If we give God a willing heart, He will finish the work He started in us, and sometimes, it absolutely take us by surprise.
I have always appreciated art. I love walking through art galleries. I always find a favorite, one that speaks to me much more than the rest.
God placed a creative spirit in me. I played the guitar in my teens. I love to do crafty things. I love to invent new ways to wear clothes. I spent a long season making flower arrangements. I even saw a kitchen chalkboard in a magazine and decided to copy a picture onto one for myself. It's a Starbucks ad, of course.
When I discovered the "Toon Paint" Iphone app, I had a party for weeks. (For those of you who don't know what that is, it's a way to take your photo's and turn them into cartoons. You paint inside lines with your finger.)
Then God spoke to me. He gave me instructions about a specific thing he wanted me to do, In obedience to him I began the journey. I knew he wanted me to include some paintings of creation for a bible study I was writing. Overwhelmed by the idea, he reminded me of my sister Kay's words to me when I showed her my, Toon paintings. "You need to paint." There had been a serious tone in her voice, and I remember smiling. What I thought was, I'm finger painting inside some lines, but your sweet. I did think it was precious that she liked them so much. During this same time, God reminded me that another person had given me a word after church one Sunday many months before. "You'll be using your hands in a new way."
God often uses people in our lives to speak to us. People that we trust. These reminders gave me the courage to try and fulfill the task that I believed God had put before me.
Now, almost a year later, I am half-way through writing my Bible study, and I'm painting almost every day. If I'm not painting or writing, I am praying, or thinking about it.
A year ago, the idea of doing a charcoal drawing of a horse for a friend, or painting my Mother's favorite photo for her birthday, would have never even crossed my mind. Now, what I have come to understand in the middle of the journey, is this. God breathed something into me at the moment of my creation that I never knew was there.
I understand much more about my God than I did at the beginning of all this. I see what He can do. I see how He brings things to fruition for His purpose. He has given a daughter who, from her first breath was amazed by his creation, another outlet to praise him. Whatever His plan is in all this, I pray that it never becomes about me. It is my heart to use this, for however long the season, to bring glory to my heavenly Father.
You may think that I'm making a big deal out of nothing. I know I am not a great artist. But to me, this is a miracle. I am amazed at what He has done with a willing heart.
May I never forget it how impressed I am at this moment with my Father in heaven...
What a journey this "Glory Road."
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