Your Work Shall Be Rewarded

My little art class members at the nursing home were not as exuberant as usual about their pictures yesterday. One was concerned about the pastel dust on her pants. Another just wanted to watch. Another was frustrated because it didn't look as good as she wanted, and she gave up before finishing. She stopped drawing halfway through class, and hid her picture from me. When everyone left, I sat down with the frustrated one, who always lingers and chats with me after class.

"Why don't you like your picture?" I asked.
"It doesn't look right."
"May I see it?"
Reluctantly she pulled it out from under blank sheets of paper.
"It's terrible," she said.
"That's because you ran out of time and you didn't go far enough with it. You gave up too soon."
"Just throw it out," she said.
"Well, can I show you a few simple things to do to fix it?"
"OK."
I showed her how to outline and delineate her mountains more clearly, fill in the blank areas with more color, and then stand back and view it from afar. She nodded.
"That is better," she said, "But I didn't know how to make those changes."
"Now you do."

If gold is removed too soon from the refiner's fire, the less precious metals do not separate, and the gold is impure, and of less value. The fire must be hot enough to melt the gold long enough to remove the dross.

I understood my elderly artist's frustration. When we know what we want, but we can't get it, it is easy to give up. However, we often give up too soon. Either the struggle is too severe and we lose heart, or we don't know what to do and flounder, or the results are too meager to entice us to persevere. If we just stick with it a little longer, we might end up with a masterpiece, but it is critical we call upon a Master to help us make the necessary changes.
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Zechariah 13:9 

And I will put this third into the fire, and refine them as one refines silver, and test them as gold is tested. They will call upon my name, and I will answer them. I will say, ‘They are my people’; and they will say, ‘The Lord is my God.’”

Galatians 6:9 

And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.

Luke 1:37 

For nothing will be impossible with God.”

Jeremiah 29:11 

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.

2 Chronicles 15:7 

But you, take courage! Do not let your hands be weak, for your work shall be rewarded.”