Compelled to Create

Change

Turbulence is life force. It is opportunity. Let’s love turbulence and use it for change.

Ramsay Clark

Turbulence…that is a good word for the feeling.

The artwork above is something I did about three years ago, at a time when change seemed to be at a frenzied pace. That really hasn’t stopped.

I think the thing that stresses us about a lot of the change in our lives is that it is not the change we think we need. The change we want seems to move at a snails pace, if at all. Meanwhile, the changes we don’t want keep us reeling.

The leaf on this piece of art is an actual leaf. I was picking up my husband at work and noticed a bush that looked like it was made of lace. It was really beautiful. But I could tell something wasn’t quite right, so I got out of the car to get a closer look. Every leaf on the bush was eaten by insects. Of course, normally you would see that and think, “Oh, no…someone should get rid of these bugs.” But even something like these insects—these unwanted guests—had created something of beauty. 

This leaf is to remind me that the even the changes that I don’t want can work together to create something beautiful. And, to remind me that the creator of it all doesn’t change, and he is still in charge. 

There should be a consistency that runs through us all. For Jesus doesn’t change—yesterday, today, tomorrow, he’s always totally himself. Don’t be lured away from him by the latest speculations about him. The grace of Christ is the only good ground for life. Products named after Christ don’t seem to do much for those who buy them.

Hebrews 13:8–9; The Message; Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson