Joy: 37-Day DevotionalSample

Recently, we decided to repaint our kitchen. My daughter, who is very artistic and loves to paint, decided she wanted to help. So my precious, persistent preteen grabbed the roller and without instruction began the task. While silently gritting my teeth, I stood back to watch as she loaded the paint roller with enough paint to cover the whole kitchen. She then began to paint the wall leaving gaps in the area where she was painting. I tried, to no avail, to direct her gently. At first, she ignored every instruction given, because she had all the knowledge she needed to do the job (or so she thought). She had watched numerous YouTube videos and painted countless canvases. You see, she had many facts about painting but no wisdom to perceive that she needed direction from me, no wisdom to discern that what she was painting was different from her familiar canvas. After a while, she stepped back to admire all her hard work and realized it didn’t look at all as she imagined. Once it hit her that she had made a mess, even though she was trying to help, she began to ask for my guidance. With help from me and humility from her, she was able to paint the wall as I had originally intended.

This picture reminds me of how we treat God in our lives. We take the paint brush and begin painting. We have some knowledge and some facts but no wisdom of the canvas He’s given us. We end up making a mess because we’re too proud to ask for help, or we want all the glory for the finished product. It’s only when we place the paint brush in God’s hand and take His instructions that we begin to see a perfectly painted picture. 

Heavenly Father, I pray we would be women who learn to seek you humbly. Lord, help us develop a healthy fear of you, knowing that this kind of fear leads to wisdom.