Whittling

A long time ago I used to play music. In fact, sometimes I even wrote my own. As I’ve been going through my stuff, preparing for time out of the country, I found a couple copies of my CD. Good times – decent music.

Most people who have heard the CD all have the same favorite song. But my favorite song is different than theirs. And my favorite song from that CD isn’t even the whole song. Rather, it is the bridge.

“Whittle my life down, to the shape of a crown, that I can lay down at your feet.”

That line, that melody, has stayed with me over all of these years.

There is this idea that all of the good things that we do in our lives will be turned into crowns. Or maybe our life is a crown and every good deed is a jewel or ornament added to that crown. And then, when we finally come face to face with Jesus, we take that crown off of our head and lay it at his feet.

 

I love that idea.

Here is my life – a block of wood. And over the years I take, or whittle, a little piece here and a little piece there. And now, 35 years later, that block of wood is starting to resemble something.

But, it’s not quite right.

I get all these ideas for how I want my life to look. And so I start trying to whittle my life to look that way. Then I get distracted. And I change my focus, and so I start on a new design.

Now that block of wood is starting to look like an indecisive mess.

I’m not a great wood-worker.

But, I know someone who is. Jesus – take the knife from my hand please.

And if I let him have my life – that block of wood – he starts to form it into a plain looking crown.

I don’t think he’s making me a crown because he wants another crown thrown at his feet. I think he might be trying to remind me of who I am…

And so I give my chunk of wood to the carpenter. I don’t want to have all my own ideas for how my life should look.

And you know what? I’m starting to think that if my life ends up looking like a piece of wood shaped like a crown – that will be just fine with me.