We’ve been back in Kenya for nearly two months now, getting resettled, catching up on work that was set aside while we were away, and trying to reconnect with our kids here. We have had a busy few months, repairing damage sustained in the boy’s dorm fire in December; teaching the kids about fire safety; gathering annual updates, letters, and photos on our nearly 200 kids in the CRF sponsorship program; pursuing the re-registration of the Home; counseling students who are starting their post-primary education this year; getting our older students off to boarding school to begin the new school year; and studying the new Education Bill that was passed towards the end of 2012 to determine what changes we need to make within our education policies at the Home. Whew! It’s no wonder we are so tired!
With all of the administration tasks we are engaged in, we are having difficultly finding time to engage and connect with our kids at the Home. But we know that mission without discipleship will not bear everlasting fruit. Fortunately, the Kenyan Ministry of Education has now banned Saturday school, so our kids are now free on Saturdays to spend time with us. This has enabled me (Amy) to begin a Saturday art class that has been on my heart for quite some time. My goals for this art class are much bigger than exposing the kids to color, texture, and various mediums. My true goals are to connect on a more personal level with the kids, help them to know God as The Creator and Lover of their souls, and to give them a way to express themselves and the many emotions they carry inside.
We have come to realize that expression of emotion is not encouraged in Kenya, especially among children. So our kids haven’t had much practice articulating what is going on inside of their hearts and minds. And there is a lot going on in there! With all of the trauma, abandonment, and abuse that our kids have lived through, they have much bottled up inside. Without being able to express themselves and share their hearts, healing is limited and wounds often resurface in the form of challenging behaviors. I believe that art and creating is one avenue through which some of our kids may be able to learn to express themselves, and thus experience healing of long-standing wounds.
Last Saturday, I hosted our first group of 12 girls. I shared with them, as I will now share with you, why it can be so thrilling to Create:
Sometimes I create in the garden. I love digging my hands down into a patch of soft dirt and arranging plants by height, leaf color, and texture. After many days of laboring, watering, and weeding, I have a place of peace to relax and enjoy the beauty of God’s creation.
Sometimes I create with fabric. I get excited when I find fabrics that fit together in color, style, and pattern. After many hours at my sewing machine, I have a quilt that I can snuggle under on a cold, rainy day.
Sometimes I create with paper. I find great satisfaction in creating a special card for a friend that reflects her personality. I love to be able to give her that gift with a special note inside telling her what I appreciate most about her.
So creating is two-fold for me: First, I find joy in the process of taking various parts and pieces, and binding them together into something beautiful. Then, I find satisfaction in using or enjoying the creation I’ve made. Each thing I’ve ever made started with a plan in mind...an end goal, a purpose for creating it.
It’s no wonder I enjoy creating so much. After all, I was created in the very image of the most artistic, masterful Creator of all time.
Genesis 1:27 “God created people in His own image. God patterned them after Himself; male and female He created them.”
God, the Creator of the vast universe, as well as every beautiful flower and butterfly, made YOU. And He made you in the image of Himself. In Psalm 139, David says, “You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb. Thank you for making me wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous--and how well I know it.”
First, God enjoyed the process of creating you. Now He delights in the end goal, the creation: the person of you! He is your Loving Father, and He desires a deep and personal relationship with you.
God did not just create you randomly. He calls you His masterpiece! Ephesians 2:10 says, “We are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things He planned for us long ago.” A masterpiece is an artist’s very best, most important work. God did not create you simply because He was bored and needed a way to fill His time. No, He created you for an important purpose...to do the good things He planned for you.
And the things He planned for you are different from the things He planned for your brother, or your sister, or your spouse, or your child. He had a very specific purpose in mind when He created you, so you were uniquely created to serve that purpose. Every single part of you, from the way you look to your innermost being was created with His purpose in mind. No one else in the world can do the work that God has planned for you.
So we each have a choice to make: You can choose to pursue your own plans and purposes for your life; or you can choose to let Him guide you and empower you to do the good things He planned for you, the things that He can only accomplish through you. Do not take this decision lightly, because following Him is not without cost. But if you decide to join God on this incredible safari, I can promise He will not disappoint you. It is my prayer that you will decide today to allow God to use you in the plans and purposes He designed you for.
