I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you. Psalm 32:8
Painting by numbers is a system whereby a picture is divided into shapes, each marked with a number that corresponds to a particular colour. The kit will include a brush, little pots of paint in however many colours you’ll need, and a printed outline of the picture. The idea is that you paint in each shape and ultimately the picture emerges as a finished painting. Leonardo himself invented a form of it, assigning assistants to paint areas on a work that he had already sketched out and numbered. The key to the kit, however, is to follow instructions. That was my downfall. Apparently, each kit comes with its own instruction manual, “How to Paint by the Numbers.” Advice is given such as:
- “Paint one colour at a time, from the largest areas of this colour to the smallest.”
- “Working from the top of the painting down helps prevent accidentally disturbing wet paint.” Oops! I should have read that!
- “Keep a jar of clean water for washing your brush to hand, as well as a cloth for wiping and drying the brush.”
- “Don’t dunk the brush into the paint all the way up to the ferrule, just the tip.” Oops! That would have been a useful instruction to follow.
- “Be meticulous about cleaning the brush before dipping it into another colour. You don’t want to contaminate a colour…” No, you don’t!
Now I know that following instructions is for my benefit. The Bible has been described as God’s instruction manual for life. The handy mnemonic device for B.I.B.L.E. is Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth. The Bible makes us wise for salvation and is profitable for instruction in righteousness, as Paul declares in 2 Timothy 3:16-17. The Bible gives us full and complete instruction in how to live our life here on the earth in preparation for an eternal life with the Father in heaven.
Ignoring God’s instructions for our lives will lead to some very frustrating steps. We will enjoy life more when we purpose to live our lives in accordance with our Maker’s instructions. God says to each one of us, “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go.” Proverbs 3 advises us:
Do not forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commandments; for length of days and years of life [worth living] and tranquility and prosperity [the wholeness of life’s blessings] they will add to you. Proverbs 3:1-2 (AMP)
God offers instruction but we must accept it and apply it to our lives. As Charles R. Swindoll phrased it:
Application is the essential link between God’s instruction and change in our lives.
Can you say with the Psalmist:
Your commands are always with me and make me wiser than my enemies. I have more insight than all my teachers, for I meditate on your statutes. I have more understanding than the elders, for I obey your precepts. Psalm 119:98-100 (NIV)