The Artist's Paint Box

In 1987 I had just got out of college and was working as a teacher. I wasn't a starving college student anymore, but actually had some money! I wasn't married yet and didn't have any kids. One of the first things I bought was a real artist box for paint and an easel. I felt like a real artist and everything.

A couple years later I was visiting with some friends who went to our church. One of their daughters wanted some painting lessons. She had some acrylics and I helped her make a painting. As we were working, the Lord dropped in my heart, "I want you to give her your paintbox."

I immediately started to protest. "Do I have to? Are you sure this is what you want?"

"What I want," the Lord replied, "is for people to do things for me because they want to, not because they have to."

That settled it. We had just heard a sermon about the woman that broke the alabaster box. If she could surrender something worth a year's wages, I guess I could part with this. I gave her the paint box. Not with any paint in it, just an empty box. If you're an artist you know that these aren't cheap and if you're a parent, you know you don't usually have money for extras like that.

I never said anything about this to anybody until today. There were times when I've looked around at things at Michael's Art Supplies and said, "Hey God, you own the cattle on a thousand hills -- how about you get me one of these portfolios?"

Yesterday a colleague at school told me that they had a relative that died and had a bunch of art stuff. Did I want to look at it and see if I might want it. Here is what they gave me.
Not just a paint box (filled with oil paint) but a box for carrying wet canvases, canvas panels, stretched canvas, brushes, watercolor paint,and two (count 'em), two portfolios. That's not all, just about everything a painter would want was in there. As I drove back home with my treasures, I wept a little. I was humbled and broken by the faithfulness of God.

We've been going through something that isn't very pleasant, and we've been stressing a little. But through this blessing today, God's showing me that no matter what happens, it's going to be okay. He is going to take care of us. He is faithful.