Calm Horizons
A Watercolor in Theological Context
There is a necessary tension in hope, even Christian hope. While we hold to the certainty of eternal life, it is tempered by the near inevitability of death (1 Thessalonians 4:13-17). Yet, we live on the other side of the “death of death in the death of Christ.” Because of this, we can echo the words of John Donne:
Death, be not proud, though some have called thee
Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so;
For those whom thou think’st thou dost overthrow
Die not, poor Death, nor yet canst thou kill me.
The celebrated Rector of St. Paul’s Cathedral stands as an enduring and remarkable example of Christian hope in context. But John Donne was not always the revered theologian and preacher we know. He was once Jack Donne—a ribald, self-indulgent young man whose early poetry reflected a hedonistic life. I often imagine Donne climbing into the pulpit at St. Paul’s, knowing that skeptics mocked him as he preached. Yet, I believe it was precisely this tension—his past and his transformation—that formed part of his anointing to proclaim the Gospel with conviction. He preached certainty through Christ while displaying a humility of theology undoubtedly born of his painful past. He was sure of Christ, less sure of self (Confidentia in Christo, diffidentia in se). And that was his power in preaching and lightening in his lines.
As I painted this piece, I was drawn to the vastness of the sea meeting the endless sky—a reminder of God’s unchanging grace that spans the heavens and reaches the depths of our lives. The soft hues of dawn reflect His promise of renewal, while the steady rhythm of the waves speaks to His enduring faithfulness.
As the psalmist declares: “Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds” (Psalm 36:5-7).
In Christ, no matter the atmospheric visibility of the future or the condemning clarity of the past, there is a calm horizon that guides us and gives us peace in the storm, and hope beyond this world.
In Christ, no matter the atmospheric visibility of the future or the condemning clarity of the past, there is a calm horizon that guides us and gives us peace in the storm, and hope beyond this world.
—Mike Milton