Does God Allow Do-overs? Lesson Two from the Art Gallery

As we made our way through the art gallery, I took the opportunity to ask my friend Lisa some questions.  A talented artist herself, I knew she would share her knowledge of painting without making me feel ignorant.  Examining the oil and acrylic dabbed onto the canvases, I wondered out loud, "What do you do when you make a mistake?"

"Well," she replied, "sometimes you can wipe it off.  Sometimes you use a cleaner, and sometimes you just wait for it to dry and paint over it."  "Hm," I replied, "like do-overs.  Too bad there are no do-overs in life."

As I thought about my words and compared them with scripture, though, I realized that there are do-overs in life.  In fact, our whole life is a do-over if we know Jesus Christ as our Savior. 

First, if we have accepted Christ as our Savior, the red stain of our sin is cleansed by the washing of his blood on the cross on our behalf.  "Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow," states Isaiah 1:18.

Second, we can approach God with confidence, knowing that our hearts and our lives have been wiped clean.  Hebrews 10:22 encourages us, " Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water."

Finally, we do not have to allow our lives to be dogged by our mistakes, our sins, and our failures.  The apostle Paul described the ultimate "let it dry and paint over it," approach when he encouraged believers to join him in "forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead."  1 John 1:9 encourages us not to take sin lightly, but when we do, "if we confess our sins, He (God) is faithful and just to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness."  Paul again reminds us that there is "therefore now no condemnation to those who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." (Rom. 8:1)

It is important to remember that we begin each day with a new slate.  "His mercies are new every morning.  Great is Thy faithfulness."  (Lam. 3:23)  Let's make the most of God's gracious do-overs by accepting his cleansing, keeping short accounts with God, and pressing on to the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. 

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Lessons from an Art Gallery

I had the privilege recently of joining a friend at an art gallery to view the works of a local artist.  The artwork was mostly abstract, and as I tilted my head and squinted, trying to force the brush strokes into a familiar form, I heard Lisa's voice behind me.  "It's amazing what a different perspective you get when you step back a bit."

Sure enough, when I backed up, a beautiful seascape emerged from a seemingly random set of brush strokes. I realized that Lisa's sage bit of art appreciation advice applies to life as well.  Some days the bits and pieces of our life seem so random, so disconnected, so purposeless.  Dark moments seem to overshadow the bright ones, and events that come from nowhere appear to disturb the ebb and flow.

It is only when the perspective of time allows us to step back that we begin to glimpse the beauty of what God is creating through the individual colors dabbed into our life.  In the seascape before me, the brightness of the water would not have seemed as vibrant if it hadn't contrasted with the dark shoreline. The shadow of a solitary figure on a beach would not have been visible without the brightness of the sand behind him.

Songwriter Laura Story, in her song "Blessings," shares a similar perspective.  She asks questions wondering if God is using the sad, hard, and painful experiences of life to give us the greater blessing of his presence.

If you are walking through a time in your life that you do not understand, I encourage you to trust that the Artist of your life loves you, wants the best for you, and is creating something beautiful.  Crawl up into His lap, lay your head on His chest, cry if you need to, and know that His arms of love hold you close. Trust that one day, either in this life or the next, you will have the perspective to see just what God is doing, and that it is good.

"And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, who are called according to His purpose." (Romans 8:28)

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