Defining Character

My friend, Audrey, recently went to see a Van Gogh exhibit here in town.  She was amazed at the beauty of the artwork and was describing to me a small, black line on one of the paintings which was not visible except up close.  From far away, it simply embellished the subject in a way that it might not have been without it.

So, what’s the little, black line in your life or mine that helps define our character, who we are?  Very often, it’s something we would never have asked for or desired and yet, it has helped make us who we are.

I recently read  a story of a man who had a moth in a bottle-shaped cocoon which meant there was a very narrow opening through which the moth – ideally – would escape, without altering the shape of the cocoon.  As the moth began its attempted exit, the man watched with great interest.  The moth struggled and worked, trying to break free.  The man continued to observe the process.  When he could stand it no longer, he opened the end just a tiny bit to offer freedom to the exhausted creature.  But, the wings were small and lifeless in the absence of the labor and struggle for which it was designed.  Alas, the moth could only crawl and suffered a short-lived existence rather than that for which he was created.

Imagine a God who loves us enough to allow us to struggle to break free so that we might be strengthened for our journey.  The things we go through define who we are.  Those “little, black lines” may not be visible (except up close), but they help to mold us each into the person we are meant to be.  Sometimes those experiences can be shared in order to help someone else make that “transition”.   God doesn’t waste anything.  Is there someone He’s asking you to help in some way?

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we may comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.”   (2 Corinthians 1:3-4)