Responding to Beauty

Last weekend I had the privilege of traveling with 9 ABU students as part of a weekend outreach to Ntungamo District in South Western Uganda. 

On the drive from Kampala to Ntungamo we were all struck with the beauty of the mountains of South Western Uganda…

...one of the students kept saying, “There’s a place for a wedding reception!” He was responding to beauty, …I think.

The students ministered in 4 secondary schools while I taught a group of Church of Uganda pastors and ministry leaders on the subject of “The Supremacy of Scripture in Church Ministry.” It was a wonderful weekend of ministry. Many lives, both students and church leaders, were touched deeply by the truth of God’s Word – it was wonderful to see God at work. And our team was touched by the love of Jesus that was demonstrated to us by the hospitality of our delightful hosts.

The first morning I woke up early, having had nowhere near enough sleep. I was groggily stumbling around my room trying to wake up when I pulled back the curtains and looked out the window to see this…

…and suddenly I was wide awake, struck by the beauty and majesty of God’s creation. I grabbed my camera, ran outside, took some pictures, and just stared at it in wonder – worshipful, prayerful wonder at the glory of God on display in this sunrise. Breathtaking beauty like this demands a response, doesn’t it? It demands a worship response to the Creator of such beauty.

Later that day the Ugandan people taught me another lesson about what it means to respond appropriately to beauty. It was probably the most striking experience I have ever had while preaching. I was speaking on leadership, sharing about the servant leadership of Jesus as our model of leadership as pastors. We were looking at the example of Jesus’ washing the disciple’s feet and then turned our attention to the ultimate expression of servant leadership – the Cross. As I preached the Cross and came to a climactic moment in my description of what Jesus did for us there, something happened the likes of which I have never before experienced. Suddenly, as I was in mid-sentence, one male voice from the congregation began singing, then more voices joined in until every person in the room was singing… Tukutendereza Yesu. Yesu mwana gw’endiga. Omusaayi gwo gunaziza. Nkwebaza Omulokozi.

We praise you Jesus,
 Jesus Lamb of God. 
Your Blood cleanses me,
 I praise you, Saviour. We thank you, praise you, Lord Jesus. Jesus, the Lamb of God. Your precious blood has now cleansed me. I praise you my Savior.

Responding to beauty is what they were doing – not my preaching, mind you, but the beauty of the Gospel.

I admit I did not know what was happening at first. I wondered if they had decided for me that my sermon was over. But what I learned later from one of my students is that this is one of the ways Ugandan Christians will sometimes respond when they are deeply touched or moved, particularly in a corporate gathering of God's people. The song is Tukutendereza Yesu, the theme song of the East African Revival of the early-mid 20^th century, and it is a beautiful expression of love and devotion to Jesus.

So as amazing as a beautiful sunset is, what Jesus has done for us is much more breathtaking. Do we respond not only in corporate worship but in all of life? How are we responding to the beauty of the Gospel, to the breathtaking wonder of the love of God for us? Does it lift our eyes and hearts and voices in worship? Does it move our hearts and hands and feet in service and in love? There is so much need around us in Africa and in America and everywhere in between. Let’s respond to beauty…with beauty, the beauty of voices lifted in praise to God, the beauty of lives laid down in loving service of brother, sister, neighbor, friend, orphan, widow, prisoner.

For the beauty of the Gospel,

Tim

We continue to need your prayers for this African Adventure; here are a few specific requests that we need focused prayer for right now:

1)   Eight days and counting until Andrea and the girls depart on their journey to Uganda and there are a lot of details to pull together in this final week of preparations, and Andrea is having to carry load without my help.

2)   Hannah has been sick a lot lately, particularly the last week or so. No clear diagnosis yet but she feels sick and has very little energy. Please pray that she would get well before the trip and/or that we could find out what it is so she can receive the medication or treatment she needs before they leave.

3)   Please pray for the health of Andrea and the girls before and during the trip over here.