Just Sit Still

If I knew what would happen tomorrow or next week or next month....If I knew whether my book would be published, if the job would be mine, if the man I love so much would ask me to be his wife….

If I knew what the decision of that reputable school would be concerning my MBA application, if I’d have only daughters or only sons, if I’ll make more money than my parents….

It’s interesting that sometimes we feel that if knew what the next minute or hour or day or even month held, we’d do things a lot more differently.

I’ve often felt that life might have been easier if we knew the future but then again, they would be no surprises or coincidences or uncertainties…nothing to look forward to.


I learnt a valuable lesson recently and I’ll illustrate it in the same way it came to me. I thought about a mosaic maker working on his canvass, with his eyes fixed on the work, he pain stakingly places each tiny piece of tessare (colored glass or stone or broken shell) on the supporting surface. He carefully arranges piece after piece, various forms and unique colors to get the right angle, the right color mix and all the other rights, just so that the mosaic comes out right, just the same way he can see it in his mind’s eye. Eventually, after a while, the painting is finished and put out for display in the gallery along with all the others for everyone to admire and appreciate the uniqueness.



Now imagine that while he was working on the mosaic, the art (mosaic) got tired of sitting so still. It assumed that its maker was simply too slow and must be selfish to not allow it sit in the gallery with all the others (where stories about who looked better and who cost more, went around). So it twisted a little and turned and sighed and yawned and tapped its feet to imaginary music, trying to let its maker know-I’m tired of this. Where does it lead? When would it end? And the maker responds knowingly…just a bit more…you’re not ready yet…a few more precious stones and you’ll be the envy of the whole gallery.



But No! It can’t wait any longer, it just has to go and so jumps off…half finished…half support board-half mosaic. It finally makes it to the gallery and instead of being placed high up for all to see, it is picked up by the gallery keeper who says “This one is not finished yet and cannot be in the gallery, I’ll just hide it somewhere in the dark alley. I’ll decide what to do after the show is over”. The half mosaic screams in shock, twisting and turning in the keeper’s hands. But that only makes him tighten his hold on the art and throws it into the dark alley. With tears running down the little art's eyes, it hears as the door is slammed shut!

Ok, maybe that was a bit exaggerated. But those were my thoughts. Sometimes we feel God is being too slow to act on our desires. Sometimes we can see the light at the end of the tunnel and so we feel we should just run off on our own instead of holding on to God’s unchanging hands. The truth is that God can make a master piece out of the broken pieces of our situations, challenges, issues and even our entire lives.

So the lesson I learnt – is to sit still and let God paint me into the me he wants me to be. To allow him be creative, to work his magic with each stone(challenge) and each broken shell (the issues)and bring me forth as a beauty for creation to marvel and rejoice.

You know what? You should let him too!