crafts by me...

“Those who listen to instruction will prosper; those who trust the Lord will be joyful.” Proverbs 16:20

 

Trusting God to lead is the best way to follow!

 

I teach a Sunday School class of Kindergarteners and 1st graders. They are so bubbly and anxious to do. The first question one of them always asks when coming into the classroom is, “Are we going to do a craft today?” Which, of course, is quickly followed by the second question, “What are we having for snack?” Sigh… I love those kids ☺

 

Most of the time we do make a craft, and I will have a sample all made up so they can pretty much see where things will be colored, cut, or glued. Sometimes, however, I either don’t make a sample or I do, but I leave it at home. I always have extra materials, so on Sundays like that I’ll sit and walk them through the process. The first instruction is always "do what I do, and don’t try to figure it out on your own…"

 

Inevitably, one or more of the little ones will think they know best and will attempt to make the craft without following my instructions. Of course, without seeing what it’s supposed to look like and without listening, the craft comes out nothing like what it’s supposed to. There’s some correcting that has to take place (with both the child and the craft!), so with love and patience and understanding, we walk through the process, and then we move on to enjoy the end result.

 

Aren’t we like my kiddoes, sometimes? God says to us, “This is what we’re going to do. Now follow my lead.” We think we can figure it out, and honestly, like my Sunday School kids, we get so excited to “do our craft” that we run ahead without waiting for the instructions. When we do, there’s some correcting that needs to take place (both of us and the “craft”). Aren’t we glad at that point that we have a loving, patient and understanding Teacher!

 

The Proverbs tell us that “those who listen to instruction will prosper; those who trust the Lord will be joyful.” So… although God will work with us throughout the process, the truth is that when we listen before doing, when we trust that the Lord Who has called us to do something will know the best way to do it, when we follow His lead and don’t run ahead, we will prosper. We will see the thing accomplished in the way God intended it to be accomplished. It is then that we will feel the joy of having listened and acted in accordance with God’s instruction.