Forgiveness by  the Number

What do you say, Dear Reader, when asked what your hobb(ies) are? That’s a tough question for me to answer. I’ve done school for so many years, I’ve never landed on anything that kept my attention for long. Or I hadn’t until I tried something with my granddaughters.

I love summer when Annalyn and Gracie come for extra visits! A couple of years ago I got all three of us paint-by-number kits to do together. The girls weren’t real impressed, but I kinda enjoyed it.

It really surprised me since I literally cried my way through the college art course I was forced to take. Honestly, I thought I was going to flunk. But there’s something about paint-by-numbers that appeals to this OCD person.

Before I painted the first stroke, I did something I rarely do. I decided up front that the picture doesn’t have to be perfect. It really doesn’t have to look exactly like the box. That’s a HUGE step for me, Dear Reader!

So far, the time I’ve spent painting has given me more pleasure than I remembered. Have I gotten a bit out of the lines? You betcha! Not on purpose, but I’m such a novice, and it shows.

But, you know what? It doesn’t matter, IT REALLY DOESN’T. Maybe I’ll get better at painting, maybe not since I’ve shown very little artistic ability up til now. And that’s okay.

​Painting by numbers is teaching me far more about forgiveness and grace than painting.  

Isn’t that amazing, Dear Reader! The Lord knows we’re doing the best (most of the time) with what we have to work with. He knows we’re not perfect, and loves us anyway. How cool is that?

Come on, Dear Reader, let’s get messy! Let’s try something we know may not turn out well, but choose to do it anyway. Let’s give ourselves permission to be just as the Lord made us, and cut ourselves a little slack along the way.