may I never loose the wonder

Recently a friend has asked me if I would like to paint her a piece of art for her room. Now, I used to LOVE art, I did it for GCSE and A Level, and they were always my favourite lessons. I found it so relaxing to just sit there with a ton of paints, and a blank sheet of paper or canvas, and just create something, and feel the sense of pride when your piece was finally finished.

I remember during my A Level course, I got to choose the topics for each of my projects. I ended up doing a number of different things, one project I focused on the theme or racism, one I think was a general landscape theme, another was on nature. But my favourite one I decided to focus on the cross, and I ended up creating possibly one of my favourite pieces which I get to see every Sunday as it hangs in my church. 

Anyways, so yeah a close friend of mine has asked if I'll paint her a little something for her to put up in her room after she has decorated it. She said she would quite like to be something based on one of her favourite hymns, The Wonder of the Cross. And I was like 'yeah, thats an awesome idea, it's such a great hymn!'. 

Its been in the back of my head for 2 or 3 weeks now. Every so often I have a little think about what I could paint, what kind of colours I could use, things like that. This afternoon I though to myself, right, lets get out my sketch book again, sharpen my pencils, and get sketching (...because I feel a little out of touch at drawing at the moment, its been a while!).  I put my worship music on my laptop, got all comfy on the sofa, and decided a good starting point would be to write down the lyrics for the hymn. I thought I kind of remembered it. Well, I knew I at least knew the chorus part... 'may I never loose the wonder, the wonder of the cross'. But as I googled the lyrics, and I was writing the down, I realised just how great this hymn is. I'd totally forgotten the rest of the song, and as I reminded myself of these amazing lyrics, I couldn't help but totally agree with them. 

I think we are totally prone, or at least I know that I am, to forget the amazingness of the cross. We downplay it. We are like "yeah, the cross is great, Jesus died for me and now He is alive". We know it, but do we sometimes get blasé about it? Do we sometimes forget to recognise the immensity of it? I know I do. 

As I was reading through these lyrics, God reminded me once more how much he has done for me through Jesus. How much he loves me. And how awesome what happened at the cross is. 

And as I was sat there comfy on my sofa, I though to myself 'gosh yeah, I hope I never do loose the wonder of the cross. I hope I remember every day. How different we would live our lives if we were constantly in awe of God and His work there at Calvary'. 

Oh, precious sight, my Savior standsDying for me with outstretched handsOh, precious sight, I love to gazeRemembering salvation's dayRemembering salvation's day
Though my eyes linger on this sceneMay passing time and years not stealThe power with which it impacts meThe freshness of it's mysteryThe freshness of it's mystery
May I never lose the wonderThe wonder of the crossMay I see it like the first timeStanding as a sinner lost
Undone by mercy and left speechlessWatching wide eyed at the costMay I never lose the wonderThe wonder of the cross
Behold the God man crucifiedThe perfect sinless sacrificeAs blood ran down those nails and woodHistory was split in twoYes, history was split in two
Behold the empty wooden treeHis body gone, alive and freeWe sing with everlasting joyFor sin and death have been destroyedYeah, sin and death have been destroyed
May I never lose the wonderThe wonder of the crossMay I see it like the first timeStanding as a sinner lost
Undone by mercy and left speechlessWatching wide eyed at the costMay I never lose the wonderThe wonder of the cross