"Wow Michael, that's a nice dinosaur!"
"It's a cat, mom..."
I really enjoyed connect-the-dots as a young boy. You know, that famous art form loved by preschoolers and Scantron-takers alike. I remember that when I’d get a fresh picture, there were all these dots everywhere; some numbered, some not. At first glance, the mess of dots didn’t seem to make much sense. Some of them were jumbled close together, and others were misfit dots that I was unsure would ever fit in the picture.
After staring at the mystery pattern for as long as my preschool attention span would allow (which my family and former Sunday school teachers will eagerly testify wasn’t very long), I’d awkwardly pick up my pencil in my right hand (mom was a lefty, so I always held it crookedly), touch the tip to the first dot, and begin tracing a line between the dots. Soon, an image would emerge. By the time the lead of my off-brand No. 2 pencil had found its way to the end, every single dot had been pulled together to make a nice picture, even the ones that originally seemed like they didn’t quite belong. Whenever I finished, I always felt like a natural Michelangelo, that one painter that was named after my favorite pizza-loving ninja turtle (“Cowabunga, dude!”).
Sometimes I think life can feel a little bit like a giant connect-the-dot picture. There are all these quirks, abilities, strengths, passions, events, weaknesses, hardships, and even pains that we have and experience, and they’re everywhere. Kind of like those dots.
Some of them are numbered. They’re safe, enjoyable, and maybe even a bit predictable. We can see where they fit. But some of them are not numbered. They’re confusing, sometimes difficult, and might even catch us off guard. And then there are all those misfit dots. They’re so far out there that we’re not sure how they fit into the picture, and often wonder if they’re just accidental ink drops or even cruel jokes by a sadistic editor.
But I believe there’s an Artist who sees how the dots should fit, even when we don’t. He knows what every ability might be, which strengths are hiding behind which weaknesses, and how every event could matter, even the misfit ones. He sees the beautiful masterpiece that’s there beyond the ink and space, just waiting to be drawn into view over time if we’re willing to hand Him the pencil.
