Growing into God's Apron

Tonight, I baked white chocolate chip dried cranberry walnut cookies, and they weren't for any UCO event. I started building a house out of Legos. I read Calvin and Hobbes. I finally feel like I'm taking a Sabbath, and I've been trying to do so for five days! Writing here every day is a part of this extended Sabbath experience, and I am grateful.

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Growth. How does it happen in the spiritual life? God's shown me a bit about growth through some fun things, like a book called Ella Takes the Cake, a children's book in which a little girl elephant is asked to run errands for her mother elephant who owns a bakery. The child Ella is asked to deliver a really fancy cake, and she has some troubles in trying to deliver the cake. But at the end of the book, the mother comforts and encourages Ella and then asks Ella if she would help her bake in the kitchen. Ella is stunned. The mother elephant gives her an apron, but Ella tells her mother that the apron is too big for her. The mother wisely says, "It may be too big for you now, but you'll grow into it."

God has told me many times in the past several years, "The apron I'm giving you now is too big, but I'm giving it to you so that you can grow into it." Sometimes, I am overwhelmed by God's call on my life, which is made concrete through various challenges in various areas of my life.

The apron metaphor reveals something of God's vision for us. He sees not just who we have been or who presently are but also who we will become. Because in Him there is no past, present, or future, He looks at us, works in us and through our construct of time and space and sees who we will become and wisely gives us aprons which are yet too big. And what if we make a mistake? What if we make a big mistake? It's okay. He's the One who gave us the apron and the tasks that go with it in the first place. He's not looking for perfection but a willingness to be confident and to begin being person who was made to fill out His too-big apron.

So, if we find the Lord giving us something--a task, challenge, blessing, etc.--that is clearly beyond our current capability to manage or steward, we need not worry. This is the apron that is clearly too big for us but that we will grow into. We can take it as a compliment from Him. David was a shepherd boy a field. Mary was a teenage girl. Peter was a fisherman.

Consider how the lilies grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these.

-Luke 12: 27, NIV

Let's grow in holiness as the lilies do--without labor or spinning. Let's allow the Lord to dress us in the splendor of His blessings, His crosses which are always blessing, and His love.