I have had to control the urge to buy Brand New Juicy
Markers no less than six times this Back-to-School season. (Having just purchase a 50-marker pack
this summer, that seemed more like a Greed than a Need. Bummer!) What is it about those perfect tips? Those strong and flowing colors? That packaged promise of new and
artistic creations?
We love markers at our house. But we also have a thing for dying and dried out
markers. It’s this kind of thing:
 |
| Retired marker cup |
|
|
It's become our Enviro-Friendly, Upcycled, Repurposed Gift Giving craft of choice.
Tutorial
You need:
- About 12 to 20 dried markers
- One clean and tin can, stripped of its label
- A piece of ribbon, about 10” long
- A hot glue gun.
1. Glue
each marker around the base.
Start by laying down a one- to two-inch horizontal bead of glue and
putting two or three markers in place at a time. It helps to keep the can on the table and make sure the
marker bottom is flush with the bottom of the can.
Note: If you are a perfectionist, God help you, and get a
rubber band so you can do a dress rehearsal of how the markers will fit around
the can. That way if you have a
gap at the end you can play with using markers of various sizes to fit the
circumference better.
Another Note: If
you are a math major, you could probably figure out an equation for x pens
= pi * can’s radius to determine
the quantity and diameter of the pens that you will need. But you should really put your problem
solving skills to slowing the world’s climate change problem instead of extrapolating a mathematical formula for crafting…
2. Anyway,
once you get your markers glued on, find a colorful ribbon, tie it in place
over a glue got or two, and voila!
You have the perfect teacher appreciation gift.
3. If
you want to earn bonus points or redeem yourself after forgetting homework and
Media Center books all year, throw in a batch of pencils and a cute tag. A+++!
All this thinking about markers and assessing our dwindling
stash of dried out relics got me reflecting on the Theology of Dried Up
Markers.
In baptism, God makes us—his markers in the world—fresh and
juicy receptacles of his flowing Holy Spirit. And that is very, very good. But if we don’t keep our caps on tight by staying connected
to God and his Living Word, our ink—our ability to color our world with God’s vibrant
love—will dry up.
And we do dry up.
We are human. Flawed. Imperfect.
But that is not the end of the story. (Amen to THAT!) God doesn’t toss us out when we wander
away from him, distracted by earthly things, forgetting our caps under the
craft table, neglecting his word and his will.
He waits. And
he works. And more often than we
realize, he brings us back to him, taking his dried out, crusty, errant
children and rejuvenating us. We
might not be revived with a miraculously never-ending ink supply. But we might be gathered in fellowship
with a bunch of other flawed Christians, set into a new place with a new
purpose, and lovingly shared with the world. With a bow around us, to boot! Talk about being born again as something better!
I don’t know about you, but sometimes I fear that being made
anew in Christ means changing who I am.
That’s hard. I like who I
am. If I change in Christ how does
that change my relationships with loved ones, the joy I get from favorite
pastimes, the comfort of my current life?
When I’m stuck in this thinking it helps to remember that God doesn’t
replace me or completely remake me.
He takes what I am and makes it better. He connects me to others in a new way, in a new
purpose. He works beyond my original
size and shape and dreams up something far more colorful than I could ever
imagine.
It’s like Ann Voskamp said in a recent webcast (I paraphrase…):
As Christians we say “Yes” to who God is.
We also say “Yes” to who God says
we are. He says we are forgiven. Renewed. Made clean.
Made whole. Loved
unconditionally and eternally. God
says our crusty emptiness counts no more.
He says we are each a lovingly chosen receptacle for his grace. A clay jar. A dried up marker. And he uses us and only he can.
This is what I take away from learning God’s lesson about
the Dried Up Markers: I’ve let go of stressing over the ruts and dry spots in
my faith journey. I’ve let go of
my imperfections. I turn my eyes
back to Jesus. I revive my
habits. And I wait for God to work
me into his latest and greatest craft project.
Thanks, God, for being our Divine Creator, for making me new
in you.
Amen.
P.S. If you
have any dried up markers lying around your house that you don’t plan on using,
send them our way. The glue gun
and tin cans are waiting!
