But I'm supposed to keep at it. A new task. A new outlook. A different way to view the world, a different way to communicate -- that is what making pictures the main mode of my thoughts instead of words in my journal is for me.
But I haven't put pen to paper in my new glorious sketch pad a friend gave me. That is the true test -- I'm afraid to mess it up. But I gotta start.
"Whatever the LORD pleases He does, In heaven and in earth, in the seas and in all the deeps." Psalm 135:6
It's like I'm learning a new language, learning to express myself, my feelings and thoughts in a different tongue. I think about that trip to the potter's house Jeremiah took.
Jeremiah writes in chapter 18, "Then I went down to the potter's house, and there he was, making something on the wheel. But the vessel that he was making of clay was spoiled in the hand of the potter; so he remade it into another vessel, as it pleased the potter to make."
I once took a month-long pottery course. I'm by no means a potter but I gleaned some insight into this verse. Sometimes the clay goes in a different way than the potter intends. So she will squash it and begin again.
But, also I think sometimes the potter may decide to take the clay in a new direction than originally planned. It is not necessarily because the clay shape was spoiled but because the potter has a new use for it.
The difference between God and a typical potter is that the clay God uses (us) can be used and remade and fired over and over. Once regular clay is put into a kiln its life is forever shaped in a particular way (unless you break it -- then its useless).
You know, if we're open to it I think God calls us all to learn new languages -- the languages of people around us -- how they perceive the world. Not so much their literal language (but many are called to that); but to understand how they think; their perspective on life; how they communicate, what's important to them; how they accept and express love.
Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 9, "For though I am free from all men, I have made myself a slave to all, that I might win the more . . . To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak; I have become all things to all (people), that I may by all means save some."
Have you ever heard of Wycliffe Bible Translators? Here's a quote from the Wycliffe website:
"Today about 350 million people do not have any Scripture in their language. Wycliffe’s vision is to see the Bible accessible to all people in the language they understand best. To make this vision a reality, Wycliffe also focuses on community development, literacy development and church partnerships."
I think of these Wycliffe missionaries sitting in huts all around the world painstakingly translating the scriptures into a language they are just learning.
Not that my learning to communicate in sketches is remotely at this level, but if this is what I am supposed to do I can keep at it. And if I can keep at this we can all seek to understand others in order to befriend them, love them and show them how much God loves them. Everyone needs the hope Jesus gives.
Thanks for visiting my blog. Pass it along if you can. Comment if you like (I love your comments). Ask me questions if you like. I'll sure answer -- I'll even use your questions as a blog topic.