A nondescript Jesus.

Yesterday, the late afternoon sunlight seeped through the evergreens outside of our living room window as the sun made its way towards the horizon. Shades of green were visible as the brilliant rays entered our house. Little specks of dust were no longer invisible as they floated through the air. With the family still gone, there was a reverent silence as that ray of light landed on the picture on the cover which read Children’s Bible Stories. Suddenly, I was 5 years old standing in my parents’ darkened hallway, looking up at that same picture. The picture that still haunts my memories... a picture that is so very out of place on the cover of a children’s book. You know the one... long hair and a beard with biblical garb; You know it’s Him... but, there is a seriousness, a sadness... He’s so nondescript. There’s no love in this picture. It reeks of old people; hanging in nursing homes, church libraries, and hallways of the elderly throughout the country. I know what the Good Book tells me... and that’s not You. At least not the You that I know. As You look to Your Heavenly Father, you are worried... You aren’t welcoming. Dark shades... nothing bright... bland colors. SO not You. The image oozes institutional religion and not a personal relationship. It's an Icon; it's not You. Where is the Son that welcomed the little ones to come sit on Your knee? I picture a smile on Your face, and laughter... as You embraced the kids and snuggled them close while You told them a children’s parable. Why is that picture not on the front cover of the Children’s Bible Stories? And what on earth was the artist thinking? And why did a generation embrace this depressing image? Thankfully, I know You... and that’s not You. Never-the-less, this image is still burned onto the back of my retinas... this foreign image that I can’t get out of my mind. And then it hits me... this is the reason that my perspective of God is skewed. I try and fight this perception that He is a serious, reverent God without laughter and without love; Someone to be scared of... rather than One in which you would place your hope. It's a struggle. Where is the artist to explain to me the meaning of this intrusive image? If I never see this image again, it will be too soon. But there He sits, staring at me... a nondescript Jesus.