Creator | Craig T. Owens

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Poetry Saturday—The Creator Is Far Nobler

August 22, 2020 — Craig T. Owens

The mirror of the creatures lacks space

To bear the image of the Infinite.

‘Tis true the Lord has fairly writ His name,

And set His seal upon creation’s brow.

But as the skillful potter much excels

The vessel that He fashions on the wheel,

E’en so, but in proportion greater far,

Jehovah’s Self transcends His noblest works.

Earth’s ponderous wheels would break, her axles snap,

If freighted with the load of deity.

Space is too narrow for the Eternal’s rest,

And time too short a footstool for His throne. —Charles Spurgeon

*Charles Spurgeon explained in one of his sermons when and why he wrote this poem: “I have often heard the earth spoken of as the mirror of God’s image. But when I was traveling among the Alps and saw many of the grandest phenomena of creation such as glaciers, avalanches, and tempests, I was so impressed with the narrowness of visible things in comparison with God that I wrote such lines as these.”

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Charles Spurgeon, Creation, Creator, God's glory, majesty, poem, poetry. Leave a Comment »

Poetry Saturday—Let All Things Now Living

August 15, 2020 — Craig T. Owens

Let all things now living, a song of thanksgiving,

To God the Creator triumphantly raise,

Who fashioned and made us, protected and stayed us,

Who still guides us on to the end of our days.

God’s banners are o’er us, His light goes before us,

A pillar of fire shining forth in the night;

Till shadows have vanished, and darkness is banished,

As forward we travel from light into light.

His law He enforces, the stars in their courses

And sun in its orbit obediently shine,

The hills and the mountains, the rivers and fountains,

The deeps of the ocean proclaim Him divine.

We too should be voicing our love and rejoicing

With glad adoration a song let us raise,

Till all things now living unite in thanksgiving

To God in the highest, hosanna and praise. —Katherine Davis

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Creation, Creator, Katherine Davis, nature, poem, poetry, worship. Leave a Comment »

God’s Unrivaled Pencil

July 1, 2020 — Craig T. Owens

Not a flower

But shows some touch in freckle, streak or stain

Of His unrivaled pencil. He inspires

Their balmy odors, and imparts their hues,

And bathes their eyes with nectar.

Happy he

Who walks with Him! —William Cowper

all photos (c) Craig T. Owens 2020

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: beauty, Creation, Creator, photography, poem, poetry, quote, uniqueness, William Cowper. 1 Comment »

Poetry Saturday—Trinitie Sunday

May 2, 2020 — Craig T. Owens

Lord, who hast form’d me out of mud,

And hast redeem’d me through Thy bloud,

And sanctifi’d me to do good;

Purge all my sinnes done heretofore:

For I confesse my heavie score,

And I will strive to sinne no more.

Enrich my heart, mouth, hands in me,

With faith, with hope, with charitie;

That I may runne, rise, rest with Thee. —George Herbert

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: confession, Creator, empowerment, forgiveness, George Herbert, hope, poem, poetry, rest, salvation, sanctification, Savior, Trinity. Leave a Comment »

The Artisan Collection Bible (book review)

March 31, 2020 — Craig T. Owens

How do “Bible” and “artisan” belong in the same title? They’re more connected than you may have previously thought, and The Artisan Collection Bible is the perfect place to explore this connection.

If you were to ask someone what occupation Jesus had while He was on earth, it would be a safe bet that most people would say He was a carpenter. Indeed, the Greek word tekton is translated as “carpenter” for both Joseph and Jesus (see Matthew 13:54-56 and Mark 6:2-3). However, the consensus among Greek scholars today is that the word tekton is more likely to mean an artisan than just merely a wood-working carpenter.

That makes sense, doesn’t it? After all, you would expect boundless creativity from the Creator. The One who fashioned our beautiful universe would certainly still be interested in expressing Himself in creative and beautiful ways.

For myself, reading the Bible sparks in me a desire to be creative with words, and images, and colors, and designs. This is exactly what The Artisan Collection Bible gives you the space to do. And I literally mean “space.”

One of the most attractive features to me about this Bible is the extra-wide margins along every single page. As you read God’s Word and the beauty of the Creator is illuminated in your heart and mind, you have readily available space to express your own creativity as worship to the Creator. Try crafting a poem, or turning the passage into a personal prayer, or drawing a picture that captures the vibrancy of God’s love letter written to you. The design of this Bible helps you to do more than just read the Word of God, it invites you to interact with the God of the Word.

The Artisan Collection Bible would make an excellent gift for your creative friend or loved one.

I am a Zondervan book reviewer and a member of the Bible Gateway Blogger Grid. As a book reviewer I received a free copy of this book from the book publisher. I am not compensated for my review. Although I may have received the book free of charge, I am under no obligation to write a favorable review. I am free to express my honest opinion about the book’s content. If I say it’s a good book, it’s because I think it’s a good book!

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: art, artisan, artist, Bible study, book review, creativity, Creator, Gospel of Mark, Gospel of Matthew, Greek, Jesus Christ, poem, poetry, prayer, Scripture. 2 Comments »

Poetry Saturday—On Another’s Sorrow

March 21, 2020 — Craig T. Owens

Can I see another’s woe,

And not be in sorrow too?

Can I see another’s grief,

And not seek for kind relief?

Can I see a falling tear,

And not feel my sorrow’s share?

Can a father see his child

Weep, nor be with sorrow filled?

Can a mother sit and hear

An infant groan, an infant fear?

No, no! never can it be!

Never, never can it be!

And can He who smiles on all

Hear the wren with sorrows small,

Hear the small bird’s grief and care,

Hear the woes that infants bear—

And not sit beside the next,

Pouring pity in their breast,

And not sit the cradle near,

Weeping tear on infant’s tear?

And not sit both night and day,

Wiping all our tears away?

Oh no! never can it be!

Never, never can it be!

He doth give His joy to all:

He becomes an infant small,

He becomes a man of woe,

He doth feel the sorrow too.

Think not thou canst sigh a sigh,

And thy Maker is not by:

Think not thou canst weep a tear,

And thy Maker is not near.

Oh He gives to us His joy,

That our grief He may destroy:

Till our grief is fled an gone

He doth sit by us and moan. —William Blake

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Creator, empathy, God's joy, grief, Jesus Christ, poem, poetry, sorrow, sympathy, tears, William Blake. Leave a Comment »

Poetry Saturday—One God

March 14, 2020 — Craig T. Owens

One God! one Majesty!

There is no God but Thee!

Unbounded, unextended Unity!

Awful in unity,

O God! we worship Thee,

More simply one, because supremely Three!

Dread, unbeginning One!

Single, yet not alone,

Creation hath not set Thee on a higher throne.

Unfathomable Sea!

All life is out of Thee,

And Thy life is Thy blissful Unity.

All things that from Thee run,

All works that Thou hast done,

Thou didst in honor of Thy being One.

And by Thy being One,

Ever by that alone,

Couldst Thou do, and doest, what Thou hast done.

We from Thy oneness come,

Beyond it cannot roam,

And in Thy oneness find our one eternal home.

Blest be Thy Unity!

All joys are one to me—

The joy that there can be no other God than Thee! —Frederick Faber

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Creator, Frederick William Faber, God's blessing, God's Sovereignty, Godhead, joy, omnipotence, omnipresence, omniscience, poem, poetry, Trinity, worship. Leave a Comment »

Poetry Saturday—Lord Of All Being

March 7, 2020 — Craig T. Owens

Lord of all being, throned afar,

Thy glory flames from sun and star;

Center and soul of every sphere,

Yet to each loving heart how near!

Sun of our life, Thy quickening ray,

Sheds on our path the glow of day;

Star of our hope, Thy softened light

Cheers the long watches of the night.

Our midnight is Thy smile withdrawn;

Our noontide is Thy gracious dawn;

Our rainbow arch, Thy mercy’s sign;

All, save the clouds of sin, are Thine.

