Are You Modeling Life After The Right Picture?

“But these people have stubborn and rebellious hearts; they have turned aside and gone away.” —Jeremiah 5:23

When I was a kid I used to love to put together models. There was no greater feeling than getting a cardboard box wrapped in cellophane with the picture of a ’57 Chevy, black with orange flames, on the front. Or maybe an F-16 jet fighter. Or a replica of the Santa Maria.

I get goosebumps just thinking about it.

As soon as I got home I’d tear open the box and lay out all the pieces in front of me on my kitchen table. They were plastic, of course, and the various shapes and sizes were connected by a plastic framework skeleton.

I had special scissors for cutting the pieces off the frame; a special paring knife for trimming off the excess plastic; three sets of tweezers of various shapes and sizes for placing the delicate pieces together; a special chamois cloth for wiping off the excess glue; a selection of paints in small glass bottles; a magnifying glass, just in case; and, most importantly, I had a white linen table cloth that everything sat on.

Putting together models was one of the few things I did slowly. I’d usually time myself if I had a puzzle to put together. I’d speed read anything that was set before me. Mealtime was a hurry up and eat as fast as I could event.

But models ... oh man! That was something else.

Everything had to be put in exactly the right place. Every piece had to be checked and double checked against the instructions. The picture on the box had to be looked at in great detail after each piece was put together. The paint had to be blended to match the box perfectly.

After it was all said and done, there was a special shelf just for my models. I didn’t have a place for my PeeWee football trophies or Boy’s Club baseball plaques. But my model shelf was the envy of any kid who came into my room.

Sometimes I wish life was more like a model car. I wish we had the step-by-step instructions to go by. I wish we had the beautiful picture of what a finished life should look like.

I wish we could trim the pieces that don’t fit and that everything would fit together the right way.

I wish I could cover up the mistakes in life with an extra coat of paint. At the end of the day, I wish I could display a life that looks even better than the picture on the box.

The sad thing, though, is life doesn’t work that way. Sometimes the pieces just don’t fit. Sometimes a piece is missing entirely. Sometimes the glue is too sticky or the paint doesn’t mix. Quite often, it never looks like the picture on the box we’re trying to imitate.

But I think we’re all looking at the wrong box. We think beauty is skinny. We think intelligence is money. We think faith is morality.

We get our models confused and end up thinking that what beauty is, is not the way we look. Or intelligence isn’t reflected in our back account. Or we substitute our moral outrage where faith should apply.

If we could see the real picture that God painted for us, then maybe we could change the way we see ourselves. After all, we’re made in the image of God. And I can’t think of a more beautiful model than that.

The Blessings of Our Lord Jesus Christ Be With You!