The Baltic Centre on the Gateshead side of the Tyne is one of those buildings.
This morning I was in there.
On level 3 there is an amazing exhibition.
The work is by Janet Cardiff, a Canadian artist who has reworked the renaissance Choral work for forty voices Spem in Alium Nunquam habui written in 1573 by Thomas Tallis.
The exhibit consists of forty seperately recorded voices played back through forty individual speakers.
So basically you sit in the centre of a circle of forty audio speakers and listen to the forty voice motet.
I kind of got lost in the beauty of the thing.
As I sat amongst the specifically arranged expensive speakers neatly lofted on silver stands, I quickly had an experience of unforgettable quality.
Whichever way you turned or listened or looked, you were surrounded by beautiful sounds. You couldn't get away from it.
At all.
No escape from the beauty.
Two things happened.
First a scripture pierced my internal vision.
Psalm 139:
You have searched me, Lord,
and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise;
you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down;
you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue
you, Lord, know it completely. You hem me in behind and before,
and you lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too lofty for me to attain. Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast. If I say, "Surely the darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me," even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you. For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place,
when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body;
all the days ordained for me were written in your book
before one of them came to be. How precious to me are your thoughts, God!
How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand—
when I awake, I am still with you. If only you, God, would slay the wicked!
Away from me, you who are bloodthirsty! They speak of you with evil intent;
your adversaries misuse your name. Do I not hate those who hate you, Lord,
and abhor those who are in rebellion against you? I have nothing but hatred for them;
I count them my enemies. Search me, God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting. (Psalm 139:1-24 NIV)
And in that moment as these words spilled lavishly into my hearts space, the second thing happened.
My mind projected the beautiful images from a day on my holiday recently.
I had taken my 3 year old granddaughter for a paddle in the sea.
She was so excited.
I stood on the edge of the sea and watched as she ran straight into the freezing foamy sea and back out again.
And then again.
And again.
For about an hour!
As I watched her splashing and giggling, watching her fascination with the small waves that occasionally knocked her over, I suddenly for no reason became quite overcome with emotion.
I was guarding her with my life.
Whenever the gentle waves knocked her over I was ready to run into the sea and pick her up again.
I marvelled at her innocent fascination and her thirst for fun. I laughed at her fearlessness and determination to stay in as long as she possibly could.
I was watching over her.
I loved it when she would glance back to make sure I was around.
My heart melted when she wanted to show me what she could do, like jump over a little wave or splash the seawater everywhere.
I felt strong love.
My granddaughter can never escape my love.
I think I realised there and then what the reason for the sudden emotion was.
I knew in an instant that this is what God does with me.
With us.
He watches over us.
This is what God feels for us.
And according to his word?
We cannot escape his presence.
We can never escape.
Whatever we do, wherever we are we cannot get away from him because he is always watching.
I guess the problem is we don't always glance back to make sure he is still there.
But he is.
As I sat in the centre of forty recorded voices, there was beautiful sound whichever way I turned.
I think the same can be said when we sit in the centre of Gods presence.
I felt an overwhelming urge to write this today, so I guess maybe someone simply needs reminding that God is watching over us.
He is there.
As I watched my gorgeous little princess of a granddaughter from the edge of the sea, I was totally reassured of that fact.
So whatever is going down for you today.
You cannot escape from his presence.
If you glance back at him, you may get lost in his beauty.
