Chips, Chisels and Choices
One day the great Michelangelo attracted a crowd of spectators as he began to work. One child in particular was fascinated by the sight of flying chips and the ringing sound of the mallet as it struck the chisel. The master was focusing his attention on a large block of white marble with such intensity and was pouring so much energy into his work that word quickly spread and a crowd grew. Unable to contain her curiosity, the little girl dared to ask, “What are you making?” He paused, took a step back from his work and then replied confidently, “I can see there is an angel in there and I must set it free.” Every person of faith at the moment of their confirmation or conversion begins to work on what could best be described as a large marble block called ‘themselves’. For the first time, they begin to see something hidden within, something beautiful, something alive, but also something that must be set free. For the first time, we awaken to the possibility of a new a spiritual existence waiting to be released! It is at this point that the real work must now begin. With passion and a deep conviction, we must take up the mallet and under the guidance of the Master, set to work removing the hard outer layers of selfishness, jealousy, and pride. But with each swing, with each flying chip, we are releasing more of our true selves. Faith, it seems, requires both the vision of an artist and the tenacity of a sculptor. There is a creative, personal aspect to our spiritual growth that will be uniquely our own. Our relationship with God and others will be an expression of our unique personality, temperament and talents. We all respond differently to the Spirit of God much the way we respond differently to a piece of music or a favorite movie. Some will tend to be solitary and reflective, while others are engaging and experiential. But regardless how you approach it, it’s all the same Spirit, all the same faith, all the same Lord. Faith also requires a relentless pursuit of perfection. It is this desire for perfection, ‘holiness’ if you will, that drives a sculptor to never be satisfied with ‘close enough’ but to labor tirelessly to clear away the hard outer layers to reveal a deeper beauty. It may takes years, perhaps even a lifetime of work, perseverance and faith, but perfection is always worth it. Yet despite the labor and sweat, every true artist and every gentle saint considers it a labor of love. I consider this process The Art of Making Disciples. Religion, church and routines are not our goal, BUT we must first start there. They are essential if we intend to learn the skills and develop the vision necessary to see more than a cold block of stone. Now there are many types of churches, but their purpose is essentially the same, to awaken a deeper spiritual awareness, to teach the skills a mature artist needs and to encourage the relentless pursuit of perfection. We are ‘disciple-in-residence’ because we believe there is more to us than meets the eye and must set it free. At the end of September I sent every active member of First United Methodist Church a Covenant Packet. The purpose of this packet is to encourage the artist within you to dig a bit deeper, to uncover a bit more of yourself and to release more faith, even if it’s only the faith of a mustard seed.What you do with this packet is critically important because there’s no such thing as an indifferent artist. The choice is yours, just as it always has been. Blessings Making a Difference Covenant Packet
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