March 28 ~ Psalm 25:19-21
Do you see how many people
Have it in for me?
How viciously they hate me?
Keep watch over me and keep me out of trouble;
Don’t let me down when I run to you.
Use all your skill to put me together;
I wait to see your finished product.
Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved.
Nearly all of us have written a term paper at some point. If you were taught as I was, you began with an outline. You thought of the things you wanted to include… and you made notes and lists of the points you planned to cover. Honestly, for a while, the whole thing may have looked like quite a jumble of confusion. You might have even said, “The devil is having fun here… this paper is a mess!” But over time, things came together, and what seemed unconquerable at the outset became something you were proud to present to your instructor… or at least relieved to have finished!
A couple of months ago, I was not paying close attention as I cut the sleeves off a ladies knit shirt to make pants for my niece, Zola. I realized that I had cut the fabric in a way that I had two right legs – or was it two left legs?! At any rate, the outcome was not going to be a wearable pair of pants! I was in trouble. I felt I had wasted a really cute shirt, and naturally I blamed the devil for distracting me and causing me to cut the material incorrectly! But I was determined not to let him win. You can call me silly, but I began to pray… “LORD, what can I do with this? How can I take these pieces and create something useful – and cute – from them?” (I really do pray over mundane things like how to salvage a thrift-store shirt!)
I began to move the pieces of fabric around. “What if I used this piece this way?” I would ask myself. “Suppose I turned those mismatched ‘pant legs’ into sleeves?” And soon, everything was coming together to create a darling dress and matching accessories… all of which looked adorable on Zola and was one of her mother’s favorite outfits to date! God used all of His skill to help me use my skills to pull together a wonderful finished product.
So often, we throw up our hands and say, “So-and-so is out to get me,” or “I can’t win for losing… the odds are just not in my favor.” What we fail to recognize is how God has our back... if only we will keep our chin up and do what He expects. If we will continue to take the high road… if we will stay focused and maintain a positive attitude… if we will trust Him for an outcome… God will put us together into an incredible finished product!
I firmly believe this. I have full confidence that God can make lemonade from “lemons” like us! I am quite certain that operating with integrity brings about positive results…and amazing finished products! You can let the devil and his agents have their way in your life… or you can choose to live for God - and trust His outcomes. It’s totally your call… what do you say?
©2013 Debbie Robus
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