"Mom, I think my painting is a mess." "Mom, I don't think this will turn out
the way I want it to." - These were the remarks I heard from my kids as
they were painting yesterday. They were
seated for hours already and they were starting to become discouraged as they
cannot see how their present "work" can turn out to be what they imagined
it to be. I told them that life is
exactly like that. I told them to focus
on the big picture and work hard on the “details” for no small thing done for
God will be wasted.
Indeed, God
sees the big picture. There are many “little details” in our life that require
faithfulness. Many times in our ‘walk’, we get impatient and we demand from God
the things we desire. Sometimes we view our life as insignificant. We get
anxious not knowing how everything will end up.
As an overflow of last
night’s lesson, we discussed Hebrews 11 this morning. “Now
faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not
seen. For by it the men of old gained
approval ... without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to
God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him. “
Abel,
Noah, Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, Moses (and many more) ... They were tested (Heb. 11: 17), tortured
(v35), mocked and scourged (v36), imprisoned (v36), stoned, sawn in two,
tempted, put to death; they were destitute, afflicted, ill-treated (v37). I am sure there were times they wanted to
give up and I know they all cried to God during these difficult times. They
may not have understood everything that was happening but they had faith in
God. Through this faith, they conquered kingdoms, shut the mouths of lions,
quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, and from weakness
were made strong (v33-34).
As my
kids continued working on their canvass, little by little, we saw the painting
come to life. I imagined Noah building the ark. The work must have been tedious.
People must have thought how foolish he was to be building something for (around)
a hundred years! Noah did not know how the ark would look like in the end but
he trusted God and followed every detail, every command. It took the kids
around 4 hours to finish their painting and another hour to clean up. It was not easy. It was tiring but in the
end, they were rewarded with joy and with a precious lesson they will treasure
in their hearts forever.
In art
and in faith, we all need to work on the “details”. We need to persevere, give our best and not
be complacent. We will not always see
the big picture but God can. That is all
that matters.
