See The Magic!
When we turn fear into faith
God can turn our storms into blessings
We have had several rain storms lately!
When it rains...do you turn your face upward and feel its coolness on your face and allow it to wash away your worries, or do you run inside and wish it would go away?
Some of us could see the rainstorms in our lives as trials that we have to deal with or see it as a very discouraging situation, but at the moment, I’m seeing and counting the blessings that are coming with the rain in the valley and the snow in the mountains.
We’ve needed the moisture for so such a long time. It’s been hard to see that the drought is draining our lakes and ponds! With the need, it’s easy to see the blessings, in fact we have been praying for such a blessing, but there are other times when a rain or storm can become challenging in that it keeps us from experiencing a certain thing that we feel is more important. For example, a storm can really interfere with our plans for the weekend.
Just this week I’ve had an experience that actually helped me to better see the blessings and miracles that come raining upon us when we face, with faith, a challenge or major trial.
I was asked to teach a group of Young Women how to watercolor. Anyone who has tried their hand at creating a painting with this medium knows that it is a very difficult medium to use to express ourselves.
As I pondered on this class and how I would teach them to watercolor and enjoy it, rather than fear it, a prompting came to me to have the girls watch for the miracles or the magic that would happen when they experimented with applying a water wash to their paper and then adding the right amount of pigment, or color, into that water wash. This is a wet-on-wet technique that is hard for many people because there is no control of the outcome. This technique can be enjoyable as we learn to free up our intent or control and turn the results over to divine happenstance. With faith in this technique, we can create a spectacular painting that we could never create using our own devices. It’s amazing how God can orchestrate an event to meet our hearts desires.
The analogy that came with this painting exercise is that we need to give up our control to obtain a desired effect for the magic that automatically happens, if we allow the water to control the outcome. This is the same as having faith in the Lord that He would create the magic or the miracle that we are desiring, when we turn our will over to the Lord and allow His will to make beautiful things happen on our canvas, without our interference.
Miracle : “An extraordinary event caused by the power of God.
Miracles are an important element in the work of Jesus Christ....
Faith is necessary in order for miracles to be manifested.”
- ‘Guide to the Scriptures’ - LDS Library
The same thing happens with our lives. We know what we want our lives to be like. We don’t want trials or challenges. We want to control what comes into our lives and what goes out. We think all is well and great, (or we realize we have no idea how to create beautiful lives) unfortunately, we don’t completely understand the concept....that when we, in faith, turn our lives over to the Lord, He will orchestrate wondrous things that we couldn’t possibly create on our own. When this happens, we might feel like life is out of control and that things are happening that we don’t like ... at all!! ... things that we are not very comfortable with, things that mess with our plan and possibly our purpose! But, if we are patient, we will see that marvelous and sensational things will enter our lives and we will be counting the blessings...the miracles, as they fall from heaven.
When you change the way you look at things. The things you look at change.
Being grateful for the challenges that come is a great way to see things differently. Our grateful heart will become a magnet for the miracles we seek. When we stop focusing on how stressed we are, we will be able to see the blessings .... the magic that is forming before our eyes.
My purpose in having the young girls experience this painting technique was so they could look at their paintings and see that what they felt was a mistake or a difficult technique, could turn out to be a magical mixing of the divine with our life’s challenges; bringing forth the blessings, miracles and tender mercies that will truly bless our lives.
God’s hand in the creation of our lives presents so much more than we could ever create with our own two hands.
I love that life has many learning opportunities. We try to create perfect lives with our limited imaginations, but I have now learned that as a perfectionist, I want to give up my control .... I can see that my imagination is not equal to God’s imagination! He sees what is better for me and He is willing to provide or present it to me .... the only thing is that I have been so focused on my will and desires that I can’t see, I have no idea that He is trying to create a better outcome by showering me with the rains and the storms that will release the blessings.
Years ago when I was beginning to paint or to express myself with watercolors, I knew I had to turn to the Lord for His help to create a painting that I was hoping would bless the life of someone very dear to me. This person needed to know that the Lord was answering their prayers. While working on this specific painting I saw miracles and magic moments happen on my canvas that taught me that the Lord was guiding my hand so that I could do what I desired to paint and bless the life of another. In trying to help someone else see God’s hand in their life, I was taught a very important lesson; God is also guiding my hand and my heart as I paint. He has blessed all my painting adventures since then.
This month’s painting, ‘Raining Blessings’ depicts that blessings are all around us. When the heavy rains pour into our lives we normally focus on the challenges it brings ... but, knowing that the rains can bring the blessings and miracles we truly need, I hope we will not pray for lighter rains but that we will pray for a better umbrella that allows us to stand in the midst of the storm and see the blessings unfold. Gratefully, when we choose to do this, we won’t be the same person that walked out into the rain!
Miracles do rain down from heaven! We just need a divine perspective to see them for what they really are or what they can produce in our circumstance. See with new eyes and come to know that you are unbelievably blessed!
Never lose hope, just when you think it’s over God sends YOU a miracle.
“For behold, I am God; and I am a God of miracles; and I will show unto the world that I am the same yesterday, today, and forever; and I work not among the children of men save it be according to their faith.” - 2 Nephi 27:23
Enjoy the rains- Reach out in faith, See the magic, Catch the blessings!
Love, Jeannie
