Markers

When I was a little kid one of my favorite activities was coloring. My chosen "tools of the trade" were markers. Now back in the late 80's to early 90's (by far my best coloring years) marker technology hadn't advanced that far. Whether it be in a coloring book, in a notebook, or on any blank piece of paper I could find I'd fill in, scribble, and carefully draw lines only to discover that the marker ink had seeped through to the other side and onto whatever happened to be there. Thus altering it forever.

Much to my disappointment the next picture in the coloring book was "ruined" and couldn't be used. We don't like it when things get past the surface in our lives either, do we? There are some people that we're honest with and allow to see the highs and lows of our depths, but not very many. It's uncomfortable. Dare we even admit that we're afraid? If we really let someone that far into who we are, what are they going to do with what they see there?

What about with God? Maybe disaster strikes in our life so we cry out to God. Maybe we encounter God in an awesome church service, on a great retreat, or even just out in nature. It feels good, doesn't it? But what about when He wants to sink in? What about after the warm fuzzies have subsided and God is saying "Let me get past the surface..." It's uncomfortable. We're afraid. What's going to happen once He's in there?

A.W. Tozer refers to this as "brain-deep, not life-deep." When we encounter God and He wants to begin signing His name to our lives, do we stop to make sure he's just using the pencil... or do we allow Him to use the sharpie so that His ink gets past the surface, past the parts that people see, and gets "life-deep"?

God wants you to be everything you can be. The Bible says that He knows the plans He has for us, and they're good! It might be uncomfortable and it's going to be difficult, but most worthwhile things are.

When God enters your life, what do you really want Him to be writing with?