Late at night. The swooshing of paint, scratching, dry brushes dipped in paint, only to become dry again. My life has been in a period of waiting, expectation. Each day a moment of pause till our little baby comes. In the evening I write and paint. Two lights point onto a canvas made from reclaimed wood, fractured, forgotten, left by the side of the road. I want to redeem them. I wait for my baby.
The Presence "On the Table"
This verse Exodus 25:30 says to set the bread of the Presence "on the table", like it's no big deal. The table I mean. It just assumes the table exists. Which it does, but not by shear luck or happenstance. It's a table made from pure ingenuity, detailed work. It's a table built with intention.
Our lives with God, living in his presence, are to be the same: beauty in the details.
The table was set on the north side of the tabernacle. Eventually it was placed in the temple. There were a few versions made over the years of Israel's history. One of these was plundered by Antiochus Epiphanes, an enemy of Israel. He was known for slaughtering a pig on the alter of God; which, probably was the most offensive thing one could do. When he raided the temple I envision him coming to the table, tearing into the bread, eating a bit and handing some to his men, and then taking a big axe smashing the table to bits. It was eventually replaced with another.
The Details of the Table
There are many details of the temple. First, it says it was made of two ingredients: acacia wood and then covered with pure gold (v.23-24). The word acacia is a derivative of the greek word akis, which means "thorn." This is because acacia trees have these two inch long thorns. It's quite possible the crown of thorns placed on Christ head before he was crucified was made from an acacia tree. The wood was used for many other things: perfume, ornaments in gardens, healing properties. Ethiopian medicine in the 19th century mixed it with other drugs in an attempt to cure rabies. Probably the most common use is hardwood floors. It makes this beautiful flooring with it's sturdy structure and delicate grains of wood curving and moving up each plank like a white line on the side of a highway.
Second, the entire table was covered in gold; not just the edges, but top to bottom (v.25). It was like those silver men in San Francisco, who cover every detail of their body in all that glitters. The detail of the table was astounding. Then, as if that wasn't enough, poles of acacia wood were made to carry the table, and then covered in gold end to end. This means that, third, as long as those who carried the table were careful with handling the poles, the table of Presence was only touched by gold. This table was a gift of a people to their God representing his beautiful presence with them.
The Gifts of Their Hands
What I find inspiring about this story is the gift of their hands used to make such a beautiful table. Where did they learn to make such handiwork? Egypt, of course. In slavery, they learned to be skilled in many things. Building with wood and overlaying in gold was one of many gifts they had in their skill set. Where did they get the gold? Egypt, of course. As they left Egypt, God put the fear of himself in the Egyptians and they pretty much gave the Israelites anything they asked for, which included the beautiful things made from gold (12:35-36). God is now being glorified by the experiences and spoils they brought out of a life in slavery. We called this redemption. I call this amazing. Nancy and I wait for our little Charlotte to come.
The details of our hands make many things. The particulars of your life are not consequences. They are moments God's put together for you to trust him as you make your life a gift given to him in return for the relationship he's given you. His presence rests on you continually. You are to give him everything. He then takes both the tragedy and triumph of your life, turning the details of it all into something beautiful to celebrate his presence in your life.
The Details of God's Presence
God's presence brings beauty. Like the artist's brush on the canvas we are to center our day in the details of realizing we are in the presence of God: the scratching, drying out, dipped again, the swooshing of paint; the birth of a child.
Here's a few suggestions to help you along the way:
1. Realize what God's accomplished for you. Connect with him as your father in gratitude for all he's done in your life.
2. Understand the gifts he's given you. Use them as a sacrifice for him. Allow him to make your gifts flourish in his presence.
3. Know that there's beauty in the details of a life serving him. The life of the believer finds traction when each detail of our life is turned over in God's presence.