Lord of all life, below, above,

Whose light is truth, whose warmth is love,

Before Thy ever blazing throne

We ask no luster of our own.

Grant us Thy truth to make us free,

And kindling hearts that burn for Thee,

Till all Thy living altars claim

One holy light, one heavenly flame. —Oliver Wendell Holmes

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Creator, God's glory, God's love, God's power, God's presence, hope, Oliver Wendell Holmes, poem, poetry, truth, worship. Leave a Comment »

Poetry Saturday—Of Hidden Uses

February 29, 2020 — Craig T. Owens

All things being are essential to the vast ubiquity of God;

Neither is there one thing overmuch, nor freed from honorable servitude.

Were there not a need be of wisdom, nothing would be as it is;

For essence without necessity argueth a moral weakness.

We look through a glass darkly, we catch but glimpses of truth;

But, doubtless, the sailing of a cloud hath Providence to its pilot,

Doubtless, the root of an oak is gnarled for a special purpose,

The foreknown station of a rush is as fixed as the station of a king,

And chaff from the hand of a winnower, steered as the stars in their courses.

Man liveth only in himself, but the Lord liveth in all things;

And His pervading unity quickeneth the whole creation.

Man doeth one thing at once, nor can he think two thoughts together;

But God compasseth all things, mantling the globe like air;

And we render homage to His wisdom, seeing use in all His creatures,

For, perchance, the universe would die, were not all things as they are. —Martin Fraquhar Tupper

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Creator, God's plan, God's purpose, God's Sovereignty, Martin Fraquhar Tupper, omnipotence, omnipresence, omniscience, poem, poetry. Leave a Comment »

Thursdays With Spurgeon—Not Puffed Up, Not Despised

January 2, 2020 — Craig T. Owens

This is a weekly series with things I’m reading and pondering from Charles Spurgeon. You can read the original seed thought here, or type “Thursdays With Spurgeon” in the search box to read more entries.

Not Puffed Up, Not Despised

We magnify our office, though we would not magnify ourselves. We hold that nothing can dignify a man more than being appointed to an office in a Christian church. I would rather be a deacon of the church than lord mayor of London. A minister of Christ is, in my estimation, an infinitely higher honor than the world can bestow. My pulpit is to me more desirable than a throne, and my congregation is an empire more than large enough. An empire before which the empires of the earth dwindle into nothing in everlasting importance.

Why does God give to one man a special call by the Holy Spirit to be a minister and pass by another? There is another man more gifted, perhaps, but we dare not put him in a pulpit because he has not had a special call. … The man whom some would perhaps think most suitable for the office is passed by and another chosen. There is a manifestation of God’s sovereignty in the appointment to office in putting David on a throne, and making Moses the leader of the children of Israel through the wilderness, in choosing Daniel to stand among princes, in electing Paul to be the minister to the Gentiles and Peter to be the apostle of the circumcision. And you who have not the gift of honorable office must learn the great truth contained in the question of the Master, “Is it not lawful for Me to do what I wish with My own things?” [Matthew 20:15]

We say again, the sovereignty of God is here displayed in the distribution of gifts honorable. Learn here, O Christian man, if you have gifts, to cast the honor of them at the Savior’s feet, and if you possess them not, learn not to murmur. Remember that God is equally as kind when He keeps back as when He distributes His favors. If any among you is exalted, let him not be puffed up. If any is lowly, let him not be despised. For God gives to every vessel His measure of grace. Serve Him after your measure and adore the King of heaven who does as He pleases.

From Divine Sovereignty

Why does one person have one gift, and not another gift?
Why does one Christian have one gift and another Christian many gifts?
Why does one person rise to notoriety and another remains anonymous?
Why did God choose David? Or Moses? Or Joshua? Or Saul/Paul?

God is sovereign and He knows what He is doing!

This should awaken in us a humble confidence. We are humbled that God would choose us for anything, but we are also confident that since He did choose us and place us where we needed to be that nothing can remove us or diminish what God is doing through us.

Don’t get puffed up. Don’t feel despised. God knows exactly what He is doing!