Reawakening

The other day I was talking with a good friend and I commented on how God has been reawakening the desire in me to take back up hobbies I used to enjoy.  Hobbies like drawing.  

Like so many other things in my life I didn't think that a childhood past-time was something God would want to use in ministering to others.  But back in grad school I had a dear friend who was going through difficult times.  And her birthday was coming up.  But I didn't have money to buy her anything and I didn't have a car.  

I was discouraged.  And then God brought to my mind the idea of using what I already had available.  I had been writing poetry and short stories so I wrote a poem about horses.  My friend loved horses.  And then I drew pictures depicting key scenes in the poem.

I wrapped up the small booklet and gave it to my friend as a gift, apologizing in advance if she didn't like it.  But the moment she opened the gift she was thrilled.  No one had ever written a poem for her or  drawn anything for her and here I had done both.

It has been many years since grad school and she still has the booklet.  Every time we get together she asks me if I'm still drawing and writing poems.  

Honestly, I haven't been doing much of either one.  I just thought they were not that great and so I stopped.  But the other day I strongly felt God encouraging me to pick up drawing again. So I picked up an old, unused drawing notebook and started drawing whatever came to mind.  I had forgotten the joy of colored pencils and paper.  It is actually very relaxing.

Coming from an artistic heritage I am very critical of my art and don't particularly like seeing how my drawings from imagination always seem to be cartoony.  When I was little I would pause videos of Disney cartoons and draw what I saw on any paper I could find lying around.  I got pretty good at it.  Perhaps that's where I get the style from.

But I know that to get better at drawing I have to draw often and from real life.  So I'll be picking up the habit of sketching everything around me and drawing people I see.  Perhaps I can still improve.   

Only God knows why we have the abilities we discover in life.  Perhaps there are things you can do that you really haven't given time to improving.  Maybe God will encourage you to better those abilities too.  All I know is that He is working a good thing in you and me.  And watching how God uses what we have is perhaps the greatest joy of all.

" There's a young boy here with five barley loaves and two fish. But what good is that with this huge crowd?... Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks to God, and distributed them to the people. Afterward He did the same with the fish.  And they all ate as much as they wanted. After everyone was full, Jesus told his disciples, 'Now gather the leftovers, so that nothing is wasted.'"

~ John 6:9,11,12

The little boy offered what he had to Jesus.  We don't know if he doubted in his heart too but God blessed what little the boy gave to Him.  In so doing thousands of people were also blessed.  Who knows?  Perhaps my drawing, perhaps your abilities, were given to us so that we could be used by God in some beautiful and miraculous way.  Perhaps God has given us abilities to help us support ourselves and our loved ones as the world economy fades away.

We don't know what God has in mind for our lives but we know that it is good.  Ask Him to give you creativity and wisdom to use what you already have for His glory. And to benefit your future so you and others can better serve Him.

Blessings to each of you. :)