I have always been enamored by watching artists put on a show as they paint their creation in front of an audience. To me, it takes guts to put yourself out there, but even more so, intense focus and vision. They see the end result and keep it hidden from the audience until the time is just right.
Whether entertained by a sidewalk chalk artist outside of Faneuil Hall in Boston or growing up watching Bob Ross on TV hypnotize his audience as he dabbed and brushed and mixed what seemed like simple techniques into a complex landscape. It just amazes me how it all just calmly and peacefully comes together into something beautiful in the end.
While I would like to think this is how God orchestrates life, my experience has been a little different. No, my life has been like a wild painter on stage with a huge canvas, buckets of paint, and tarps all around, loud, intense, heart-pounding music playing, and a real-life Fantasia exhibit going on. Paint flying in every direction, fast rapid movements hammering the scene in some areas, tiny quick little additions in others. Total chaos unraveling for all to see, with no clue where things are going to end up. Then, all of a sudden, the music stops, they flip the canvas upside down, and viola! There's Mick Jagger riding on a unicorn, and everything comes together with the crowd cheering wildly in confused amazement! Yeah, that's how God is painting my life.
"Look around at the nations; look and be amazed! For I am doing something in your own day, something you wouldn't believe even if someone told you about it." (Habakuk 1:5)
Can you relate? There are so many times I've looked back at things that happened in my life and thought: "Ahhhhhhh... I get it now, that's what you were doing". Even more times, I find myself sitting in the middle of the noise, chaos, and confusion, wondering where it's all gonna go. Slinging paint in every direction and praying God's going to do something beautiful with the mess. Begging him to flip it right side up so I can make sense of it. That's where faith comes in. I cling to verses like "All of God's promises come true" and "He works all things together for good for those who love Him" to calm my spirit, put my hands to the plow, and keep moving.
While every now and then we get to enjoy the serenity of the psychedelic calm of Bob Ross while life peacefully reveals itself with a kind smile and disarming voice, more often we are whipping around on a coaster at Six Flags, praying the safety harness doesn't break. Keep your hands and feet inside the vehicle, and have fun with it!
God's promises always come true.
Stay calm, have faith, and keep chopping wood. He’s doing something amazing in your life. You wouldn’t believe it if I told you!
