The Journey 100: Transformation In My Community
Read: Luke 7:1-10
Thomas Kinkade, the “ Painter of Light”, the famous artist died last Friday in California at the age of 54. Here was a man who The Associated Press reported that he was the nation's most collected living artist, his paintings and other products seemed to heave fetched around $100 million a year. Another uniqueness of this man is that his paintings seems to adorn at least in about 10 million homes in the United States. For others who are not able to buy these paintings, they have adorned these paintings on the desktop of the computer. His paintings which generally depict tranquil scenes with lush landscaping and streams running nearby, can be found displayed in buildings and malls at prominent places. Many of his images have a Christian perspective and the images are from Bible history or incidents. Kinkade, was a devout Christian, who described his art on his own website, by saying that his mission as an artist was to capture all the special moments in life adorned with beauty and light., to create images that project a serene simplicity that can be appreciated and enjoyed by everyone. Thus according to him this is what “ it means to share the light." Here is an individual who uses the unique medium of paints to be a witness to the Lord in the community.
This week we meditate on the theme “ Transformation in My Community”, based on the incident of the healing of the centurion servant in Luke 7:1-10. We do not have much knowledge about the centurion, the only description that has been given to us about the centurion, is the witness by the people who also pleads for the need of the centurion saying that he loved the nation and that he built the synagogue [ Luke 7: 5]. But the character of this man is revealed by his total and unassuming faith in the power of our Lord. He tells Jesus that he is not worth to come near to him, and that Jesus only has to say a word and his servant will be healed. Here is a man of authority, a man who wields a lot of power and hold a respectable position, but all these has not gone to his head. He is ready to humble himself and in the process witnesses before the crowd in a unique way, his faith in the power of the Lord, thus sharing the light. Each one of us is gifted and what Lord requires is that we witness Him in our own unique ways in the community. If transformation in the community has to take place what is needed is the willingness of each of us to be ready to be a witness in small and significant ways. We do not hear much about the centurion after this incident, but whatever little has been said is a powerful model for all of us to follow. Centurion thus becomes the painter of the light and just as Kinkade said this is what is “my way of sharing of light”.
What is your way of “ Sharing the Light”