my "art."  I settled upon the simplicity of the beloved cross of Christ coupled with the promise of hope He offers with His brilliant rainbow.  The brush was too fat for any attempt at fine detail (who am I kidding -- fine detail?) so I used broad strokes and though pretty simple, I was actually happy with my primitive artwork.

  Interestingly, embracing the work of the cross in faith is actually a pretty simple act as well.  God says that all a sinner has to do is confess his sinfulness and inability to save himself, accept the free gift offered by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on that rugged cross, and the sinner will be born again into the new life of a Christian.  The hope and promise of the beautiful rainbow will be a part of the legacy of that new life.

Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life" John 5:24.

I guess you can tell from my expression in the photo above I had fun slinging paint on that blank canvas and I really felt good about leaving even a small, simple testimony of Christ hanging on the side of the road in that little town in New Mexico.