The Blank Canvas
By
John W. Vander Velden
I
awake each day and find a blank canvas. Over my life I have been given all the
brushes and colors I need. As the hours pass, I cover that canvas with lines
shapes and blocks of color, as I alone choose. If I do the task well, I will
cover every square inch before my night’s rest.
You
see it is God that provides that blank space. God provides the pigments…the
bright colors…the subtle shades. God has given the tools I needed. But it is up
to me to take those colors, use those tools to create my own artwork. To cover
each blank canvas as I will.
So
each morning, I face the new day…a blank canvas. I must do what I can with that
slice of my life in a way that is best for me and those around me. I accept the
gift, the time, the tools, and the bit of wisdom I have acquired to make my
artwork worthy of the giver, knowing that, in truth, I am unable to fully
satisfy the value of the gifts given.
But
the Giver does not keep a tally of costs and rewards, and only hopes I use the
gifts I have been given the best I am able. To take each day and use it to make
some sort of difference. Positive acts, even the miniscule nearly invisible
things matter. For you see, when today’s canvas is completed, God will add it
to the others. That each canvas is but a part of the mosaic of my life. Every
brushstroke matters in that collection of my days.
But
that group of canvases never was meant to stand alone. The mosaic of mine is
but a part of a much larger work. A portion of the grand work of billions of
hands and hearts. A portion of God’s greatness…revealed.
And
that knowledge has led me to recognize the grandest color I can use, the color
that should be the foundation of each daily artwork…is love. Love of
others…love for myself…and love of God.
So I
am grateful for today’s blank canvas, and all those yet to be. I am grateful
each day’s failings and successes are but a part of my artwork. The proof of my
human strengths and weaknesses. I am grateful that I am not judged, for good or
bad, by any particular brushstroke. For if I try…truly try to do my best…then I
need not fear, for my artwork, the canvas given and covered, will be found
acceptable.
I
awake each morning and find a blank canvas.
What
will you do with yours?
(446
Words) 12-1-2024
