The aesthetic experience of God, the encounter of the human soul with divine beauty, is more than merely enjoyable, it is profoundly transforming. There is within it the power to persuade and to convince the inquiring mind of truth. This may well be the Spirit’s greatest catalyst for change. Paul alluded to this in 2 Corinthians 3:18 when he said, “We all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being changed into His likeness from one degree of glory to another.” The point is that what we see is what we be! We do not simply behold beauty: beauty takes hold of us and challenges the allegiance of our hearts. Beauty calls us to reshape our lives and exposes the shabbiness of our conduct. It awakens us to the reality of a transcendent Being to whose likeness of beauty we are being called and conformed by His gracious initiative. Beauty has the power to dislodge from our hearts the grip of moral and spiritual ugliness. The soul’s engagement with beauty elicits love and forges in us a new affection that no earthly power can overcome.

Sam Storms

CATEGORY	CUISINE	TAG	YIELD
Dairy		Appetizers, Cheese	4	Servings

INGREDIENTS

1	cn	Crescent rolls; refrigerated
1		Round brie
		Butter; melted

INSTRUCTIONS

Take two triangles of crescent roll dough and press them together to form a
square, repeat with other 6 triangles. Cut round of brie in half heigth
wise (you should have to rounds now). Form two squares of dough around each
round to completely cover. Brush with melted butter. Follow baking
instructions as given on crescent roll package.
Posted to MC-Recipe Digest V1 #950 by "[email protected]"
<[email protected]> on Dec 8, 1997

A Message from our Provider:

“St Valentine found true love – Jesus”

Genuine evangelical contrition – as opposed to legalistic, fearful sadness simply owing to threats – is a sorrow for not having holiness. But now you have to be careful here. It is possible to weep over not having holiness not because you love God and want to enjoy all that He is for you in Christ but because you fear the punishment that comes for not having holiness. Many a criminal will weep when his sentence is read, not because he has come to love righteousness, but because his freedom to do more unrighteousness is being taken away. That kind of weeping is not true evangelical repentance. And it does not lead to radical Christian obedience.

John Piper