You already know what a WIP is...a Work In Progress. A UFO is very similar...an Unfinished Object. I know you're probably thinking about a different type of UFO, but I'm referring to another "crafting term." I've had many UFOs over the years. Projects that I started with a lot of excitement, anticipating the finished product, that somehow ended up on a shelf or in a closet. I really meant to finish the project, but "life got busy" or other things seemed more important at the time or I lost interest along the way. Sometimes I've picked up the UFO with renewed interest and actually finished it. More often than not, however, the UFO remains exactly that....unfinished.
The difference between a WIP and a UFO, basically, is action or movement. Whereas a UFO may sit on a shelf in a closet, untouched, a WIP is "something that is being worked on."
Have you ever had a UFO in your life? Has there ever been anything that you were excited about at the very beginning, that you anticipated the process and finished product? It could be anything...a craft project, a DIY project, etc. Did you know UFOs can also be something like a friendship, a relationship, or a marriage?
It is very easy for marriages to become UFOs. Two people newly in love start a relationship anticipating all the good things in their future together. Then life starts to happen...children, bills, jobs, etc. Life gets busy. Sometimes the day to day of living and taking care of responsibilities fills our lives so much that we forget about the anticipation of the future and how we felt in the beginning.
Sometimes, we, ourselves, can feel like UFOs. We can feel like we're "stuck in a rut" or even feel like we've been "left on a shelf" somewhere. What we need is movement!
God is wonderful in helping a UFO move to a WIP! Nothing is unfinished with his help. He has a plan for each of us. We need only to bring our UFOs to him and ask him to help us "move" in the direction he has planned. Jeremiah 29:11 says "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."
Are there areas in your life that need to move from UFO to WIP? Is there a relationship in your life that has become a UFO? Or do you, yourself, feel like a UFO? Ask Him today for help in moving your UFOs to WIPs, to become a WIP. Find out about the plans He has for you. Get excited, get "off the shelf," get moving! God's got great plans for you and I!
Sunday, June 30, 2013
Sunday, June 23, 2013
Tapestry
Have you ever looked at the back of a beautiful piece of tapestry? A wall-hanging with many colors creating a picture? If you have, you've noticed what looks like a mess of string, yarn, knots, etc. If you hadn't seen the other side, you would find it hard to believe that anything beautiful could come out of that mess.
Do you ever feel that way? Do you feel like nothing beautiful could ever come from your messiness?We all have "messes" in our lives and plenty of "knotty" areas. The truth is that just as the jumble of strings, knots, etc. can create a beautiful tapestry, God can use the messiness, loose threads and knots in our lives to create a beautiful tapestry in each of us.
We are a WIP. So don't give up yet. Be excited! I can't wait to see the WFP!
Do you ever feel that way? Do you feel like nothing beautiful could ever come from your messiness?We all have "messes" in our lives and plenty of "knotty" areas. The truth is that just as the jumble of strings, knots, etc. can create a beautiful tapestry, God can use the messiness, loose threads and knots in our lives to create a beautiful tapestry in each of us.
We are a WIP. So don't give up yet. Be excited! I can't wait to see the WFP!
What is a WIP?
What is a "WIP?" For those of you in the crafting world, you know the answer already. A WIP is a Work In Progress. You don't have to be a "crafter" to have a WIP. If you have a place of your own, you probably have many WIPs. If you have children, you definitely have WIPs. If you have goals for your life, you are a WIP. Many of us have areas in our lives that are "unfinished" or are "under construction." Some may have even put those areas on a shelf somewhere to be visited later.
I am a WIP. I know that I'm imperfect. I know I make mistakes. All...the...time. Do I want to be better, do better, live better? Of course! Do I still make the same mistakes? Of course! This blog is about being a WIP. I am a Christian. What does that mean to me? I follow Jesus. While in print, that sounds trite, but in my life, I really try to live in a way that will be a blessing to others. I try to live as Jesus lived...to love others more than myself, as He loved everyone. I am not always successful at it and am, at times, less than a good example.
Even Paul, in the Bible, struggled with this. He said (Romans 7:18-19) "For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the bad I do not want to do--this I keep on doing."
I do have hope, though, of becoming a WFP a Wonderful Finished Product (my own creation, thank you). Paul shares this hope in Philippians 1:6, "...being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."
Join me in my journey as a WIP. It will be like any other journey. There'll be easy roads, winding roads, mountainous roads, valley roads. There'll be points of interest along the way and mile markers. Whatever the journey, and wherever the road leads, I know He is with me always.
I am a WIP. I know that I'm imperfect. I know I make mistakes. All...the...time. Do I want to be better, do better, live better? Of course! Do I still make the same mistakes? Of course! This blog is about being a WIP. I am a Christian. What does that mean to me? I follow Jesus. While in print, that sounds trite, but in my life, I really try to live in a way that will be a blessing to others. I try to live as Jesus lived...to love others more than myself, as He loved everyone. I am not always successful at it and am, at times, less than a good example.
Even Paul, in the Bible, struggled with this. He said (Romans 7:18-19) "For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the bad I do not want to do--this I keep on doing."
I do have hope, though, of becoming a WFP a Wonderful Finished Product (my own creation, thank you). Paul shares this hope in Philippians 1:6, "...being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."
Join me in my journey as a WIP. It will be like any other journey. There'll be easy roads, winding roads, mountainous roads, valley roads. There'll be points of interest along the way and mile markers. Whatever the journey, and wherever the road leads, I know He is with me always.
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