December 31, 2017

Sunday Devotional With Mr. E: Use What Ya Got

Collage is one of my favorite techniques in creating art.  There is so much versatility.  Pieces of colored paper void of meaning, purpose, and value can become bold, beautiful, and imbued.  Images in magazines that normally would be discarded can be repurposed.  Even old works of art can be cut up and given knew life.  You literally can take pieces of trash and transform it into works of art.  Scraps of paper that others might throw away become centerpieces of beauty.  It is truly amazing how things can be used in ways that they were not originally intended.  The potential is in how the artist sees the material.  If they view it as unusable...it is unusable to them.  However, if they view it as a means to create something of beauty....they will find a way to utilize it in their work.


And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
Romans 8:28

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.
2 Corinthians 1: 3-4

Life can be extremely difficult.  We can feel the struggles we have gone through/are gone through do nothing but create hurt, challenges, and destruction. We may feel no good can come from such times.  I want to say that I'm sorry if you have been in the midst of one of these seasons in your life.  I'm also extremely sorry if people have tried to sugarcoat your pain.  So many do not know how to handle difficulties in their own life or the life of their friends.  They end up saying things out of this ignorance.  I don't believe they are being malicious, but they can cause hurt feelings & confusion as you try to deal with what you're going through.  As a believer, please know that God is always with you...even when you feel completely alone/abandoned.  He desires to help you through your struggles.  He desires to help you through your disappointment.  He desires to hold you close when you feel alone/abandoned.  He is with you.  He also wants you to take these times & what you have learned/are learning and use it to bless others.  Yes, even the ugly things we go through can be used for His glory & honor. Some may want to get past that time and never look back again at what caused them pain.  Some may not know how they can use those times in their life.   God sees them as opportunities for us to reach out and minister to others who might be going through the same things or something similar.  The beauty is not in the cause of our struggle, but in the potential God has to use us in new and beautiful ways to reach others with His great & powerful love.  The difficulty, struggle, and pain can become part of the beautiful work of our life if we all God to use it. 

4 comments:

  1. Once again you ring true! Collages are really wonderful as a metaphor for life! And I am partial to paste papers, taught to me by calligrapher Rosie Kelly. With my k-3 students Mostly use tissue papers and liquid starch as glue.

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  2. Thank you so much for these wonderful words of wisdom!

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  3. Thank you so much for these wonderful words of wisdom!

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