(by Lorie Codispoti)
The art teacher handed everyone a large sheet of thick, white paper and a box of crayons. We were instructed to fill the canvas with color. Every square inch of white was to be covered with bright, bold colors. I remember spending a lot of time pressing the crayons hard and swirling little bits of color all over the page. When I finished I held up my masterpiece and felt a surge of satisfaction as I admired my work.
But, the project was only half finished.
What?
A collective gasp reverberated through the class. How could we possibly follow those horrifying instructions? The blackness would ruin every picture.
Our teacher was incredibly patient with each protesting student. She encouraged us to trust her, and promised that if we followed her instructions we would leave her class with a picture that was even more beautiful than the ones we were holding. One by one she persuaded us, and we worked until the black crayons were the smallest ones in our box. Every desk now housed a black canvas, along with a despondent student.
After making sure every student followed her instructions and there wasn't a speck of color on any picture, the teacher took her own black canvas and attached it to the easel. She picked up a little plastic tool, shaped like a pencil, and began to scratch a scene through the black wax.
The fine lines of each flower began to bloom with color, and the space above her flowering meadow was filled with colorful butterflies. The beauty that pierced through the blackness was even more vibrant than the colors were before being blackened. The more she scratched through the darkness the more amazed we were. Mesmerized by this newfound magical art, we could hardly wait for the plastic tools to be passed out.
We all live in a classroom filled with many things to be learned, and every good teacher knows that a memorable lesson is one that has the ability to captivate the attention of their students.
You may have worked really hard on the canvas of your life. Perhaps you’ve even found creative ways to fill the white spaces and incorporate every crayon in your box. But what happens when the darkness begins spreading itself so thick that every speck of color disappears? All your attempts to preserve the color are unsuccessful and you helplessly watch the darkness take over your canvas. What do you do then?
You wait!
The bell has not yet rung to dismiss you from class.
James tells us that the testing of our faith develops perseverance. And that “Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” (James 1:3-4)
Trust the Teacher!
With the precision of a skilled craftsman, your Teacher will pick up His tool and use it to pierce through the darkness. With every scratch He will uncover the unique scene He designed for your canvas. Each mark is a reflection of His presence as it makes its way through your life.
Your faith in the Teacher enables you to trust Him, but it does something else. As you persevere through the process and observe how He brings out each hidden color, you will notice how the black layer is no longer positioned in the forefront. The darkness has been moved and now serves as the backdrop for the Teacher's design.
Whether your canvas is the size of a poster board or an index card, every mark serves as a lesson in the timeline of your life. And, until the Teacher rings the bell and dismisses you from class, He will continue cutting through the darkness and using it for His purpose. When the curtain goes up and His light shines on the kaleidoscope of color it will not only mesmerize you, the student, but it will draw the eye of those outside the gallery and invite them to join the next class.
(Would you like to create some scratch art? Here's a link that uses black tempura paint instead of black crayons. https://www.firstpalette.com/craft/scratch-art.html )
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