I always wanted to be an artist because artists feel. They don’t just think about things as other people do, they intentionally feel. Another reason I wanted to be an artist was because my older brother, Rick, was one. He even went to Savannah College of Art and Design! His beautiful drawings and paintings lined our dining room walls while I was playing my flute in marching band. haha! I LOVED band! BUT—I always wished for my brother’s talent. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t draw or paint. In fact, I still have a love hate relationship with pencils and paint because they never do what I tell them to do. ANYWAY, our pastor shared a message at church lately that really touched my heart…
“The bible is not a self-help book. It is a love story of a man that did for us what we couldn’t do for ourselves.” (Smiley)
This quote is meaningful to me by itself but hits me deeply in light of the following story…
In his message, Smiley shared a story about a young boy who was left to keep an eye on his sister, who was taking a nap. While his mother was gone, the boy decided to draw a picture of his sister. When his mom returned to the room, it was a pathetic drawing he presented to her—in fact it looked nothing like his sister. Just some scribbles on a page. She took one look at the picture, then glanced down at her son, whose eyes were fixed on her, awaiting approval and praise. “This is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen! It looks just like her!” she said, as she gave him a great big kiss. The artist, now a grown man, as he reminisced about his moment of his childhood, said: “Her kiss made me an artist for life.”
I now have that quote written on page 1989 of my bible (I have a study bible—so there are more pages than just a regular bible. I know you were thinking…1989!? I am NEVER going to read the bible!) …”Her kiss made me an artist for life.” Don’t we all want to be loved like that mother loved her son? He was nothing when she first told him that he was SOMETHING. His drawings were pathetic when she told him they were beautiful. He was just a child when she told him he was an artist. Why? Because he was her son and she saw what he could be. She loved him and believed in him. “Her kiss made me an artist for life.” WOW. She did for him what he couldn’t do for himself. She loved him into the glory of being a real, live artist. (“While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8)
Smiley finished the story sharing that God smiles at us in the same way, when we show him our lives, as we bathe in his grace. He takes one look at our lives: our attempts at being Christ-like, at being “good” people, at having good manners, staying sober, staying pure…our attempts at not judging, not gossiping, not lying, not coveting, not hating…our attempt at artistry, and exclaims “This is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen! It looks just like Jesus!” We might see it as messy and ugly like the little boy’s drawing, and in truth, it is. However, when we are covered by Jesus’ blood, our ransom paid, God does not see those scribbles of a sorry attempt to impress him, he sees instead a picture of Jesus. A perfectly executed drawing depicting who God is and why he loves us and how his glory is displayed in us. He sees perfection because of Jesus’ perfect life and perfect death and perfect resurrection. He smiles at us and kisses us with the most pride a parent could have in their child.
Is that true of you? Do you longed to be loved like that? What if it could be said of you: “HIS kiss made me an artist for life.” What if you let him believe in you and cradle you in his arms with all the pride he could ever have for a daughter or son? What if he could look at your life and say “that is beautiful.” How would that change your life? What could you or would you do in your life if you knew someone thought that way about you?
I know that I have been released from impressing God. Thankfully! Because you know I can’t on my own strength! I not only feel free to be me, I feel free to be an artist for life. People have truly believed in me being a photographer—especially in the beginning before the expensive cameras, the website, the business cards, etc. and I cannot tell you how much it has changed my life! They told me I was great when my photos resembled those scribbles. What those people don’t know is: when they tell me that I am a great artist, I can only think of the cross and the fact that by HIS grace and HIS mercy, I am what I am. Here are some throwbacks from when I first started…
