<![CDATA[Art Celebrating Life - Blog: Art is more about life than it is about art!]]>

“Seeking the face of God in everything, everyone, all the time, and his hand in every happening; This is what it means to be contemplative in the heart of the world. Seeing and adoring the presence of Jesus, especially in the lowly appearance of bread, and in the distressing disguise of the poor.”
-Mother Teresa

Happy New Year! While there are already so many distractions already present competing for our attention in this new year, perhaps it would be wise to take a step back and refocus our gaze from the distractions of the world to the holy, healing, timeless gaze of Christ.

He is Holy.
"Every state of life leads to holiness, always”, but only if we are open to the grace of God’s gift..." Pope Francis recently spoke these words at a papal audience. Regardless, of our religious background, we are called by God to be holy as He is holy.

His Gaze Heals Us.
An article entitled, "What's In A Gaze?" delves into the importance of looking on the face of Christ. It reads, "This gazing upon Christ — and receiving His gaze — changes us, transforms us, bit-by-bit, healing our hearts and enabling us to entrust our lives to Him. It is this double gazing that I invite you to experience as you read this book (The Diary of St. Faustina). Don't attempt to consume it quickly, all at once, but sit for a while with each entry. Ponder it to make it your own and allow it to touch your life. Take the time to contemplate the face of Jesus. Get to know Him and listen in your heart to what He wants to say to you today through Sacred Scripture and the Diary of St. Faustina."

His Gaze Transcends all Time.
There is a very old hymn that goes, "Though the mountains may fall and the hills turn to dust, the love of the Lord will stand." Christ's love is the one thing that we can count on, the one reality of life that never changes. People change, relationships start and end, but the love of Christ is timeless, it will never change or cease to be. Take a moment to shut out all of the cares and concerns of daily life and get lost in His loving, holy, healing gaze.