By Blair Smith, Senior Pastor, First Baptist of Irmo
This romanticist painting from 1818 is called “Wanderer Above a Sea of Fog” by Caspar David Friedrich. There is a stark contrast between the stillness of the picture and the feeling of movement it gives the viewer. As you see it from a third-person perspective, it causes you to have first-person emotions; almost as if it were you on that peak looking out. What is your response to this painting? “Breathtaking,” “overwhelming,” “triumphant,” and “lonely” are some of my responses to this well-known painting.
How often does this happen to us in life? We momentarily think of an event in the future and yet we are somehow able to experience emotions and thoughts as if it were happening right then. (This simple yet complex truth alone forces us to consider the existence of the Creator, but let’s remain on the same path of personal observation.) Consider your responses to the painting; the contrast between emotions and reality as you experience an emotion that’s real but not true of your current reality. You’re not standing over a sea of fog!
Sometimes in life, our real emotions are not always true to reality. We stress about some social event happening a month from now, or we are easily able to feel the frustration of dealing with a difficult person, or we can get ourselves all worked up anticipating a confrontation that might never happen. These are anxieties, and they take hold of us when we forget this is not the reality.
The Lord tells us in 1 Peter 5:6-7: “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time He may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on Him, because He cares for you.”
In this world full of overwhelmingness and unmanageable time, we can feel as though we are alone upon some cliff looking out on a cold, windy day with nothing in view but fog. Yet we can pour out to our God the anxieties of our hearts because He cares for us. We can also remember He is the one in control, and all that surrounds us proves He is God—even the overwhelmingness!
God the “Creator” is also God the “Redeemer”. Jesus Christ walked in this anxiety-filled world overwhelmed with brokenness, and because of His death upon the cross and resurrection on the third day, He can overwhelm your world with grace. Believers in Christ have the blessedness to know that their reality is defined by God and His Word, not circumstances.
May the Rock of our Salvation bless you with His truth and grace.
