Five Minute Friday :: Hide

• Five Minute Friday :: Hide Linkup

We plead with God to hide us from danger, shield us from fear. We beg God not to hide from us. Possibilities of Golden Calf Worship so freaked out the Reformers they emptied church buildings of visual representations of God and pictures of people who'd been created in the Divine Image—those humans already were the only icon anyone needed, and living, breathing ones, at that?! Prohibiting artistic renderings of Divinity led to music becoming the protestant art form. When he insisted human brains are idol factories, John Calvin was correct, though for most of us contemporary people of God, visual and other ideas of God our senses can appreciate aren't major problems and usually help us in our devotions and studies. The real danger is the way we deify powerless attractions like money, fame, drugs, and celebrities.

But hide is the prompt this time! Scripture reveals(!) a God who promises to be forever with the people, yet a God whose presence is free, elusive, and hidden. Moses asked God, "show me your face!!!" and God replied "Oh, no! You can know I've been there only after I've left, so my face you cannot see." Despite our knowing God tends to conceal Godself, we sometimes refer to "God sightings." We recognize God indeed was active in that situation, conversation, decision, or event only afterwards as we look backwards because we can't see God's face; we only realize God has been there after the fact.

Banning visual artistic expressions of Divinity led to music as the protestant art form. Who cannot celebrate Johann Sebastian Bach's music that gloriously creates heaven on earth? Wasn't there a novel about a Pope who wanted to canonize JSB to sainthood, but Sebastian being protestant made that fictional pope's wish impossible? Happily, visual liturgical art has returned to churches of all traditions and denominations. Its scripture-inspired imagery reveal God's attributes and God-with-us in ways we otherwise might not know.

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FMF host Kate's sunflowers inspired me to search the dozens of sunflowers I've captured in drawings, paintings, and photos. From June 2021, my header sunflower is from the most recent group.