Day 25 – Hidden Picture

Day 25 – Wow, is it really day 25 already? Very hard to believe and I feel incredibly blessed.

Have you ever just sat looking at a piece of artwork? I used to live in the DC area and as part of my French class; we took MANY trips down to the National Gallery of Art. I could literally just sit and stare at various paintings for hours. Whether it was looking at the various strokes or dots or trying to really figure out what the painting was saying. While I am more of an Impressionism lover, I truly can appreciate almost every aspect of art. Even in the modern art wing, I was fascinated…sometimes morbidly but fascinated nonetheless. At the mall, I always felt art challenged with those goofy 3-D prints that had a picture hidden beneath the other picture you saw. I never did see those.

The point is, sometimes we see things at face value and can appreciate them but at other times, we can see the deeper hidden meaning and value them all the more. I had a youth grouper about 7 years ago that I had to have removed from her home. She had been abused in every way you can imagine. Everyone had given up on her because she had a rough exterior and did not talk much. Every week at youth group, she would ask if I would give her a ride home and asked if we could talk. Every week, she wouldn't share anything and we would just sit and I would ask her questions or just talk. My friends told me to give up, my husband told me to give up, and my pastor told me to not waste my time. God kept telling me different. After a year, she started to tell me everything. I knew I had to help her or she was going to finish herself off either with drugs or by some other means.

She was 16 and I managed to sneak her out of the house and get her a ride to go back to New York to live with her dad. While her situation wasn't perfect in NY, it was better than where she had been. We would talk at least once or twice a week and often at the wee hours of the morning. I just kept telling her to make it to graduation and everything would be okay. Truthfully, I wasn't sure what would happen after graduation, but I knew she needed to get there in order for her life to move forward. There was so much to her and her heart but if you didn't dig deeper than what you saw, you missed out on something incredible. There were many days I would await a phone call telling me she didn't make it. I would just sit and cry and pray. I knew God was watching over her. She did make it to graduation and eventually enrolled in college. I am thrilled to say that she is even graduating college this year. She's had her ups and downs but NO ONE can take that degree away from her as she earned it even in the face of adversity beyond what I can even describe here.

Ironically, she is an artist and has done many paintings over the years. I bought one from her. She was willing to give it to me but I wanted her to feel what it felt like to have something bought and valued. When I look at that painting, there is so much I see because I know the heart and soul of the person that painted it. Furthermore, it means life to me because she made it. It also shows me God's beauty and how He will make everything good. God is such an incredible source of strength when we think we have nothing. I will continue to sing his praises about her because it is ONLY because of Him that she is alive. Next time you want to give up on someone, ask yourself this question, "Would God give up on me?" Dig deeper and see what God sees within. Look beyond the surface and see the hidden picture. He will bless you beyond measure.

"But I will sing of your strength, in the morning I will sing of your love; for you are my fortress, my refuge in times of trouble."- Psalm 59:16