My daughter has become extremely artistic, and very creative. I at once recognize this is the natural age for her to do this stuff and am just amazed by the things she thinks of. In part it’s because she comes up with things like this. After watching Minnie Mouse have a masquerade party, Xoe decided all her little toys needed to get dressed up in costumes. Not that she had anything in the store of Barbie clothes that would fit her animals, so she had to make her own.

I’m trying to remember if I ever came up with stuff like this. Probably, but it’s been a long time ago, LOL. For reference, these animals are, from left to right: a seahorse dressed as a painting, a pony dressed as a rainbow, a bunny dressed as a flower, a pony dressed as a pegasus, and a pony dressed as a unicorn.

Okay, that was purely just me sharing how cute it was. 😉 Here’s the purpose of my sharing.

In addition to this kind of crafty artistic ability Xoe’s discovering, she’s also constantly drawing. And I mean constantly. Ahem. Drawing on any paper she happens to be standing beside, without bothering to look and see if said paper should be drawn on. Drawing on tables. Drawing on bookshelves. Occasionally drawing on walls.

She didn’t do this when she was 2 or 3. Why in the world is she doing it now?? LOL.

It reminds me of how we can be as children of God. We get so excited when we find something we’re good at, something we know pleases our Father. Just like I walk through the house and grin to see Xoe’s latest masterpiece scribbled on the back of a page of my old notes, I imagine God smiles when He looks down and sees us making something beautiful out of the raw material He gives us.

But sometimes we get a little carried away and start drawing mountains on filing cabinets. Sometimes we scribble right over the words God put there to guide us. Sometimes we think that because God gave us an ability, it’s okay to use it anywhere, any time.

I’m having to teach Xoe all over again that drawing is good, but it has to be done on the right things.

Isn’t a lot of life the same way? We have gifts and talents that God has given us. We have callings He has put on us. But just because we’ve discovered those gifts doesn’t mean we can stop seeking Him as to how to use them, where to use them, when to use them.

I try to pray regularly that I am a good steward of the talents He has given me. There are probably times my enthusiasm leads me outside the lines, and God has to draw me back. But just like when I chastise Xoe for drawing on the wrong things, it’s with a hidden smile that she’s so enthused by something like this, I imagine God reacts the same way when we use our imaginations just a bit too much and have to be reined in. He’ll rein us because it’s necessary . . . but I have to think it’s with a hidden smile at how eager we are to use the gifts He gave us.